“I’ll find somewhere for you to sleep,” she said. Searching around, she found a tissue box, which she emptied out. Next, she lined it with some cotton wool to make him a soft bed.
“There, you need to sleep in here or I’ll squash you in my sleep.” Somewhat reluctantly, he settled himself down. Although twice she had to firmly put him back inside, when he crept out and tried to settle next to her skin.
“I’m not going anywhere. It’s safer if you stay there.”
Holding the box in one hand and her dirty clothes in the other, she went back out to her bedroom. The door was shut and there was no sign of Zoah. He must have left her to go to his own room to sleep. She hated that they hadn’t spoken, hadn’t said goodnight.
Putting Azure down next to the bed, she folded her clothes and put them safely out of the way. Then she changed her mind. Instead, she took the felt dragon out and opened up a drawer to place it in. She hesitated. Maybe it was better to undo it and release Zoah from the binding.
Her hand shook, was she making a mistake? What if he blamed Tara? But Tara was flying with Dòmhnall; it would make it seem less likely to be her if she did it now. Carefully, she pulled the twine and undid the knot securing it. The dragon’s soft wings opened up.
She waited for a cry of delight from Zoah. It didn’t happen. Bemused, she decided to go and find him to see if there was any difference in him. Placing the dragon safely inside the drawer, she went to her door.
Before she opened it, she knew he was there. The familiar prickle on the back of her neck made her shiver with anticipation. He must be feeling better and returned to her room. Pulling the door open, she was surprised to find him slumped down against the wall. A moment of panic hit her, he looked ill. His eyes looked bloodshot against his skin, which had lost its healthy tan, leaving him pale and washed out.
She approached him tentatively. “Zoah, when my door was shut I thought you’d gone to bed.”
“I couldn’t leave you unguarded.”
“Then why are you out here?”
He looked up, searching her face for answers. “I wanted you to sleep.”
She turned around and slid her back down the wall until she was sat next to him, her feet tucked under of her, knees drawn up to her chin. Slowly she placed her hand over his, feeling his warmth. Slipping her fingers into his, she held his hand; she then rested her head on his shoulder, needing to feel him close.
“Why don’t you come to bed?” She didn’t look at him as she spoke. In her chest, her heart beat rapidly, while she waited for his answer.
“I ... are you sure?”
She had never known Zoah sound so unsure. He might have irritated the hell out of her with his ego, but that was so much preferable to this. If ever a man could be broken, then Zoah was.
“Yes, Zoah. Come with me.” She stood up, her hand still in his. Heaving as hard as she could, she made him stand and then took him by the hand into her bedroom. The little dragon flew into the air and around their heads.
Zoah looked at him miserably. “At least this reminds me that it was real, that I was once a dragon.”
“You are still a dragon, Zoah. It’s there inside of you. Can’t you feel him?”
“I’ve stopped trying to.”
“Zoah...”
He held his hand up to stop her words. “I know what you’re trying to do, but I can’t look any more. It’s gone.”
She desperately wanted to tell him what Tara had done. But she had given her word and now she began to see what it was like for Tara. To watch someone suffer, because to share knowledge might be too dangerous. It might change the future for the worse. After what Tara had said, she couldn’t risk it. She would have to help him find what was deep inside him. His dragon.
For now, she lifted the covers of her bed and slipped under, sidling over to the far side and holding them up for him. He hesitated.
“I don’t think I can sleep unless you're here beside me,” she said. It was true, but perhaps for opposing reasons. Being with him made her feel safe. While the thought of him alone made her feel sad. He was vulnerable. His compass adrift in the vastness of sorrow. The thing that had kept him straight, kept him true, was missing. If only to his troubled mind.
He sat on the edge of the bed, contemplating her words. When he moved again, it was to slip his shoes off, and then his shirt. He lifted his legs and slipped them under the covers, with his pants still on. She wrapped her arm around his chest, her palm on his beating heart. It still felt the same. The rhythm unchanged from the night she had rested her head against it. That moment when she realised who he really was.
If only she could find a way of letting him know he hadn’t changed. But she couldn’t think straight any more. She fell asleep, his warmth her constant companion through the night. The sound of his heart, the rise and fall of his chest as he breathed in and out. In her dreams he was a dragon, big, brave and fierce. She asked the dragon how she could help Zoah unlock him from his chains. When the answer came, it was obvious.
***
Charlotte opened her eyes. Immediately they fought to close and drift back into sleep. But she needed to pee and she needed to eat. In that order. Next to her Zoah breathed quietly. She was glad he was asleep; he had been restless all night, now he was calm and peaceful.
Not wanting to wake him, she slipped out of bed and pulled on a sweater. Immediately Azure was circling her head. Charlotte looked at the blue dragon; a mixture of sadness and hope filled her. He was so like Zoah, as if the dragon side of Zoah had been shrunk down. Determined to see if her plan was possible she left the bedroom and headed for the kitchen. First, she filled the kettle and then went to the bathroom while it boiled.
