by L. P. Dover
He rubbed his chin in concentration and leaned back casually in his chair. “If I’m not mistaken, I was seventeen when I came to stay out here. My sisters used to drive me crazy, especially Calista.”
I smiled thinking about how my brothers probably got annoyed with me, too. “Out of all your sisters, who do you mostly relate to?”
“That’s easy … Ariella. Now that she’s older she’s grown on me. I’ve never seen anyone fluster my warriors like she does, and for some crazy reason she always knows what I’m thinking. I’m starting to think she should’ve been my twin instead of Calista.”
“You have a lovely family. I adore Meliantha. I felt bad for pushing Kalen to be with Breena after that horrible mess with the dark sorcerer. I didn’t realize my friend was a traitorous whore,” I added vehemently.
“Hey,” he said, reaching over to grab my hand. “You didn’t know, okay? No one blames you for what happened, and Kalen made his own choice to get involved with Breena.” He paused for a second and looked around the room. “Do you want some wine? It’ll probably make your shoulder feel better.”
Breathing a sigh of relief, I smiled and said, “That would be wonderful. I could really use it right now.”
Drake left to fetch two glasses and a bottle of the most precious substance in all of the Land of the Fae … faerie wine. Once the bubbly, blue substance landed in my glass I took it and downed it in one gulp. “Be careful, Sorcha. I don’t want you getting drunk and taking advantage of me.”
“I think you got that backward, genius. Besides, why do I get the feeling you’d like that?”
He smirked seductively and shrugged his shoulder. We ate in silence, staring at each other the whole time. His mouth moved gracefully as he chewed his food, and I sat there mesmerized. Having him in my dreams was one thing, but being with him in person was another. Drake cleaned our empty plates off the table and took my hand, lifting me up. We walked down the hallway, hand in hand, until we reached his bedroom door.
When he opened it, I was amazed to see an elegant yet masculine set up. Everything was laid out in blues and gold. Blue was his favorite color and also the one color he loved seeing me in. Running my hands along his bed, I got a sudden jolt of jealousy thinking he’d probably had numerous women in that very room.
“How many women have you had in here?” I asked bluntly.
Drake came up behind me and wrapped his arms around me. “None,” he answered gruffly in my ear. “Only you.”
“You expect me to believe that?” I replied, turning around to face him.
“It’s the truth,” he admitted. “I’ve had other women, just like you have had other men, but never in this room, never in my personal space.”
Curiosity got the better of me, so I decided to ask the question I was too scared to ask him before, for fear of the answer. “Were you seeing someone during the time of our dreams?”
He narrowed his eyes at me, but I stood my ground and kept eye contact, determined to take the answer with dignity. Thankfully, after only a few seconds he shook his head. “No, I was not seeing anyone. Once I met you I couldn’t think of anyone else, and once the dreams started …”
Releasing my held breath, I smiled. “Yeah, I know what you mean.”
“What about you?” Drake asked darkly. I could hear the jealousy in his tone because I knew what he was asking. “Weren’t you seeing Alston at the time? You never dreamed about me with him in your bed did you?”
“No!” I shrieked. “The night of the Winter Ball was when I called it off with him. I knew then that my heart was taken even if I didn’t want to admit it.”
Drake smiled and ran his hands through my hair. “You are so beautiful,” he whispered. “I want to make love to you tonight.”
His words made my heart stop in my chest, and my core to clench with need. I wanted him too, but there could be consequences to our actions if we sealed our bond. “We don’t know if I’ll be able to open the magic box to get the scroll out, Drake. I want to feel you inside me more than anything, but I have to know that my pure blood will get that scroll out.”
He nodded, but there was a gleam in his eye. “I know, and I understand, but that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy ourselves together and finish what we started in our dreams?”
Smiling devilishly at him, I no longer wanted to waste time and began to take off my clothes. “You are one sneaky bastard, Drake.”
