Noran blocked out the attention and intense scrutiny of his Dragon brethren who stood close by watching with curiosity. A focused intention for Amber to be healed was all he could think. Potent enough to punch through doubt and defy all odds, Noran implanted the thought deep into his heart.
Not sure why he thought it would work or how to make it so, Noran refused to give up on bringing Amber back to him. He willed his intention that she live and not die to his mate's subconscious.
She didn't stir.
Noran wouldn't be deterred from his quest. Amber meshed with him. They were complete and wholly formed individuals, but as mates, their union became something new and glorious. Noran refused to give that up now that he'd tasted the sweet nectar of being mated. He took a moment to attempt to connect with her through their neural link.
The atmosphere within the shield his fellow Dragons had created hummed and sizzled with mounting anticipation. Noran shut his eyes and sent another prayer to the Goddess for mercy and help.
When he looked down at Amber, she remained still like before. Only this time color began to re-pigment her skin to a healthy flush.
The effect was small, but he’d take it.
“Do you see that?” he asked Bladorn. “Do you see the color coming back to her skin?”
Bladorn leaned in and took his time to peruse Amber’s face. After a protracted moment of consideration, the leader said, “Yes, it does appear she’s on the path to recovery.” Another flash of that fatherly smile Noran noticed the leader gave him more and more, Bladorn added, “Let’s give her another hour to stabilize before you move her.” Then the leader came close.
Noran didn’t object this time. His beast had settled down a bit. When Bladorn stood over him and placed a hand on his shoulder, Noran bowed his head in thanks for the elder Dragon’s help.
What he hadn’t expected was the potent jolt of recuperative power the older Dragon gifted him. In an instant, Noran felt his body respond to the addition by speeding up his own healing.
“For you and your mate,” was all Bladorn said as he took a few steps back to stand where he had before. After the elder Dragon looked at Noran’s team and received nods from each, he added, “Now we wait for her to come around.”
Overcome with emotion for the great kindness and gift Bladorn and his team had afforded them, Noran allowed the wave of emotions to work their way through his being. When he’d absorbed the love and compassion of his brethren, Noran placed a hand on the center of Amber’s chest and willed a bit of Bladorn’s gift to her.
Her body heaved, and her heart quickened beneath his touch. The other Dragons took a few steps closer. He didn’t protest. Amber took a few deep breaths before returning to her stillness.
“That is still a great sign from the Goddess,” Bladorn said. “We wait. Dragon’s have the patience of the ages. Your mate will return to this realm stronger than ever.”
Noran latched onto those words as he sat there cradling his mate and surrounded by his team and the leader of the Clan. One of his periodic checks on Amber’s vitals revealed an uptick in her heart rate.
His breath caught as he watched, looking for the slightest sign of a favorable outcome. He was about to put his hand on her chest again when Amber’s eyes popped open.
She blinked a few times as if readjusting her sight. He didn’t dare say anything, lest this was a simple reflex at work. When sable brown eyes, wide and exotic locked on his, Noran wanted to roar with excitement. She stared for a moment more. He remained quiet and waited.
Amber held his gaze as she said in a faint voice, “Did we die?”
The smile that burst forth from him must have been spectacular for the response of her answering smile.
“No, my love, we didn’t die, but you gave all of us a scare when you came very close to it.”
Amber looked around to see Bladorn and the others. She attempted to sit up only to wince in tremendous pain. Noran stayed her with a hand to lie still. He almost burst out in hearty laughter when she crooked a finger toward Bladorn.
His leader gave him a look of question. Noran gave a quick nod. Bladorn approached. When he stood over them both, Amber said, “Something tells me your the head man in charge here.” When Bladorn nodded, she continued, “Hello, my name is Amber.”
“Hello Amber, my name is Bladorn, leader of the Dragon Bond Clan and Sanctuary.”
“It’s nice to meet you. I can’t sit up to shake your hand at the moment, but I’d appreciate it if you hear me out for a moment.” Bladorn smiled and waited. Amber tried to speak up, but her words were still strained and thin. “Mr. Bladorn, I’m the reason for all this mess. Please accept my apology, and please don’t make me leave. I’m in love with Noran, and I couldn’t bear to leave him.”
Her voice was small in the way that made Noran want to rush her home and continue to nurse her back to health. Instead, he remained seated with her upper body laying across his lap.
Bladorn cleared his throat. “Hello Amber, it is my pleasure and honor to meet you. As for leaving the Sanctuary, mates are part of the Clan and thus cannot and will not be made to leave. You are welcome home.” He gave a regal nod and smiled.
Amber let out a long breath and paused as if in deep thought. When she spoke, it was directed back at Noran.
“I think I put you and the Clan in a lot of trouble. What do I need to do about the two guys in the van?”
Again, Bladorn stepped up and motioned to Noran that he wished to answer. “Amber, Sanctuary lands are considered a place unto its own. Those who trespass are dealt with according to the rules of our Clan. As Clan leader, I say those men were dealt adequate justice for their crimes against our members. As the leader, I also declare you a heroine for your efforts to protect our land. You’re absolved of any crime you may have thought you committed. No law in your human world will condemn you. You have my word and the protection of the Dragon Bond Clan.
Noran watched the moisture collect in the corner of her eye and fell down the side of her face. She took in their leader’s words for a moment.
“Well, I’ll take your Pardon with grateful thanks.” She paused as concern etched faint lines in her forehead. “I still need you to know that this happened because of my stupidity. I promise it won’t happen again. All my research was destroyed with that van.”
