by Lola Gabriel
Right now, if she told me I had to sacrifice two thousand innocent souls, I’d agree with her. That’s the sort of hold she already has over me. I feel like I have found my soulmate, my one true love. I feel like I would do anything she asked of me and more. And judging by the way she’s looking at me now, her eyes almost cloudy with her lust, I think maybe she feels the same way about me.
I stop thinking and start acting. I lean down and press my lips against Esmerelda’s. She tastes of strawberries and cream and something else, something unfamiliar yet enchanting. She tastes like home. She wraps her arms around me, pressing her body against mine, and I realize we are both naked, our clothes just gone without us having to remove them. It seems that just wanting them gone was enough to rid ourselves of them.
My skin tingles where it touches hers and I run my hands down her back, cupping her ass cheeks in my hands for a moment, kneading them roughly. She moans into my mouth and I lift her. She wraps her legs around me, and I can feel the heat from her pussy against me. My cock is going wild, needing to be inside of her.
I move my mouth from hers and kiss down her neck as I push myself inside of her. She is tight and warm and so deliciously slippery. She feels so good that I almost come just from entering her, but I hold myself back. My dragon is stirring inside of me, filling me with a feeling of lust greater than anything I have ever felt before. I feel like I am going to explode with pleasure any second now.
I move inside of Esmerelda, pushing us both closer to our climax. I slam her up against one of the walls to the room and push my hand between our bodies, rubbing my fingers over her swollen clit. I can feel it pulsing beneath my probing fingertips. Esmerelda gasps and pants for breath as I take her over the edge.
Her body goes rigid and I feel her nails raking across my shoulders and down my back, cutting long scratches into my skin. The stinging sensation and the heat of Esmerelda’s juices flooding over me are too much for me to resist and I come hard, calling out Esmerelda’s name as I flood into her. I feel fire spreading through my body as my cock spasms.
My climax starts to fade, and I hold Esmerelda in place for a moment, my face nuzzled into her neck. Finally, I step back and set her down gently on the ground. She smiles at me.
“Don’t forget about me, Atlas,” she whispers.
Atlas woke up with a smile on his face and a feeling of longing inside of his body. He shook his head in awe as he remembered his dream from last night—the gorgeous redheaded girl who told him that she was Esmerelda and then let him fuck her like he had never fucked anyone before. By the end of the session, he had felt like this woman was meant to be his mate. He still felt that way now, despite knowing it wasn’t real, that she wasn’t real. He figured it must be his subconscious processing the fact that he had killed a woman, even an evil one like Esmerelda. The real Esmerelda.
Atlas sat up and got out of bed, still remembering the dream. His cock pulsed as he thought of how it had felt to be inside of his dream lover. He shook the thoughts away, telling himself not to become too obsessed with something he could never have.
He headed to the bathroom where he used the toilet, then showered and brushed his teeth using the complimentary items in the bathroom. He got dressed and ran his hands through his damp hair. He went back to the bedroom and his jaw dropped when he saw criss-cross lines of blood on the sheet that covered the mattress he had slept on. Was it his blood? He went back into the bathroom. He lifted his t-shirt up and turned, peering over his shoulder into the mirror. His back was covered in scratches. They weren’t deep, but they were real. And they were in a place where there was no way Atlas could have done them to himself whilst he was dreaming.
He went back into the bedroom and sat down hard on the bed, taking a moment to gather his thoughts. Could it all be true? Of course it could. It was a well-known fact in the shifter world that witches could penetrate a person’s dreams and make them go the way they wanted them to go, see what they wanted them to see, do what they wanted them to do. That had to have been what happened here. Esmerelda had come to him in his dream, trying to make him go and free her.
