Bound in Flames: Paranormal BBW Shapeshifter Dragon Romance (Drachen Mates Book 1)

by Milly Taiden

  She nodded. “It’s why I felt the dragon so deeply. It was almost like his death,” she gulped. “Like I was living through it.”

  A deep line bisected his forehead into an almost fearsome scowl. “Are there other types of empaths?”

  “Usually someone will either be an emotional, physical, fauna, geomantic, or claircognizant. It’s rare to have more than one ability and even rarer to have the three I have.”

  He was quiet for a moment and she wondered what he was thinking. “I have a question for you, Morgan.”

  She smiled. “Yes, Tor?”

  “What’s the one thing you want most in the world?”

  She puckered her brow and considered lying but he’d know. Besides, what was the harm in telling him the truth? “Babies. I’ve always wanted my own children. It’s been hard to admit this to anyone else. My past relationships haven’t gone anywhere. I thought at this point in my life I’d have a family, children.” She sighed. “God, how I want kids. I love my patients but I want to go home to my own family. To my own babies. I want to bathe them, put them to bed. I want to hold my own kids. Give them love.”

  He listened intently. She thought she might have said too much and worried he’d been turned off from asking anything else personal.

  She ate in silence and once she was full, she put the plate on the tray. “Can you tell me about your history?”

  NINE

  Tor wanted to get in his bed and hold Morgan. Until her mate mark appeared, none of their dragons would know who she would mate with, but he didn’t give a shit. The longer he saw that vulnerability in her eyes and watched her bottom lip get tortured by her perfectly white teeth, the more impossible it was to ignore his desires. His human desires.

  When he met Sylvana, she’d appealed to his desires as well. But she’d tried to mentally lull him with promises of mating and being the one. He knew better. Still, Morgan wasn’t just some woman. She’d be one of his brothers’ mate.

  Her pupils dilated as she stared at him and her gaze dropped to his hands. “Please tell me about your history.”

  Fuck. This shit wasn’t getting any easier. He’d never be able to fight his dragon if it was the one who wanted to mate her, but at the moment, all he could think of was tasting her lips, feeling her hands slide down his chest and taking handfuls of her curves while he plowed deeply into her.

  It was the human side of him that lusted after her. “Our family’s old. There were many families at one point.” He never considered if he should tell her the truth of his heritage. Something told him he could trust her and his dragon agreed. “We’ve been on earth for about sixteen hundred years.”

  She blinked at him, her eyes widening. “On earth? Where were you before?”

  “Our home planet was in another galaxy called Leas One,” he said. He saw the pure interest in her eyes. Not the weird skeptical look he dreaded whenever he considered telling anyone their past. “Our planet was dying. There was a dark species of dragons living on the other side of the planet, the Noir. Their side of the world rarely got sunlight, so they lived in darkness.”

  “Why was the planet dying?” She leaned forward and the scent of lavender filled his lungs.

  “Lavender?” he asked before he had a chance to stop himself.

  She blushed and went to pull back but he grabbed her wrist and stopped her. “I don’t mean to pry, but our senses are incredibly developed. I’ve been getting a slight smell of lavender for a while now and I’m trying to decide if it’s perfume. I just wondered why lavender.”

  She smiled tentatively, and the sight made his heart skip a beat. She was so beautiful. Her hazel eyes turned a more golden shade, which he guessed had something to do with her emotions. Like his scales. She’d fit right in with them.

  “I find the scent of lavender soothing. Not too much or I get a migraine. But I like to use an oil diffuser at work to help me and my clients stay calm. I also enjoy taking baths with it before bed. What you’re smelling is the oil diffuser scent on my clothes probably.” She glanced down at her hands and then back at him. “Does that answer your question?”

  “Yes,” he licked his lips, wanting to pull her onto his lap and find out just how good she tasted. “I think lavender suits you perfectly.”

  Another wave of heat expanded in his chest. He liked that relaxed almost sleepy smile on her face. He’d let her rest more soon.

