Falthyris’s tail perked. His breath was ragged and as heated as the desert wind, and his every inhalation only made his heartfire burn hotter. He had never considered what she was proposing, never would have imagined it, given the pointed teeth in a dragon’s mouth, and he was in no state to contemplate the matter. He needed release, yes, but more than anything he needed her.
Before another thought could cross his mind, his mate slipped from his gasp. She dropped to her knees on the riverbank, grasped his cock in her fist, and took him into her hot mouth.
A wave of pleasure blasted out from his shaft at the simple feel of her lips around it. His wings snapped out, their leather skin pulling taut, and he rocked on his heels, thrown off balance by the sudden, overwhelming, unexpected sensation, which was undoubtedly aided by her boldness. His hands instinctually moved to the only place he could grab in search of some stability—her head. He curled his fingers in her hair.
She laughed, her dark eyes flicking up to meet his, and reached around him, grabbing his ass to steady him before returning her attention to his cock. Pulling her head back, she ran her lips and tongue along his length, over every ridge, toward the tiny, sensitive scales at his base.
Seed oozed from his tip, and a shudder wracked him. Her wicked little tongue explored his slit, as did her fingers, enhancing his pleasure as she teased him, heightening his torture. He was nearly trembling when finally, finally, she pulled back and wrapped those lips around the head of his shaft again.
Elliya moaned as she licked his seed. The vibrations of that sound were strong enough to coax his eyes closed briefly, but he forced them open to watch her. He needed to watch. As she sucked him deep into the recesses of her mouth, her lips stretched tight around his shaft. Breath labored, Falthyris gritted his teeth and clutched her hair, barely restraining himself from thrusting into her mouth. His toes curled, forcing his claws into the ground.
“Elliya,” he growled.
Tightening her grip at his base, she pumped her hand along his cock as she moved her head, sucking him into her mouth again and again, twirling her tongue around his head and stroking the underside of his shaft.
Falthyris’s lips peeled back. The pressure inside him was too much—too much to contain, too much to withstand, too much to comprehend. It was that intense pleasure-pain that only she could incite, and it had crept into every bit of him. There was no room in those moments for concern, no room for the Red Heat, only for what she made him feel.
He snarled and bucked his hips, pumping into her mouth as the pressure finally proved too much. He came with explosive force, blasting his seed into her mouth, tugging her head closer and thrusting his pelvis erratically to keep those sensations going even though his knees were weak and wobbly and he couldn’t think, couldn’t see.
Her hands gripped his hips, her flat claws digging into his scales, and she kept on sucking, her throat working as she drank as much of his seed as she could.
Panting, he stilled and petted her hair as she licked around his cock.
When she pulled back, she ran her pink tongue over her lips, tilted her face toward him, and grinned. “I will do that again, dragon.”
His heartfire swelled, and his cock pulsed in anticipation. He would not dispute that promise—but he would not allow her to fulfill it just yet, either. Because her scent had only grown stronger, indicating her arousal, and its new aspect was even more pronounced than before. His mouth watered.
“Not before I have had my taste, human,” he growled.
Falthyris shoved Elliya back onto the soft grass along the riverbank. She shrieked with laughter. He pounced immediately, forcing her thighs apart with his shoulders before dropping his face to her sex and thrusting his tongue inside her. Elliya’s laughter swiftly turned to moans of pleasure.
14
Elliya lifted her head, grasping Falthyris’s cock in one hand as she gyrated against his hungry mouth. Her moans escalated into desperate cries as she came, her climax shooting through her with the speed and power of a bolt of lightning. He clutched her ass with his clawed hands, holding her in place as he drank her essence, his long tongue thrusting into her quivering sex over and over again.
When the overwhelming sensations had lessened, and his fierce licks had become leisurely, she returned her attention to his cock, taking it into her mouth and sucking with a hunger that rivaled Falthyris’s. His secretions allowed her hand to glide along his shaft, pumping in time with her mouth.
