Lord of Winter

by Bolryder, Terry

  “That’s enough for me,” he said earnestly. “We don’t have to rush an official mating. I’m not even sure how it works. We can just go about it like humans. I can take it one step at a time as long as every step is with you.”

  Talia swallowed, choked up with emotion. “Sounds good to me. I’m a scientist. I’ve never taken leaps. Yet, even when I thought you wanted to go with Dr. Henrick, I couldn’t let you go. I was willing to risk everything in that moment, my career, my life. That should tell you everything you need to know.”

  Alek nodded, realizing for the first time how much she had put on the line. “I’m glad you did that. We never spoke of our feelings, so I’m glad you feel the same.”

  She curled a hand around his neck, moving closer. “I couldn’t have been with you like that if I didn’t. I’m not the type to get involved.”

  “Why me, then?” Alek asked. “When I first woke up, I was insufferable.”

  “But then you were strong and protective and sweet. And honest in a way many men today aren’t.”

  “I see.”

  “And I guess,” she said, moving in even closer, making his body heat up. “maybe it’s just that you’re magical, and the longer I was with you, the more I couldn’t resist being illogical for once in my life.”

  “I’m glad,” Alek said, bringing his lips down close to hers, brushing against them so that she made a little shudder of anticipation. “Speaking of which, want to make a little magic now?”

  She let out a soft breath, lips so close he could almost taste them, and then brought her lips against his with a soft, passionate kiss. “Yes,” she said against him, digging her hands into his shirt. “I need to feel you. Make me yours.”

  Alek just laughed and kissed her back.

  * * *

  Talia knew she was out of control now, but since everything had stopped making sense, she’d decided to just go along with her feelings.

  And right now, she just wanted to feel Alek holding her tight, pumping inside her, being as close as two humans could be.

  She was glad she had taken on Dr. Henrick. Glad that Alek had come into her life and forced her to fight for something, to get her head out of her lab and really enjoy life.

  She laughed to herself, thinking about the first time she’d seen him when he’d burst out of the ice. Or when he’d arm wrestled the entire football team.

  Or when he’d turned into a magnificent shimmering dragon…

  She knew she would want to see that again. Life with him would be filled with more wonder than she’d ever imagined.

  She rolled onto her back, pulling him on top of her as she struggled to get out of her clothes. “Take me,” she said. “I need you close to me now.”

  He nodded eagerly, emitting a little growl as he pulled his shirt off over his head and then began to unbuckle his pants. They were in a race to get naked, to be skin to skin and bared to each other with nothing in between. She struggled beneath him to get her pants off, and he helped her before standing up to step out of his own.

  Then he removed his underwear, chucking it to the side so he could get back on top of her on the bed. She’d gotten her bra off and left only her panties, and when she reached for them, Alek’s hand covered hers, a glimmer in his eye.

  “Too slow, human. My turn.” He grinned as he hooked a finger into the waistband and slowly drew them down, giving her a long, heated look as he did.

  His blue eyes gleamed and his pale hair looked beautiful in the firelight, slightly wavy from being in the cold.

  When she was all the way naked, he grabbed her hands in his and intertwined their fingers, pushing her hands down at either side of her head. Then he kissed her, pressing his body against her, his hard thighs straddling her soft hips, his chest pressing hers, his perfect lips fitting to her mouth perfectly. She moaned and opened slightly, and he slipped his tongue inside with one smooth stroke.

  She gasped as he continued to stroke every sensitive part of her mouth. She writhed against him and felt him let go of one of her hands so he could reach down between them. Then she felt his strong, capable fingers gently exploring her wet folds.

  “Talia, you’re so perfect,” he said reverently, playing at her clit as she felt pressure build inside in response. “I could do this forever. Hold you forever. You’ll never be able to get rid of me for all time.” He pulled back and moved down between her legs, spreading them and hefting them over his shoulders. Then he tasted her between her legs.

  She shrieked and writhed, utterly embarrassed, but he trapped her with both hands, not letting her go. His blue eyes were wicked as he teased her with his tongue, watching her writhe and buck, her eyes rolling back in her head at the intense pleasure. She dug her hands into the sheets, wondering how she was going to hold on.

  “Not yet,” Alek murmured against her. “I want you to hold on.”

  So she did, moaning and trying to fight back her orgasm as he continued to tease her, wondering how she’d gotten so lucky as to have Alek as a lover for the rest of her life.

  Somehow, despite their short history, she knew they were going to be together. She knew it more than any equation or factoid. She knew it like she knew the sun would still rise.

  “My sweetheart,” Alek said softly, running his tongue over her one more time. She arched back, not sure she could take it any longer, but then felt Alek quickly drop her legs and move between them.

  She barely had time to gasp before he entered her with one long stroke. She sighed, nearly crying with satisfaction at being filled with his hardness.

  She wriggled. “I don’t know how long I’m going to be able to hold on.”

  He looked down at her, and she could see the same strain in his face. Though he’d been languidly pleasing her, clearly, he had been just as desperate all along. She could feel her body clenching around him in anticipation.

