by Vella Day
He smiled and her insides twisted. “Then come on in.”
When she stepped past him, the urge to kiss him nearly made her miss a step, possibly because his upper chest was actually glowing red. It went without saying that she was shooting off blue sparks like there was no tomorrow. What was up with that? Declan wasn’t her mate. Or had she been misinformed about when her blue sparks would appear? Perhaps being on Tarradon triggered the change.
“How about a hello kiss?” Declan said with a cheeky grin—an expression she’d rarely seen before.
Chelsea’s bones melted. “One kiss. That’s it. If we start, we might not stop.”
He laughed. “You are right, but what’s wrong with that?” When he held up a hand, she tilted her head. “Look, I get it. We should probably talk about what is happening between us. I mean we can never be mates, but do you still want to…”
Screw? Hell, yes. “What do you want to do?” She dragged a finger down his chest, her body almost exploding from being so close to him.
“Whatever you want.”
That was a cop-out answer. “Can it hurt to enjoy each other until we grow tired of being with each other?”
He cupped her face. “You are an amazing woman, Chelsea. I wish I could give you more, but we both know we aren’t mates, so until your Fated mate comes along…”
“We can enjoy each other?”
“I’m game if you are.”
Her breath lodged in her throat. No amount of rational thought could make her say no. “Yes.”
He closed the door behind her and pressed her up against it. A part of her wanted to look around the adorable cabin first—but only a very tiny part. The rest of her wanted to devour him.
When he leaned in and kissed her, fire consumed her. Her wolf howled, sharpening her teeth and her nails. When Chelsea ran her hands up his back, it was like rubbing her fingers over metal. Was he trying not to shift too? The sudden image of scales covering his body shook her.
She broke the kiss. “Declan?”
His half closed eyes eased open. “Yes?”
“What’s happening to your back?”
He stiffened. “You happened.”
“I don’t understand.”
He stepped back and motioned she enter the living room. “When I’m excited, my dragon likes to make his presence known. You know how my scales glow?”
“Yes, and I become a light show apparently.”
“Both of our eyes change color and our teeth sharpen, but dragons do other things. I’ve heard some kind of shifters grow hair, but we grow scales.”
Now she was intrigued. She stepped toward him. “How about taking off your shirt and show me?”
He laughed, lifted the material over his head, and ditched it. “The scales have disappeared now, but if you want to kiss me again, I imagine my dragon can accommodate you.”
“I like the kissing part.”
He held up his hands. “Because I love your sparks, how about taking off your top so I can see more of them?”
She punched him in the chest. “Ow. Is sex all you think about?” It was all she thought about.
He moved closer, his eyes flashing teal. “No, but when you’re near, I can’t help myself.”
Chelsea totally got that they would never be mates, but life was short, and she wanted to enjoy him.
Declan loomed over her and lifted off her shirt slowly, as if he was waiting for her to tell him to stop. To show him what she wanted, she grabbed his crotch.
He grinned, his teeth rather pointed. “You aren’t playing fair.”
“Like you are?” she asked.
“Good point.” He tossed off her top and let it fall to the wooden floor.
Declan stepped back, ditched the boots, and then his jeans and briefs. He towered over her in all his glory. Wow.
Not able to wait, Chelsea reached out and grabbed his naked dick, which was larger than she remembered.
Declan sucked in a breath. “Be careful.”
“I was careful last night. Now? No way.” Without waiting for him to respond, she knelt in front of him and drew him deep into her mouth.
As she pumped her fist up and down, his hissed. She kind of wanted him to come—for her ego of course—but she also wanted to feel his heat inside her. When the first signs of his salty tang tinged her tongue, he clasped her shoulders and drew her to her feet.
“No more. I’m way too close and desperately want to be inside of you.”
She smiled. A second later, their hands were all over each other, as were their lips. Chelsea pressed her hips against his naked body. Wanting more contact, she stepped back. “I need to take my clothes off.”
“I was thinking the same thing,” he said.
Together they fumbled with her shorts while she kicked off her sandals. With a quick pinch, her bra was history. Now naked, Chelsea returned to ravishing Declan, the man she was learning was hard to stay away from.
“I love the way you taste,” he mumbled after their long tongue twisting experience.
“Mmm.” One hand found her breast while his palm pressed between her legs. She moaned, embarrassed by her weakness around him. “Take me now,” she panted.
Declan lifted her up by the waist and walked her backward until she was pressed against the door. He then lifted her arms above her head and kissed her hard again.
She melted. His scent, touch, and taste incited every nerve ending in her body. Desperate for his cock, she slipped out of his hold and threaded her arms around his neck as she wrapped her legs around his waist. “I need you bad,” she whispered.
Declan lowered his lips to her neck and slipped his dick straight into her opening. The second he let go, she dropped down on him. Fireworks exploded—or were those bursts of light all coming from her? It didn’t matter; Chelsea wanted it all.
For a split second, she thought he might bite her only to remember it didn’t matter if he did—they could never mate. She must have stiffened because Declan dragged his lips across her chin and then up to her mouth. Need pummeled her.
