by Anya Nowlan
He must have noticed her looking at his scars, because he squeezed her a little, laying a protective kiss on her temple. It was something he did more and more now, and Gemma had to admit that she liked the feeling of it.
“Dragon magic. I told you,” he said, chuckling.
“One would imagine. What with the Goldplains twins camping out on your roof for three days now. If their magic couldn’t heal you, nothing could. I’m sure Gold Valley must be buzzing with gossip at the two golden dragons seemingly taking over the mansion. You better make an appearance soon, lest they worry,” Cillian said, grinning. Gemma looked up at Devon, her eyes riddled with questions.
“The twins have a gift. They’re healing dragons. When they’re around, everything’s just… better. That’s how I healed so quickly. And I thought they must have been here, I felt their presence. I will have to say my thanks to them. But I don’t think I was as bad as Remington…” Devon trailed off. Cillian’s happy grin disappeared, the man suddenly looking rather more somber.
“No, you were not. But you know how the Redblades are. They wouldn’t let the twins close. Remington’s brothers were adamant about handling it themselves. But he must still be alive. We haven’t heard the songs, and we’ve been listening.”
Devon nodded and reached out his hand for a shake. Cillian grabbed it but pulled the other man in for a bear hug, patting him on the back.
“I will see you tomorrow. You two have fun,” Cillian said with a wink, twirling around on his heel and heading towards the stairs that led to the roof, whistling a jaunty Irish tune.
Gemma giggled, but the laughter disappeared quickly as Devon scooped her up in his arms, carrying her back into the bedroom without another word. The door slammed shut behind them, and not a second later, Gemma landed square on her back on the bed. Apparently a hungry dragon was not one to be toyed with.
Gemma caught her lower lip between her teeth, her pulse quickening as her body was locked between the soft sheets and the handsome man. They’d shared a bed for days now, but had both been too weak to do anything about the need within them.
Still, she hadn’t even thought of leaving his side, nor he hers. After having just got one another back, it seemed like the height of folly to not be around each other. Her hands rested on his chest, feeling his heart beat heavily. She liked the way she could make him react so readily.
“I’ve missed you, princess,” Devon said, his voice but a hoarse whisper as he bent down and trailed kisses on her neck and down her chest.
With one hand, he undid the tie on her bathrobe and pushed it out of the way. Then, he raised the edge of the t-shirt and butterflied kisses on her soft stomach, making her giggle from the way his stubble rasped at her delicate skin. Gemma was completely wet already, just like she always was when he touched her. She raised herself up a little, just enough to wrestle the shirt and bathrobe off of herself, and a thankful moan slipped from her lips as he responded by throwing off his shirt as well.
Her fingers trailed along the small scars that riddled his body, many soon to disappear as he healed further, but some there to stay – the mark around his wrist would forever be there to remind her of what he had done for her, what he had been willing to do.
Devon kissed her bountiful breasts, squeezing them with his hands and making her meet his touch by arching her back. Heat surged through her, making her pulse with need for him. She reached down, gripping his cock through his loose pants, and he groaned with satisfying longing. Slowly, Gemma rubbed up and down the length of it, loving how big it was, how hard it was. And all for her.
He caught one of her nipples with his mouth and sucked so hard she was sure he’d leave marks. But that was fine, she wanted him to leave marks on her, wanted him to claim her. The dragon stone glowed with its dark light right between her breasts, reminding her of what they’d gone through and how they’d grown stronger for it. She was never going to take it off again.
“I need you,” she muttered with feverish desire, her green eyes seeking out his blues. A devilish glint shone in them, his dark brows framing his mesmerizing eyes and always making her feel like she was staring at a wild thing, not merely a man.
“How much?” he demanded, raising up on his knees and towering above her like a god, ripped and delicious.
“Endlessly,” she answered, certain of the truthfulness of her words. There were no bounds to how much she truly needed him now – something she couldn’t have even imagined a scarce few weeks ago. Her hand still worked his cock, rubbing it and luxuriating in the feeling of it as it throbbed when her thumb rubbed over its tip.
