“I truly had no idea about this.” Stella held a hesitant stance. He couldn’t help but move closer to her, pulling her warm body into a hug. Her nose rubbed against his chest making him relax.
“How can I not know so much about my own parents?” Stella hissed against his chest. Her hands gripped his shirt tightly.
“I don’t know, Stella but I don’t know if we can really take everything Magnis says at face value.” Gerald heard the fucker coming toward the house. Part of him hoped he would be listening to their conversation.
“Do you think he’s lying to me?” She leaned back met his gaze, her normally soft eyes filled clouded with confusion.
“I’m not sure but I’m also slightly biased as I want you to stay here.” He kissed her quickly as the door opened on the first floor. She leaned back with a soft smile on her lips.
“Thank you.” Stella moved out of his arms and down the steps. He had no idea what she thanked him for but he liked the smile. After a deep breath, he followed her down the stairs toward Magnis and his mother making breakfast.
“Good morning,” Mom smiled as she pulled Stella toward the stove and started to command her orders. Stella easily transitioned into her spot at the stove and moved with grace like his mother.
“May I have a word?” Magnis nodded toward Gerald. I can’t fucking rip his head off so I might as well talk to the bastard.
“Sure,” Gerald said through his teeth. His mom tilted her head to the side in her motherly way to behave. Magnis walked toward the living room and Gerald followed.
“First off, I want to thank you.” Magnis sounded sincere which threw Gerald for a loop.
“For?” Gerald raised an eyebrow.
“Taking care of Stella when I couldn’t.”
I didn’t do it for you, fucker.
“She’s a wonderful woman who deserves to be protected.” He meant every word of it. Magnis raised his eyebrow and then nodded quickly.
“Anyways, we should be leaving this afternoon so we won’t be getting in your way for Christmas.” Magnis place his hand on Gerald’s shoulder earning him a growl. Magnis pulled back but didn’t back down.
“And if she chooses to stay with me? What will you do?” Gerald wanted to know how far Magnis would go for Stella.
“That won’t happen.” Magnis growled back. Gerald’s dragon was willing to fight the other alpha to show his dominance. Gerald knew his eyes flashed red from his dragon lurching forward.
“I wouldn’t be so sure about that.” Gerald wouldn’t stand down to the fucking prick standing in his home. Gerald wanted to teach the prick a lesson in civility.
“I’ll make it clear then, if you don’t let her go or you can’t convince her to come with me, there may be a war coming toward your little clan here.” Magnis motioned around him. “It’s such a nice little place you have. Are you sure you can truly defend your own from an attack by skilled fighting dragons?” Magnis raised an eyebrow.
“We can take anything that comes our way.” Gerald clenched his fist trying to resist the urge to punch him in the face.
“If you don’t convince her, you’ll be the one finding out pretty quickly.” Magnis puffed out his chest and returned to the kitchen.
Gerald shoved his hands through his hair, he didn’t know what to do. If a war started between the two clans, Stella wouldn’t be safe. And if she left with him, the threat of war would be neutralized. For a split second, he worried Stella might actually be safer with the Magnis guy instead of him. Yet the instant the thought crossed his mind, his dragon roared with displeasure. Smoke burned Gerald’s throat, he couldn’t manage to control his own damn emotions when it came to Stella.
A pair of small hands grabbed his shoulders and a soft voice whispered into his ear. “That little woman is your mate, you fight like hell to keep her or die trying. If you let her go, you will never be the same and you will die a slow painful death from a broken heart.” Anish kissed his cheek and moved back to the kitchen.
He was determined to follow through on his mother’s advice but for now he needed to calm down. Gerald would be the collected alpha and convince Stella to stay with him. He needed to win her over. With his plan firmly in place he returned to the kitchen to eat his breakfast. The only thing he had going for him at the moment, all of his wounds from the hunters were finally healed. No limp or pink scars to show he had been weak at any point. He would be the strong alpha Stella deserved.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Stella
Stella had tried her best not to listen to Magnis and Gerald talk in the living room before breakfast but she couldn’t help it. When she listened to the two males fight over her gave her butterflies. Breakfast was another round of intense silence as everyone ate. Her eyes glanced over at Gerald who always gave her a short smile before resuming with his breakfast. Part of her felt like they were all kids and she was a toy they were fighting over. After a few bites, she set her fork down and stared at the backyard through the glass door. A light flurry of snow started to descend on the already white tundra.
Before she made the conscious choice to stand, Stella opened the door and walked outside. The harsh wind bit at her exposed flesh, but she kept walking. Never in her life had she felt trapped like she had at the dining table. Even when her parents had died, she had felt helpless but never trapped. The phone in her back pocket started to vibrate but she didn’t grab for it. She just kept walking, moving settled her tense muscles.
A warm hand grabbed her but when she turned around she had expected Gerald not Magnis with his long nose and light blond hair looked back at her.
“I don’t…” A gust of wind hit her back making her voice drown out.
“I would like to apologize for the way I have been acting.” Magnis yelled.
