Dragon Lords Books 1 - 4 Box Set: Anniversary Edition

by Michelle M. Pillow

“You’re sure then?” Nadja studied the parts of the man’s face she could see. Relief flooded her when he nodded his head. He agreed to her terms. Whatever he may be, at least he wasn’t a prince. Her fingers shook as she reached out to touch the leather mask. Inhaling slowly, she untied the straps at the side. Her hands brushed his braided hair and she paused. “This is what you want?”

  Olek’s dark eyes glistened like the surface of glassy water, hiding a deceptively deep undercurrent below. Only then did she fully register the soft glow of the crystal hanging from his neck. It seemed to get brighter the closer her arm came to it.

  “Choose,” he insisted.

  “All right, Olek,” Nadja said. Finishing the task, she pulled the strings apart. The white glow of the crystal reflected off her hands. The mask slid to the side unveiling a face more handsome than she could have pictured in her mind. His nose was strong and straight. His brow was the sculptured perfection of a man well made. He had the high, proud cheekbones of his people, but his deep-set eyes were what captured her the most. “I choose you.”

  Olek’s mouth curled with mischief. The mask dropped from her fingers at the look before she could even draw her hands away. It fell against his shoulder before sliding to the floor.

  “Hi,” Nadja murmured weakly. She tried to smile and failed miserably.

  “Hello, Nadja.” Olek lifted his hand to cup her cheek. His voice was strong and so confident in his rolling Qurilixian accent. It sent shivers over her skin.

  “I think tradition says we have to talk,” she said, trying to act poised. She attempted to pull away but her body refused to move. Her treacherous flesh wanted to find out more about his touches and heated looks. Inside, her stomach tensed with the knowledge of what she had done. In one little act, she had married herself to a complete—albeit incredibly handsome—stranger.

  “No,” Olek corrected. “Tradition is that we must discover each other.”

  “Yes,” she agreed with a nod. “Talk.”

  “No, discover,” he corrected.

  “So we talk,” Nadja wasn’t sure she liked the suddenly dominant expression. His gaze sizzled like molten lava, a piercing fire that curled her toes and made her sex ache. The intensity of his eyes was the same as having a thousand fingers touching her skin at once.

  “Discover.”

  “As in converse.”

  “It is good you have an interest in Draig ways for they are now your ways too, but this is my people’s tradition, Nadja.” Olek leaned forward, towering over her. “I think I know what it is. We are to discover each other. We are to learn each other. We are to reveal ourselves completely.”

  Being considered tall, Nadja wasn’t used to being towered over. Nor was she used to a man standing so close. Olek’s gaze dipped over her dress, consuming her with his desires.

  Nadja stiffened, realizing she’d misinterpreted the custom. The Galaxy Brides’ upload had led her to believe they’d be talking during this stage. Olek didn’t look like he wanted to talk.

  She was in for a long night of trouble.

  * * *

  “My king,” a towheaded soldier said, as he walked a path through the colossal trees. The torchlight did not reach this far into the forest, but the moon shone brightly through the overhead branches to illuminate the way with misshapen specks of light. Even without the aid of moonlight, he did not need light to see in the dark. Shifter eyes could cut through the black with ease.

  His blond king stepped forward from the shadows. The soldier stuck his hand over his heart and bowed. He was dressed as a Draig servant, although he was anything but. He glanced around to ensure he had not been followed—not that the dragon-shifting Draig were any match for his cat-shifter cunning.

  “Well?” King Attor demanded. The king’s eyes gave chills to those who obeyed him, for they knew what he was capable of doing. By looking at his face, it was impossible to determine his age. His body was young and healthy. His eyes appeared as old as the stars. And his capacity to illicit fear in those who disobeyed? Well, that was one trait this soldier never wanted to test the limits of.

  “All the princes have found brides.”

  “Very good,” King Attor answered, smiling a cruel smile. Closing his eyes, he whispered, “Finally. I have waited so long for this day.”

  “My king?” the soldier asked, confused.