Falthyris hummed, making his chest rumble. His hips lifted toward her subtly, his tail flicked across the blanket beneath him, and his wings curled upward slightly. When he exhaled, his breath was shaky and hot against her sex. A thrill swept through her, producing another flood of heat, which he promptly licked away.
She’d taken him in her mouth many times since the first at the river five days ago, and she couldn’t get enough. Not only did she love the way he reacted—the way he took hold of her hair, the way his hips bucked erratically and his breath caught in his throat, the way he lost control—but she loved his taste. It was delicious, reminiscent of the sweet, sticky nectar found in the stems of sweetblossom flowers.
She grazed her teeth along his ridges. He grunted, bucking his hips, and tightened his grip on her as seed seeped from his cock. She twirled her tongue around the head of his shaft, licking away the sweetness before taking him into her mouth again.
“Elliya.” He turned his face to nip at her inner thigh before soothing it with his tongue. “My mate. My sweet, sweet mate. Yessss,” he hissed.
She quickened her motions, sucking harder, deeper, listening to his moans and growls and moaning in turn when his tongue occasionally flicked her pleasure bud.
Suddenly, Falthyris stiffened. His claws pricked her skin and his cock thickened an instant before seed erupted from him. He roared, and his body arched, lifting off the blanket as his liquid heat filled her mouth. She drank as much as she could, pumping her hand to extend his pleasure.
When he finally eased, Elliya lifted her mouth off him and ran her tongue along his length and slit, cleaning him, unwilling to waste a single drop.
Breath ragged, Falthyris rumbled contently and kneaded her ass. “I can think of no finer way to begin a new day.”
Elliya chuckled and pushed herself up, wiping the remnants of his pleasure from her mouth with the back of her hand. “I can think of no finer treat.”
Lifting a leg over him, she turned so she could lie nestled beside him. He wrapped his arm around her as she rested her head on his shoulder and settled her hand on his fiery chest. His heart pounded beneath her palm.
Falthyris turned his face toward her, buried his nose in her hair, and inhaled deeply. His hold on her tightened. She didn’t mind. She enjoyed these quiet moments after their intimacy, enjoyed that he held her as though she couldn’t possibly be close enough to him.
She’d always yearned for such a connection, for someone to hold her this way, to cherish her, But Elliya had never imagined how good it would feel. How perfect it would be. She’d never realized the power and depth such a relationship could have until now.
Until him.
The Red Star would soon be gone, and she wondered how much would change once the Heat had ended. She and Falthyris mated often, mated vigorously, especially at night when the Heat was at its worst. Each joining left Elliya sweaty, sated, and exhausted.
Each joining left her feeling…loved.
No matter how strong the haze of Heat seemed to grow in his mind, Falthyris’s eyes were always for Elliya. He saw her. He was there with her.
She was enjoying this time with him, immensely. But she also missed her tribe sisters, her mother, her little chamber. She missed the liveliness, the activity, the songs, dances, and hunts. She even missed her daily chores.
Elliya grinned. She could only imagine the looks that would be on her people’s faces when she returned with Falthyris. She would show Falthyris to them all, taking satisfaction from everyone’
s awed expressions. Especially Dian’s. She knew it was not honorable to gloat, but she knew also that she wouldn’t be able to resist—she took pride in her mate. Falthyris was fierce, beautiful, and strong.
He was hers.
Dian will be so, so angry.
Elliya’s shoulders shook with her quiet laughter.
“What thought has you so amused, Elliya?” Falthyris asked, combing his claws through her long hair.
She grinned. “I was just thinking of how furious Dian will be when we return to my tribe.”
His hand stilled.
“We will not be going to your tribe,” he said, his voice calm but firm.
“I do not mean now. I know we must wait for the Heat to end.”
“We will not be going to your tribe,” he repeated.
Elliya’s brow furrowed, and she frowned. She sensed sudden tension radiating from him. “What?”