“Like an ass on a high fucking horse you mean?” Stella tilted her head to the side. As a shifter, she had a higher body temp than humans but in her human form she still grew cold and the damn tundra was a flat bitch. Magnis chuckled as he pushed one of his hands through his hair.
“Like I said, I’m sorry.” Magnis’ green eyes sparkled.
“Well you shouldn’t apologize to me, you should be saying sorry to Gerald.” Stella pointed toward the house.
“I don’t want to hear about him.” His eyes darkened at the mention of Gerald and flashed red before he took in a deep breath. Stella stood taller as she braced herself for the next gust of wind, her attuned ears could hear the next one coming.
“Well too bad. Where the hell did your clan disappear to? I searched for you for months!” Stella hadn’t realized how deep her anger at Magnis ran. As soon as the gust past them she fixed her hair to see better.
“We moved to northern Nevada, closer to a coven of witches who needed our protection.”
“Nevada! I looked in every damn state in the west, you were nowhere to be traced.” Stella wanted to punch him or something to relieve the frustration in her body.
“If I had known about your parents, I would have come a hell of a lot sooner.” Magnis yelled back. “At least then you wouldn’t have eyes for an inferior male.” Magnis stood taller like he would be the obvious choice. He reminded her of a peacock fluffing his feathers.
“Is there a reason you came out here to talk to me?” Stella ground her teeth together.
“Ah, yes. I want to give you a proposal.” Magnis smiled like they hadn’t just been yelling at each other. A chill ran up her body.
“A proposal to the alleged betrothed woman. This should be interesting.” Stella crossed her arms and stared at Magnis. Her anger still simmered in her chest. She had spent a full two years on her own, feeling lonely and depressed that she might be the only dragon left in the world or at least on the American side.
“You come with me without a fight and we will mate as soon as we get home to Nevada. You will calm my dragon down and I will give you dragonlings. You can roam around whenever you want as long as you are home to make dinner every night.” Magnis
folded his arms in front of his chest. “You won’t need to worry about being the alpha female because I will be fully in charge of everything.”
Another gust of wind hit with blowing snow blocking her view of Magnis for a split second. She had no idea if he made a joke or not. Once the snow cleared, she caught his serious expression. Stella blinked a few times to calm herself. She didn’t need to piss him off. Plus, she also had her future children to think about as well.
“And how long do I have to decide on this offer?” Stella folded her arms in front of her chest.
“I leave in one hour.” Magnis’ eyes were completely focused on her.
“Well, I will get permission to fly so I can think on it.” She walked back to the house and saw Gerald watching her. He nodded his head and then motioned to the sky. Making sure Magnis was clear she shifted into her dragon shredding her clothes. The cold no longer affected her as she took flight. The higher she reached the more she felt right about her feelings. Her dragon turned north to steer clear of humans, she pushed her body to relax.
Did he really think I would be okay with being some bitch house wife who did nothing for her clan? She flapped her wings harder, picking up speed. Magnis’ serious face had told her just as much. Memories of their childhood filtered in, he had spent most of the summer in the south with her and he had been super sweet. She wondered what the hell happened to make him so hard and cold.
Stella scanned the ground to make sure nothing would attack her. After everything that happened the last few days, she wanted to be careful.
Her mind wandered to Gerald and wondered if he truly wanted her to stay in the tundra with him even after all the drama she brought to his door. I feel like a kid with a flower saying he loves me, he loves me not. Stella pushed out a spout of fire into the clouds. She was a grown ass woman who didn’t truly need a man to define her.
Images of Gerald hovering over her, completely naked took over her thoughts. She could feel her body warming up just at the thought of Gerald between her thighs. I want him so badly, if only he had marked me the first night we met.
After about half an hour of flying, she banked hard toward the property.
She tried to picture having sex with Magnis. His strong muscles and burning eyes should turn her on. Yet this time her stomach turned and her dragon blew smoke out of her nose.
What about our dragonlings? Stella asked her dragon. If she mated with Gerald, they might not have the best chances at survival. With Magnis they would be more likely to gain a special fire. But the idea of Magnis actually raising the children became hard to picture. No, if she decided to go with Magnis she would be raising her children solo with a silent partner.
She thought about Gerald and what he would be like as a father. Images of him on the floor playing games and telling stories filtered in. Gerald would make a great father.
Plus, Magnis just wants you to be a quiet dragon. The idea of sitting around on her ass created more fire in her lungs. I’m a fucking alpha too. Gerald seemed to want her, attitude and all, she just hoped he still wanted her with all the crap they had gone through because of Magnis.
Determination settled in her heart, no matter what happened between her and Gerald, she couldn’t go with Magnis. He may have been her childhood crush, but she didn’t want a man to rule her every move. She wanted someone who cared about her, someone who wanted her to be herself.
Her only wish that kept her heart from breaking was the idea of Gerald still wanting her as a mate. She landed with a hard thud. The hour of deciding had passed, and she shifted. Now or never. She headed toward the house.
“I can do this.” Stella walked into the house with her head held high.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Magnis
Magnis walked into the room Gerald had lent to him and resisted the urge to growl. Seeing Stella standing near Gerald made his dragon roar in his head. He needed Stella to mate with him and needed it to happen yesterday.