  “So why was your planet dying?” she asked again.

  “We lived in constant war with the Noir. The Drachen side of the planet offered the Noir the ability to share half of our land so they could grow crops and have daylight.”

  “That sounds really nice of your people.”

  He shrugged. “It would have been if the Noir didn’t want all the land. They refused the deal and instead chose to fight. War ensued for so many years, the planet was devastated.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said softly, placing her warm palm over the top of his hand.

  He glanced down at their hands. Hers was so small, so delicate. So perfect. He ignored the burning desire to sit on the bed next to her and take her in his arms. To hold her and make sure she was really okay.

  “It’s fine. We sent many of our explorer ships out to find a world we could survive in. We were growing desperate.” He recalled being a little kid and wondering if he and his family were going to die. He hadn’t felt that sick sensation at the pit of his stomach, like acid burning and destroying his insides, for a long time.

  “Eventually, we got news that one found a backwater planet. They were intensely behind on technology and laws. But we decided we’d blend in and hide in the background. There were other paranormals on this planet so we wouldn’t be alone.

  “Other teams felt this planet was too rugged and primitive but one of our elders swore we’d find mates here. She had more powers than all others. But still a lot of people refused to come. They found another world in a galaxy millions of light years away, as advanced as ours. A large majority went there.

  “My parents were leaders of the Drachen. They didn’t know what to do, so they gave people a choice. They felt this place would be easier for all of us to adjust to and the promise of mates for their children was too good to ignore. It was most similar to our own home planet. We could have kept searching, but we were out of time.”

  “So what happened?”

  “Our explorer team set things up for those that made it here. We were traveling a really long distance. A lot of people went to the other planet, but a many made it here.”

  “How did the Noir find you?”

  “They stole one of our ships and linked into our tracking system. They were easily able to find us here. It took them a while because they too tried to find a place they could use for their own without having to share it, but eventually they must have run low on supplies. It was a few hundred years later when they’d made it here, too.”

  “And what is it they’ve been doing that is wiping out your family?”

  He lifted her hand to his lips and watched her pupils dilate. He loved seeing that. She wanted him, and god, he wanted her, too. His dragon hadn’t made a move on her. Sure, he thought her good-looking and liked her scent, but it was his carnal desires that were raging for a taste of her. He tamped down his need and continued his story.

  “They decided this planet isn’t big enough for all of us. They’ve found and killed every Drachen mate. Sayeh teamed up with a witch that has been feeding him information every time a female has gotten our mate mark. There were many more of us, but through the centuries, once a mate was killed, the dragon would die.”

  “That’s horrible. So you guys are all that’s left?”

  “Yes. We’re the only hope for our race to survive on this planet. As it is, we never got in contact with the other group again. Some of our elders took our ships to search for them, but they never returned. We are it.” He said the words and felt the finality in them.

  She leaned forward and stared deeply into h
is eyes. “I promise to do whatever I can to help. Maybe tomorrow you can show me around so I can see what I pick up.”

  He nodded. “I can do that. I should let you rest. You’ve had an exhausting night.”

  “Thank you for telling me about your past, Tor.”

  He didn’t really want to leave. Fuck! Already he was getting too attached to her. He should know better. He wished Jae were there instead of traveling, but the mere thought of Jae guarding Morgan made him green with jealousy. He needed to control himself or he’d have big problems when the time came to let Morgan go to whoever she ended up mated to.

  TEN

  Morgan woke slowly. God. She’d had so many sexual dreams. All of them revolved around Tor and her inability to keep her hands off him. Not that he seemed to mind. Her senses told her he wanted her.

  That and the way he looked at her were pretty good giveaways. She shouldn’t get too close to him, though. She was supposed to help him find a mate. She couldn’t imagine helping him meet someone only to tell the future bride she’d slept with the hot as hell dragon.

