by Meg Ripley
“Of course.”
“With your life?”
“Well, you just saved my life.”
“Then hold on tight. Don’t let go, don’t look down.”
“What are—?”
The dragon was back, holding her as gently as any mother ever held a child, his massive wings lifting them from the ground and through the broken ceiling, into the midnight sky. The time from when they arrived until this moment seemed like an endless nightmare, and she gasped as the cool night air hit her. Her stomach dropped all the way back to earth, but she kept her long-held fear of heights at bay, focusing on the fact that she did trust him. Even though she couldn’t trust her own eyes and all of this, she did trust him.
He had her. He would never let her fall.
****
Mads wasn’t sure what to expect when they landed, but it certainly wasn’t the sudden burst of laughter that swelled to a torrent of giggles, until she was doubled-over and breathless, tears running down her cheeks.
“Are you hurt?” He finally ventured when the giggles had subsided to hiccups and the occasional chuckle.
“No, no.” She shook her head, “I don’t think so. Mads...you can freaking fly and we take a car everywhere. Hell, we took a plane to LA. A plane. And you can fly!”
“Yes, well, it behooves me to stick with more traditional means of travel. But I don’t like it.”
“You can fly, and you’re a dragon. How long have you been a dragon?”
“For a very, very long time. Come, let’s get upstairs.”
Fortunately, nobody had been standing around to see him land in the middle of the hotel’s courtyard. It wasn’t easy keeping a low profile as a dragon, but it was absolutely necessary. There were only a few left of his kind, and he had survived by being careful and smarter than everybody else. Perhaps that was why the Maelstrom clan resorted to such undignified means to remove him. A spark of anger ignited in his belly at the mere thought of them, but for the time being, his concern for April smothered it. He would deal with the Maelstroms later, and they would rue the day they decided to target him.
“Were you ever going to tell me?” April asked, once they were safely ensconced in his suite.
“No, probably not. It’s a secret.”
“If it’s such a secret, why did you—”
“Why did I what?”
“Why did you turn into a giant dragon and smash through the ceiling in front of me?” She shook her head. “Listen to me talk. You turned into a dragon and I’m sitting here discussing it like it’s something that could happen to anybody.”
Mads inclined his head. “I understand it will take some getting used to. And I did what I did because you were in danger.”
“How did you know I was in danger? How did you even know where to find me?”
That was the big question. One that Mads did not want to get bogged down in at the moment. He could answer any other question, explain any other concern, and try to give her as much information as he could about who he was, but he wasn’t sure she was ready to know the answer to this particular inquiry.
“How did you know?” she asked again.
“I could sense it.”
“How could you sense it? Is that one of your special dragon powers?”
“I could sense it because...well, yes, it is one of my ‘special powers.’ ”
She narrowed her eyes. “That’s not what you were going to say. Please don’t lie to me now, Mr. Durkheim.”
He took a deep breath. He feared the truth would only frighten her away from him, and now that he understood the truth, he couldn’t bear the thought of her leaving. Still, he could never keep her against her will, and obstructing the truth was not a good way to earn her trust. He only wished he had realized it sooner, so he could have time to process it. He’d lived for nearly a thousand years and he was still not prepared for this moment—for this beautiful girl with sparkling, tear stained eyes staring at him with equal parts confusion and...and what? Awe? Fear? Love?
“April, you’re my mate.”
“What? Do you mean friend?”
Mads shook his head. “No, I mean the one I have been waiting for. That’s why...well, that’s why I’ve been drawn to you from the moment we met. When I touch you, I feel as though a part of me has been returned.”
“And how long have you known this little nugget of information?”
“Only since the moment I felt your fear. It called out to me, told me that I needed to go to you, that I needed to protect you at all costs.”
“So...what does that mean? You love me?”
“I…April, it’s not as easy as that.”
“Easy? Love isn’t easy. But it doesn’t matter—I understand what you’re getting at.” The rush of sadness hit him as hard as her earlier fear. Ancient instincts roared to life, demanding that he smite whoever—or whatever—might be causing his mate such distress, but he could see that he was the only one to blame.
“April, please, this is a lot for both of us to process right now. Maybe we should sleep on it and discuss this in the morning.”
“There’s nothing to discuss. Except if my severance package will include an extra month due to the highly stressful situation of nearly being eaten alive.”
“Severance package? You’re leaving?”
“Seriously? You can’t really expect me to stay here like this, can you? Trust me, it’ll be best for us both if you get yourself a new assistant.” She was already moving towards the door, and he acted before he could think, rushing to grab her arm to keep her from stepping into the hallway. “Let me go.”
“I just want to—”
“Mads, let go of my arm.” Her voice was low and controlled and held more than a hint of warning. He released her immediately. “Don’t worry. I’ll stay in the office long enough to train my replacement.”
“April, please, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought it up. We can pretend that I didn’t say anything and go back to normal.”
“Normal?” she snorted. “We...we’ll never get back to normal. Never again.”
“Are you leaving because I’m a dragon?”