He shoved his hand through his hair trying his best to calm himself down and ground his frustration. Magnis hated how unstable his dragon had becoming. Memories of Stella when they were teens filled his mind. He had been her first kiss, something she mentioned after it happened. Part of him wanted to be her first but Gerald had beat him to the punch. Images of her fiery red hair spread across his pillow filled his mind. Within seconds his dick turned to freaking steal, and he needed to release the tension before going back to see her.
A light tap on the door sounded bringing him to the present. He adjusted his cock in his jeans and turned to open the door. Lucas stood tall, his second in command had demanded that he came up with Magnis to retrieve Stella from the Tundra. Magnis didn’t like leaving his clan in the hands of Tajon but desperate times called for a lower dragon. Petra, Magnis’ little sister still had the younger dragon by the balls but they never did anything but flirt.
Magnis would never admit that he envied his little sister and her playful side. Yes, he had made his conquests in his clan and with a few dozen witches but none of them could hold a candle to Stella’s powerful alpha dragon.
“What do you need?” Magnis didn’t want to invite Lucas inside his room because he wouldn’t get a chance to at least rub one off before going back to the main house.
“Are you really ready to have a war just to get Stella to be your mate?” Lucas scratched the back of his head.
“She is mine. I have the fucking contract to prove it.” Magnis growled.
“I get it, she’s hot, and all but is she really worth risking the lives of our clan member to get her on your dick?” Lucas was the only dragon in his clan brave enough to meet his eye and he picked the wrong time to do so. Magnis wrapped his hand around Lucas’ neck and lifted him off the ground an inch.
“She is more than a shedragon to get my dick wet. Stella will calm me down and I think we both are in agreement, this would be a good thing.” Magnis dropped Lucas after the lower dragon nodded.
Lucas’ flashed a deep blue showing Magnis his dragons. He stumbled to keep on his feet using the door-jamb for support. Lucas rubbed his neck as he eyes changed back to the brown color.
“Fuck.” Lucas shook his head. Magnis grabbed his bag and packed up his clothes with force. He didn’t like being questioned when it came to the choices he made. In all honesty, he wanted his dragon to calm the fuck down so he could relax.
When he hit fifty human years everything changed with his dragon. He had two more years till sixty and with every day which passed he knew his dragon became more unstable. The first few years he tried to hide the anger outbursts but now it couldn’t be controlled.
“Here, take this and get the truck loaded. Have Conrad double check the truck to make sure we can leave as soon as Stella gets back.”
“Ok.” Lucas bounced on his feet and met his gaze. “Do you really see her coming with us when she obviously has feelings for Gerald? I mean no disrespect.” Lucas dropped Magnis’ bag and lifted his hands. “I just want your take.”
“I need her to come with us. That’s all I can focus on right now. If she doesn’t come with us, then we will come kick ass and take her by force. I will get her to mark me one way or another.” Magnis balled his fists at his side as his dragon breathed fire in his mind at the idea of Stella staying in this fucking waste land.
“Got it. You know I’ll always have your back but we might want to consider searching for another dragon alpha, maybe there are some in Europe or even Asia.” Lucas shrugged.
“Maybe, you have my permission to look in case this doesn’t go our way.” Magnis didn’t want to have a backup plan but his old plan of fucking almost every female in ten miles didn’t work anymore. He needed a mate and he needed one now.
“Sounds good. I’ll see you soon.” Lucas walked away and Magnis closed the door. He grabbed and hand towel and tossed himself on the bed. His cock ached with need. He pulled his cock free and covered it with the towel. The soft fabric clung to his dick as pre-cum drippe
d out of his tip.
He closed his eyes and pictured Stella naked on his bed. Her soft curves and those blue eyes staring at him. He pictured himself being buried in her soft folds as he worked his hand up and down his shaft. Pleasure simmered through his system as more images of bending Stella over filtered into his mind.
In his minds eyes Stella threw her head back as she climaxed all over his cock. Marking her soft shoulder then she flipped around and marked him. Magnis lost himself in pleasure as he reached his release. His seed spilled into the towel making for a quick and easy clean up.
Once he was tucked in and clean he tossed the towel to the side and walked out of his little room. He told his dragon that if Stella accepted to be his, they would stop in the first town and mate in a hotel room. If he lived close, he might have waited, but he needed to calm down his beast.
Soon dragon. I will get our mate and mark her. His beast flapped his wings and breathed fire. He didn’t see Stella’s dragon but her hour was almost to an end.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Stella
Stella noticed a robe on the table when she entered the kitchen. She pulled on the garment and headed toward the chatter in the living room. With her mind set, she pushed herself to keep moving. Gerald and Magnis glared at each other, both males completely ridged in their seats making the tension vibrate through the room. She cleared her throat, both of the guys stood within seconds.
“We have been waiting for you.” Magnis raised his eyebrow.
“Sorry, I lost track of time in the air.” Stella fixed her hair to get a better view of them. Her gaze moved over to Gerald, she wished she could read his mind.
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