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

by Milly Taiden

  The tension curling at the pit of her belly unraveled so fast, she choked on a breath. Her body shook. Her nails dug into his arms and her pussy gripped at his fingers. Then she was flying. Pleasure unfurled and washed over her like a tide of bliss. She tried to catch her breath but her body sagged. Multiple explosions rocked her to the core.

  “Fuck!” he grunted, rocking his hips into her center and sliding his lips over her neck. He sucked and bit. He slipped his hand from her pants and brought it to his lips. She licked at her dry lips and watched his now glowing eyes brighten even more. His fingers went into his mouth, coated in her slick wetness. “I knew you’d be fucking addictive. Now all I ever want to eat is pussy. Your pussy.”

  She cleared her throat. Spots danced in front of her eyes. He continued rocking into her with his erection. A massive one at that. She opened her mouth to tell him they could keep going, but he sat back on his heels and offered his hands to help her sit up.

  “Let’s eat. I want to show you the rest of the castle when we get back. I don’t want to keep you out too late.”

  THIRTEEN

  Morgan wanted to say they weren’t done and that food was the last thing on her mind, but instead she took another glass full of champagne and gulped it. Then she picked up the food he passed her and tried to act like her heart wasn’t attempting a prison break from her chest. Or that she was enjoying the food that tasted like nothing.

  The rest of the meal was spent with idle chit chat, but she saw the need, the hunger in his eyes. It only heightened her awareness of him. It made her giddy. What in the hell was going on? Had the world turned upside and she didn’t know it? She wanted to get back to her room, toss him on the bed. Well, not that she could toss him anywhere, he was three times her size. But a girl could dream.

  They got back to the castle late. His SUV and her stuff was there. All her belongings had been placed in his bedroom. She didn’t see any of the others but knew she couldn’t stay in his room a second night in a row.

  “Will you show me to my room?” she asked after she grabbed her bag, ready to follow him out of his bedroom.

  A smile curled over his lips. The kind that meant trouble. She saw it in his eyes. “Sure.” He took the bag out of her hands and walked out only to stop a few feet from his door and open the one right next to his. “Here we are.”

  She frowned. The room appeared to be the female version of his. It was massive but a lot more feminine with lilac and gold décor. She noticed a door a few feet from her bedside table. “Is that a connecting door?”

  “Yes,” he said and placed her bag on the bed. “Do you mind?”

  She thought about it for a second. “No.”

  Another nipple-hardening grin and he was waltzing out of the room. “I have to make a few work calls. Feel free to roam the castle but take your phone in case you get lost. We do have emergency locators on every hallway of every floor. It makes it easier to find people. Meet me in a little while. I’ll make us something to eat.”

  She nodded and watched him leave. She decided to take a shower first. The day’s grime and everything they’d done was making her feel all kinds of icky. She stripped out of her clothes, mindful of the connecting door and wondering if he’d walk in on her at any moment. He didn’t. She took her shower and once she was wearing a pair of yoga pants and a tank top, she was ready to check out the place.

  She meandered through the castle, stopping here and there whenever something caught her eye. There was a set of doors she opened out of curiosity. Another hallway awaited. She walked down the carpeted path, glancing at the giant paintings of landscapes and dragons.

  At the end of the hallway, she went through an open door to what looked like an antique room. There were items that should be in a museum. And then she saw it. A painting above the fireplace. She strolled to it, not once taking her eyes off the massive thing.

  It was an image of Tor. He was a lot younger from the looks of it, but the sexuality in his eyes and the domineering look he gave whoever was painting him was so damn sexy, she almost wanted to strip the Tor in the image, he was so lifelike.

  There were other treasures in different places. She pushed her glasses up her nose and peered around the room. So many items. One she was caught by was a crown of silver with what appeared to be black diamonds on display.

  “I see you’ve been caught by The Witch’s Crown.”

  She turned to face Clacher. “Hi, didn’t know you were here.”