  “I promised myself long ago that I would see to the end of this royal family. They will know the pain of a broken heart and the foolishness of mating to one woman.”

  “Yes.” The soldier’s word lacked conviction. Such a statement was unlike King Attor. The man rarely gave credence to emotions.

  Narrowing his eyes, as if remembering the man was there, the king stated, “Let us wait until they are bonded completely. Only then can we assure the end of their line. Once those Draigs lose their mates they will be finished. The new princesses will die, starting with the oldest son’s bride. The line of the Draig rule will be ended one by one and the Var will once more be the only force in this land. King Llyr and Queen Mede will watch everything they’ve built crumble into ashen death.”

  The warrior smiled.

  “Before this is over, the Draig will bow to me as my slaves.” The king rolled his neck on his shoulders as he shifted into a more natural form. Fur grew to cover his face and body, and claws formed on his hands. His mouth elongated, gnashing with sharpened fangs. When he looked back it was through the eyes of a wild cat. His voice crackled in low, deliberate tones in the back of his throat, as he ordered his spy, “Go.”

  The king ran swiftly into the forest, disappearing completely as he blurred into the trees.

  Chapter 5

  “Stay back,” Nadja warned, holding up her hand as if that one feeble gesture would fend off her new husband’s seduction. “You don’t have to do this, Olek. I am pleased by you, very pleased.”

  “I’m glad to hear it,” Olek smirked, his expression radiating with confidence.

  Now that the mask was off, Nadja could see that his green eyes held much humor in their depths. Was he laughing at her?

  Olek let his gaze travel over the length of her, uninhibited. “But I wish to see if I am as pleased by you. Take off that gown. I want to look at you.”

  Nadja glanced at the mask, wishing she could put it back on. This man was too handsome for her. Whatever had possessed her to consider him? She wanted a fat, short, old doctor with a sweet temperament and little sexual prowess. She looked at Olek’s hips and swallowed nervously. Very little sexual prowess. Why ever did she suddenly raise her standards to young and virile? She must have been temporarily insane to marry this man.

  It was all that wine I drank at dinner, she determined. The crystal amulet pulsed, causing a wave of emotion to flood her system. And that damned rock!

  “No, you agreed,” Nadja stammered, clutching her gown to her chest.

  “I agreed that there would be no copulation, wife.” Olek grinned meaningfully. Her cheeks flamed in embarrassment. “I didn’t say I wouldn’t finish this night as it was meant to be finished. Or do you wish for me to call the council elders for clarification?”

  Nadja considered his words, but knew she would be too embarrassed to ask the council elders about anything having to do with copulation. What was her other alternative? She didn’t want to go back and explain to Galaxy Brides that she was breaking her contract because she refused to take her clothes off. It’s not like she’d informed them of any religious justification for not being naked in front of a husband, and it was really easy to check if her name was on the Terbil sect’s registry.

  No, this planet was perfect. Olek might not have been what she expected in a husband, but nothing else had changed. Nadja couldn’t risk her father finding her. If she thought his temper was bad before, she could imagine the kind of punishment he would have in store for her for running away. She was well aware of what Doc Aleksander was capable of. Apprehensively, she asked, “You just want to look? That’s all?”

&
nbsp; Olek nodded. “Yes, for now, let me look.”

  “You won’t touch me?” Nadja tried to take a calming breath. She couldn’t believe she was considering this. No one had ever seen her naked, save for the beauty droids who had pampered her—and they never cared. She thought of her alternatives and steeled her nerves. She had to do it.

  “Not until you touch me first,” he promised.

  Nadja nodded, somewhat relieved. That shouldn’t be so hard. She had no intention of touching him. But, as his eyes lit with challenge and mischief, she grew worried. What did this barbarian have in mind?

  “No tricks?” Nadja persisted, trying to stall.

  “Would you like me to help you undress?” he offered, with a confidence that made her knees weak.

  Nadja’s mouth opened, but no sound came out. Instead, she furiously shook her head in denial. Hesitant, she looked around. “Where? Here?”

