by Alexis Davie
“It’s good to have you back with me,” he said gently. “I’ve missed you. I think about you every single day. Hardly a minute passes that I don’t wish you were by my side again. Every horrible moment without you only made you more and more beautiful. You are a goddess among other women.”
She melted.
She wanted to like, or even love, this dashing stranger. He was tall, handsome, powerful, and obviously rich. But then again, all her senses warned her against jumping in too quickly. She still was not sure about his role in her reoccurring nightmare. He’d told her about this Marilla character, sure, but could she just take his word for it?
She kept flipping back and forth. Trust him. Be wary. Trust him. Be wary. She simply couldn’t make up her mind, which was rare for her.
Normally, she made a split-second decision about something or someone. Sometimes she was right and sometimes she was totally wrong, but she never had been half-and-half on anything before. Well, that wasn’t entirely true. She couldn’t decide if she liked sweet and sour sauce. Pick a damn flavor and stick with it!
He gave her a warm smile and pulled away to get the key from the front desk. She stayed back, watching him. It was crazy to think that under his perfect body was a dragon. She had seen him transform in front of her own eyes. She wasn’t done entertaining the possibility that she had endured a mental breakdown and that she was in a hospital somewhere. Ember didn’t exist. Orcs didn’t. Roland didn’t. She was just in a bed with an IV sticking into her arm. If it was all fake, she had one heck of an imagination. All that practicing as a child had paid off.
As he walked towards her with the room keys in hand, she took the opportunity to really look at him. Sarah wanted to see if anything about him was familiar, since he claimed to know her so well. Also, he was really hot, and if she were being honest with herself, she just liked looking at him.
He was taller than her, which wasn’t terribly impressive. Everyone was taller than her. The most interesting part of him was that he was built like a diver—lean, strong, and obviously defined. She’d never really liked gym rats. They were usually just meatheads and their bulging muscles somewhat bothered her. The only reason they had them was because they wanted to impress women or they were trying to compensate for something they were lacking, such as brains.
But Ember was somehow different. He wasn’t as big as the gym guys, but he looked strong and sophisticated. Other women of the lobby followed his movement with their eyes. For reasons she couldn’t explain, that made Sarah oddly defensive.
“Got the key,” he said. “I’d like to change and shower. You?”
“You have no idea,” she replied.
Did he only get one room? She wasn’t sure if she liked that or not. She wasn’t going to argue, but she was going to keep that gun close. Ah, but, it was still empty. It wouldn’t do a thing against him.
She glanced at the clock. Almost midnight. It had already been dark when her bike broke down. The rain was still coming down outside with a gentle pitter-patter against the large glass windows in the lobby.
They went into the elevator. The elevator, like everything else, screamed affluence. It climbed up, giving the people inside a full view of the expansive lobby through a glass wall of the elevator.
“This place is beautiful,” Sarah murmured. “How rich are you?”
She meant it as a joke, but he didn’t take it that way.
“Oh, enough.”
“I’ve had nightmares about you.” She heard herself speaking and tried to get herself to shut up to no avail. She tended to say whatever was on her mind, which was a boon in some occasions and a great flaw in others.
He hesitated. “About me?”
She groaned internally. She’d already said it. She might as well get it off her chest. “Yup. I’ve had them my entire life.”
She watched him carefully. He seemed initially very confused, but after a second of consideration, he nodded. “That happens sometimes.”
She raised up an eyebrow. “People have nightmares about you often?”
He shook his head. “People sometimes have dreams about their past deaths. I’m sorry you have to deal with that. I’m guessing you see little things? Maybe some shapes? But you never see the ending?”
She nodded slowly. “Something like that.”
“Who knows? Maybe my arrival will spark your brain to remember everything.”
“Maybe so.”
There was a pause.
“I didn’t kill you,” Ember assured her. “I know those dreams can sometimes be confusing, but it wasn’t me.”
“Okay.”
“You have nothing to fear from me,” he said with strong conviction.
“You’re a dragon. I have a lot to fear from you.”
“I would rather die than harm you,” Ember responded while staring at her earnestly. “Having a mate in my world isn’t something casual. When we pick a woman, we stay with her for life. That’s why it’s so special.”
“What if the woman doesn’t want it?”
There was just a smallest tinge of pain in his eyes. “Well, it’s very rare. Our physiology draws us to our soulmates. We don’t just find a random woman and spend eternity with her. She must be a special person; someone that we could envision cherishing for all time. I wouldn’t envision that with someone that doesn’t feel the same way about me.”
“So I used to feel this way?”
“Very much so. We were quite passionate lovers.”
The elevator door opened and they started towards the room. Suddenly, Ember turned to face her. She jumped in surprise. He took her shoulders in his powerful hands, looking at her with those enchanting eyes.
“I will win you back,” he said urgently. “I have looked for you for lifetimes. If it takes me the rest of eternity, I will win you back. I will remind you of what we used to have.”
Before she could react, he pulled her close and planted his lips on hers. Each pair of lips gave way to the other ever so slightly. Her eyes flashed open wide in shock. He pulled away.
