“I’m just glad you can be with me at night,” she said with a grin. “I can’t even think of all the things I’m going to do with you.”
“I guess since we have to get you back to work tomorrow, we should probably go to bed.”
Disappointment washed through her, and she slumped back a bit on the bed. She knew it had been a long day, but… after seeing him bare himself to her, after really accepting him, after making promises… making love together would just feel so right.
She placed a hand on his chest and stroked lovingly.
He cocked one dark eyebrow as he looked down at her, blue eyes sparkling. “Then again, the part of me that you bring out wants to know you’re mine forever. Wants to make you mine right now. Wants to claim you down to your very existence. Wants to be inside your very heart.”
“You are. But what you’re talking about, I want that, too.”
“You aren’t tired?”
“No,” she said. “I mean, I am, but I’m also ready. I want to hold you, I want to love you, and I want to start our lives from here on out with this moment.” She ran a hand lightly through his hair, leaving waves. “I want to hold you while the stars watch.”
He glared down at her for a second, then made her laugh as he tackled her onto the bed, holding her hands down at both sides. “I’m never going to say no to that.”
Then he took her lips in a kiss that tasted like moonlight.
Chapter 28
Whatever happened now, Nathan couldn’t stop himself. Despite knowing Lillian would be better off without him, most likely, and life was about to get so complicated, he couldn’t ever let her go.
Not as long as she wanted him.
And looking into her glowing, green-brown eyes, he knew she very much did.
Every part of her was beloved, from her eyelashes to her curls to the curves of her body. Her generous hips.
Everything… everything was his now, and everything he had was hers.
His money, his strength, his loyalty, his love, and of course his heart.
And the monster inside him had been tamed by something even greater that had long been dormant inside his heart.
Dragon. He knew, though he didn’t know how he knew that.
Mate, the dragon said, and Nathan knew now to listen.
The other side of him was important as well. There were people who wouldn’t be alive without it, but now at least he could take up a normal life again.
No more hiding at night, no more secrets, at least for one person.
The vague, tenuous hope he’d always clung to was finally a real one, embodied in this person he now held in his arms.
He hoped he gave her hope, too, of loyalty, of a man who would always protect her, of a life that would always be full of adventure and love.
He thought he did.
As he released her arms and ran his hand over her waist, he felt her hands reach up and explore his shoulders, his arms, his waist.
He was no longer afraid of himself, of somehow losing control. Of being something evil and disgusting that shouldn’t be touched. That should only help and please yet never feel anything for himself.
He shuddered with pleasure as her hand moved over his bare abs, then played delicately at the tie of his pants.
“You can take them off, if you wish,” he said.
She tugged at them with her small hands, then pouted playfully. “I don’t think I can.”
He laughed and got off her for a minute, long enough to shrug out of them, leaving him only in boxer briefs.
Her eyes widened. “I’m never going to get used to that sight.”
“I’m never going to get used to you loving me,” he replied softly.
“Oh, you,” she said, reaching up and tugging him down against her, making their bodies mesh. “I don’t know what to do with you when you say things like that.”
“I wanted you from the moment I met you. I truly think I did.”
She kept her arms around him tightly. “I was intrigued by you, but it took me time to figure out why.” She pulled back slightly so she could look into his eyes. “I was a little behind you, but all that matters is that I’ve caught up now.”
He smoothed his hand over the silky pajama shirt she wore, brushing the tops of her soft thighs. He grabbed the hem and raised an eyebrow at her. “Can I?”
She nodded, squirming slightly as he pulled the garment over her head.
He was pleased to see her breasts bare. She wore only a tiny scrap of lacy black underwear, and he brushed a hand over it reverently.
He could feel moonlight all around him and couldn’t believe how good it felt to be in control, to not have his transformation ripped out of him.
To feel her love all around him, keeping himself. Not because she suppressed him, but because she called to a deeper part of him, the good part that had always made him want to help.
It was odd that in all his life, he’d thought the answer had been staying separate from everyone, but in the end, it was this connection to Lillian that had helped him in ways he could never have imagined.
He hooked a hand in her underwear and slowly slid it away, leaving her totally naked, utterly breathtaking and vulnerable.
Then she reached for his underwear, asking him to make himself the same way.
After a second’s hesitation, he did, pulling off his last scrap of defense and making himself naked before her.
She reached up in wonder, hand tracing along him, his hips, down to his hard shaft, cupping his balls gently, then moving her hand over his hard thigh to his calf, as far as she could reach from her position beneath him.
“You’re beautiful,” she said. “It’s hard to believe you aren’t human.”
He closed his eyes, reveling in her touch as she continued to move over him. With her, he might not be human, but he was as close as he ever could be.