“Will you wear what I give you now? Will you give yourself to me entirely? We will be tied together under dragon law tomorrow, but I have to know now, Gem. I must know…” His voice trailed off, and for the slightest of moments, the predator shone brighter than the man behind his eyes, irises turning a stark gold before flashing blue again. Before he could even finish his words, Gemma found herself nodding, raising herself up on her elbows and then on her knees so she may face him.
She cupped his face with her hands, feeling impossibly small next to him. Or perhaps it was just that he was so big compared to her. Whichever it was, it filled her with a sense of safety and belonging – something that had seemed so elusive for such a long time.
“I will, Devon. I will cherish everything you give me. What is mine is yours, and I am yours to keep,” she whispered, kissing him on the mouth like demons were after her and this would be the very last kiss they’d ever share. She wanted him to know that all she was saying was true. That there could be no one else. Not anymore. Not ever.
“Good,” Devon said simply, leaning back and snatching the bracelet he had given her on their trip to the caverns. He slipped it on her wrist almost reverently – the same wrist he now wore his scar on as a mark of battle. Her heart pounded so hard she thought it would leap from her chest, but all seemed to fall quiet as Devon fisted her hair and yanked her forward, kissing her with hunger she hadn’t seen in him yet. “Then, you will be mine,” he promised. “Tomorrow, truly. But now, just as importantly.”
With that, he pushed her back on the downy cover, the motion almost brutal. Gemma gasped, her body reacting to his need with such willingness that she couldn’t believe it was her, who was so hungry to be taken, ravaged, consumed. Devon flipped her over with his strong hands on her hips and then ripped off her panties. They were discarded sight unseen, joined a moment later by his pants. With a rough motion, he pulled her up by her hips, keeping her on her hands and knees.
His cock pressed against her wet pussy, and she rocked against him, mewling a little with want.
“Please,” she begged, the word becoming almost too familiar. But it didn’t feel degrading or wrong, it felt empowering when she was with him. Asking for what she wanted and receiving it in kind. His fingers gripped her neck, and then, with one deep stroke, he pushed into her, filling her almost completely. Her body bucked against it, the pain so sweet and so sour at the same time.
She screamed a laborious sound that echoed in the room and reverberated through her, like shockwaves escaping her lips as he thrust into her, deeper and deeper each time. Gemma trembled like a leaf, loving the way he plunged so deep in her that she thought he couldn’t possibly go further, and then the very next stroke proved her wrong again. Beads of sweat broke out across her skin, and Devon’s growls mingled with her yelps, creating a cacophony of noise that neither was abashed about.
Let the world hear how much they fucking wanted each other.
He released her neck, and she purred with delight as his hand groped her breasts, pinching her nipples and making the fire in her veins burn all the more hot. Then, his hands travelled down her front and slipped between her legs, and when his feather light touch brushed over her clit for the first time, she thought she must have ascended and this was exactly what pure joy felt like. Gemma didn’t try to fight it. She accepted it gratefully.
Her orgasm swept
over her and took her completely as she, in turn, gave herself to Devon. Her pussy milked his rigid cock, contracting around the swollen rod and demanding it join her in that heavenly release. His fingertips dug into her flesh, though Gemma barely paid heed to it. And then, he was right there with her, gasping as he cummed in her, thick white ropes spewing in her as he stroked into her.
Finally, they collapsed, Devon’s arms cradling her safely against him as always, as if he were afraid to let go. In truth, he probably was now, and Gemma was thankful for it.
“I’m so sorry I ever let you out of my sight, my love,” Devon murmured into her ear, and Gemma smiled. She cuddled closer to him, not minding the sweat or their mutual disheveled state. If she could have, she would have stayed like that forever.