  She was pleasantly surprised to find an extra set of toiletries in his bathroom, along with a pair of sweats and a T-shirt for her to wear. He must have come in while she was sleeping. The idea would normally freak her out, but not this time. Besides, she’d slept in the giant T-shirt he’d given her the night before. It hit her mid-thigh and looked more like a dress than a tee.

  After her shower, she decided to go commando under her sweats and prayed nobody would notice the extra jiggle of her butt. She kept telling herself she’d go home and change, but that didn’t stop her from blushing the moment someone knocked on the door.

  She rushed over to open it as she put her glasses on. It was Tor. Oh god. He wore a white T-shirt that made his massive arms look like logs. His skin was suntanned and those beautiful tattoos appeared brighter. He was so fucking tall.

  “How big are you?”

  He glanced at her, his brows slowly rising. It took her a second to realize how that question came across. Fire flamed her face. “I mean,” she gulped. “How tall are you?”

  He grinned, a wicked glint lighting in his gaze. “Big enough.”

  Oh boy. That was not the answer she’d been expecting. Now she wondered just how big he truly was. Not a good idea to think about that. Not when she knew he was a shifter and could scent if she got aroused. Lord have mercy, that’s the last thing she needed. Especially when she was panty-less. Now she felt all kinds of uncomfortable.

  “Is there somewhere I could get some coffee?” she asked, changing the subject quickly.

  He gave her a look that said he knew what she was doing and it wasn’t working. Too damn bad.

  “I’ll show you the kitchen. By now, we’ve all had coffee. Clacher’s gone.”

  She followed him out of the room with her bag in hand. She’d managed to shove her clothes into it. Barely. She hoped her panties didn’t pop out at any second from how ready to burst the bag looked.

  They went down a long hallway and everything she saw only verified what she already knew. “This is a castle!”

  He chuckled, the sound so deep and rusty, it made her nipples pebble. “No. It’s just a big house.”

  “Really? So you’ve seen many stone walls inside a house before, huh?”

  “It’s brick, not stone,” he said. “And I guess it could be considered a small castle if you take the whole design into consideration. My parents fell in love with Scottish castles.”

  “I’ve always wanted to travel the world. After being in boarding school in Switzerland for a long time, I found myself wanting to come back to the states, only to get a job right away and not get that chance to see other parts of Europe.”

  The kitchen was massive with state-of-the-art appliances. Five people could be cooking and not get in each other’s way. “This kitchen is amazing.”

  “Glad you think so,” said someone from the other side of the room.

  “Ker,” Tor growled.

  Ker grinned and came closer. “I’ve been dying to meet you.”

  She blinked and stared into his gorgeous blue eyes. “Hi. I’m Morgan.”

  The guy was obviously younger than Tor and had a fun aura about him. She felt immediately at ease near him.

  “Hi, Morgan. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you in person. You’re much more beautiful than your photo.”

  She raised her brows. “Photo?”

  “Would you like some coffee?” Tor interrupted. “The photo from your file when I visited your mother’s office.”

  “Oh, um, yes, please.”

  “Are you busy today?” Ker asked. “I’d be happy to show you around the house. I work from home, computer stuff, all very boring.”

  She had a feeling he was lying to her about his job. Big time. Still, she really liked Ker. He reminded her of Lexi. She took the mug Tor held out for her so she could make a cup of coffee.

  “Are you hungry, Morgan?” Ker asked, coming to stand beside her. Tor growled again. “I can make you breakfast. Pancakes?”

  Damn. She loved pancakes. But she wanted to go home and get her own clothes on. As nice as Tor was, she was dragging his sweats and she was starting to feel awkward with saggy pant bottoms. “Thanks, but no. Coffee’s enough.”

  “Let’s sit at the table; we can chat a while.”

  Once she had her coffee, she followed Ker, trying hard to keep from smiling at the frown Tor gave the other man.

