by Jill Haven
Well, strip poker was one way to teach, I supposed.
“Bishop taught me,” Evan said happily. “I’m not very good yet, but it’s fun.” He looked down at his daughter, adoringly. “It was something to do while feeding her in the middle of the night.”
That was one way to handle night feeds, I supposed.
The dragons were bantering as Carlisle dealt. “I’m going to take Beau out to dinner, on all of you,” Ace said confidently, turning just enough to shoot me a wink. “Steak, wine, the whole shebang.”
Ten snorted. “You say that like you can’t do that without winning this.”
Ace elbowed him, drawing an eyeroll from Carlisle and a chuckle from Bishop. “Stop giving away my secrets.”
“I’m not stupid,” I pointed out, taking another bite of my meal. Although I’d started out ravenous, I was getting full, and I didn’t want Ace to have to roll me to our room. Wherever it was.
“Of course you’re not.” Ace looked affronted at the very idea.
“Full house!” Ten crowed, tossing down his cards. From the swearing I heard, none of the other four had anything to beat that.
“Carlisle likes me the best,” Ace muttered to Ten, his tone not serious in the slightest. Instead there was a grin on his face as he needled his brother. “It’s not my fault I’m the cute one. Don’t pick on me.”
Ten reached over and ruffled Ace’s hair, drawing a growl and a baring of his teeth. “Who else would we pick on?”
Ace smacked his hand away, making me smile. “I spent an hour on that, fuck you very much,” he said with a scowl.
Immediately all eyes turned toward me. “Did he really spend an hour on that hairstyle?” Carlisle asked.
I tried not to shift under the intensity of all of them looking at me. “No?”
“Thought so,” Ten said smugly. “Bishop, you deal next.”
“Can I play?” I asked, trying to sound more confident than I felt.
“Of course,” Carlisle answered smoothly. “You can play with—”
“Me,” Ten cut in. “Bring up a chair.”
Ace’s shocked face was more than enough incentive to listen. Grabbing the chair I’d been sitting in, I moved next to Ten. “We’ll be a team,” Ten said confidently, grinning at Ace, who was now glaring at him with narrowed eyes.
“Now you’re stealing my mate?” Ace put a hand to his heart. “I thought we were friends, Ten. Friends.”
“Well, I wanted to win at poker, so…” I said, although I bit back a laugh at the outrage in Ace’s expression. He was too fun to needle, especially since he understood it was all in good fun.
Ace shook his head mournfully. “I guess I’ll have to take Evan out to dinner, instead.”
Bishop growled.
“Or Haiden.”
Carlisle growled.
“Seth?”
“Vetoed,” Mason said absently.
Ace laughed, like he’d been expecting the responses. Maybe he had been. Either way, he blew me a kiss. “I’ll be nice when I kick your ass, babe.”
I bit back a not-safe-for-public response with a bite of my lower lip, but I was calm and relaxed in a way I hadn’t been in quite some time. As the game continued and got more heated, I realized I felt like I was home. The dragons clearly cared for each other and their mates. Evan, Haiden, and Seth had laid their kids down for bed and come back down to team up with their mates, and the dining room was full of laughter and love.
When Ace caught my gaze, it held, his eyes soft with something I couldn’t define. Something I wasn’t ready to define, although I had my suspicions. Was I seeing things? Or did he genuinely want me? He winked at me, his gaze smoothly moving to something else, and I took the opportunity to breathe. I didn’t want to get too used to his presence. I wasn’t certain it would last. Not that it mattered.
Ace was addictive, and I was already hooked.
I sat next to Charlotte’s rocker, watching her reach for the toys hanging above her. She was cooing at them and kicking her feet, adorable as hell. Haiden had grabbed a nap since she hadn’t been sleeping through the night, and Evan was off doing something or another. I didn’t think I was ready for watching a kid on my own, but the faith Haiden had in me gave me a bit more confidence.
I was still terrified, but less.
Charlotte babbled something nonsensical, and I leaned over her, giving her my fingers when she reached out for them. She pulled one into her mouth immediately, starting to bite at it with her gums.