He thought of the woman he had killed, and coupled with the scratches on his back, her death convinced him that last night had been no dream. The woman, Mary, Esmerelda had called her in his dream last night, she hadn’t been a witch. He had stabbed her in the heart—he had known it at the time, but had doubted it when she didn’t die. It made sense now; he had hit his target and the only reason Mary didn’t die was because she was a demon and the only way to kill a demon was by decapitation or by inflicting a fatal wound with a weapon made of Ure, a metal that all shifters could be killed by.
“Shit,” Atlas whispered when the truth settled over him. “I should have known it wouldn’t have been that easy.”
He thought for a bit longer. He knew he had to go back there and finish what he had started, and he knew it wasn’t going to be easy. Not at all. Esmerelda had already shown him that much—she had seduced him, made him feel like the connection between them was real. He would have to be careful not to get lured into her mind control again and let her con him into freeing her from the castle instead of killing her.
He gathered his few things up, making sure his knife was easily reachable. He went downstairs and paid for his room, telling the owner that he wouldn’t need the room for another night. He was finishing this thing right now and then catching the first flight back to Raina and Logan.
Atlas climbed back through the hole in the wall surrounding the castle’s grounds and strode purposefully toward the castle. This time, he didn’t bother trying to be stealthy. What was the point? She knew he was coming. His one advantage was her thinking she had gotten into his head and that he would rescue her. She knew nothing about him, least of all the fact that he knew how witches worked. It didn’t matter that he could feel the love for her inside of himself. It didn’t matter that the thought of hurting her made him want to drop to his knees and scream up to the skies. That was all part of her control over him. He had to ignore it, resist her charms, and do what he had come here to do. End her.
He reached the castle and pushed open the heavy front door. He marched inside and paused, wondering whereabouts in the building he would find Esmerelda. He had half expected her to be in the hallway waiting for his arrival, and she didn’t disappoint him. A door opened off the hallway and Esmerelda stepped through it.
Atlas felt his breath catching in his throat. She was even more beautiful in the flesh if that was possible, and her scent was enchanting in and of itself. His dragon’s senses could smell her from here, musk and sweetness and the salty smell of her juices. Was she wet right now? She must be for him to be able to smell her so strongly.
Atlas swallowed hard, ignoring the feelings inside of himself, ignoring the way his cock hardened at the sight of Esmerelda, and ignoring the way his dragon was screaming at him, telling him that this woman was meant to be his.
“You came,” Esmerelda said quietly as she moved closer to Atlas.
Atlas nodded, watching her come closer.
“That’s close enough,” he said when Esmerelda was almost close enough for him to reach out and touch her.
She stopped walking, a look of disappointment on her face.
“You don’t believe last night was real, do you?” she asked with a gentle sigh.
“I believe it happened,” Atlas said. “But I don’t believe the feelings were real. Or the story about you doing this against your will. I’m not going to fall for your bullshit, Esmerelda, so you might as well stop trying to control my mind.”
“Okay,” she said, nodding her head and looking sad. “If that’s how you feel, then at least make it as quick and painless as you can. Will you at least do that much for me?”
Atlas frowned. Was this some sort of a trick? Was she going to wait for him to get closer to her and then attack him? Although it seemed to be the most likely explanation, it didn’t feel right to Atlas. Esmerelda didn’t seem
like she was being deceitful. She seemed to have accepted her fate. She looked resigned to the fact that she would die. He knew he should end this before she changed her mind.
“Why aren’t you fighting back?” Atlas asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.
“For the last two hundred years, I have carried the guilt with me for casting the curse. I did it to save my family, but that doesn’t stop me from feeling everyone else’s pain whom the curse affected. And then a hundred years ago, it got worse. Matchmakers became a thing, and again, I felt everyone’s pain. So, you can kill me and at least then I will be free of this crushing sorrow,” Esmerelda said.
Atlas knew then he wasn’t going to kill Esmerelda. He didn’t know quite what was happening, but he knew instinctively that she was speaking the truth. And he knew that it was all true. She wasn’t the villain here; she was as much a victim of the demon queen as the women whose reproductive lives were affected and those who were snatched and turned and then forced into being a shifter’s mate against their will.