Once my clothes were discarded, I helped Drake loosen his. I ran my hands over his warm skin while he did the same to me, the sound of our labored breathing the only noise in the room. In one quick move, he lifted me up and placed me on the bed. He kissed me fiercely, trailing his hand down my cheek, down my neck, until he settled on my breast. His thumb padded over my nipple, making it hard and puckered while he massaged my breast. He groaned deep in his chest and moved down to lick my sensitive breast, sucking generously … tenderly. Arching my back, he wrapped his arms around me, pulling me closer before settling me back down. My core was wet and ready for the taking, but I knew we couldn’t finish.
Slowly and deftly, Drake entered me with his long fingers, thrusting them in and out. His tongue was hot and greedy, exploring my body, and on top of the friction his hand was bestowing upon me, I’d almost lost all control.
“I need to be inside you,” Drake growled.
Breathless, I sighed, “Please don’t say that, Drake. I want you too much right now.”
“Dammit, Sorcha, I can feel you getting tighter,” he breathed. “You’re going to make me lose control.”
His words and the sound of his voice was enough to make me want to orgasm. Reaching between our bodies, I trailed my fingers down his long, hard cock before surrounding it with my hand. He jerked once and let out a shaky breath. “I can’t let you have all the fun, can I?” I asked, sounding husky and animalistic.
At a hard and steady pace, I moved up and down his cock, enjoying the moans that escaped his lips. His rhythm matched mine as we both pleasured each other. Only when I felt his rigidness grow harder did I let myself give in.
“Oh … Drake!” I screamed, my back arching off the bed.
“Sorcha … Ah!”
My body jolted as the orgasm sent shock waves through every limb of my being. Drake collapsed beside me, breathing heavy and holding me tight. I snuggled into his warmth, and placed my head on his chest where his heart was beating uncontrollably. He was mine, and I was his. The day couldn’t come soon enough for us to be able to seal our bond.
“I love you, Sorcha. I know it may be soon, but in all reality we’ve been together for a while now. I can’t deny what’s in my heart any longer, and I don’t want to. You’re mine, and I’m going to make it rightfully so the moment we come back from this journey.”
“I like the sound of that, and just so you know, I fell in love with you from the very beginning. I also hated you at times, but that’s because you were more arrogant back then.”
He laughed and kissed me deeply, making my core tighten again. “I think I need a shower … a cold one,” he admitted sheepishly, looking down between his legs where his cock lay hard against his stomach.
“You are insatiable,” I moaned.
“Only for you, beautiful.”
We got out of bed and climbed in the shower together. He worked his hands all over my body, cleansing me with soap just as I did with him, both of us lingering on certain areas of our bodies. After the shower, I dressed in one of his T-shirts while he climbed into the bed naked.
“You’re killing me, Drake. How am I supposed to sleep beside you like that?” I asked, placing my hands on my hips.
He smiled. “Get used to it, beautiful. You’re going to be sleeping beside me like this for the rest of your life starting tonight. Now come over here.”
Drake held his arms out and I happily allowed myself to be folded into his body. He held me tight, breathing against my ear, until he soon relaxed his hold and fell asleep. Closing my eyes, I imagined our dream
world and let myself fall into it. In that realm, nothing else mattered except us, and our desires. We made love to each other that night, over and over, until the sun came up the next day. Our journey was about to begin.
Drake and I were planning to leave as soon as possible. The longer we waited, the more time for things to fail. I was packing a light bag when Oren entered the room. “Why do you need a guardian, ai dulin? It seems you never need me.”
“Oh, Oren,” I said, turning around. I walked over to him and cupped his face in my hands. “I will always need you. You know me better than anyone, and there’s no one else that can put up with all my bullshit.”
“Then let me come with you,” he insisted.
“No!” I replied forcefully. “I’ve seen the way Calista looks without her guardian, and I don’t want that emptiness inside of me. She misses Merrick, and every time she sees you or Meliantha’s guardian, Ashur, she’s reminded of what she lost. I’m not as strong as her, Oren.”