  He grinned, showing off his incredibly handsome dimples. “I’m sorry. I won’t be able to stay long. There’s a biker group in town and they’ve all decided they want tattoos. The shop is really busy at this time.”

  Her brows flew up. “You do tattoos? I didn’t realize that. I thought when you said you had a shop, you meant like a store.”

  He chuckled and shook his head, the buckles of his boots making noise with each step he took coming closer to her.

  “No. I have a few tattoo shops. Everyone here has their own business or we’d be bored to death. Plus, our family is old. We’ve tried everything at least once,” he winked.

  “So what is this Witch’s Crown?” She turned back to the silver and black crown. “Are those diamonds?”

  “They are. Black diamonds. The crown was commissioned when someone was set to marry the witch,” Clacher told her. “Of course, the man didn’t realize she was a witch. Not at first. Not until she almost killed him.”

  She gasped and slapped a hand over her mouth. “But it’s so beautiful. The design is so unique.”

  “Yes. It was meant to be. You can see the dragon breathing fire down on the person who tried to come between him and the woman. The woman is behind the dragon, being protected.” Clacher folded his arms over his chest. “The witch was found out when she was caught having an affair with the leader of the Noir.”

  “Oh my god!” She couldn’t imagine what the man in the relationship must have felt. Broken trust had to be the worst thing to deal with. “What happened to the man?”

  “He’s around. Grumpy. Miserable. Pain in the ass. But alive. Alive and still waiting for his mate.”

  She glanced up at him. He was staring at her with a pensive look on his face. “Do you mind if I try something?”

  He shook his head. “I understand you’re here to help us with our mate business, so I’m happy to help however I can.”

  “Would you mind giving me your hands?” she asked, holding her hands out to him.

  He covered her hands with his much larger ones. His skin was warm. She closed her eyes, going past the man and into his dragon. The animal raised his head in wonder. He wasn’t used to someone invading his space. She tried to calm him and tell him she was there to help. He was wary, though. She sensed something about him, something he hid.

  Her mind went to a place by a waterfall. The dragon breathing fire down on a bunch of men only to watch as something else happened. She was pulled back from the scene and she took several steps back from how hard the dragon pushed her away.

  “Are you okay?” Clacher asked.

  She gulped and blinked. “Yes, sorry about that. Didn’t realize your dragon was so…”

  “Reserved?”

  She grinned. “Yes. I’m sorry. I should have left it alone when he got angry for me intruding into your bond.”

  “It’s fine,” Clacher said and let go of her. “I leave him to his own unless I need him.”

  She nodded. “I should get to the kitchen. I believe Tor was going to make dinner soon.”

  Clacher gave her another long look. Then he smiled. “Ker is usually the one trying new stuff in the kitchen. Either way, it wouldn’t hurt to go check. Goodnight, Morgan.”

  “Goodnight, Clacher,” she said and watched him leave the room.

  FOURTEEN

  Tor glanced at the items Ker had laid out for dinner. Should have been simple. Tor had told him he wanted a quick fix meal so he wouldn’t look like a total idiot in front of Morgan. Instead, ther
e were all kinds of spices and vegetables and was that a fucking pasta maker? Had Ker lost his goddamned mind?

  He pulled out his cell to call his younger brother when he waltzed into the kitchen. “Hey, what are you doing in here?”

  “I told you I wanted to make something for Morgan.”

  Ker snorted. “You did say that, but you don’t cook. We both know that. You’d kill her if you tried.”

  “I made her grilled cheese,” he growled in defiance.

  Ker raised his brows. “Leave dinner to me. I was going to make fettuccini with lobster in pink sauce.”

  Tor frowned. “What?”

  “The pasta dish you like so much, remember? With the lobster?”

  “Oh, yeah. That’s a good one.”

  Ker sighed. “Just set the table and pick out a bottle of wine.” He glanced Tor up and down. “It wouldn’t kill you to dress up once in a while. We have a gorgeous woman here eating with us and you’re wearing this morning’s outfit.”