All the while, she was trying to work out how she could get hold of Tara. One thing they had forgotten, when the dragons left yesterday, was that her phone had been smashed. It made contact with the outside world, particularly Spellholm, impossible. The only thing she could think of was asking Zoah for some money and going into the city to buy one. It shouldn’t take her more than an hour, plenty of time to get there and back before tonight.
Her stomach flipped. In amongst worrying for Zoah, she had completely forgotten that tonight was the full moon. Should they go ahead with the Moon Rite or wait a month for Zoah to recover? The waiting, the uncertainty of the last two years, crept back up on her. She wanted this, although she was terrified of the ritual itself. But they had wasted so much time. And came so close to losing what they had. It must be tonight.
Breakfast first and then she would dress, then go and buy a phone. She would have to ring Serena and then ask her to fetch Tara. Then ring back. What if Tara instructed her to find some herbs or something for the potion? Would she be successful in making a potion when she had no magic?
“Where is that witch when you need her?” Charlotte mumbled.
Pulling open the bathroom door, she stopped in her tracks. Then she laughed, so hard she nearly peed herself. If she ever had any doubts about Tara and her abilities, they were now gone. There on the sink was a small vial. A note was attached.
‘My way would have been so much better!”
“I know, Tara. I know.” However, Charlotte was not the same as Tara. She wouldn’t manipulate Zoah for her own ends. Although she might have to tell him a little white lie.
Chapter Forty Two - Zoah
He woke. She was gone. He panicked.
The bed was still warm where her body had pressed against him all night. She hadn’t been gone long. Needing to find her quickly, he padded out of the room on bare feet. In the hallway, he stood and listened, trying to pinpoint where she was. The house was so big he could wander around for hours and not find her.
All he could hear was his heart beating in his chest. Nothing else. Slowly, as he settled his mind, more sounds came to him. The ticking of the grandfather clock down the hall, the creaking of the staircase as it settled. It was always settling, in the same way the rest of the house creaked and groaned
with age and wear. It reminded him of himself. With no dragon, he might very well begin the ageing process again. All he comforted himself with, was that he would grow old with Charlotte.
Singing. She was singing. The sound was coming from the kitchen and he felt glad she was happy. With each step, her voice grew louder and his heart felt lighter. If he lost everything else, as long as he had Charlotte in his life he could live. He could even find a way to be happy.
“You’re awake,” she said as he appeared in the kitchen doorway.
“I am.”
She put the pan down on the stove and came across the kitchen, smiling. Kissing him on the cheek, she said, “Great. Sit down and I’ll make you breakfast.”
His skin burned where he lips had touched him. Unconsciously, he put his hand on it; to see if could feel the heat remaining in his skin.
“Sit,” she said, placing a plate on the table. Returning to the stove, she took off the eggs, which were now cooked and grabbed two pieces of toast from the toaster. “No butter and no milk. Luckily, the eggs were still fresh and the bread was in the freezer. We’ll have to make do until I can shop.”
“I’ll order in whatever you need.”
“I don’t mind going to the store.”
“No. Let me do it online. They’ll deliver it to the gate. It’s what we usually do. You still need to rest.”
“I’m OK.”
“Please, Charlotte. Let me do it.” Why did he sound so desperate? It was just groceries.
“Sure. That would be great. I thought we could walk in the gardens later. It’s a beautiful day.”
He looked out of the window. The sky was so clear. Tonight the moon would shine big and bright as it reached full. His mouth went dry. Thinking about the Moon Rite made him feel like a complete fraud. The rite was a ritual for dragons. Something he no longer was.
“Zoah,” she said, placing her hand on his. “Eat. You look like death.”
Because a part of him had died. The strong vibrant part. Yet the touch of her hand made a small part of him wake up and want to flourish. He forked some of the egg into his mouth. The more he ate, the hungrier he felt. Soon his plate was cleared and he got up from his seat to put more toast on. Even dry it tasted wonderful, as if he had been starved for months.
“I’ll order some steak in. Is there anything else you need?”
“Apart from clothes. I only have a couple of things here left over from before we moved to Spellholm.”
He wanted to say that she wouldn't need clothes. Once the Moon Rite began, he aimed to make love to her for five days straight. But that was something the old Zoah would say. This Zoah was more reserved. In his heart, there was still a place that shrank back from her. Unable to offer her the sad remains of what was left of him. Yet the way she looked at him, the small touches that passed between them gave him hope. So much had changed and yet the attraction, the spark that had always been there between them, was still there.
“I have something for you in my room,” he blurted out.
“In your room?”
“Yes. After we’ve eaten I’ll show you.”
“There is something I need to talk to you about too.” A light shone in her eyes, full of hope, full of love.
It warmed him and gave him strength. If his dragon never returned, they could be happy. She accepted him as he was, in the same way she would have accepted him before. She didn’t care if he was young or old, man or dragon. All that mattered was that he tried to be the best he could be. For her, only for her. She had grown up, into a beautiful young woman. He felt a rush of pride.
If there was a reason this had happened, he told himself, it was so that he could see who she was. A kind, loving human who wanted him to be happy. A feeling he reciprocated fully.
“I’m sorry.” His mouth seemed to be unable to contain the thoughts going around in his head.
“For what?” she asked.
