“I love you, too,” she said.
He leaned down and kissed her, resting on his elbows. She lifted her arms to embrace him, running her hands up and down his strong back.
“Ready?”
She nodded. Her stomach tingled with nerves, but she was ready. She wanted them to make love and finally consummate their marriage.
18
Quinn
Quinn couldn’t believe he was finally going to make love to Juliana. Hell, he could barely believe she was his wife.
“I love this lingerie,” he said. “ I hope you wear it again, but I want to see you naked when I’m inside you.”
She nodded and sat up, and he helped her out of the lacy slip. She lay back down, and he couldn’t tear his eyes away from her naked skin long enough to move on to the next step.
Finally, Quinn sat up and pushed his boxers off. He rolled the condom on and looked down at Juliana. He knelt between her legs and positioned himself.
“I love you,” he told her once more, just to make sure she knew.
Mate. Mate. Mate.
Yes. She was his mate. Hopefully, she was willing to stick with this marriage long enough for him to tell her the truth about who he was.
He put his cock at her entrance and pushed forward. Juliana was responsive as always, and he delighted in her pleasure. Her hips lifted as the tip of his cock rubbed her pussy, and she moaned.
He pushed in a little more. “You’re tight.”
“Don’t stop.” The pressure was intense, but she seemed to want more.
“I won’t stop. I’m going to go slow.” He continued to press forward, inch by inch.
She arched her back, shifting her hips as her body adjusted to the welcome intrusion. He got his hand between her legs. Stimulating her clit would help her body welcome him in. He gathered the slick from her pussy and rubbed his fingers over her clit.
She bucked her hip, crying out. “Quinn!” she shouted.
“I’m all the way in.” He flicked his fingers over her clit. “Now put your hands on your chest. Pinch your nipples.”
She obeyed, spreading her legs further apart at the same moment she began to squeeze her nipples. He looked down, transfixed by the sight of his cock deep in her pussy. He’d fucked women before, but he’d never made love.
“You’re not a virgin anymore,” he said.
Her hands never left her chest, and she moaned, rocking her hips up to meet his as she tweaked her nipples.
“I’m going to move now,” he said.
He began to thrust, pushing his cock in and out of her pussy. The friction from her tight inner walls was amazing, and her small pussy hugged his cock, squeezing it as he pushed in and out of her body.
He lowered himself closer to her so that he could kiss her. He was able to balance on one arm and kiss her while keeping his hand between her legs. He never let up but continued rubbing her clit until her entire body began to shudder.
“Oh, God,” she panted.
“Are you close?” he asked.
“Yes. I need to come.” Her legs flexed, tightening along with her pussy. He kept thrusting but switched to giving her clit light pinches while she continued to pinch her nipples.
“Oh, damn, Quinn. I’m coming,” she yelled. Her eyes squeezed shut, and her pussy pulsed, rolling in waves as her second orgasm of the day crested.
Quinn kept his thrusts going but slowed them down, letting her body finish with its pleasure before he moved his hands from between her legs.
“You can put your hands down,” he said to her.
She was a spitfire in life, but in bed, she obviously wanted him to take the lead. He was more than happy to do it. Her arms relaxed against the bed, and her entire body went pliant.
Now it was his turn. He wrapped his arms under her body, embracing her, and he began to thrust again. This time, he didn’t hold back quite as much. He fucked into her, establishing a steady rhythm. She roused herself and began to meet his thrusts, circling her hips as he buried himself in her pussy.
He couldn’t hold off. He pushed forward one last time, and his cock exploded. He came, pulsing over and over, emptying his rigid cock. He pressed his forehead against hers as they breathed in unison. Once his orgasm was finished, he pulled out gently, moving over to lie beside her.
He grabbed the covers and laid them on top of her. “How do you feel?” he asked.
She grinned. “Like a married woman.”
He hadn’t been expecting that answer, and his heartbeat surged.
Mine, his dragon said.