  He ground his teeth together and snarled. “Fine. I’ll go shower and change, and you cook.”

  * * *

  Less than thirty minutes later, he was back from his shower to the delicious smell of food. Fucking Ker was showing off, baking fresh bread. And there was Morgan, smiling and laughing at Ker like he invented the food channel. He watched Morgan push her glasses up her nose, sending his hormones raging. He loved how innocent she looked with them on.

  “Oh, look. Big bro is back.” Ker made a face when Morgan turned to glance at Tor.

  He almost snapped Ker’s head off but the look of pure desire in Morgan’s eyes stopped him. She wanted him. He smelled her lust and it got to him on the most primitive levels. Even his dragon was affected.

  “I feel so underdressed,” she said softly, her gaze roaming up and down his body.

  “Nonsense,” Ker laughed. “You look gorgeous. That sexy schoolteacher thing really works for you.”

  She started giggling and Tor gave Ker a hard look. He mentally yelled at him for calling her sexy.

  “Thank you, Ker. I’ve never heard that looking like a schoolteacher was sexy, but I guess times have changed.” She sat at the dinner table where most of the meal was already set in silver serving bowls.

  “Time to eat,” Ker declared, bringing the croissants to the table.

  There was a salad, pasta, and fresh baked bread. If Tor didn’t know Ker was just a damn good cook, he would’ve felt like he was showing off.

  They sat around the table and served themselves while they made small talk.

  “Morgan,” Ker said. “Tell me everything about you.”

  She grinned and the sparkle in her eyes loosened a knot in Tor’s chest. “Like?”

  “What’s your favorite color? Where did you go to school? Do you have a boyfriend?”

  Tor bit back a growl but managed to stay quiet and place food on his plate.

  “My favorite color is silver. I went to a boarding school in Switzerland. I don’t have a boyfriend,” she replied and put a piece of bread in her mouth. She moaned and gasped. “Oh my goodness, Ker. I didn’t realize this would taste so divine fresh out of the oven.”

  “Babe, put some butter on that and prepare to want to take me home with you,” Ker winked.

  Tor shoved some pasta into his mouth to keep from saying something rude. He knew what Ker was doing. Baiting him. Plus, he could see they were both getting along quite nicely without him having to say a goddamned word.

  “I just might have to,” she laughed. “Okay, your turn to tell me something about you,” she said to Ker.

  “What do you want to know?”

  “What do you do for a living?”

  Ker sat up straighter in his seat. “I own several online antique businesses. I travel to multiple locations, track down any kind of storage places and buy them off whoever hasn’t paid to get whatever’s inside.”

  She squealed. “I’ve seen those guys on TV. Sometimes you can get a treasure, but sometimes you can get junk.”

  Ker glanced at Tor. “Tell her.”

  Tor rolled his eyes. “Ker has a sense for this. He doesn’t buy just any storage. He researches before he does. And he sticks to buying really old houses that have been in families for generations with everything included. Then he sends a team to get rid of the crap and his people to go through the antiques.”

  She sipped on her wine. “But buying a house with everything in it. That would creep me out.”

  Ker grinned. “I don’t keep the stuff. Actually, I never touch it. Once the trash is cleared out, I go in, bring my guys, the ones I’ve trained, and they categorize everything. Then we put it up for sale online.”

  “Sounds like a lot of work. How much could you possibly make from something like that?”

  He shrugged. “A few hundred thousand to millions depending on what house and what family it came from. I’m very discerning. But this hasn’t been my sole business. I learned antiques,” he motioned to Tor with his head. “We all have due to our lifespan, but we’ve all had multiple jobs. Every hundred years or so, you get bored and need something new to try.”

  She turned to Tor. “Really?”

  He nodded, swallowing the pasta in his mouth.

  “What kind of stuff have you done in the past?” she asked Tor, a hint of a naughty grin on her lips.

  “Him? He’s been a knight, a warrior, merchandise importer, but most of all he’s been a prince,” Ker grinned. “A spoiled one at that.”