When he was aching and hard and unable to take any more of her touching, he opened his eyes and traced a finger gently over her collarbone, down between her breasts, over to her navel, her hip bones. Both hands reached for her soft hips, squeezing lightly. Then he ran his hands over her shoulders, her breasts, her neck, as if he had to make sure she was real.
Real and warm and breathing and human… and his everything.
She pushed herself up and wrapped her hands around his neck. “Stop looking at me like I’m some sort of prize and kiss me.”
There was a smile on his lips as he did, and as he swiped his tongue inside, enmeshing it with hers, powerful, claiming urges surged through him. His hands wound around her, holding her tight. Their chests pressed together, her soft breasts like heaven against him, her soft hips inviting and warm.
He was ready to be inside her but had to make sure she was ready first. He lowered her back onto the mattress and slid a hand down her leg and over her clit, teasing softly before dipping down to study her folds.
So soft, so wet. She moaned and squirmed beneath him, so responsive.
So perfect.
“Lillian, open for me,” he commanded quietly, and she spread her legs, giving him greater access to her heated, wet softness. Touching her was heaven, as close as a creature like him could ever imagine and more than he would ever deserve.
She arched and gasped, twisting her hands into the sheets, and he used his free hand to put her arms on his shoulders.
“Go ahead and hold on.”
“But you don’t like to be touched,” she said hesitantly.
“I do if it’s you. And with what I’m going to do to you, you’re going to need an anchor. I want that to be me.”
“Okay,” she said softly, digging her nails lightly into his back.
He bit his lip at the contact, then continued to play at her entrance, swirling at her clit, dipping down to tease her with a finger, then rubbing and pressing in just the right way to make her thrash against him as the tension grew higher and higher.
He was in no hurry, loving this slow moment of watc
hing every tiny reaction, every movement of her body, the way her breasts bounced as she jerked, the desperation in her eyes as she moved closer to completion with no real end in sight.
He pulled back his hand for a moment, leaving her panting, damp with sweat, sticky with arousal, her body glowing even in the dark, and she glared up at him fiercely.
“Stop torturing me,” she begged, bucking her hips.
A grin spread over his face as he leaned down to whisper in her ear. “You like it.”
Then he took her earlobe in his mouth, sucking lightly as his hand found her center again, diving and playing even lighter this time. “You like when I draw it out because it feels so good when you finish. You like when I tease you. You like when I make you hold on.”
She groaned against him, writhing against his hand, gasping with the fierce sensations overtaking her. “I like that you understand me. I like that you try harder than anyone I’ve ever known to give me what I want.” She stared into his eyes as his finger paused right over her clit. “I like that you take me to the edge, but I know I’m always safe with you.”
He bit the inside of his cheek as emotion surged inside him. Her words were too sweet, too guileless, and too full of love for him to hold out any longer. He pressed down on her clit, and she came, bucking and writhing in his arms.
“Nathan, Nathan, oh, Nathan.” Her orgasm seemed to go on forever. Her arms scraped at his back. Then she clutched on, holding him close and squirming against the pleasurable waves of her release.
“I love you, Lillian,” he said quietly, moving back and parting her legs as she finally relaxed against the mattress, panting and flushed but still squirming slightly.
He pulled a condom out of the drawer next to him and slid it on, and her eyes lit with excitement as she saw what he was preparing to do. She grinned, spreading her legs a little wider. She was wet, glistening, ready for him.
Beautiful. Made for him.
Just like he hoped he was good enough to be made for her.
As he slowly pushed into her, she kept her arms around him, panting as they slowly joined.
Just like before, the fit was tight, almost agonizingly so, and he saw her close her eyes and fight to control her breathing.
But then she slowly relaxed, and he slid in even deeper, encased in her sweet warmth, surrounded by her everywhere.
Here with her, always.
Then he began to move, slowly at first, testing the slick glide between them, in and then almost all the way out, watching her bite her lip in anticipation as he slowly drove back in.
Pleasing her was everything. Watching her body arch, watching her curves gleam, her expressions of pleasure and tension as she moved her hips along with him, keeping time.
She was as desperate to be joined as he was, and she made a little moan each time they came together.
Each time, it felt so right. Each time, his heart whispered, Mine, until it was a shout in his soul that he could no longer silence.
“Mine, Lillian. No one else can ever touch you. Promise you’ll always be mine.”
She was close now, biting her lip, but nodded as he cupped her breast and grazed her nipple lightly.
He leaned forward, still inside her, and took her nipple in his mouth, suckling one and then the other as she nearly sobbed in pleasure.
“I need you to say it.”
“Yours,” she gasped out. “Of course I am. I was from the moment you touched me. No one else could ever make me feel like this.”
He smiled warmly, releasing her delicious nipple from his mouth and giving it a fond lick. Her words were everything to the possessive creature inside him, and he knew he would always do everything to keep her safe.