“Ouch,” I chided, even though it didn’t really hurt that much. However, it would, when she finally got a full set of teeth.
“Sorry,” Haiden said from behind me, sounding less exhausted than he had earlier. “Chewing on people is her new thing.”
“No problem,” I said with a faint smile.
“How’s Ace?” Haiden’s gaze was sympathetic.
I winced. “Good.” There wasn’t much else to say. He’d been gone for a week, off hunting dragons who-knew-where, and while he’d made time for a phone call every night, it wasn’t the same. I wanted to see him, I wanted to touch him, hold him, but I knew he was out there trying to keep me safe, so how could I be bitter?
“It’s hard,” Haiden said softly. He reached over to squeeze my shoulder. “He’ll be home before you know it.”
“Home,” I mused, rolling my tongue over the word. What even was that anymore?
“Did Haiden send you after me?” I looked at Evan as he sat next to me, folding his long legs easily until he was settled.
“Stormy’s finally sleeping, so I wanted to check on you.” Evan beamed at me.
“No change,” I said quietly, staring at my phone in my hand like it would change something. “We still don’t know who they are. I’m still in danger. He’s still not coming home.”
“There is an easy solution, you know,” Evan said, although he sounded almost hesitant. It was unfamiliar in his voice. “You could take his mating bite.”
“His what what?” I turned to face Evan, dread and hope warring in my stomach.
“Other dragons don’t dare come after a mated omega because it’s basically asking for their death if they do,” Evan explained. “Once he claims you, you’d be safe.” There was a pause. “He…didn’t explain that to you?”
“No.” I pulled my knees up to my chest, wishing there was a garden somewhere, something I could do that would get my hands in soil. It was the easiest way to work through my worries. Instead, they were pulling at me, threatening to drag me down. I heard Evan keep talking, offering some platitudes, but all I could do was think about the mating bite and why Ace hadn’t offered it.
Did he not want me? Did he want me, but only as a baby carrier? Bile rose in my throat. I wanted to ask him, wanted to confront him, but he was still too far away.
I wasn’t certain how much time had passed when my phone rang, startling me out of my thoughts. My heart skipped a beat when I saw it was Ace.
“Hello?” I sounded breathy from excitement, my body on edge knowing it would get some relief from the sound of his voice.
“Hi, love,” Ace said quietly, his voice sending tendrils of warmth from my head to my toes. It was like being wrapped in his arms. Almost. “We might have found your father.”
“Really?” I straightened up, pressing the phone tighter to my ear like it would make his words or information clearer. “Where?”
There was some mumbling in the background. “Shit,” Ace muttered, although it was clear from the volume that he hadn’t expected me to hear it. “We need a little more time. Be safe, okay?” Worry wove through his words. “Please take care of yourself.”
“Only if you do,” I said in return, because it had become a little exchange between the two of us. I would listen, but only if he looked after himself, too.
The little sigh on Ace’s side made me smile, because I knew the caretaking thing was as new to him as it was to me. “I love you,” Ace said softly, fondly, but before I could process the words or resp
ond, the call ended.
I stared at my phone, my face bright red and my hand shaking. Had he meant it? Did he even realize he’d said it? The same hope that had dragged at me earlier pushed back up into my body, brightening up my world. If Ace really did love me, maybe he would want to claim me. Maybe he did want me.
Later, when I dragged my ass up to bed, I went to sleep with a full heart.
18
Ace
I felt like I was ready to itch out of my skin, shed it and run all the way back to Carlisle’s house, to my mate. Instead, I was stuck listening to Bishop and Ten talk strategy while they pretended I was paying attention. I think I even offered advice about what we were doing once or twice, although I doubted it was any good. I couldn’t stop pacing, couldn’t sit down for more than a minute before giving in to the need to move again.
From what we’d found out, Harland had left the clan not long after hiding Beau with his grandparents, but after that, he’d virtually disappeared. I raked a hand through my hair, not giving a damn that it was ruining the hair product I’d put in there that morning.