At this rate, he was going to have to confess the truth about being a dragon shifter to her, simply to keep his dragon happy. His dragon was so ready to declare her his mate that he wanted to shift right in front of her and make the decision of when to tell her once and for all.
He pulled the covers over himself and kissed her cheek. She turned on her side to face him. “I had no idea it would be like that.”
He wasn’t going to deny it. Pride swelled in his chest at hearing his wife say that he’d pleased her in bed. Pleasing their mates was an important concept in the dragon-shifter world, and Quinn was glad he’d lived up to the expectation.
“It isn’t always that good,” he said.
“It’s not?”
“No. Being with you has been on a different level. We connected.” Did that sound ridiculous?
If it did, she didn’t seem to mind because a luminous smile lit up her face. “I’m ready to do it again.”
He exhaled. He really might not survive the honeymoon if she kept saying stuff like that.
“I am tired, though,” she said. “Maybe a nap first.”
He tugged the covers a little tighter, tucking them around her. “Take a nap. Then we’ll go out and look at the countryside.” He kissed her nose. “And then we can make love again.”
Flying back into Texas, the landscape was vastly different. Over the last week, he’d grown used to looking at the lush green of Ireland. Now, the blazing sun hit Quinn right in the eyes, and the muggy humidity smacked them right in the face as they got off the plane.
The honeymoon had far exceeded any expectations he’d had. He and Juliana exited the plane hand in hand. They had gotten much closer, and with each passing day, it was becoming clearer that he was going to have to tell her the truth about who he was.
He loved her. She was his mate. It wasn’t right to hide one of the biggest parts of himself from her. Kellan told him once that he regretted that he hadn’t been honest with Clara, and Quinn didn’t want to end up there himself.
He’d tell her tonight.
Kellan sent a limo to pick them up from the airport. When they arrived back at the mansion, Clara and Declan ran out to greet them. Kellan wasn’t with them, but Quinn found him in the kitchen.
As soon as Quinn saw Kellan’s face, he knew something was wrong.
“Tell me,” Quinn said.
“One of the vampires was just in here, seconds ago. He said the Romanian mafia is sending a group here. They know where we are.”
“Shit. Do you want us to go?”
“No. Stay. This is the best place. I’ll put Clara and Declan in the safe room. This is our territory, and it’s still the best place to defend Juliana.”
“I want Juliana in the safe room, too.”
“Of course. The vampire will report back soon. He’s going to let us know how many and how heavily armed they are.”
Quinn and his brothers didn’t keep a lot of weapons. They’d never needed to. Even most civilian guns wouldn’t do much damage to a dragon shifter.
“Liam and Brennan are on their way,” Kellan said.
Quinn stepped forward and embraced his brother. “Thank you.”
“No thanks needed.”
Quinn went straight to the living area, where Juliana was showing Clara pictures on her phone.
Declan was hanging over the back of the couch, trying to see the photos. Every so often, he’d yell, “I’ve
been there!” Luckily, he was well-trained on not spilling their secrets. Quinn wanted to tell his wife the truth, but he wanted it to come from him, not his nephew.
“Juliana.”
She must have been able to tell from the tone of his voice that something was going on because she stood up immediately.
“Clara, Kellan’s in the kitchen,” Quinn said to his sister-in-law. She stood up immediately and grabbed Declan. “Come on, Declan, I’ll race you to find Daddy.” Declan could never turn down a race. So, he flipped off the patio couch immediately and took off running.
“What’s going on?” Juliana asked.
“We got word from our private security that some of the Romanian Mobsters are on their way.”
“You mean they’re coming for me.”
“They are absolutely not coming for you because we won’t let that happen.”
“They are coming for me, though. I’m the reason. I feel like I should leave.”
“No, we’re not going anywhere. I’ve talked it over with Kellen, and you and Clara and Declan are going into the safe room.”
“Okay. How long until they get here?”
