***Molly***
Molly could only stare at the creature that suddenly appeared where Adam had been laying, her brain slowly absorbing the change. The handsome man she’d come to love was gone, replaced by a creature covered with downy blue feathers that shimmered in the firelight, and it was a shock to realize that this was Adam. She gasped and stepped back a few steps, heart pounding in her chest, her eyes glued to the dangerous-looking talons and beak.
She took a deep breath, waiting for the fear to surface, but felt only a warm feeling deep inside when she looked at the dragon. A sense of wonder began to fill her, and she took first one, then another tentative step toward it, her heart soaring when it opened its eyes and she was looking at Adam. All the breath rushed out of her, and she felt a wave of dizziness descend, followed by a wave of love that took her breath away.
Still nervous, she approached him slowly, then reached out and put a trembling hand on one of his wings. When he stretched it open just a little, she jumped back with a cry of alarm, then laughed nervously and reached out to stroke the blue feathers. Adam made a sound deep in his throat and opened both of his wings, then waited for her to figure out what he wanted.
On trembling legs, she knelt down and crawled up next to his body, and laid down, trying not to flinch when he closed his wings around her. But his body was warm and the feathers soft against her skin, and it wasn’t long before she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.
She woke several hours later wrapped in Adam’s arms, the cold ground under her, the blanket their only protection against the cold. For a second, she thought she might have dreamed the entire thing, but the sight of his bloody clothes across the cave erased the idea from her mind. Expecting fear, panic, or any other number of emotions she’d been coping with lately to come rising to the surface, she lay in Adam’s arms for a long time.
But all she felt was an unexpected sense of peace and well-being, a feeling so unfamiliar, it took her a second to identify it. She slowly turned her head and looked at Adam, still sleeping soundly, remembering his last words to her, and a massive wave of happiness washed over her. A grin spread across her face, and she nearly laughed at the absurdity of the situation, but then Adam opened his eyes.
“What are you so happy about?” he asked.
“I’m not sure if I’m happy or a little crazy,” she said, reaching up to stroke his face. “How are you feeling?”
“Well, it’s a bit chilly laying on this hard ground,” he said. “When did I shift back?”
Molly shrugged. “I’m not sure. I was asleep,” she said, leaning up on one elbow to gently probe the wounds on his skin. “These look almost healed.”
“Here with me?” he asked, staring at her.
She looked down at him. “You don’t remember?” she asked. When he shook his head, a strange look on his face, she added, “You opened your wings and I crawled in; your feathers are very soft and warm, and I guess I fell asleep.”
“You fell asleep,” he repeated, then a huge look of relief spread across his face. “I never thought...I mean, weren’t you scared?”
“I thought I was going to be, but I realized that it was you, Adam,” she said, stroking his cheek. “This is still going to take some getting used to, and I am still mad at you for lying to me.”
He burst out laughing, then grabbed his stomach. “Oh, I shouldn’t laugh that way,” he said. “But you can be as mad at me as you want as long as you’re here being mad.”
“Are you still hurt?” she asked, brushing her fingertips across his forehead and leaving them there.
But she didn’t need to hear his answer; she could sense his body still healing, could feel a warm spot deep inside him where he still wasn’t quite whole. “I think I can get up,” he said.
Molly untangled herself from the blanket and rose to her knees. “I don’t think you’re going anywhere but over to the fire,” she said, helping him sit up.
Getting him to his feet was a little more difficult, and it was clear that Adam had a long way to go before he would be able to walk, but she stayed silent until he was lying comfortably by the fire. Adam didn’t fight her when she covered him with the other sleeping bag and left him to build the fire back up, but he watched her the entire time, his eyes drooping.
“Why don’t you get some more sleep and I’ll see what I can do about some breakfast,” she said, dropping down next to him.
“I should get up and help; we need to get out of here,” he said, lifting himself on his elbows, then falling back with a sigh.
She smiled down at him. “I don’t think that’s going to happen,” she said. “We’re safe inside the cave, right?”
He nodded, too exhausted to speak. “We still have food and water, and you left a note, so they know where to find us,” she added. “So, we’re going to stay here and wait to be rescued.”
Adam relaxed. “I guess you’re the boss,” he said, his eyes drifting closed. “Don’t leave the cave for any reason.”
She kissed him on the forehead. “I’m not going anywhere; you’re stuck with me, Adam.”
“I can’t think of anyone I want to be stuck with more than you,” he whispered.
Chapter Eighteen
***Adam***
Adam woke slowly, trying to remember where he was, then opened his eyes and looked around for Molly. Relieved when he saw her standing by the fire, he closed them again, and took a deep breath, feeling his initial panic receding. When he opened them once more, she was watching him, and just looking at her made him feel warm all over.
“Well, hello there, sleepyhead,” she said, picking up a pot he didn’t recognize and pouring steaming liquid into a cup. “How about a cup of cocoa?”
He sat up and looked around the cave, surprise to see a neat and tidy little camp, complete with what looked like real food. “Sure, but where did all this come from?” he asked.