Declan slipped out of her only long enough to drive right back in. Something inside of her snapped, and she joined in the fray, lifting and dropping. As they kissed, he kept hammering into her, bringing her closer and closer to a massive climax. She rubbed her palms over his head and then down his face, loving the rough bristles, unable to get enough of him.
Their tongues darted in and out, tasting and competing for space. When he pressed her harder against the door and slipped his hands to her waist, she lost it. On the next thrust, her climax erupted, and Declan detonated a second later, his teal eyes glassing over. It was almost as if he left this realm for a moment.
Chelsea broke the kiss to suck in air. Burying his face between her shoulder and cheek, he wrapped his arms around her and held on tight. Even though she understood that Tarradon hadn’t tilted on its axis, it sure felt like something monumental had happened.
A minute later, he walked them through the living room to the kitchen and set her down on the tile countertop. He then uncoupled. “I’ll find something to clean us up with.”
Declan’s gaze remained a bit unfocused. Thankfully, neither one voiced what they probably were both thinking: what the hell had just happened? Sure, they were attracted to each other, but it was as if their animals had pushed them aside and attacked each other.
Declan wet a cloth and brought it over. She cleaned up, and then handed him the clean end to finish the job on himself.
Once he tossed the towel in the sink, he opened the refrigerator. He looked back over his shoulder. “Water, soda, or beer?”
She had no idea what their sodas tasted like, and water wouldn’t give this adventure its proper due. “A beer would be great.”
Chapter Ten
As they dressed, Declan chastised himself. Yes, he’d told her their relationship was all about sex, but to basically attack her the second she walked in the door was just plain wrong. He’d never done anything
like that before.
“Let’s sit for a moment and have our drinks before I give you a brief tour,” he said.
After Chelsea slipped on her clothes and Declan pulled on pants, they sat down on the sofa beside each other. Their attraction was out of hand, and it was up to him to set things straight.
Where should he begin? “I feel as if I should apologize for practically jumping you as soon as you got here. Believe me, I’m not in the habit of ravishing a woman before she has a chance to barely get through the door.”
When Chelsea looked off to the side, his gut churned. She twisted toward him. “In case you didn’t notice, I participated equally in the encounter. Besides, we agreed to keep this strictly sexual. You were hot for me. I was hot for you. There’s nothing wrong with that.”
No, there wasn’t, only he didn’t believe her. “That’s true, but as much as I want this to be strictly sexual, it feels more than that.” He lifted Chelsea’s hand to his lips. “Hell, when I first met you, I actually thought I’d been given a second chance at having a mate. How crazy is that?”
“It’s not crazy, but I’ve never heard of anyone having two mates.”
“And therein lies the problem. Chelsea, clearly I want you. I can’t stop thinking about you, in fact, so much so that my work is suffering.”
“Whoa.” The light in her eyes extinguished.
“I know, right?” She wasn’t making it any easier on him. “I think we should limit our contact from now on.”
Her brows pinched. “Because?”
“Like I said—if I know I can see you any time of day or night, I’ll be preoccupied, and I have bad guys to catch and a company to run.”
“Why not give it a few more days? Maybe we’ll be tired of each other by then.”
He huffed out a laugh. “I don’t think that is going to happen. I don’t understand any of this. The sex is off the charts. That should be enough, but for some reason, it’s not. Besides, it’s not fair to you if we pretend we’re this happy couple.”
She sat up straighter. “Why not?” Chelsea lifted the beer to her lips and took a long hit. He hoped it wasn’t for fortification.
“Because the longer we are together, the harder it will be to separate when you do find your mate—and you will find him. I don’t know if he’s here or on Earth, but when you say goodbye to me, I’ll be devastated again.” He was babbling, but he couldn’t help it. “I don’t want to sound pathetic, but I’ve been through that kind of pain before, and I don’t want to repeat it.”
The bottle she was twirling in her hands looked like a lifeline. Finally, she looked up. “I don’t think we should make decisions based on what could happen. If the world thought that way, a lot of things would never occur.” She held up a palm. “However, I don’t want to hurt you. My mate could come knocking on the door any minute, and perhaps I wouldn’t be able to do anything about it. Right at the moment though, that seems slim.”
“The urge to be with a mate is intense and often beyond our control.”
Chelsea set down her bottle and sat up straighter. “What are you really trying to say? That you want to walk away now?”
“No! I just think we need to cool it for a while. Maybe we could go two days without seeing each other. After that, I’m game for taking in a movie or going bowling or something to see if we can be together without tearing off each other’s clothes.”
She laughed. “Do you even know how to bowl?”
That was what she took away from his discussion? It probably didn’t matter. “No, I don’t, but it’s what people who date do. We are not mates, and as such should be able to go on an ordinary date without having sex.”
Once more, she held up a palm. “You just said you only wanted sex. Now you’re sending me mixed signals.”
Damn. Declan was always decisive. It was why he was a good businessman. “I’m sorry. I’d say it’s all your fault, but I don’t like to blame others. You excite me like no one ever has. Can we do this my way, please?”
“Fine. Just so you know, I like you too, Declan Sinclair. A lot. I would love to spend more time with you, but I will let you decide on how much time we spend together. If what you say is true, once my mate walks in the proverbial door, then I won’t give you a second look, right?”