  “Anywhere you wish.” Olek didn’t relent and he didn’t back away.

  Nadja took a step back, again glancing around. “Can…I need a drink.” She went to the food table. “Would you like something?”

  “Trying to get me drunk?” Olek slowly followed her.

  Nadja blushed, proving that she had in fact considered it.

  “Qurilixian males don’t get intoxicated with this wine.” Olek lifted a finger as if he would touch her neck, but then drew back, as if remembering his promise not to touch her until she touched him. “We are immune.”

  “So you just get the girls drunk.” Nadja tried to laugh. His darkening look made it come out in a short, soundless chuckle. “Sorry.”

  “Why are you so nervous? I am your husband. You have no reason for this embarrassment. The whole purpose of our customs is to do away with doubt. We trust in the powers around us to know our path and reveal it to us.”

  Nadja gulped down a goblet of wine before coughing. “Yes, but you are also a stranger. I only saw you for the first time a few hours ago. Now we’re expected to act like we’ve known each other for years.”

  Olek lifted the crystal about his neck. He twirled the glowing orb in his fingers. “But this proves we were meant to be. That is why we have these ceremonies, so there will be no walls. We trust in the power of the gods to guide us.”

  Nadja swallowed nervously, not liking all this talk of destiny and fate. It was hardly scientific or logical. “So, is it true you have always had those? Since the day you were born?”

  “It is.”

  “And has it always pulsed like that?” Nadja took another drink. As if to prove her point, the crystal pulsed brightly sending a wave of sweet agony through her body, stirring a mad rush of ache and need inside her lower stomach.

  “No, only tonight, when I first saw you come to me,” Olek whispered. Taking the crystal, he touched it lightly to her skin. A fire ignited on her flesh where he drew lazy circles along the base of her neck. “That was when the crystal first came to life.”

  “So, it reacts to the moonlight?” Nadja probed, her eye lids fluttering. She felt the crystal’s power pulling her toward Olek’s body, numbing her mind to everything but this handsome warrior.

  “It reacts to what is naturally between us. It shows us the will of our hearts.”

  His lips pursed as if he expected her to kiss him. Instead, Nadja stiffened and pulled away. Her reaction to his admission clearly wasn’t what he expected.

  A frown marred her brow. “I told you. I don’t love you and I don’t expect you to love me. I will be practical about this.”

  “Nadja,” he whispered. “Why are you afraid?”

  “I’m not afraid—”

  “You promised honesty,” Olek interrupted. “I can smell your lie on you.”

  “I…” Nadja took another drink, stopping only to glance at him. Did he just say he smelled it on her? She blinked hard. She should probably stop drinking now. Turning away from him, she took yet another swallow.

  Olek tilted the edge of her goblet down and took it from her without touching her hand. She jerked in unease.

  “It’s time, Nadja.”

  “Time?”

  Olek’s eyes dipped down over the traditional silk gown, leisurely consuming her with his hungry gaze. By the time he finished his heated inspection she was trembling uncontrollably. “Can you at least turn off the lights?” Nadja twisted her hands in front of her.

  “There is no point, little solarflower.” He gave a tiny, playful arch of his brow. “I can see in the dark. Now, come.”

  Olek’s eyes beckoned her to follow him to the center of the room. Nadja obeyed, coming before him. He lifted his hand above her hair, drawing it next to her face without making contact. She closed her eyes, feeling his heat but not his skin. He moved over her neck and chest, down over her stomach and back up again. When he stopped, she opened her eyes, amazed that she could feel so much without even being touched.

  In a low murmur that sent chills over her, he said, “You are so beautiful. There is no need for shame. Take off your gown for me.”

  The heady effects of the liquor eased the tension from her muscles. Seeing the look in his eyes, a passionate spark that was all for her, she couldn’t refuse him. First, she kicked off her slippers and her toes dug into the softness of the fur. Next, she slowly lifted her hand to her side. Nadja studied his expression as she moved. Tugging at the silk bodice, she pulled the strapless top down. Instantly a breast was freed. His nostrils flared slightly, but he didn’t look down. The crystal pulsated its spell between them.