He stepped toward her. She flinched, but she didn’t make to attack him or to run away from him. She closed her eyes and spread her arms out, welcoming her fate. Atlas put his knife away and stepped even closer to Esmerelda. He kissed her on the mouth, brushing his lips over hers, then pulled back as her eyes flew open in surprise.
“I believe you,” he said. “And as crazy as it sounds, I feel like you’re meant to be my one true mate. I know this is terrible timing, but I just wanted you to know that. Now—”
“I feel the same way,” Esmerelda interrupted him.
“You do?” Atlas said, hardly daring to believe it could be true, that a girl so beautiful and amazing as this one could feel that way about him.
Esmerelda nodded her head and Atlas kissed her again, a hard, passionate kiss that left them both breathless.
“I have to find a way to break the curse so we can get out of here,” Atlas said. “Do you have any idea what it is that stops you from leaving the castle?”
“Not really. Isla did something, some sort of enchantment. She did something to herself and Mary so they could come and go, but I don’t know what,” Esmerelda said. Her eyes opened wider as horror went through her. “Oh God. Oh no. You’re going to be stuck in here too now.”
Atlas shook his head quickly and smiled.
“I won’t be,” he said. “If my theory is correct.”
He held his breath as he turned and went to walk back through the front door. He let the breath out in a sigh of relief as he crossed the threshold easily.
“How did you do that?” Esmerelda asked, gasping in wonder.
“It’s my blood,” he said. “I’m a dragon and dragon’s blood can overcome enchantments in certain circumstances.”
“So, I’m still stuck here, then?” Esmerelda said with her eyes downcast.
Atlas stepped back into the castle and pulled his knife out.
“Not at all,” he said.
Esmerelda looked back up as Atlas ran the knife across his wrist. Blood welled up and began to run over his skin and drip onto the ground. He beckoned to Esmerelda with his other hand and she came to his side, searching his face for answers. He gently rubbed his bleeding wrist over her neck and chest. She never took her eyes from his as he rubbed his wrist against her skin, and by the time he judged she had enough blood on her to allow her to be able to leave the castle, they were both breathing heavier and the scent of their lust filled the air.
Atlas blinked, forcing his gaze from Esmerelda’s and forcing himself to look away from her face, her body. As much as he wanted her right now, there would be plenty of time for that once he got her out of here and broke the curse.
“Ready?” he asked, taking Esmerelda’s hand in his.
She nodded her head and he squeezed her hand gently and then led her toward the door. They both held their breaths as they reached it, and both of them let their breaths out in relieved laughter when Esmerelda was able to step through the door. Atlas dropped her hand and pulled her into his arms. Esmerelda clung to him for a second. He breathed in deeply, sniffing her hair and savoring the feeling of her in his arms. He was far from ready to let her go when she wriggled free of his embrace.
“I’m sorry. I have to go. Isla will know I’m free and she’ll be coming,” she said.
“It’s okay,” Atlas reassured her. “We can be long gone by the time she gets here and besides that, I won’t let her hurt you. I won’t let anyone ever hurt you again.”
Esmerelda shook her head.
“No, you don’t understand. She won’t be coming for me. She’ll be going for my family. My parents and my sister. They don’t know about any of this, so they won’t see it coming. She can kill them all before they will even know what’s hit them,” she said.
“Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go,” Atlas said.
Suddenly, getting back to Raina and Logan to report that the prophecy was completed seemed a lot less of a priority than being with Esmerelda and protecting her family.
8
Raina glanced at Chessa, the nerves really starting to kick in now. Chessa looked up from the magazine she was reading and laughed softly.
“Will you relax?” she said in the voice of the long-suffering friend who had already said that at least twelve times in the last five minutes.
“I can’t relax. I honestly don’t think I’ll ever be able to relax again,” Raina said. “I keep thinking what if I’m wrong about this? And then I think, oh God, what if I’m right? What if Logan isn’t ready for a baby? What if I’m not ready for a baby?”