“I didn’t say you could do that.” Her heart pounded. He excited her and made every one of her senses come alive.
“I took the risk,” he replied.
“I could’ve refused,” she told him with a sharp tone.
She was flushed from the experience, but she had explicitly told him to stay away from her. He had ignored her.
“You’re worth the risk.” He held out a hand for her. “I know you don’t remember me. I’m trying to understand that. All that I’m asking is that you give me a chance to win your heart back. Will you give me that chance? One night. That’s all I’m asking.”
She studied him. All her logic was telling her to stay away from him. He was dangerous. He was a stranger. He was probably crazy. But on a deeper level, her heart was telling her to take his hand and go all in. After a moment of consideration, she reached out her hand and took his. His hand was warm, strong, and cradled hers lovingly.
“One night,” she said. “Prove everything to me.”
“Everything,” he promised, putting his other hand on top of hers. “Everything.”
“You better not turn into a dragon again.”
“I’ll do whatever I have to do to keep us safe.”
“What about me?”
“I have a gun in my bag,” he replied. “I brought it for you.”
“The last gun didn’t do much against the orcs,” she protested.
“It’s a different kind of gun.”
He led them towards their hotel room. She caught the number of a room that they passed: 2716. They were on the twenty-seventh floor of the monumental building. Twenty-seven was also her lucky number, so she was pretty happy about that. He slid the card into the key reader and it blinked green before he pushed open their hotel room door.
Sarah had always associated hotel rooms with low qualities of living. They were just temporary residences. The ones she’d stayed in were usually cheap ones,
so they didn’t have any amenities or anything better than a tiny shower and a bed.
This hotel was different. She spotted a full bar, a king-size bed adorned with decorative pillows, and an expansive bathroom. There was even a large jacuzzi bathtub she couldn’t wait to use. To top it all off, a decadent balcony waited outside.
She put her hands to cover her mouth. “Oh, wow…”
“Do you like it?” he moved to the bed. “The view is amazing.”
“It’s beautiful!”
She wandered over to the window, looking at the city. Part of her worried about someone watching them through the windows from one of the nearby buildings, but then noticed a sliding curtain ran across the curved glass wall. She drew the curtain shut. They were concealed from the rest of the world. Whoever had shot that arrow at her would have killed her back at her own apartment. She didn’t want to give them a good shot at either her or Ember.
When she turned around, Ember was naked and rooting through his bags. He had a beautiful geometric design tattooed over his right shoulder. Her theories about his body was completely right—lean and powerful.
Sarah turned away, embarrassed. “Well, you don’t waste any time, do you?”
“What do you mean?” The meaning behind her comment seemed to dawn on him. “You’ve seen it all before anyway,” he said with a shrug.
“Well, not for a thousand years, according to you.” Her cheeks were burning.
“Well, I’m going to take a shower. Of course, you are welcome to join me,” he said as he headed to the bathroom.
“I’m good, thanks,” laughed Sarah.
She could hear him laugh as the water turned on.
“I could sue you for indecency,” she called after him.
He peeked his head outside of the bathroom door. “I’ve been around much too long to worry about your laws. I’m not saying I’m above the law, but, well, yes, I am above the law. Besides, I saw your flushed cheeks—you liked what you saw.”
She opened her mouth to come up with the perfect comeback, but was silent. She wanted to be offended, but the man, or dragon, or whatever he was supposed to be, was absolutely right.
“Hey, if you want food,” he called from the shower, “there’s a menu by the bed.”
Sarah plopped down on the large, cozy bed and immediately sank into it as if it were made just for her.
I could get used to this, she thought.
She felt soothed by the rain outside and the sound of the shower running. Comfortable. Protected. The air was set at just the right temperature. No huge scary creatures were attacking them. They were safe, for the moment.
She knew there would come a time when she was scared again, but in that moment, she was determined to relax and enjoy the beautiful surroundings. Her body was exhausted and she fought to keep her eyes opened.
6
“Hey,” Ember said. “You’re hogging the bed.”
Suddenly, she realized that she had fallen asleep without her permission. She opened her eyes to see Ember looking at her.
“Are you wearing pants?” she asked, almost afraid to look.
“You asked me to.”
“That’s not an answer.”
He lifted a leg. He was wearing linen pants. She shifted up into a small mountain of pillows. “Sorry. I didn’t realize I’d fallen asleep.”
“I’m supposed to be spending this time to convince you I’m telling you the truth,” he reminded. “That was the agreement, remember?”
She blinked sleep out of her eyes. “Can you put on a shirt at least?”
He grinned. “I’ll put on a shirt if you stay awake to ask me all the questions you might have.”
“Deal.”
He pulled on the rest of his sleep wear, which was evidently just the counterpart to the pants. “Are you going to shower?”
“I was going to.” She scooted over to part of the bed, making a pillow barricade to keep them apart. “But this bed is pretty tempting… and I don’t have any clothes.”
“There are robes in the bathroom,” he said while gesturing to the bathroom.