She handed him the cup, then sat down next to him. “I got bored waiting for you to wake up, so I went exploring,” she said, grinning at him. “There’s another room back there with all kinds of supplies in it.”
He grinned back at her, then took a sip of the coco, letting it slide down his throat, and he sighed. “This is good,” he said.
“Powered milk,” she said. “How about something to eat?”
“What’s on the menu?” he asked, taking another sip.
“Oatmeal with dried fruit and nuts,” she said triumphantly.
“Sounds like a gourmet meal to me,” he said, feeling better by the minute.
By the time Molly handed him a steaming bowl, he knew that he was better; the scratches were healed, and the burning deep inside was gone. But he was enjoying watching Molly and kept the news to himself. She refilled his cup and got herself one then sat back down next to him, letting out a big sigh.
Adam took a bite of the oatmeal. “This is wonderful, Molly. I don’t think I’ve ever tasted anything this good,” he said, taking another bite.
She laughed. “It’s just oatmeal,” she said, her cheeks turning pink from his praise.
He put the spoon back into the bowl. “It’s more than just the oatmeal, Molly,” he said, waving his hand around the cave. “It’s all of this. You are an amazing woman, Molly, and I’m lucky that you came into my life.”
“Thank you, Adam,” she said, her eyes meeting his. “I feel a bit out of control; everything has changed so much, and so fast, I don’t know if I’ve caught up yet. But I do know one thing; I’m glad you found me that night.”
He’d been so sure that she was going to tell him that she loved him, but he pushed his disappointment aside; the bond was there, he knew it and so did she. Patience had never been his strong point, but he’d have to find some now, give her the space to come to terms with the life she’d just been thrown into. But she was stronger, stronger than he’d ever imagined, and he knew with time, she’d come to see that only together were they both whole.
“Adam,” Molly’s voice interrupt
ed his thoughts, “you never answered my question.”
“What question?” he asked, picking up the bowl and taking another bite.
“Why were you so desperate to find me? I mean, find someone?” she asked, her cheeks turning pink again.
“I guess I never got to that part,” he said, taking another bite and setting the bowl down again. “I’m going to be thirty-five in a few months, and if a dragon shifter hasn’t found a mate by then, they lose their ability to shift.”
“So, you were desperate,” she said, a frown on her face. “That’s why you lied to me.”
“Don’t start thinking what you’re thinking,” Adam said, taking her hand. “It didn’t start that way. I mean, I was attracted to you right from the beginning, but lying to you wasn’t the plan. I had to take you home because of the scratches on your arms, but I’d planned to have Gabriel take you to the hospital as soon as they were healed.”
“Why didn’t you?” she asked, her eyes searching his.
“Because I was afraid that I’d lose you,” he said. “Your memory was gone, and I knew that the doctors would want to do a bunch of tests. You would have been gone, Molly. I might not have ever seen you again.”
Molly was silent for a long time, then she sighed. “I guess I can understand, but did you really think it was going to work?” she asked.
“I was going to tell you the truth,” he said.
She studied him for a minute. “One more question,” she said.
“I suppose I still owe you one or two,” he said, feeling her softening again.
“What did you mean by a mate? Is that why you told me we were married?” she asked.
He took her hands in his again, and turned to face her. “It’s a bit deeper than just marriage, but marriage is usually a part of it,” he said, then waited until she looked at him. “When shifters mate, it’s a bond that lasts through life; nothing can ever break that bond, and it’s through this bond that we survive.”
“I don’t understand,” she said, her voice a whisper. “You mean you can’t live without that bond?”
“Without it, our powers shrivel up and die,” he said.
Her eyes filled with fear. “Adam, that’s a lot to put on my shoulders,” she said. “What if I’m not the one?”
He smiled at her. “I’ve known from the moment I saw you that you were the one,” he said. “But I’m happy to wait for you to catch up.”
“I think you should finish your oatmeal before it gets cold,” she said.
He picked up the bowl, a pleased smile on his face, took a big bite, then said, “Yes, ma'am.”
***Molly***
Molly’s head was reeling once again, and she had to get away from Adam before she did something silly like throw herself into his arms. She needed a minute to sort through what he’d told her, to put this latest information into her already crowded brain, and to figure out why she was so frightened. Carrying wood over to the fire, she piled on a few logs, satisfied when they blazed to life. She refilled the water pot and put it on to boil.
But she could feel Adam’s eyes on her, could almost tell what he was thinking, and when she turned to look at him, the desire in his eyes took her breath away. Thinking back over the last few days, she realized that something between them had changed the night he made love to her. When it hit her that she loved him, but that there was a deeper connection, she stumbled just a bit and looked away.
The enormity of what she felt made her a bit dizzy, but she took a deep breath; she’d come this far, so what was one more step into the unknown? But before she gave herself up so completely, she needed to know that what she’d felt that night with him had been real and not just a reaction to the fear she’d felt. A plan began to form in her mind, and a smile spread across her face.
She wiped the smile off her face, turned back to Adam, and said, “We need to get you cleaned up so I can look at those scratches again.”
“What did you have in mind?” he asked, a challenge in his eyes.
“I think a sponge bath should do the trick,” she said, keeping her face serious.