No matter what future awaited them.
He planted both hands on the mattress and stroked harder, listening to her pleasured cries, feeling her nails on his shoulders, enjoying the wetness and warmth all around him, enjoying her scent and the cool night air that was so much warmer with her around.
She writhed beneath him, agonizingly close, and sensing that she needed more help from him, he reached between them and gently stroked over her clit, right above where they were joined.
“Oh, Nathan,” she said as pleasure overtook her, rolling her eyes back as her body jerked and her sex clenched around him, almost unbearably tight.
Then white light overtook him, and he joined her, pumping to the rhythm of her release as they fell into pleasure together, so great he could hardly understand it, better than anything he’d ever felt in his life.
Better even than hearing her accept him, better even than being held on the roof.
Some part of him knew with this act, she was his now, and he didn’t even understand how it could feel so final and so unbelievable at the same time.
Inside, he could feel dragon wings unfurl.
“I love you, Lillian. I don’t know what I am completely, but I know that I am completely in love with you and will be for the rest of my life.”
“I love you, Nathan Lancaster.” She placed his hand over her heart so he could feel it beating rapidly. “Whatever you are, I accept it. We’ll figure it out together. I’m here with you in the dark.”
Nothing she said could have meant more to him, so he gathered her in against him and sat back with her in his lap, holding her until she fell asleep in his arms.
Then he looked out at the moon and couldn’t help smiling at it.
He’d finally found a life beyond midnight. Now he couldn’t wait for the dawn.
* * *
* * *
I hope you enjoyed Nathan and Lillian’s story, and the first in my Nightmare Dragons series! If you enjoyed it, I hope you’ll give it a review to help other readers find it. I know it’s a bit different (and much longer) from what I’ve done lately, but I truly loved these characters and this work.
I hope it helps that even when I write a story that’s almost double the length of a normal book, I try to always keep it the same low price for all my readers, plus put it in KU. That’s my way of giving back to those who have supported me so much.
Also, the books in this series will be interwoven, with characters appearing in each other’s books, so I’m sure we’ll discover many more secrets as we go along!
Don’t forget to join my newsletter so that you can hear when the next Nightmare Dragon releases!
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Once again, thanks again so much for your support! I always know I have the best readers.
Sincerely,
Terry
Also by Terry Bolryder
A Note From Terry
Most of my series go by species. Most of my books are standalone, but if you want to read them in order and see characters reappearing, here is my list of the order for each species. So just choose your favorite shifter!
Dragon Reading Guide
Awakened Dragons
These powerful, newly awakened ancient dragons are stronger, more vicious, more powerful, and ready to save humankind, if only they can decide to be heroes rather than villains…
Awakened Dragons Boxed Set (best deal!)
Onyx Dragon
Sapphire Dragon
Ruby Dragon
Diamond Dragon
Amethyst Dragon
Emerald Dragon
Rent-A-Dragon
These ancient, viking-esque dragons just woke up and are ready to get to work finding their mates and new lives in the modern world! Shenanigans and sexiness ensue!
Steel Dragon
Iron Dragon
Titanium Dragon
Date-A-Dragon
These noble metal dragons have just joined the good side, formed a very odd dating agency, and are ready to protect the world and find their very own fated mates!
Gold Dragon
Silver Dragon
Platinum Dragon
Citrine Dragon
Awakened Sea Dragons
These dragons have things in common with both the
metal dragons and the gemstone dragons, and first show up at the very end of the Date-A-Dragon series!
Zircon
Tourmaline
Aquamarine
Dragon Guard of Drakkaris
Sexy dragons introduced in the last book of the Awakened Sea Dragons that have come to Earth to settle down and find mates!
Lead
Cadmium
Arsenic
Zinc
Cobalt
Chromium
I have a separate series of dragon books that are menage and have different world building, and they come before the Awakened Dragons but don’t need to be read prior as they are completely different.
Here they are:
Dragons of New York (Menage)
Dragons work in pairs, the fire-breathing enforcers of the shifter world and rescuers of anyone in distress. And these sexy dragons are about to find mates:
Double Dragons Boxed Set
Double Dragons
Desired by Dragons
Destined Dragons
Tiger Protector Series (Spin-off of Dragons)
Three tiger brothers trained by dragon shifters work to bring evil shifters to justice while finding the perfect curvy mates.
Tiger Protector’s Boxed Set
A Tiger’s Bounty
A Tiger’s Treasure
A Tiger’s Destiny
A Dragon’s Heart
Bear Reading Guide
Bearstone Park Series
A billionaire tech mogul, a movie star, and an Olympic snowboarder come back to Bearstone Park and find unexpected but wonderful mates.
Bearllionaire
Midnight_Nightmare Dragons Page 21