“Strangely enough, no. I could still work for a dragon, I suppose. But I can’t work for a man who will always be disappointed.”
“Disappointed? I don’t understand.”
She shook her head and pulled the door open. He wanted to stop her, to hold her until she explained herself, but he stood unmoving, watching as she limped down the hall to her own room. She didn’t look back and he didn’t look away. Not even when she disappeared from sight and he was left staring at the locked door between them.
****
Tears flooded her eyes as soon as April shut the door. She simply could not hold them back, and all of the fear, shock, and pain of the earlier chase swept through her like a furious thunderstorm, leaving nothing but desolation behind. Deep down inside, she always felt alone, certain she would never find anybody who’d want her. Who’d love her. When Mads had told her that she was the one he was waiting for, for the briefest of moments, that fear and loneliness subsided.
But he didn’t love her. It wasn’t enough that he felt some sort of connection to her—not if he didn’t love her.
Chester’s snide voice filled her head, reminding her of what she’d always known: Even Mads has standards. And swiftly on the heels of that, Mads’ voice: You’re the one I’ve been waiting for. She might have been the one he was waiting for, but she sure wasn’t the one he chose. The gap between who she was and who he wanted was probably too great for her to ever overcome, and how long before he grew to resent her for it? How long before she exhausted herself with apologies for things she could not change?
But that was not why she cried. In the beat of silence after she questioned him, she realized her own terrible truth: she didn’t know about mates, about dragons, about surprise connections or fate—but she did know that she loved him. And that was why she had to leave. Not just her job, but t
he city as well. April just wanted to go home, to escape into the mundanity of small-town life until her love hardened into scar tissue around her heart.
A knock on the door was like a spike through her head, adding to the growing tension headache behind her eyes. “Go away.”
“April, I just want to talk to you.”
“Go away!”
“Why are you crying?”
“Please just go away.”
“No. I’m staying right here until you’re ready to talk.”
April didn’t doubt him. She unlocked the door and pulled it open, too tired to hide her bloodshot eyes, her puffy face, or the misery radiating from her. “What is left to say?”
“A lot. You may not have anything to tell me, but I have a lot to tell you, and all I’m asking is that you listen.”
She sank to a nearby chair. “Fine.” If it would make all of this end, then she would listen to him.
Instead of sitting on the nearby sofa, he knelt at her feet and tugged at the hem of her skirt.
“Excuse me? What are you doing?”
He ran the tip of his finger over the ridge of the burn on her thigh. Her pre-emptive gasp turned into a low moan as pain instantly transformed into pleasure. Her pussy clenched and her nipples tightened.
“Mads...what?”
He bent his head and blew a gentle puff of air over the mark. Her spine tightened, her body arched, and her nipples ached. She thought of telling him to stop—this wasn’t going to help the situation and it certainly didn’t count as talking, but her tongue felt heavy and refused to cooperate. His breath like a soothing wind blew over her, traveling further up her thigh and she spread her legs without thinking, encouraging him to move higher, right to the edge of her panties. He dropped his mouth on her inner thigh, alternating kisses between her untouched skin and the edge of the mark, his cheek brushing against the lacy scrap of fabric covering the apex between her thighs. All he had to do was turn his head.
She buried her fingers in his hair, winding them through the soft strands, holding him in place while she rode out the pleasure. Each kiss he placed on her thigh sent sparks to her stomach where they kindled into slow burning flames, spreading heat through her limbs, making her lightheaded. She pulled on him and he allowed himself to be directed, his mouth gliding from her thigh to the now damp thin material over her pussy.
“Please...please, I need to feel…”
He ripped her panties away, his hungry mouth landing on her heated flesh, his tongue sliding between her lips to seek out her throbbing clit. She yelped at the first flick over the tender tip, her hand tightening in his hair. He sucked and nibbled softly, and all she could do was grind against him, aching for more, trembling as the pleasure morphed into bliss and the bliss built on itself. Unaccustomed to the force of nature sweeping through her body, she could only withstand the assault of his mouth for a few minutes longer before her orgasm overtook her. She bucked forward, her legs closing around him as her pleasure rolled through her like waves slamming against the shore.
She lost the feeling in her legs and her body went completely lax. April thought that would be the end of it, but as he moved away, he brushed against her marked thigh and she was instantly alert, electricity tightening her muscles and pulling her upright.
“What is that?” April gasped out.
“I marked you.”
“You marked me? Will it go away?”
“No, but it won’t cause you any pain.”
He rose and pulled her to her feet. She didn’t have the strength to resist him, and once his arms closed around her, she never wanted to be anywhere else. His arms were strong as iron, but his lips were so gentle on top of her head, skimming her hair with a sweet kiss. She closed her eyes, undone by him, her defenses crumbling. She wanted this to be real. She wanted it so badly she could taste it.
“Do you want me?” she whispered.
He shifted, allowing his erection to rub against her hip. “What do you think?”
April took a deep breath and forced herself to step out of his embrace. Holding his gaze, she unzipped her dress and allowed it to drop to her feet. Her bra followed, leaving her completely naked and vulnerable in front of his golden-green eyes. His eyes traveled the length of her body, from her large breasts to her rounded stomach and hips, lower to where her thighs touched. She watched his face carefully, whispering, “What about now?”