“Okay, okay, one thing at a time,” Chessa laughed, putting the magazine down. “If you’re wrong and you’re happy about that, then good, forget it and move on. If you’re wrong and you’re not happy about it, start trying for a baby. Logan loves babies and he’s been ready forever, and if he changes his mind, you don’t need anyone to hold your hand, Raina, you’ve got this. And you’re great with kids. I’ve seen the way you look at the babies within the pack. You’re ready to be a mom.”
Raina took a deep breath and nodded her head. She knew Chessa was right, but she was still nervous.
“It’s the hormones,” Chessa said with a grin before Raina could even ask the question. “They make you feel brilliant one moment, awful the next, and never quite sure what’s going on around you at any one time. It definitely makes me think you’re pregnant. And don’t worry. The hormone craziness only lasts for a couple of months.”
Raina hoped she was right and that she would be able to calm down a bit soon. Before she could reply with another question, another worry, a door opened and the nurse shouted Raina’s name.
“Good luck,” Chessa whispered.
Raina smiled her thanks and went toward the nurse.
“Are you still nervous about telling Logan?” Chessa asked as she pulled the car up outside of the house where Raina and Logan were still staying with her and Noah.
Raina shook her head.
“No, not really. I’m more excited than nervous now. And to know we’re having a girl…it means the curse is broken and Logan and I can settle down properly and really be a family. I think he’ll be as excited about that as I am, to be honest,” Raina replied. “I think I was more concerned about how we would handle a baby on the road and if Logan would want that, or if he would say we had to stop hunting down the Matchmakers. With the curse broken, though, none of that’s an issue.”
Chessa nodded her head and smiled.
“I’m glad you’ve stopped stressing,” she said with a laugh. “And for what it’s worth, I think Logan would have been happy either way.”
They got out of the car and headed for the house. They went along to the lounge and Chessa asked Noah to go and help her with something. Raina bit her lip to hide her smile. Chessa was clearly trying to be subtle, but she really wasn’t good at it. The second the door closed behind her and Noah, Logan turned to Raina.
“What’s wron
g?” he demanded. “Why do we need to be alone?”
“Nothing’s wrong,” Raina said, a smile spreading across her face. “In fact, it’s the opposite of that. I’m pregnant, Logan. We’re going to have a baby.”
Logan jumped up and punched the air in triumph, a laugh bubbling up from his stomach. He closed the gap between himself and Raina and picked her up, spinning her in a circle. She laughed and clung to him, happy that he was happy. He set her back down and kissed her, and her body responded to him, leaning in to him, wanting more. But she still had to tell him the rest of her news and she stepped back slightly before she wouldn’t be able to stop herself from stripping Logan.
“There’s more,” she grinned. “I’m a lot further along than I thought I was. Far enough for them to have done a scan on me. We’re having a girl. You know what this means, right?”
“Yeah. I’m going to have a daughter,” Logan grinned.
Raina couldn’t help but laugh at Logan’s enthusiasm and the fact that he had completely missed her point.
“Yes. And…?” she prompted him.
“And…” he paused, thinking, and then his face changed as the truth hit him. “And oh my God, the curse is broken, isn’t it?”
“Yup,” Raina laughed.
“So we can settle down here finally without feeling like we’ve shirked our responsibility,” Logan grinned.
“Exactly,” Raina agreed.
Logan grinned wider and then he turned serious again. He took Raina’s hand and led her to the couch where they sat down side by side.
“You know what else this means, though, don’t you?” he said. “If the curse is broken, Isla will be on the war path. She’ll go after them. And I know we barely know Atlas and we don’t know Esmerelda at all, but I kind of feel like we got them into this.”
“We certainly got Atlas into it. So we should get them out of it,” Raina agreed.
“Yeah,” Logan said. “Is that stupid?”