“As long as you come and find me again every time, I don’t mind.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Devon
The gold moon shone brightly above them, so round and close that Devon thought he could almost reach up and touch it. In his younger days, he’d tried to do just that. The gold moon had been witness to many of his more petulant, wild days, and now, it would watch again as he once and for all became a dragon of worth. His hands grasped Gemma’s, and though he appreciated the sight of mother moon from the corner of his eye, his gaze rested entirely on her.
It was like they were alone in the night, no one there to bother them or get in their way. But they weren’t alone.
The Goldplains brothers stood guard to either side of them, the golden dragons as strict as always in their ancient roles as healers and guides. Cillian stood further, watching with that amused smirk of his planted firmly on his lips. And then, so far away that he might not have been there at all for all the difference it made, stood Romulus Redblade, Remington’s younger brother and the new Redblade elder dragon.
There was a story there, Devon was sure of it, but he neither cared nor wanted to hear of it on his most joyous of days.
The wedding party waited until the moon was at its highest, dousing them with its golden yellow light, so warm and welcoming. At least for a dragon. Gemma was breathtaking as always. She wore a midnight blue silk gown that went down to the ground, the empire waist cinching at just the right spot to show off her delicious breasts (Devon had made a note to himself to lavish plenty of attention on them when the ceremony was done and he could truly focus on his bride), and the dragon stone glowed with its dark hue on her chest.
She was a vision, a sight he hoped to always be able to stare at in wonder and amazement. His former life seemed so far away, as if it had never happened at all, and he couldn’t have been gladder for it. All those nights partying, bedding women he couldn’t care less about and causing every manner of trouble now seemed little more than child’s play. Mere escapism, a way to kill his time while fate caught up with him.
And here she was, his fate, his heart, his everything – Gemma Teeley, a goldsmith from Gold Valley.
He could still hardly believe that this was truly happening. To the very last moment, he had been sure something would go wrong. The skies would fall, the earth would crumble, and he would be left without the woman he so adored. The last hurdle had been telling her about his arrangement with the council. That his snap decision to tell her that she had to marry him had come from necessity as much as it had come from the heart.
But that with each moment they spent together, and even more with the time they spent apart, he understood that there could be no other in his life.
It would be her and her alone that his heart would beat for, and without her, he would be a broken dragon and a broken man. It seemed like such a small thing to tell her after what they’d gone through with Remington, but Devon knew that it was the only way their union could be whole. Thankfully, Gemma’s opinion on the matter was the same as his – however it happened, they were glad that it had happened.
Consequences and all.
Apollo nudged him slightly, breaking Devon’s endless reverie – the time was upon them. He nervously cleared his throat. It was the damndest thing. Devon Bluewing had never been nervous in his life before meeting Gemma Teeley, and now it seemed he spent most of his days a little out of his head. It was a small price to pay in the name of sharing his life with her.
He took her hands in his and received a nervous smile in return. He grinned back at her, hopefully reassuring, but feeling just a tad goofy – another thing he’d never been but now didn’t mind. It was a blessing that the ceremony was a short one and more of a formality than something to be worried about (though the shindig he would have to put up for Gold Valley was certainly something that would give him a few gray hairs – most unbefitting for a dragon!), because Devon could give no promises on how long he could keep from throwing Gemma over his shoulder and wandering off to the dungeons with her again.
“Gem, before the dragonkin, before my elders, my ancients and the gold moon, I promise to you my everything. My heart, my body, my mind, my hoard.” The last word was always stressed, as it was arguably the most important commitment a dragon could ever make. He paused, gazing into her gorgeous green eyes. He wanted to be absolutely certain she knew how much she meant to him, in the presence of the council and his elders, who were certainly looking down on him on his happiest of days.
“It is all yours. At your command, they will crumble into dust or conquer the greatest of foes. Do with them as you wish.” Devon squeezed her delicate hands, so cool next to his intense heat. “Do you accept?” he asked, not managing to keep his voice from cracking a little.
His heart leapt as she nodded, the corners of her mouth curved in a little smile, though he could see the tremor that went through her as he spoke each word.