“…right, Ace?” Ten looked at me expectantly.
I blinked at him. “Right,” I agreed, although I had no idea what he was talking about. “Sure.”
The two of them exchanged exasperated looks and went back to whatever they were doing. I went back to my pacing. I wanted to be back home with Beau, with him in my arms and everything right in the world again. Was he doing okay? Had he shown any pregnancy symptoms? Was he feeling as off-balance as I was, being this far apart?
I stared into the trees like they would have an answer. What if he was pregnant? Fatherhood had never been on my radar, really. It didn’t suit my lifestyle. But with Beau? Even the possibility was exciting. I wanted to share it with him, build a life, a house, with the taciturn, dark-haired man. The man who was slowly coming out of his shell just for me.
“Are you coming?” This time Bishop spoke directly to me, his deep rumble enough to cut through my thoughts.
“Where are we going?” I jerked my head up.
Ten smirked.
“To meet the Earth Dragon informant,” Bishop said patiently.
Oh. “Yes.”
Ten snorted, reaching out to ruffle my hair affectionately. “You’re so far gone, brother.”
I attempted to stare him down, but the jitteriness inside me ruined it.
“Just wait,” I vowed. Someday Ten would find his mate and it would be sweet, sweet karma.
Ten shook his head. “The odds aren’t high,” he said coolly, like it was a fact he had just accepted.
“You say that like it matters.” I arched an eyebrow at him.
“Shut up and get in the crazy yellow Jeep.” Ten elbowed me sharply.
“You say that like it’s a bad thing,” Bishop said, getting in the driver’s seat.
“We’re not going to sneak up on anyone in it,” I muttered.
“Good thing sneaking’s not what we need for this job, hm?” Bishop wasn’t even paying attention to us in the back.
I shook my head, crossing my arms over my chest and leaning back. The drive wasn’t long, not that I would have noticed. All of my attention was on that faint connection to Beau, how the ache in my chest was getting worse and worse. Every second I was without him was like thousands of tiny needles being pricked in my skin, the worst form of torture.
“Earth to Ace,” Ten said, then snorted at what he said. “We’re meeting the Earth Dragon.” The car had stopped, and I hadn’t noticed.
Bishop shot Ten a look. Ten smirked.
I managed a tiny smile, then followed Ten out of the car. The informant we were meeting was a man, maybe six-foot-tall, dressed in dark, camouflage clothes that blended into the woods. My whole body tensed, flooded with adrenaline. He could give us information about my mate, about Beau’s father. About who was after Beau and why.
Bishop exchanged traditional greetings, but all I could do was stare at the darker-skinned man who had dark eyes. “How do you know the Silver Dragons?” Bishop asked, his voice neutral. Logically I should have been leading the interrogation, but I wasn’t thinking rationally, not at the moment.
The man cocked his head to the side. “Do you trust my information or not?”
Bishop’s expression didn’t change. “You don’t want to lie to me.” While Bishop’s voice was usually deep, this was low and menacing, even for him. I knew he wouldn’t hurt me and it still sent a shiver down my spine. However, the Earth Dragon didn’t seem to be impressed.
The man rolled his eyes. “Like the Silver Dragons care about consequences,” he muttered. He shifted uneasily from foot to foot, like what he was going to say was something he didn’t want to. “Their clan is dying out. Here in GA, at least. They’re having the same birth rate issues that we are.”
“No new hatchlings?” Bishop glanced at Ten, at me, then back to the informant.
The man nodded. “They’re looking for Beau because they know he’s divine and think he’s the only hope for their race to survive.”
Anger trickled down my spine, starting to build at the base. I struggled to stay in control.
“They’re a cruel clan,” the man murmured, the words making it clear he had first-hand experience somehow. “They just want to keep him knocked up so they can diversify their line. Maybe even produce another divine omega.”
I growled, not able to stop the sound. The Earth Dragon flinched, but I couldn’t care. My dragon inside me was unfurling, desperate in its need to get to Beau, protect him, mate him. He was mine. No one else would touch him, claim him, mark him.