He grabbed her arm. “Let’s get away from the windows. Our security thinks they’ll be here in about an hour.”
A crashing boom sounded. The entire house rocked. Fuck. They were here.
He scented the air, but he couldn’t smell them.
All he could smell was gunpowder and gasoline.
“Kellan, they have gasoline,” Quinn yelled. His brother would hear him anywhere in the house.
The gasoline and the resulting fire wouldn’t affect a dragon shifter. They breathed flames, and they could withstand them, but it sure as hell would kill Juliana and Clara.
“The safe room is fireproof,” Kellan answered.
If they were surrounded, then the safe room was the best hope they had. Kellen’s sprawling home had a lot of hiding places, but the surrounding area was flat and open. There would be no escape if they ran now.
Quinn ran. He tucked Juliana on his other side, away from the windows.
When he was halfway across the living area, a loud bang rang out. The floor-to-ceiling glass shattered.
He pushed Juliana to the floor behind the couch. “Get down. Stay there.”
He couldn’t get her to the safe room yet. He’d be leaving their backs exposed.
“Brennan, Liam, I need backup,” Quinn said.
Quinn ran to the window and peered out. His night vision allowed him to see. In the distance, beyond Kellan’s fence, a truck was parked. On the roof, there was a sniper putting together a rifle with a scope.
Were they here to kill him? Or were they here to kill Juliana because she’d dared to defy them?
Rage built in his chest. His dragon clawed at him, forcing his way out. He had to get her to the safe room first.
“Do you know where the safe room is?”
She nodded. She pulled at his shirt, frantic. “You have to come with me. You don’t even have a gun.”
He didn’t need a gun, but he hadn’t fucking told her that yet, and right in the middle of a battle wasn’t the best time.
“Go. Get in the safe room.”
“I can’t leave you here without a gun to fight my family!”
“Juliana! Go!”
Just as the words left his mouth, bullets peppered the stone outside the house. “Get the fuck down,” he screamed at Juliana.
Footsteps approached. The acrid smell of sweat burned his nose. Men ran, coming into his brother’s home, coming near his wife.
He didn’t bother to take his clothes off. He let his dragon free.
Just as he threw his head back and roared, Kellan came running in, followed by Liam.
Outside, Brennan swooped down, already breathing fire.
19
Juliana
From her position on the floor, Juliana stared up in shock at her husband. Her husband was currently a dragon. She was pretty sure she wasn’t seeing things because now there was not one dragon, but four.
First, she’d watched in horror as her wonderful husband had run straight toward the gunfire. She’d screamed, clutching at him, terrified that he would be murdered in front of her. In a split second, her mind had supplied the outcome. Her gorgeous Quinn, gunned down in a hail of bullets on the day they returned from their honeymoon.
The man who was willing to sacrifice his life for her.
Her husband.
She would be a widow before she’d ever gotten to be a wife. She loved him. At that moment, she was certain. She was in love with Quinn Walsh, and always would be. Another burst of gunfire rang out. A bullet struck him in the chest.
“Quinn!” she screamed. On her hands and knees, she scrambled toward him.
He hadn’t been struck down, though. He didn’t stagger or grab his chest. His blood had not been spilled, and no bullets had pierced his skin. He was just as strong and powerful as ever.
Then he began to change. He transformed. His clothes had ripped in half and fallen to the ground, and his smooth tan skin rippled and changed into silvery scales. Claws formed. A tail lashed out. From his back, wings appeared.
A dragon.
Her husband was a dragon.
So were his brothers. They were beautiful in their own way, majestic and captivating. But not human.
Juliana pushed herself up to her knees. Her knees ached, and her hands stung from the pieces of broken glass. Outside the door, men screamed. Howls of pain filled the air, and the dragons roared. In the dim light, she couldn’t tell which dragon was Quinn.
“Juliana! You stupid bitch! Where the fuck are you?”
Mihal.
He was here.
He was here to get her. Or was he here to kill her? She wasn’t a virgin now. She was a married woman and of no use to him.