Mads immediately pulled her against him, hooking his finger beneath her chin and angling her mouth towards his. April continued to hold his gaze as he lowered his lips. She didn’t close her eyes until the kiss stole her breath away, her arms winding around his neck. Without breaking the caress, he lifted her from her feet, carrying her like a bride to the bed.
“You’re beautiful,” Mads whispered as he lowered her to the mattress. His fingertips glided from her throat to her knee, running over the hills and valleys of her body with undeniable reverence. She tried to swallow around the sudden lump in her throat, tried to say something, tried to reach for him, but her body no longer quite felt like it belonged to her. When he reached her thigh, he paused. “I’ve never marked anybody like this before. In a thousand years, I’ve never wanted anybody the way I want you.”
April took his wrist and pulled him onto the bed, cradling him between her legs. He hooked her knees over his hips and the tip of his cock nudged against her. She caught her breath, entranced by the light shining from his eyes. He shifted forward and time slowed, her vision wavering as the mark on her thigh flared to life and his cock slid home.
“Oh my god.” The low moan did more to reassure her than any words ever could. The pure pleasure in his voice could not be denied. For the space of a heartbeat neither of them moved, her tight channel adjusting to his thick rod of flesh. “God, sweetheart, you feel so fucking good.”
“Please fuck me,” she whispered.
He smiled. “I’m working on it.” He rotated his hips while he was still buried inside of her, and the lights went off behind her eyes. She choked out a word of encouragement, and he did it again. The motion was so slight, but it contained the promise of his power. She clenched around him, vibrating with need, her hips jerking on their own accord. He leaned back and thrust forward to meet her, their bodies fusing and then breaking apart again.
The rhythm they established was one of give and take, their bodies moving in perfect harmony, like dancers following an ancient drumbeat. Her heart thudded in her ears, but not so loudly that she couldn’t hear his gasps of pleasure, his moans and words of encouragement. He cupped her breasts, his fingers rolling over her hard nipples. She arched into his touch, her pleasure increasing exponentially with every squeeze, every touch, every thrust.
“Harder.” With her legs locked around him, she begged him for more. Their mouths clashed, tongues dueling. He kissed her deeply, possessing her completely, igniting a fuse at the base of her spine. Her earlier orgasm was already a distant memory, nothing more than an echo in her cells, and her body ached for another like the desert aches for rain.
His hand moved from her breast to her hair, pulling her head back, exposing her throat. He kissed from her mouth to her chin and down to her pulse point. Her racing heart jumped at the touch, her pulse hammering against his mouth. Why or how that was the gesture that unlocked her torrent of emotions, she couldn’t say. All she knew was between the ragged gasps for breaths she blurted the truth.
“I love you, Mads.”
He shuddered, shifting his angle to grind against her clit with each shallow stroke. Her disappointment was lost in a red haze of fresh bliss, carrying her to the top of the mountain. She hovered there for just a moment and then she was soaring into the stars, her climax so intense that he couldn’t withstand it. He slammed into her with a final grunt and then they collapsed together in a pile of sweaty limbs and heaving chests.
“I love you, too, mein Schatz.”
“What does that mean,” she murmured against his shoulder.
“My darling.”
April smiled, her earlier sadness and fear completely obliterated. She believed him. She was his darling. And he was her dragon.
“Do we have to go back to work right away?” she asked.
“I planned to get some sleep first.”
“No, I mean, tomorrow. Can we have a little vacation, just the two of us?”
“I think that’s an excellent idea.”
“Somewhere alone. Where there’s no people.”
“We can do that.”
“And I can see the dragon again?”
“Darling, you can see anything you want, have anything you want, be anything you want. Just tell me and the world is yours.”
“I don’t need the world.” She nuzzled in closer to his chest, closing her eyes and inhaling the scent of his skin and sweat. “I just need to be with you.”
ONE MONTH LATER
The red dress was as inexplicable as it was beautiful. April gently took the material between her finger and thumb and held it out, her mouth running dry at the lushness of the silk, the vibrant color, the tailored silhouette. It was the finest item of clothing she’d ever touched, but she had no idea where it came from, why it was in her suite, or what she was meant to do with it.
“Whose dress is this?” she asked, fingers gliding over the bodice. Tiny glittering stones studded the neckline, and upon closer inspection, she realized they were diamonds.
“It’s yours, mein Schatz.”
April heard the smile in Mads’ voice and turned to meet his golden green eyes. “Mine? That’s not my dress.”
His smile didn’t fade. “It is now.”
“Oh, but...I couldn’t…”
“Why not?” A frown crept in around his eyes. “Aren’t I allowed to give you gifts?”
“Allowed? Yes, of course, very much allowed.” The last thing she wanted to do was discourage his generosity. “But, I just…” Heat flooded her cheeks. “I don’t know if it’ll fit.”
Now the frown spread to his lips. “Why not? It was made to your measurements.”