“Really?”
“Really.”
“Then, yes, I will shower in a minute.”
Ember sat down on the other side of the pillow wall. “So, I imagine you have some questions for me?”
She did have some questions for him. She had a whole list, but her brain wasn’t fully working. She had never been good at waking up quickly. It took her a solid fifteen minutes to get her brain up and running. There was no doubt she had questions. All she had to do was remember them.
Until she could think of them, she just bluffed. “I don’t know where to start.”
“Take your time. Are you hungry?”
“Not really…”
She looked up at the fan swirling overhead. “Here’s a question for you. What happens if Roland catches me?”
“We both die.”
“Why you?”
“I’ll die before I see him hurt you.”
She glanced over at him. He wasn’t looking at her. He was staring up at the ceiling. She couldn’t see his body under his shirt, but she remembered the tattoo on his shoulder. “I like your tattoo.”
“That’s good. You didn’t like it the first time we met.”
“How did you and I supposedly meet so long ago?”
“Just like normal humans, I guess. I was passing through your village and I saw you. Immediately, I knew you were the one. I just came up and talked to you. I didn’t break my genetics to you immediately. I got to know you first.”
“Huh. So,” she said. “I saw the orcs already. What shot at me in my apartment? That arrow?”
“Probably a goblin,” he replied. “Doesn’t really matter. That was a steel bolt. I know, I know. Why use a bolt when you can use a gun? Goblins…” he tried to think of a good way to say it. “They’re not the smartest things. They’re big into tradition.”
She was starting to pull out of her sleep mode. “I’m going to drill you on me. If you and I were really married, you’d know these things about me.”
He put his hands behind his head. “Drill away.”
“What’s my favorite color?”
“Red.”
“Am I a leftie?’
“Ambidextrous.”
“Republican or democrat?”
“Neither. You hate politics.”
She frowned. “Huh. What’s my brother’s name?”
He laughed. “You don’t have a brother.”
“I don’t get how you would know that,” she protested. “My brother, if I ever had one, wouldn’t reincarnate with me!”
He was laughing. “I found that out when I tracked you down in this life. It has nothing to do with the past.”
She tried to summon the energy to get up. She finally found it deep within herself and lunged up, wandering over to the bathroom. She needed to clear her mind, and nothing did that better than washing her face. It would take off the last random bits of her makeup that had survived the rain. She looked in the mirror and grimaced. Mascara was smeared below her eyes.
“Why didn’t you tell me I look terrible?”
“You don’t. Not to me,” he said as he came in stood in the bathroom doorway.
“Well, aren’t you the sweet talker?” she said, mockingly. “I bet you talk to all the girls like that.”
“Oh, all of them,” he replied sarcastically. “Same routine every time.”
She turned on the water and let it warm up before splashing it on her face. “So, what’s your secret to getting women? A pill? Some sort of mind technique you read on the internet somewhere?”
He came up behind her, laying a hand on her shoulder. “Well, first, I tell her the truth.”
She recognized his arm but didn’t move it off. “Truth, huh? Interesting.”
“Then, I tell her how much I love her,” he told her. “And how I want to keep her safe and happy for all of eternity.”
He
moved up closer, almost as though asking her permission. When she didn’t reject him, he nuzzled up against her, running a hand along her lean thigh.
She felt a shudder move through her body from head to toe at his touch. “So, what do you do next?”
He brushed a hand by her hip, gliding his fingers just past the hem of her panties under her jeans. He was playing with her. “I hold her close to show her how special and beautiful she is in my eyes.”
She held in a moan. “I’d say you’re doing good so far.”
“I’m glad,” he replied smoothly.
He slid a hand under her shirt, across her belly button, and up between her supple breasts. Sarah unbuttoned her blouse and slipped it off, as he reached behind her and unclipped her bra before kissing her neck.
Her eyes were open and her heart was thumping in her chest loud enough that she was slightly worried he could hear it. “This doesn’t mean I believe you,” she murmured.
“I’ll take it.”
He pulled his pajamas off, leaving his muscular body in front of her with washboard abs and bronze skin. She glanced down at his manhood. Her eyes widened in surprise at his immense size. She started worrying about fitting him inside of her.
“I’ll be gentle,” he assured her with those enchanted orange eyes and a playful smile.
He kissed her passionately on the lips, massaging her back sensuously with his powerful hands. She reached down to his groin and took his member into her hand, stroking it gently and feeling him grow.
He let out a deep groan.
He slipped her jeans and panties down and pushed them off to the side onto the smooth, chilled floor. Her legs were bare and smooth. Her blood was pumping loudly, her breath coming quickly.
“You’re my everything,” he breathed into her ear.
She kneeled down in front of the shifter, and took the tip of his cock into her mouth before slowly settling her mouth over him, inch by inch.
He sighed as she expertly used her tongue to apply pressure while her fingers wrapped around the base of his cock to intensify his pleasure.
Ember guided her up from her knees.
“Tonight is all about you,” he cooed in her ear.