Oren wrapped his arms around my waist and hugged me tight. We usually didn’t show a lot of physical affection, but maybe the Summer heat was melting him a bit. When he released me, he looked down at my newly changed skin. “I must say, you look stunning like this. No more tanning beds for you?” He laughed, while I scowled.
Ryder and Kalen used to give me hell when I came back burnt like a lobster from experimenting with a tanning bed one time in the mortal realm. I was red for a week, but then right back to being pale the next. It was an experience from hell, and one I’d never forgotten.
“It’s strange to think that we’re both going to be Summer Fae,” I said thoughtfully.
Oren winked and nudged me in the side. “Who says I’m going to follow you to your new court?”
“You better be!”
We both laughed, and once my bag was packed, Oren walked me down to Drake who was waiting patiently by the palace doors. After kissing Oren on the cheek, I whispered in his ear, “Please say good-bye to Sarette for me.”
He nodded. “I will. Be careful, ai dulin.”
“Always,” I replied back silently.
When we walked down to the horses I was confused. “Why are we riding horses?” I asked Drake curiously. “Why can’t we just fly?”
Drake sighed, strapped my saddle in place, and turned to face me. “I was hoping you wouldn’t ask, but since you did I’ll tell you. We don’t know what’s going to happen on this journey, but I want us to be prepared. If something was to happen to me and I couldn’t fly, we would have the horses to help us. Also, when I transform from dragon back to myself it wipes out a lot of my energy.”
“Then why don’t we have others coming with us to help?”
“Because, beautiful, if I needed to transform quickly to get you away from danger, where would that leave my warriors? I wouldn’t be able to protect them or get them out safely. It would be sentencing them to death.”
He helped me up on my horse, and climbed up on his looking confident and strong. The gold plated armor, along with the sleekness of his body, made him look like a God of War. No wonder everyone was in awe and also afraid of him.
“I understand,” I said.
It all made sense after he explained. We had to do this alone, to be quick and stealthy, and to spare the lives of so many others if they were to come with us and danger followed. Drake rode up beside me and pulled me over by the arm until he could reach my lips.
“Last night was amazing,” he breathed against my lips. “Let’s get this over with so I can claim your body and make you my queen.”
His gray eyes slit to that of the dragon, which I’d grown to realize they did when he felt strongly about something. It was amazing to watch and also intoxicating to know he felt that strongly for me. “Sounds good to me,” I replied breathlessly.
We took off at a rapid pace toward the Endelyn Mountains, where the scroll was supposed to be hidden. If everything went smoothly, we should get there by tomorrow and be back by nightfall. We were one step closer.
Watching Sorcha on her horse—the way she rode, the way her sleek black hair billowed out in the wind—made me hard as a rock. No other female has made we want something so bad the way she makes me want her. The magical pull to her didn’t help matters either.
We laughed and raced for hours until the terrain grew too wooded and bumpy to continue at that fast pace. It also helped give the horses a break. “You’re really competitive. It’s one of the things I love about you,” I said to her.
She laughed. “Yeah, you should know about that. Don’t you remember how angry I’d get when you’d kick my ass when we trained in our dreams?”
Smiling, I remembered our dreams very well. I’d taught her so many new moves and she was an ace at them. “I did that on purpose, you know. You were always so hot when you got angry. It was a warrior’s wet dream come true.”
Rolling her eyes, she smacked me on the arm. We rode side by side in silence until a noise off to the side had us halting in our tracks. I drew my sword just as Sorcha grabbed her spear. “Someone’s out there,” I said carefully. The forest was quiet, but I could hear the labored breathing of someone, or something, coming from the thicket. “Wait here,” I commanded forcefully. She narrowed her eyes, but nodded. Thankfully, she didn’t argue with me.
Climbing off my horse, I headed straight for the overgrown grass of the thicket. Slowly and with my sword drawn, I made my way to what appeared to be a warrior lying on the ground. When the person came into view my eyes grew wide in shock.
“Sorcha!” I yelled.