Adam looked a little shocked for a second but recovered quickly, and it was hard not to laugh. “I think we should start by shaking out the sleeping bags,” she said. “Do you need help getting up?”
He shook his head, slowly got to his feet. “See, good as new,” he said. “I think I can manage on my own if you just give me the water.”
Looking at him standing in his boxers, she felt her insides begin to awaken, little tendrils of desire that took root and began to grow. “Nonsense, you won’t be able to reach your back,” she said, shaking out the sleeping bags and laying them back down on the ground.
Adam stepped back onto the sleeping bag and looked at her warily. “I really can do this myself,” he said.
She pointed to the sleeping bag. “On your stomach, please.”
He did as she ordered, but she could tell that he was nervous. “Why do I think you have something planned?” he asked.
“I’m just going to give you a sponge bath,” she said innocently, but her heart was pounding.
She poured some cold water into a basin, topped it off with some hot, grabbed a washcloth, and carried it over to where Adam lay waiting for her, anticipation on his face. After adding some more wood to the fire, she dropped down next to him and began to slowly clean off the layer of dust that covered Adam’s arms. He lay with his eyes closed, sighing occasionally, as she worked her way across his shoulders and down his back with slow, gentle strokes.
The scratches, which had at first been the focus of her attention, faded in her mind, and soon she was only aware of Adam’s skin under her hands. She longed to run her hands over the hard muscles of his naked buttocks, but only dipped the rag into the band of his boxers, then skipped down to his legs. When she finally dipped the rag back into the water, they were both breathing quickly, and it took little encouragement from her to get Adam to flip over.
When their eyes met, the passion and love between them flared to life, and she felt it deep in her soul. Adam was the thing that had been missing from her life all these years, the thing she’d been searching for that day she left the city and the only life she’d ever known behind. She’d wanted a new life, a life full of all the things she’d missed, and deep in her heart, she knew that Adam was the foundation of that new life.
“Molly,” he whispered.
She put her finger over his lips. “Shhh, I’m not finished yet,” she said, not sure why it was so important that she follow through.
But as she slid the cloth over Adam’s chest and stomach, she understood that she was claiming him as hers and giving herself to him at the same time. When she got to the elastic of his boxers this time, she slowly slid them off, unable to suppress the sigh that escaped her parted lips when she saw his erection, or the burst of moisture that moistened her panties.
She was tempted to abandon her task, but something inside her drove her on, and she dipped the cloth in the warm water again, her body throbbing almost painfully. Sliding the cloth over one hip and down his leg, she wiped away the layer of dust, then worked her way up his other leg. When both legs were clean, she rinsed the cloth once more, then with trembling hands, slowly cleaned his throbbing manhood until he grabbed her wrist and stilled her hands.
When his eyes met hers, the raw desire she saw made her heart race, and she knew the moment had come. Setting the cloth back into the bowl, she got to her feet and moved it away from them, then slowly began to remove her clothes, Adam’s eyes following her every movement. When she finally slipped out of the lacy panties, her body was throbbing with anticipation, and she hesitated only a moment before going to him.
Chapter Nineteen
***Adam***
Adam lay, unable to move, his body pulsing so hard, he could barely breathe as Molly approached him. He let his eyes feast on her body, his hands itching to touch her, but didn’t move, waiting for her to come to him. When she stoo
d over him, one foot on either side of his hips, he could lay still no longer and let one hand slowly slide up the inside of her leg, then slip between her folds. She was dripping wet, her pleasure button hard and swollen, and he growled deep in his throat in anticipation.
But before he could explore any further, she sank onto him, straddling his hips and driving his throbbing member deep inside her. He grabbed her hips as the world spun around him, her body tightening around his, making him thrust his hips up and filling her even deeper. He lifted her by the hips, pulling out almost all the way, then thrust into her again, grinding his hips into her, and held her there striving for control.
Molly whimpered and rocked her hips, so he reached between them, found her swollen nib, and with his thumb, stoked it in little circles. She opened her eyes and looked down at him, then threw her head back, whimpering with pleasure as her body trembled and shook as she rode him. When she tumbled over the edge, he nearly went willingly with her, the feeling of her hot, wet body cradling him so wonderfully he almost couldn’t resist, but he held back at the last minute.
He suddenly understood that she’d claimed him as her own, and it was his turn to do the same. Grabbing her by the hips, he flipped her over on her back, then slid between her parted legs. With one hard thrust of his hips, he drove himself into her. She cried out his name, and he stopped until she opened her eyes and looked at him.
“You belong to me now, Molly, and you always will,” he said, then thrust into her again.
“I belonged to you a long time ago,” she said, wrapping her legs around his hips and pulling him in deeper. “And I always will.”
The last link in the long chain that connected them slipped into place, and the world around them dissolved. They were only aware of the pleasure that flowed between them as Adam filled Molly over and over, driving them both to the edge and over the other side. When trembling and shaking, they found the ultimate satisfaction together; the love between them became an unbreakable bond that would feed both of their souls for the rest of their lives.
Guardian Dragons of Prospect Falls: (A Paranormal Shifter Romance) Page 11