  Then he pulled out and began to stroke, and the whole world seemed to light up.

  “Oh, Alek.” She sighed, relaxing into the movement, letting her body adjust to the pressure, enjoying each slick thrust that brought them together. The light building inside her kept getting brighter and brighter, and she felt as if she would soon burst.

  Just when she couldn’t take it anymore, she felt Alek pull out one more time and bury himself deep inside her, and her body finally toppled over the edge. She burst, feeling like a star gone supernova, shattering in his arms.

  She wrapped her arms around him and felt him jerk in response. He found his release inside her, and she enjoyed wave after wave of pleasure as he called out her name and held her close as if he couldn’t ever let go of her. As if he never wanted to be out of her arms.

  When he withdrew, pressing kisses to her neck and forehead, she smiled, drawing him down to rest against her chest. “God, the lord of winter is insatiable.”

  “Only for you,” Alek said breathlessly. “I’ll never get enough as long as I live. I’ll love you forever, Talia.”

  “I’ll love you forever as well,” she replied, cuddling into his arms.

  They stayed like that for hours as the snow silently fell. And all Talia could think about was the magic of it. How two people from different worlds had found each other. How right the love between them felt.

  Even in a world with ice-covered dragons, perhaps love was the most magical thing of all.

  * * *

  * * *

  I hope you enjoyed the first book in the Frozen Dragon series! If you enjoyed Alek and Talia’s story, I would love it if you could leave a review to help other readers find it.

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  Dmitri’s book is out now!

  Master of Frost (Frozen Dragons Book 2)

  Sample on next page…

  Sample of Master of Frost

  Chapter 1

  “The lord of winter is moving.”

  Chelle looked up from her place on the couch between her two huge friends to see
her roommate, Talia, and her new boyfriend, Alek, entering through the front door, still dusted with snow.

  It had been a long winter already and showed no signs of stopping. At times like this, Chelle was grateful she lived and worked on campus, as it meant she had a short walk to most places.

  Except for clubs, that was, which was fine because she took a cab to those anyway.

  She hadn’t really been going to any clubs in the past few weeks, though, with Alek, Luka, and Dmitri staying at her and Talia’s apartment. Sure, she’d thought it was a little odd when Talia had insisted on bringing part of her research project back to their home, but when she’d gotten more of the details, she’d been willing to help.

  She still didn’t understand much about Luka or Dmitri—where they’d come from, how they’d ended up frozen in Talia’s lab, somehow alive. But as someone who worked in academics, she did understand that sometimes there were things that couldn’t be explained and that needed to be protected from people who would treat them as oddities more than humans.

  Plus, Luka and Dmitri were her friends now, and she didn’t know what she’d do without their marathons cuddled up together on her big, comfy sofa. She hadn’t had to go out at night nearly as much to distract herself, and she’d taken for granted that she always had someone around when she wasn’t at work.

  Now everything appeared to be changing, and perhaps that was for the best. Dmitri and Luka were prime-grade hotties and probably were getting tired of being cooped up in an apartment with her now that they understood the modern world a little better.

  Dmitri didn’t look too pleased by it, though. He straightened from his slouched position, where he’d had his muscular arm resting over the top of the couch, sheltering Chelle.

  Despite his mostly easygoing nature, Chelle still had trouble being comfortable with Dmitri. From his harsh, masculine features to his buzzed head to his vivid, blue-green eyes, everything about him was just intimidating. Plus, he was tall, muscular, and much more outspoken than Luka.

  Though she liked him, when she was around him, she always felt a little on edge.

  Luka, on the other hand, always made her feel at ease. Possibly because he was usually buried in a book or calmly appraising things. He didn’t say much unless he really had something to say, and he tended to be very polite and keep his distance mostly. He didn’t get in her bubble like Dmitri did, though he tolerated Dmitri getting in his.

  And Dmitri often did get in Luka’s bubble, especially whenever he saw Chelle and Luka alone. If Chelle didn’t know any better, she’d almost say Dmitri was jealous and didn’t want her to be alone with his friend.

  It was sweet to see how close they were sometimes and how close to Alek. She hadn’t really ever met any men like them in the modern world.

  Though, most of the time she tried not to think about the fact that they were from another time… and Siberia.

  Dmitri ran a hand over his buzzed hair and leaned forward, frowning at Alek. “What do you mean moving?”

  Alek, who’d taken to putting his pale, gorgeous hair into a man bun, at Talia’s advice, gestured across the hall. “An apartment has opened yonder.”

  It was amazing to see the transformation in Alek. He wore a sporty blue puffy winter coat, dark jeans, and serviceable boots that looked stylish on his tall figure. He usually only referred to himself as lord of winter when joking, though his friends still seemed to defer to him quite a bit.

  When she’d asked them why, they mostly avoided eye contact.

  Talia looked at Chelle apologetically. “Can we talk?”

  Chelle sighed, feeling Dmitri’s and Luka’s eyes on her. She could tell they would rather she do this in front of them, but she didn’t know if she could.