  “So what do you do for a living, Morgan?” Ker asked, lifting his own cup to his lips. The blue eyes brightened and changed into a sapphire color. For a second, she didn’t believe his eyes changed color but then she remembered he was a dragon. For all she knew, he could change his eyes to any color he wanted.

  “I’m a child therapist. I counsel children who have been through abuse.”

  Tor gave her a surprised look. “Even though you feel their pain?”

  “That’s why I do it. There’s nothing better than knowing you stopped a child’s sadness. I work with children because their pain is deeper, stronger, and can really tear me up.”

  He was thoughtful after that. Ker continued his chatting about all things and everyone drank coffee. She’d never felt so welcome, aside from her friends.

  “We should go,” Tor said after they had their coffee. “I’ve got something I want to show you.”

  She scrunched her nose. “Can we go by my place first? I want to change and grab a few things since I’ll be here for a few days.”

  * * *

  At her house, she found a note from Lexi telling her she’d call later, but she knew she was fine. Good thing because Lexi would have been flipping if she hadn’t spoken to Tor. Morgan knew she’d go nuts wondering if Lexi was fine had she not spent the night at home.

  They were in his SUV when they were intercepted by a big black van. It stopped in front of them in the road. No other cars were around, so it added to her discomfort.

  “What the―”

  “Relax,” he said. “I know these guys. I called them to take my SUV and your stuff up to the house for us.”

  They got out of the SUV. She didn’t know what to think. Weren’t they going back to his castle together?

  A big beefy guy got out of the driver’s side of the van followed by another guy, his head full of tattoos, from the passenger side. Tattoo guy went around and got in the driver’s side.

  The big guy came over to them and smiled. She saw nothing in him that worried her, but the other guy had some serious darkness in his life.

  “Hey, Tor. I’ll take it from here.” He turned to her and offered a hand. “Hi, I’m Rusty. I’ll take care of your stuff.”

  She nodded and took his hand. Immediately, the image of his sick wife knocked her to her knees.

  “Are you okay?” Rusty asked, his voice high with worry.

  She glanced up and met his gaze. God. She needed to help him. His wife was suffering so much. “Where is she?”

 
Tor helped her to her feet and curled a protective arm around her shoulders. The warmth from his body helped soothe the cold seeping to her bones.

  “I’m sorry?”

  She shook her head and squeezed his hand. “Your wife. She’s very sick. Where is she?”

  Rusty glanced at Tor. “You told her?”

  Tor shook his head. “It’s too complicated to explain. Just know that whatever she knows, she saw the moment she shook your hand.”

  “I can help her.”

  Rusty’s eyes lit with hope. “You can cure her?”

  She let go of his hand and allowed Tor’s body heat to calm her nerves. “No, I can’t do that. But I can help her handle her pain. I can help her when it’s time.”

  “Thanks, lady, but we’re good.” Rusty’s voice was hoarse with emotion.

  She rummaged through her bag and pulled out a business card. “Call me if you change your mind. My cell phone is on there. I’ll come. Just tell me when.”

  Rusty didn’t say anything, but she saw how torn he was to ask her more. Instead he took her card, shoved it in his pocket and walked around them to get in the SUV. The sound of tires grinding filled the air as both vehicles took off in a rush.

  She turned to face Tor and watched him take his shirt off. “What, um, what are you doing?”

  Oh lord. All the muscles. The tattoos. The freaking body on him. She could stare at him all day.

  “I’m taking you somewhere. It’s faster if we fly.” His pants came next. She gasped and he raised his head to meet her gaze. A wicked glint shone in his eyes. The corner of his mouth lifted in a cruelly sexy way that made her want to lick his lips.

  “Here,” he said, handing her his clothes. She glanced away from his naked form and shoved them in her cross-body bag. There was no way she’d look down. Nope. What he looked like naked down there was of no interest of hers. Liar!

  She gulped and couldn’t help her vision straying to caress down his body, down to that V from his hips to his cock that made her throat dry. And wow. He was definitely big.