“I do,” she said – the simplest and most beautiful two words that could ever leave her mouth.
“With this stone, I signify all of my offerings to you. Wear it, and I will be yours. Discard it, and I will crumble,” he spoke, letting go of her hands and putting his palms around the dragon stone. The small, odd pendant disappeared in his grasp, and under his breath, he spoke the ancient words. The council echoed every word, each member saying what he said in unison after him.
Dragon magic was a peculiar thing, so powerful on its own, yet so insistent on having others complement it. Perhaps it was one of those safeguards to keep them from slaughtering one another.
Gemma’s skin was invitingly silky against his fingers, and the familiar hunger blazed in him once more, even as he was concentrating on his task. The words came forth, inscribed in the soul of each dragon. The dim, dark glow disappeared, replaced by a bright blue sparkle that crackled between his fingertips, making Gemma gasp. A few moments later, Devon pulled back his hands, revealing a breathtaking sapphire pendant in place of the dragon stone.
From the pendant, gold seemed to seep forward, covering the simple chain that the pendant had been hanging on, until it was brighter than any gold Devon held in his hoard. He knew that if their love blossomed, so too would the gold gleam, and if their love was lost, the gold would mar and turn an ugly shade of brown.
As the last bits of chain were covered with gold, Cillian Greenmeadow whooped, and Apollo patted Devon on the back.
“Never thought I would see the day! Devon Bluewing, an honest dragon!” Apollo chuckled, his wheaten hair falling crazily on his face.
“Indeed,” Alexander agreed, the somber twin inclining his head in congratulation to the newlyweds. Devon grinned like the happiest man in Treasure Lane. He pulled Gemma into his embrace, hugging her against him and covering her mouth with his, kissing her with not just the passion of a lover, but now the belonging of a husband.
“I will never let you go again,” he whispered as he broke the kiss. And he meant it.
EPILOGUE
Gemma
When Gemma had thought she couldn’t dance any more or laugh any harder, she’d been proven wrong time and time again. Now, her feet were sore and her voice was hoarse as if she’d been screaming on r
ollercoasters for days on end, and for the most part, it felt like she’d been doing just that. She grinned happily as she overlooked Gold Valley from half-way up the trail that led to the Bluewing mansion. To her mansion.
The town was bathed in light and laughter, loud music pumping into the air in what seemed like an endless celebration of joy. It felt like every single person in town had joined in on the festivities, glad to share in Gemma and Devon’s happiness. She sat on the green grass, her sandals next to her, and her toes digging around in the fresh grass. The party had taken its toll on her, and she was perfectly content to just enjoy a moment away from the hustle and bustle.
It was still hard to get used to the person she had become. That she was no longer just Gemma Teeley, but Gemma Bluewing, the billionaire dragon’s mate. But, it wasn’t something that she found in any way, shape or form unpleasant. Oh no. She was glad to be a dragon’s bride. As far as she was concerned, he could have been a farmer in Alabama or a fisherman in Alaska for all she cared, she just wanted to be with him.
The cocky façade that Devon had held up so dearly for the public, had hidden a kind, courageous man and one who made her heart beat like nothing else and her skin tingle with anticipation for his touch every time he was near. It was bliss.
And the fact that it felt so good (both just being around him and, well, the other stuff) was probably also why Gemma and Devon had kept so long from making an official announcement to the town. Almost a month had passed from their ceremony under the gold moon. They had spent the time wisely – never leaving one another’s sight for more than a few moments.
Devon had shown her all the secrets of the mansion, eager to share his world. And she had been glad to learn, showing him some tricks of the trade as well. Apparently, in her eagerness to make him run around, Gemma had found some nooks and crannies in the mansion that even the fabled Bluewing didn’t know about. Of course, they’d put them to great use right away. And, whenever she had the time, Gemma had taken to solving another great mystery waiting to be unraveled – cataloging the exact contents of the Bluewing hoard.