  “Sure.” She stood, ignoring Luka’s curious, icy-blue gaze. With his dark hair and pale skin, he was quite striking and handsome, in a totally different way than Dmitri. But since they were both only her friends, she didn’t go much further in her perusal than that.

  Chelle led the way to her bedroom, wondering what Talia was going to propose. She’d always been grateful for Talia. She was the grounding one in their friendship. The one who bought toilet paper. The one who washed dishes. Chelle tried to always keep the place stocked with tasty things, support her friend emotionally, and pull her out of her shell. But in the end, Talia was the backbone of their friendship.

  Chelle wasn’t sure what she would do now.

  They sat on the bed together, and Chelle noticed with satisfaction just how happy her friend looked. Talia’s tanned skin was glowing, her hair was a little looser and more feminine, and her eyes seemed to hold a perpetual sparkle that probably came from consistently making love to a hottie like Alek.

  Chelle knew that Talia and others thought she was more of a partier than she was. She liked that image because it hid so many deeper, more painful things about her that she didn’t want anyone to know.

  Better the party animal that goes out and gets with a new man every night than what she really was.

  Afraid to actually live. Constantly trying to distract herself. Never able to move on.

  But even Talia wasn’t aware of those things, and Chelle had no intention of changing that. Especially now that Talia was happy and moving on.

  “I’m sorry,” Talia said. “But you know we’re crowded here. You know I love living with you, but—”

  “Yeah, five people is too much for this apartment.”

  “You’ll have your living room back,” Talia said.

  “Sure,” Chelle said easily.

  “And you know how rare it is for spots to open for on-campus housing for staff.”

  Chelle nodded. She wanted to show her friend that she would be fine here, but it was hard to hide the fact that she ultimately feared being left all alone. She’d taken for granted how safe she felt lately with her new friends around.

  Now she wouldn’t have them or Talia. At least, that seemed to be where this was going.

  “Um,” Talia said. “We do have a spare room, so we were thinking Dmitri and Luka could come with us, but if you’d like them to stay…”

  Chelle perked up slightly. “Do you think they’d want to? They’re pretty loyal to Alek.”

  “Sure,” Talia said. “I mean, we can ask them. Or maybe one could stay and one could go, since we each have a spare room. Plus, we’ll be literally just across the hall. I’m sure we’ll see each other a lot.”

  Chelle warmed up at that. “True. But, hm…” If she were only having one stay there, would it be awkward? Definitely if it was Dmitri. Though there hadn’t been any trouble between them, something was just a bit… odd. He looked at her sometimes with an intensity that she didn’t understand. Especially when she was with Luka. Almost as if he were… angry with her.

  But he did help with things, whether it was getting something off a high shelf, blowing off her hot chocolate when she’d overheated it, or helping her up when she’d tripped or carried something too heavy.

  But then Luka could do some of those things, too, and he would be less of a risk to hang out with.

  She screwed up her eyebrows. What was the risk with Dmitri? Why did she feel vaguely odd at the thought of them being alone?

  Talia took Chelle’s hand. “It’s been so fun living together. I couldn’t have survived college without you. And I really appreciate your help and advice with Alek as well.”

  “I’m just glad you got things figured out,” Chelle said, squeezing Talia’s hand before releasing it. She was very affectionate, but not much of a toucher. “You deserve all the happiness in the world. And your own place with your man, for sure.”

  “And you aren’t mad at me?” Talia asked, pushing a dark lock behind her ear nervously.

  “Of course not,” Chelle said, impulsively grabbing her friend into a hug. “Things change, and we get through them. Sometimes it’s for the better.” She pulled back and took a deep breath. “So should we go see what the men think about all this?” />
  “Alek is probably talking to them now about the same things, though we told them you would have the final say, obviously. Also, if the dra—I mean the men—stay here, they will be paying rent and helping with the house. They can probably get jobs soon. I’ve found someone who can help get them IDs.”

  “Is that legal?”

  Talia shrugged. “I don’t know. I don’t think there’s a set protocol for dealing with ice men.”

  Chelle laughed and nodded. “I suppose.”

  “Thank you for being so patient with all this,” Talia said, looking relieved. “I know it hasn’t been easy, and—”

  Shouts from the living room interrupted, and Chelle and Talia shared a quick glance of panic before hurrying out of the room to see what was going on.

  Master of Frost (Frozen Dragons Book 2)

  Also by Terry Bolryder

  A Note From Terry

  Most of my series go by species. Most of my books are standalone, but if you want to read them in order and see characters reappearing, here is my list of the order for each species. So just choose your favorite shifter!

  Dragon Reading Guide

  Awakened Dragons

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  Awakened Dragons Boxed Set (best deal!)

  Onyx Dragon

  Sapphire Dragon

  Ruby Dragon

  Diamond Dragon

  Amethyst Dragon

  Emerald Dragon

  Rent-A-Dragon

  These ancient, viking-esque dragons just woke up and are ready to get to work finding their mates and new lives in the modern world! Shenanigans and sexiness ensue!