He leaned closer and twirled her blonde hair between his fingers. “I hope you’d at least look back over your shoulder.”
She smiled. “I promise I will never, ever forget you—even if I move back to Earth.”
Earth. It might only be a portal jump away, but that was too far for him. When Chelsea moved within kissing distance, his dragon roared, and his scales glowed. Damn it.
Declan cleared his throat. “Ready for your grand tour?”
She slapped her thighs and stood. “Show me everything.”
When she dragged her gaze down his body, Declan had to look away. He wished like hell he understood these conflicting feelings. Stupid dragon must be rebelling against him for not finding anyone else to care for these last three years.
Two days! Chelsea had been going crazy—or maybe it was her wolf that was almost out of control without Declan. Once, when Chelsea was traveling between the condo and the cabin, she ran into Finn, who happened to mention that Declan was in one foul mood. As much as she disliked herself for it, it took effort not to smile. It meant she wasn’t the only one suffering.
Moving into her own place had been exciting, but it would have been a lot nicer if Declan had been there to give her some recommendations on where she could buy a few things.
Stop lying, her wolf shouted.
Fine, it would have been nice to take a break every now and again, but I want him here for a few other reasons too. Living in the woods was a new adventure and sharing it with someone she cared about would make it that much more enjoyable.
Throughout the move, Chelsea would repeat their conversation about why they needed to take a break from each other. Unfortunately, she came to the same conclusion Declan had. It would be better if they kept their distance, at least for a few days. But hadn’t he said only two days?
Tomorrow, she’d have to go back to work, which would hopefully take her mind off the situation. She dropped down onto the sofa, her muscles tired from all the moving. Mentally, she went through what she’d have to do after work. The first order of business was grocery shopping. The immediate problem was that the gas tank was banging empty, and she had no idea where to fill up. She’d actually searched the car for a place to put the gas—or whatever fuel the car used—but she’d failed to find anything that resembled a nozzle entry point.
She wanted to call Declan, but he might feel obligated to leave the mine and help her. Making more work for him was the last thing she wanted. No, her best chance of making it to the shelter tomorrow and then having enough gas to go shopping afterward would be to drive to Finn’s bar now and ask him. After all, it was his car. Chelsea was sure her twin wouldn’t mind a little distraction while at work.
She smiled. Back in the States, if she had a particularly rough day, she’d drive to McKinnon’s Pub and Pool and shoot the breeze with Finn if he wasn’t too busy. He always made her feel better, so why not visit him at The Wing’s Bar? He’d mentioned how incredible the food was there, and she could use a relaxing meal.
With more pep in her step, she left, hoping the car didn’t run out of gas before she reached town. The dirt road leading from her cabin to the main road was a bit spooky at night, so she locked her car doors. If she’d been back in Tennessee, she wouldn’t have bothered.
To be honest, what resided on Tarradon kind of intimidated her. Sure, there were the usual shifters, like wolves and bears, but what else was out there? She was learning about new species all the time. At least if she bumped into a dragon, she could run into the woods where he most likely wouldn’t follow.
Before she let her fears get to her, she neared town. Three minutes later, Chelsea was passing the bar where Finn worked. Finding a parking place w
asn’t easy, but eventually, she located one two blocks away. More and more she realized she was not a big city person. Give her the countryside any day.
Making certain to keep an eye out for anything out of the ordinary, she strode toward The Wing’s Bar. She still wasn’t used to the ways of Tarradon, but as soon as she stepped inside, her muscles relaxed. The music was festive, and the flashing lights over the bar gave it a cheerful ambiance. Wanting to talk to Finn, Chelsea headed to the bar—which took some doing.
A ton of people were crammed into the small space. Many were shifters, though she couldn’t tell what kind. From their size, she bet the majority were dragon shifters. Finn had told her that Declan spent most of his waking hours at the mine, so she was quite confident she wouldn’t run into him there.
A rather loud, piercing laugh drew her attention to the corner of the room. Chelsea spun around and spotted a tall woman with long, black hair resting a hip on a table. She was leaning over some guy stroking his face. The woman turned her head, forcing Chelsea to blink. It was Sabrina. Holy shit.
Because it was none of her business what Sabrina did, Chelsea shook her head and continued to make her way to Finn. She had no idea so many people liked to drink on a Sunday night.
When she reached him, Finn had his palms on the counter talking with someone. He laughed, and her heart blossomed. He really seemed to have found his spot. She slipped onto a stool and waited to flag his attention.
He must have sensed her, for he looked her way a moment later. The double take was expected, but it still delighted her. He excused himself from the man he was chatting with and came over to her.
“To what do I owe the pleasure? Or are you looking to drown your sorrows?”
Did she look sad? Sure, she was a bit out of sorts, but how could he tell? “I actually came because your car is almost out of gas, or whatever it uses for fuel, and I need to figure out how to fill it up.”
He chuckled. “That is tricky. Kaleena had to explain it to me the first time too. We use gas, but the stations here are different. How about I show you tomorrow, and then we can set up a bank account for you, so you can pay for the gas.”