She dropped back to the floor.
Mihal gripped an M16. Half of his face was covered in blood.
One of the dragons swooped in and ripped the gun from Mihal’s hand. It clattered to the ground. Then, the dragon gripped Mihal in his talons and flew away with him.
The battle didn’t last long. Maybe five to seven minutes, total. Then, there was some scuffling outside, and eventually, Liam and Quinn walked into the living area from the direction of the bedroom, fully dressed.
They were human again—no sign of the wings or the scales.
Her husband’s face was sober. For the first time when he looked at her, he wasn’t smiling his usual, easy smile. His look acknowledged the gravity of the situation. She was profoundly glad to see that he’d survived. As for the rest of it, she had no idea how to even process that.
Quinn stepped close to her, but he didn’t touch her. His hands reached out and hovered, and then he pulled them back. “Juliana. Are you hurt? You’re bleeding.”
“It’s fine.”
Brennan appeared in the doorway. He had on jeans but no shirt. “I’ve got them all rounded up. Security’s going to take care of them.”
“I’ll be right there,” Quinn said, but he just kept staring at her.
“You can go,” she said. “I’ll be fine.”
He clearly didn’t want to.
A tall, angular man stepped into the living area from the patio. He looked like a fashion model and appeared slightly disinterested in their situation. “Quinn,” he said in a cultured British accent. “We’d like your guidance, please. You are, after all, in charge of this operation.”
Juliana couldn’t take her eyes off of him. He was slightly otherworldly. He turned toward her and offered an expression that was more of a grimace than a smile.
Her eyes widened. His incisors were fangs. Oh, God. She’d just seen her husband turn into a dragon. Was this a vampire? The man, or vampire, crossed his arms and glared at Quinn. The man’s impatience was palpable.
“They’re obviously waiting on you,” she said.
“I won’t be long,” he said, and then Quinn was gone.
Juliana looked down at her shredded hands. The cuts weren’t serious. She’d just go to her bathroom and wash them out. In the bathroom, she rinsed her hand, wincing as she found tiny slivers of glass. She got them with tweezers and then washed with soap.
Before long, there was a knock on the door.
It was Clara. She wrapped her arms around Juliana. “Juliana! I’m so glad you’re okay. I wanted to come and look for you, but I couldn’t leave Declan in the safe room alone.”
“I’m fine. It’s not your fault. I was supposed to come to the safe room, and I didn’t.”
“Did you know?” Juliana asked.
Clara knew exactly what Juliana meant. Clara licked her lips, and Juliana could tell that Clara had known about the dragons.
“You did know.”
Clara nodded.
“So, this is not something new.”
“No. They have been shifters since birth.”
“Shifters?”
Clara sighed. “It would really be best if they told you the truth themselves. I’m sure Quinn will fill you in.”
“He hasn’t yet.”
“I understand. Kellen didn’t tell me, either, not until he was forced to.”
“Are you a shifter?”
“No, I’m human.”
“Is Declan?” She rubbed her eyes. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked that. You don’t have to answer.”
“Are you going to tell anyone?” Clara asked.
“I don’t have anyone to tell, but even if I did, I wouldn’t share a secret like that. Everyone I care about is in this house, and I would never do anything that would harm any of you. Obviously, from the mayhem and destruction tonight, I know what it’s like to be hunted. I caused this, not them.
“Then, yes, Declan is a shifter. If you have a baby with Quinn, that baby will be a shifter, too.”
Juliana sat down on the bed. There was no part of her that was ready to talk about babies, dragons or otherwise. “Did you feel betrayed?”
“Not betrayed. Remember that I was Declan’s nanny. I was responsible for him, and yet, I was left in the dark about this huge, important piece of who he was. It almost got us killed. I felt like I wasn’t trusted, and that bothered me.”
Doctor Dragon's Fake Bride (Irish Dragon Shifter Brothers Book 2) Page 10