“You are mine, Elliya, and your place is here in our lair. This is your home.”
Every bit of the contentment she’d felt over the last two weeks was snuffed out like a campfire doused with water. She pushed herself up into a sitting position. Her hair snagged in his claws, causing a sharp pain on her scalp, but she ignored it, gritting her teeth as she grasped the caught strands and yanked them out of his hand.
Falthyris sat up, his bright eyes fixating on her. “What are you doing? What is wrong?”
“This”—she waved to indicate the entirety of the dimly lit cave—“is not my home.”
“This is my home, and you are my mate. Thus, it is also your home. This is your place.”
Elliya rose to her feet, moving to the pile of clothing next to her bag. Her inner thighs were sticky with her slick. She snatched up her loincloth and spun to face him as she tied it around her waist. “This is not my place, Falthyris. This is a cave. It is empty and lifeless.”
He stood up slowly, the powerful muscles beneath his scales visibly tense and his heartfire glowing through his chest. His wings snapped out and rustled before flattening against his back. “Is that how you see our bond, Elliya? Empty and lifeless?”
She glared at him. “I said nothing of our bond.”
“Was I mistaken in my belief that our bond filled this place with life? With passion?” Falthyris stepped closer to her. “Was I mistaken in my belief that you had found happiness here?”
“I have found it with you. But this place is too big, too silent, too empty. There is only us. And I have a duty to my tribe, to my people. That duty did not cease when I claimed you.”
“Your only duty is to me, now,” he growled, “as is mine to you. You belong to me, human, not to your tribe. To me.”
Elliya pressed her lips together. With anyone else, she would have snapped that she belonged to no one save herself, but she knew that was not true when it came to Falthyris. She was his, just as much as he was hers.
She closed her eyes, took in a deep breath, and released it slowly, focusing on remaining calm. When she opened her eyes, she met her dragon’s gaze again. “If you would but come with me, you could live amongst my people, get to know them, hunt with us, dance with—”
His inner fire flared, expanding outward from his chest, and his expression became dark and savage. “I would sooner bury myself at the bottom of the sea than degrade myself by living amongst those weak, pathetic, vile insects!”
Elliya’s breath caught, and her eyes widened. His words echoed even louder in her soul than they did in the cave. Her heart stuttered, and her chest felt tight and painful, making it hard to breathe.
Falthyris’s face slackened in an instant, eyes rounding and jaw falling open as though in surprise. His heartfire dimmed, and his body went terribly still.
“Is that what you still think of me?” she asked quietly, forcing the words out of a constricted throat.
“No.” A crease formed between his brows, and he shook his head. “Not you, Elliya.”
Elliya pressed a hand to her chest. “I am human.”
“But you are not like—”
“I am no different!” Anger burned within her, overcoming her hurt. “I am one of those weak, pathetic, vile insects you speak of!”
“You are not like them!” he roared. “You are mine!”
“I am still human.”
With a trembling hand, she reached down and snatched up her bone knife. She gave him her back as she strode toward the tunnel of the cave. Her eyes stung, her vision blurred with tears, and her chest felt as though it were being crushed from all sides. She despised that he alone could make her cry, that he alone could strike her so deep without raising a hand.
“Where are you going?” Falthyris demanded, his voice rumbling through the chamber.
She felt him move, felt his presence draw closer, and she spun toward him, raising her knife and fixing him with a glare.
He halted, dropping his gaze to her weapon before slowly bringing his eyes back up to hers. “You will not harm me, Elliya.”
Her grip tightened on the handle. “No, but you have hurt me, and right now, I need to be away from you.”
Falthyris took a step closer. “I did not mean to—”
“You meant those words. You meant each one. I do not want to hear any more of your lies.” She turned and strode down the tunnel.
“Elliya!”
“I need time alone, away from you!”
He snarled, and it was followed by the sound of cracking stone and bits of rock clattering onto the cave floor. “Do not venture far!”