  “So no sultan or having a harem of women to choose from?” she asked, her brows high.

  He saw the real question in her eyes. Had there been another woman in his life.

  “No harem. Not a sultan. Just a dragon,” he replied.

  The conversation continued lightheartedly thanks to Ker. He had to give it to his brother, he wouldn’t have been able to have this long of a conversation and dinner without getting her naked on the table and eating her pussy within the first ten minutes. The fucking image of her in that position made him clear his throat. He wanted to go back to her room and fuck her into his bedroom.

  He didn’t think she’d agree to that. At least not while they were still eating.

  FIFTEEN

  Morgan had never wanted so badly to forgo dinner and rush Tor back to her room to strip him down to nothing and cover him in kisses and her own body. He looked so good with those black jeans and the black T-shirt she knew he’d worn for her. The damn thing had a quote in the middle that read “It’s Huge.”

  After dinner and amazing cups of chocolate mousse with whipped cream and wafers, Tor walked her back to her room.

  “Tomorrow, I’ll see if I can get anything on Ker,” she said after a quiet moment. “I tried with Clacher earlier, but his dragon pushed me off.”

  They’d just reached her door and she was about to open it when he whirled her to face him. “Did he hurt you?”

  She frowned at the rage in his voice. But it was the fear in his eyes that worried her. “No! I didn’t mean to imply that. I meant mentally he pushed me off. He didn’t want me poking at their bond.”

  He nodded, seemingly appeased with her words. “You have to promise to tell me if anyone harms you in any way. If anyone lays a hand on you…”

  “Calm down, Tor,” she said in the soft, soothing voice she used with her children clients. “I’m fine. Nothing happened.” She realized he might need some time to cool off and as much as she hated to turn him away, she did. “I’m going to get ready for bed. I’ll see you in the morning.”

  He searched her gaze and slowly pulled away. “Okay. Goodnight.”

  She was left alone in front of her door so fast, she wasn’t sure what happened. She went into her room and checked her phone. Lexi had texted her, giving her a rundown of the day and asking about hers. She replied and much to her surprise, her mother had texted as well. She’d been polite in her past few texts asking how she was doing with Tor.

  She told her things were great and kept it g
eneral. Her mother did not need to know Tor had fingered her by a river near his parents’ cabin. Nope. That was totally unnecessary for anyone on the planet to know. Her mother wasn’t being as cold as usual, and she wasn’t sure why. Lara didn’t message her this often and never asking how things were going.

  She glanced around her room, finally taking in the décor and noticing there was a set of French doors she didn’t notice before. She slipped off her glasses, finally happy to give her eyes a break and got up. She pulled the doors open to a balcony. The moon was full and she could almost see down the mountain to the river below.

  Walking further to the side, she stopped when she realized there was another set of French doors. She glanced inside and saw Tor. Oh. Good. God. It was a very sexy, half naked, kill all her brain cells, Tor.

  He wore a towel around his waist and nothing more. She gulped and watched him turn to face her. Oh shit. Oh fuck. He was going to catch her watching him like some perverted person that had no life. She stepped back and turned around, trying to move toward her door as quickly as possible. She was feet away when she heard him open the door.

  “Stop.”

  Fuck!

  She didn’t say anything but her heart beat so loudly, she almost swore he could hear it.

  “That delicious scent gave you away,” he said softly.

  She had no idea what scent he was talking about. She’d forgone lotion so she wouldn’t offend their sensitive sense of smell. “What scent?”

  She finally pivoted on her heels and saw him standing with his arm on the balcony as he stared at her. “The scent of your arousal. It’s fucking delicious.”

  Oh. That.

  She couldn’t help being hot for him. He was so damn sexy and after their little time by the river, she had a hard time not thinking of him being naked with her. “I’m…sorry?”

  “Ah, baby girl. Don’t be sorry,” he replied and closed the distance between them. “Sorry is the last thing I ever want you to be for wanting me. For being wet for me.”

  She widened her eyes. “Wet?”