If anyone tried, they would pay with their lives. I’d make sure of that.
Ten’s hand squeezed my shoulder, but I jerked out from underneath it, irritable. There wasn’t anything any of them could do to make it better. I needed to be back home with my mate, and I needed him claimed, pregnant, and in my arms. He had to be mine in all ways. My dragon wouldn’t settle otherwise.
“Thanks,” I heard Bishop say, and there was some more talking, but I wasn’t paying attention. The moment I knew we were done, I was heading back to the car, knowing we were a step closer to getting back to Ace as soon as possible.
“I’ll call Carlisle,” Ten said, getting in the car next to me.
“Good,” Bishop grumbled. “Not sure Ace could tell you anything about what just happened.”
I glared at him. “They want to fuck with my mate. That’s not going to happen.”
“That is an accurate summary,” Ten mused, already dialing and putting the call on speakerphone.
“Hello?” Carlisle’s voice crackled. Ten filled him in quickly, letting me catch the details I’d missed before.
I sort of wished I hadn’t. It was already bad enough, being this far from Ace.
“Come home,” Carlisle said firmly.
“What?” I tried not to sound too hopeful.
“We can’t do anything right now, so come back to the manor.”
“Thank fuck,” I muttered, already turning my attention to Bishop. “Drive faster.”
Carlisle snorted. “Good luck on the drive home.”
“We’ll need it,” Bishop said darkly. “And no, I’m not breaking the speed limit any more than I usually do.”
I scowled at him. Whatever. I just wanted to get back to Beau as fast as I could.
I was the first out the car door and the first in the front door, frantically looking around for my mate. Then I saw him in the living room, sitting and talking with someone that wasn’t me. My dragon was driving me, urging me to grab him, take him right there, but I knew I couldn’t.
Pulling him up, I took him into my arms and kissed the living daylights out of him. Once the surprise wore off, Beau’s lithe body relaxed into mine, fitting perfectly against my frame as his tongue stroked mine, soft whimpers falling from this throat.
“Hi,” Beau said with a laugh, a smile on his lips.
My hands were roaming over his
body, up the back of his shirt, teasing at the waistband of his jeans. I grunted, since that seemed to be all I could say. I needed him naked, and I needed him naked now, not in ten minutes.
“We’re going out for a few hours,” Carlisle said dryly, and I grunted at that, too. It was important for some reason, but I wouldn’t have been able to explain why. Not that I cared. They weren’t important.
What was important was me dragging Beau upstairs and to the bedroom, closing the door behind us and pinning him to it, my body out of control. Every inch of me wanted to mark him, claim him, and I wasn’t sure I could hold back any longer. I didn’t think I could control myself.
“Beau,” I managed, although my voice almost sounded broken.
“It’s okay,” Beau said softly, leaning up to kiss me. “I’m here.”
My hands went to his shirt, ripping it up over his head and barely avoiding tearing it. His jeans and boxers went next, flying somewhere else and landing in the corner of our bedroom somewhere. Theoretically, I didn’t really care. I had my mate in front of me, naked, and my dragon was purring in contentment. I wanted to rub myself all over him, mark him with my scent, rub my cum in his skin. He was mine. Mine.
I jerked when I realized how tightly I was gripping his hips. “Sorry,” I muttered, although I couldn’t let go. I was fighting the instinct best I could, but some things were just too strong.
“Mark me.” Beau’s chocolate eyes met mine, his gaze steady. “I want to be yours.”
My jaw dropped and I stared at him, my heart thumping unsteadily. “I might be too rough.”
Beau kissed my jawline, a smirk on his lips. “I’m a farmer,” he pointed out, rubbing his hard length against mine through my pants. “I can handle anything. Even a tool this size.” He leaned down to cup me through my jeans, drawing a groan. I wanted his hand on me, wanted to be in him. I wanted him, period.
“I need you,” I whispered, my hands roaming his body. I loved his light muscles, his scattering of chest hair. The thin, long cock that felt amazing in my grip. Everything about him was perfect and I knew I could look at him forever and never be bored.