His words followed her through the tunnel, but Elliya ignored them, lifting her chin even as her bottom lip trembled. She could no longer hold back the tears that had gathered in her eyes; they spilled down her cheeks. She blinked, trying to clear her vision, but those tears kept coming.
Elliya had never felt this kind of hurt before, this kind of betrayal. She had opened herself up completely to her dragon, and he had taken her heart within his clawed grasped and crushed it. No matter how gently, how lovingly, how passionately he had treated her, she was still a lowly human in his eyes.
When she reached the end of the tunnel, sunlight glared down upon her, and hot wind brushed over her bare skin, fluttering her hair. Between her tears and the intense light, she could barely see. But she could only bring herself to pause long enough to wipe her eyes before starting down the slope.
All that stubborn dragon would have had to do was listen—listen to her wants, to her reasons for them, for ways they might benefit him, too. Even if he’d still disagreed, that show of simple courtesy and respect would have helped them avoid this.
But instead, he’d chosen to argue, to belittle her people, and in doing so, he had belittled Elliya. He’d left her feeling like her chest had been ripped open and a blood maddened beast had torn out her insides, leaving naught behind but pain.
No, not a beast—a dragon.
That she could barely see the distinction between the two terms at that moment only deepened her pain.
Her footfalls were heavier and faster than she’d intended, and the scree underfoot was loose. Little stones rattled and clacked against one another as her passage sent them tumbling downslope. Her heart leapt into her throat each time one of her feet slipped and the tiny landslides she was triggering nearly dragged her down. And yet, she could not bring herself to slow, not even when sharp rocks dug into the soles of her feet—all her willpower was set toward preventing herself from going only faster, from giving in to the urge to run.
She needed time, needed space. She needed to think. Elliya couldn’t even begin sorting through these complex, overwhelming emotions while Falthyris was nearby. That didn’t mean racing off into the desert or trekking deep into the mountains, but she did need the cave out of sight. She couldn’t bring herself to look at it right now.
Elliya would go to the river until she could find calm, until she could face him again without being overwhelmed by hurt, without speaking with rancor that would only widen the rift between them.
And Falthyris could do with some time to himself, as well. He needed to reflect upon his stubbornness and hatred.
Somehow, despite her haste and the scree sliding around her feet, Elliya reached the more level ground at the base of the slope unharmed. It was a shallow valley with tall hills on one side and the rocky outcroppings and formations that ran to the river on the other. Given the smooth, rounded stones along the bottom of the valley, its curving path, and the color of the hardpacked dirt there, she guessed it must once have been the bed of a river or stream that had flowed into the larger waterway nearby.
Clenching her jaw, she walked along the dried riverbed at a brisk pace. A fresh breeze flowed over her, just as hot as before, but neither the air nor the sun had anything to do with the heat crackling across her skin—that was purely the result of her anger and hurt.
She wanted to scream her frustrations into the sky, wanted to hear their echoes fade until they died out entirely, wanted to throw a tantrum of her own that would put Falthyris’s moods to shame. But that wouldn’t accomplish anything save for alerting nearby predators to her location.
Though there were still some jagged rocks and hard, crusted patches of sun-dried dirt on the riverbed, crossing it was far easier than traversing the slope outside the cave. The natural path led her toward the first bend, where it would cut through a ravine on its route to the flowing river.
To her dismay, her feelings did not cool as she moved farther away from the cave. The mating bond, that sensation in her chest that had become so cherished, so familiar, wound tighter around her heart with her every step—tight enough to hurt. She’d not experienced that sensation when she had gone to the river alone before. She could only guess it was happening now because her emotions were high, because she was so upset.
Elliya squeezed the grip of her knife and curled her empty hand into a trembling fist. She refused to press her palm to her chest and soothe that terrible ache. She refused to submit to this pain, to be undone by it. Fresh tears welled in her eyes all the same, blurring her vision again before streaming down her cheeks.
To Tame a Dragon (Venys Needs Men) Page 13