“Everything. Every time I’ve let you down, not been there for you. For running away.”
She sat there and thought about it. “Tara says things have to happen in a certain way. You know she manipulates us, but I have to believe what she says. She told me to leave Spellholm and I did. If I hadn’t, I wouldn't have ended up in trouble. That was my choice. If you had been there, you might have been able to stop me leaving. Or I might have run away to spite you.”
He knew she was trying to let him off the hook. Her words made sense, but it would be a long time until he forgave himself. All he cared about was that she didn’t blame him.
“Can we start afresh?”
“No. I don’t think we can.”
He looked at her. “I understand.”
She put down the coffee cup she had been drinking from and came to him. Tracing his worried brow with her finger. She ran it down along his cheek, making a shudder of desire pass through him. He wanted her, but he was too scared. Scared to touch her, to initiate the new, adult side of the relationship.
Leaning towards him, she kept her eyes fixed on his. Then, at the last moment, her gaze flickered down to his lips. Her tongue slipped out between her lips, moistening them and he held his breath. So soft, so warm, her mouth touched his. It brought back the stirrings of desire he had quashed for so long. He stood so abruptly his chair crashed to the floor, overturned and unnoticed. His hand went to her back and he pulled her to him.
Sliding his hand lower, he cupped her round bottom and pressed her hard against him. She groaned, her desire for him as raw as his was for her. Her hands went around his neck, her fingers in his hair, pulling it, tugging it. Anything to get closer contact between them, to meld their bodies together so they would never be apart again.
If not for the importance of the Moon Rite, he would have taken her then. His cock was so painfully hard in his pants, while his need and desire was totally unleashed for the first time. In that moment he knew how much he had held himself back. Wound tightly, his arousal threatened to overtake him. But he had to wait. What were a couple of hours more? He had waited thousands of years for tonight's magic to complete their bond. At this moment, those remaining hours seemed like eternity.
She writhed in his arms, making him harden more. His hand went between her thighs, while she stroked his bare chest, touching his warm skin and stroking his nipples. When his fingers made contact with her clit through her soaking-wet panties, her fingers dug into his skin. It spurred him on, but he couldn’t afford to break her innocence, not yet.
Lifting her up, he sat her on the table and then knelt before her. She was the altar in front of which he would worship. She was everything to him. His fingers pulled her wet panties aside. He pressed his lips along her inner thighs, making her whimper in anticipation. She knew what he was going to do. Her hands and fingers touching his back, his neck spurring him on.
Then he dipped his head forward and flicked his tongue over her clit, tasting his mate for the first time. And she was sweeter and more intoxicating than the finest wine he had ever tasted.
Chapter Forty Three - Charlotte
The stars that exploded in her head reminded her of that night she had flown on his back. That night she had realised he had an inner compass, now she realised she had one too. Zoah.
His touch inflamed her body until she was lost. Only the feel of his hands on her skin and his mouth on her sex pulled her back to reality. For it was real. Unbelievably real.
Pressing his thumb against her clit, he slowly circled it, making her hips move in the same rhythm. Sliding it down, he dipped it into her wet sex, with enough pressure to make her squirm. When she thought it couldn’t get any more arousing, he licked her clit and then covered it with his mouth. Whimpering, she craned her neck to watch the movement of his head. Trying to reconcile that with the feelings coursing through her body. She had never, ever, dreamed it would be like this. That her body could be so consumed with need, one that he would fulfil tonight on the Moon Altar.
Once more, he upped the pressure on her tortu
red body. Looking up briefly he caught her eyes and smiled. Then he lifted his free hand, sliding it under her sweater and cupped her breast. With incredible coordination, he went back to pleasuring her with his mouth, while he pinched her nipple. Now the stars shattered into a million sparkling shards.
Unable to hold herself together she came. Hard and fast around him. Her body a quivering mass of nerves. Every part of her on fire, as the tension filled her body. She cried out. Zoah sucked harder, his tongue circling her clit as she came.
Gripping the edge of the table, she held onto to keep herself in place when she felt she couldn’t stand it any longer. How could this be real? How could a man make her body react like this with his hands and his mouth? Because he was her mate. Attuned to her in a way no one else ever would be. Never could be.
She slumped forward. Spent and drained. Shy beyond words. How did you face someone after that? Maybe if she had dated, or there had been more build-up, it would be easier. But right now, she didn’t know what she was supposed to do. Or say. Thank you didn’t quite do it justice.
Zoah lifted his head, he kissed her thighs. Down along her legs he moved, spending time caressing the sensitive flesh behind her knees, until she thought she would come again. He was good. So good. She remembered he had centuries of practice. Whereas she had none.
Tonight she would disappoint him. What about right now, did he expect her to return the favour? To take him in her mouth and...
“Are you OK?” he asked softly.
She nodded, struck dumb in his presence. The little girl in her came back, making her unsure of herself. The years that had passed since they were here together dropped away and she was that awkward teenager again. His mate, who should have told him to stay. What if she messed up again and he left before the ritual?
Love of the Dragon: BBW Shifter Romance (Her Dragon's Bane Book 4) Page 14