  Freeing the other breast, she slowly pushed the gown to her waist. She hesitated. The tent was warm, but the heat radiating off her new husband was stronger. Her back became chilled by comparison. His eyes seemed to lighten, flecked with a golden hue. She blinked and the subtle shift of color was gone. She dismissed it as a reflection of the torchlight.

  “Finish,” Olek whispered, urging her on. The word caused her to shiver.

  She nodded weakly and pushed down the gown off her hips. Soon she was standing before him clad in only her lace panties.

  * * *

  Olek, keeping his gaze steady, took a step back from her. As he put distance between them, he let his eyes travel down. He couldn’t speak. The breath caught in his throat. She was in perfect shape. Her toned muscles had just enough female softness to the curves as not to make her look hard. Her flat stomach pulled against her hip bones, creating a delightfully erotic tease as the lace clung to her hips. He had already seen her slender arms and most of her legs, but they too added to the wistful, wood-sprite image before him.

  Oh, this night is going to be sweet torment, Olek thought, part in anticipation and part in agony.

  It would be good to get her shyness out of the way. He didn’t want his wife afraid of him. He would prove to her that he could be trusted with her body, as well as her spirit and her heart. He forced a deep breath, trying to be patient. They had all night for this and a lifetime for everything else.

  By her insistent words, he might be waiting a very, very long time to lay claim. Gods help him if that were the case. He wasn’t sure how he was going to make it through the ceremony, let alone longer.

  How could she know the many years he had waited for her? He’d had blurred dreams of her since he was a boy. It wasn’t just fate that brought her to him. It was destiny. Even if she didn’t believe it, he did. And he knew it to be true, as did all his people. It was the dragon-shifter way.

  Observing the length of her legs, from her small ankles all the way up to her hips, he felt his body quake. These were legs that would easily wrap around a man and hold him inside her.

  “Am…?” Nadja didn’t finish.

  Olek looked up, and she turned her face from him. Her cheeks had colored to the brightest of embarrassed pinks. The cascading curls of her soft brown hair spilled over her shoulders, sliding forward to hide a delectable breast from view.

  “You’re lovely, solarflower.” His voice was hoarse with desire. “Now, take off the rest.” />
  Nadja didn’t look at him. Her hands shook as she pulled her panties from her hips and kicked them off to the side, baring herself completely.

  Olek sucked in a breath. Her mound was covered in a thin trail of hair. His lips parted, wanting a taste. Beneath his fur loincloth he became hard with arousal.

  Nadja stiffened as he stepped around her, careful to keep a distance between them as he looked. Olek paused when he saw a mark on a firm cheek of her ass.

  “What is this?” he mused, leaning slightly closer to get a better look of the black symbol. He didn’t recognize the meaning of the marking.

  “Oh,” Nadja turned, stretching around to look at the swirling design as if she’d forgotten it was there. “It’s just a tattoo. I got it a long time ago.”

  Olek frowned. She didn’t appear to be lying, but he could tell there was more to it than she let on. He continued around, but she was still twisted to look at her back hip.

  “Nadja, look at me.”

  She did, her eyes sweeping forward to peek through the veil of her lashes.

  “Look,” Olek insisted. She turned her face more fully to study him, though her head was still dipped. “I want you to see what you do to me.”

  * * *

  Nadja was too stunned to move. Did all men speak this boldly? Where all men as confident with women? Or was it just husbands to their wives? Although, she had to admire his obvious restraint in not ripping her clothes from her when she hesitated, or getting angry when she didn’t obey. However, on the other side of the coin, the fact he needed to restrain himself at all worried her.

  Nadja absently rubbed at the tattoo, an old habit. She used to imagine if she rubbed it often enough it would wear off. She’d had the mark for so long that she had forgotten it was there. She hated it. The symbol was the brand of the Medical Alliance, essentially marking her as their property. She’d been too frightened to have the Galaxy Brides’ medical services remove it for fear the mark would be reported.