She jumped off her horse and ran straight to me. When she looked down at the warrior on the ground she screamed in joy. “Alston!” she called out, falling to her knees beside him.
He opened his eyes wearily and settled them on her. “Sorcha?” he responded weakly, pulling her down to the ground and into his arms.
Jealousy instantly flared in my gut watching him touch her, but I clenched my teeth together to keep my mouth shut. I didn’t wish the guy to be dead, and I was glad he was alive for Sorcha’s sake, but why the hell was he always in the way somehow?
“We thought you were dead! Sarette thinks you’re dead! She’s been grieving for days,” Sorcha said to him.
When his eyes focused on her they instantly grew dark and dangerous. “Well I see you hadn’t been grieving for me,” he spat out.
I was two seconds away from shutting that mouth of his up when Sorcha beat me to it. “Really, Alston? That’s what you have to say to me after we find your sorry ass. Get over yourself!” She got up from the ground and came to my side. Alston staggered to his feet, glaring at Sorcha and me. I kept my face blank, but made sure to show some of the smugness I felt.
The tension visibly regressed from Alston’s shoulders when he lowered his head, but it looked forced. “I’m sorry,” he sighed. “It’s been a long couple of days.”
“What happened to you?” Sorcha asked. “Why didn’t you make your way back?”
“When I got hurt and went down, no one saw me, and when I woke up everyone was gone. With no food or water, I drifted into a haze and wandered around until I ended up here. I wanted to wait until I was perfectly healed before I made my way back. If anyone attacked, I wouldn’t have had the strength to fight.”
Sorcha nodded in understanding. “Well, I’m glad we found you. Sarette’s going to be so happy when you make it home.”
Alston furrowed his brows and looked around the forest. “What are you two doing out here by the way?” he asked.
“It’s a long story,” Sorcha said, glancing at me then back to him. “We need to rest anyway. I know you have to be starving.” She turned on her heels and headed back to the horses while Alston fell into step beside her, a little too close.
After we ate our food, Sorcha explained to Alston what all had happened and where we were going. She even told him about us and the changes that were getting ready to happen when we form our own Summer Court. He became visibly angry and sta
lked off from us. I was glad he didn’t pick a fight because I probably would’ve killed him, and I was glad Sorcha didn’t want to follow him because I wasn’t going to let her.
“He’s pretty volatile,” I noticed.
Sorcha sighed. “Yes, he is.”
Anger flowed through me as I imagined him taking his anger out on her. What did he do when she broke it off with him? My hands started shaking, and I knew my eyes had changed. Clearly they had because Sorcha looked at me warily. “He didn’t hurt you when you two were together, did he? Because if he did, I’m going to kill him now. No one would ever know.”
“Drake!” she shrieked. “No, he never hurt me. He got really possessive at times, but he learned quickly he couldn’t control me. A few punches and black eyes did the trick.”
I laughed, imagining her kicking his ass. “Good,” I stated wholeheartedly. “He deserves a good ass kicking now.”
“That may be so, but what are we going to do about him? Are we taking him back or is he coming with us?”
I groaned. “As much as I want him to go home, we just don’t have the time for it. If the dark sorcerer comes back and knows what we’re up to, he’ll be on our trail or he’ll get to the scroll first and put it somewhere else. So, unfortunately, he stays with us.”
As if my words called him forth, Alston came through the shadows of the forest and sat down by the fire. “It’s getting late. We probably should get some sleep and continue on in the morning,” I insisted.
Sorcha stretched out her glorious body, and cuddled up next to me not even acknowledging Alston’s presence. Alston scowled as she kissed me on the lips and fell asleep instantly in my arms. Once she was completely out, I turned my attention to Alston and stared daggers at him. “I’d appreciate it if you kept your hands to yourself from now on,” I warned him.
Alston’s eyes grew smug. “What’s wrong? Jealous?”
“Hardly,” I stormed back. “She’s with me now, and a future queen of the Summer Court. You may still love her, or want her, but it’s over. Show some respect and back the fuck off.”