This time Noran’s team leader spoke up. “Excuse me, but that’s not the case.” When Noran motioned for him to come closer to avoid the need for Amber to strain her neck to see him, the younger Dragon stepped closer. “Per Noran’s instructions, we cataloged and copied everything. We have copious notes and images of your technology and inventions. Your digital data and the contents of your laptop were all copied to one of our repositories.” When Amber’s forehead wrinkled again, his team lead quickly added, “This technology is many years away from discovery on your planet, but I’ll make sure you get access to it through your current technology capabilities.”
Amber’s smile was confirmation that his team lead had done a great thing.
She looked back up at Noran. “I think I’m ready to try to get up now.”
Noran stood and picked her up in his arms, giving special care to the action. When she was in his arms and not in obvious pain, he gave his brothers a nod and began to walk back to his private Lair. The others shifted and flew back to the main lodging. Clean up of the burned van, and the clearing would happen later.
It was past time he got Amber home and in the bed to rest.
20
Amber
Butterfly kisses flittered over her lips as consciousness ushered Amber back to wakefulness. She’d know those lips anywhere. Full and firm with the ability to be savage and saintly, Noran’s lips were her obsession.
Amber’s eyes opened to slits, testing out the new dawn to see her love hovering over in rapt attention to her every move. It was still dark in the room, but she could make out his manly beauty with near clarity.
Her eyesight was markedly improve
d. Amber could see so much better in the dark now. It was as if she’d received a night vision application download since mating with Noran. That was just one of the many benefits she’d discovered.
“Mmm,” she cooed loving how affectionate he was.
“You’re awake.”
“Almost. Your kisses made a great argument for why I should make the leap.” Fully opening her eyes to see glowing pools of lush green staring down at her, tingles of overwhelming love flooded her senses. Her face felt tight as the smile he caused stretched to impossible lengths.
“That’s what I like to see.” His voice was husky and full of smoky tones from sleep as well.
Amber pointed to her mouth. “This goofy smile plastered on my face? You know you’ve got me in the palm of your hands.”
“As do you.” The light in his eyes grew intense, and he paused to consider her in concentration.
“What?”
“You know.”
“I know what?”
“You know how much you scared me—the entire Clan.”
From what Noran had told her, it had been a little over a week since the ordeal in that open field. She’d only been aware of the last few days.
“How are you feeling? Any soreness, discomfort, unusual sensations or—”
Amber had to stop him. “Noran, you’re doing it again.”
“I know, but I can’t help it. You mean too much for me not to fuss over you a bit.”
“I’d say what you did to save my life is going far beyond what anyone could expect of you.” She reached a hand up to caress his temple. Her Dragon leaned in, melting her heart once more. “Trust me. I’m fine. Remember, that Dragon doctor that you had come in from Atlanta, Dr. Colson, said I was healing perfectly. Heck, I can barely see any evidence of where you did your magical field surgery.” She laughed, attempting to lighten the conversation. “I’m telling you, if you ever want to come out of retirement, we could start a plastic surgery business that would take over.”
His visage softened a tiny bit. Amber still saw the concern etched in the faintest lines at the corners of those breathtaking eyes of his.
“I just want to make certain that I didn’t do anything to cause any long-lasting side effects. Amber, you’re so small and delicate, I could have done something terrible without even knowing it. I’m a Warrior Guardian, not a doctor.”
Amber couldn’t help but giggle at the reverse Star Trek reference. It was highly doubtful Noran knew what he’d said, but it was still funny.
Deciding against full out laughter at his sincerity, Amber took the opportunity to make another point.
“Dr. Colson said that by today I’d be back to normal. I feel right as rain if I do say so myself.”
“And?” he looked at her with an intensity that threatened to take her breath away. Noran’s love for her was so pure. It was palpable and hypnotic.
“And, that means I can resume regular activities—all of them,” she said attempting to waggle her eyebrows.
It took a moment for Noran to track but when he did, he said, “No, it’s too soon. You need more time to heal.”
“Nope, I’m well done on the healing front. What I need now is for my mate to make love to me.”
There it was. A flash, it was so fast, but she saw it. Hunger for her from her mate. The warmth from her mate’s body encircled her as she lay in his arms. In his cocoon of security, Amber stirred attempting to take a long stretch. There had been no lie. Her body felt great—better than ever before to be honest.
He watched her every move. She loved the attention. When Noran focused on her, it was different than anyone else. The effect this man and Dragon had on her was beyond comprehension. Noran’s presence in her life moved Amber from the scientific thinker to a magical believer. Every time he looked at her, assurance that pure love was hers to have bathed Amber in silken comfort.
Her mate—wow.
Love on this level was new but not frightening like she would have imagined. That had never been the case before. On the few occurrences that some guy showed her attention, Amber had always felt uncomfortable like it was hard to be in her skin. The attention had always thrown her into uncertainty, awkward embarrassment, and too many self-identity issues to list.
With Noran’s love, it was easy. That old song about love being easy like a Sunday morning floated into her mind. The tune danced about and delightfully played with her thoughts. Joy bubbled up. Amber had been blessed by this Goddess of Noran’s in a mighty way.
She looked back at him, his face only inches away, and yes, it was still amazing. There was no racing thought about what she looked like, if he found her attractive, or if he’d been interested in the real her. This was easy, like that Sunday morning in that song. Yes, this man was her mate.
“What are you thinking?” he asked, as he nuzzled her neck.
“Oh, nothing much, just how much I love you.”
He stopped and looked back up into her eyes. Love bathed her anew.
“When you say that in that way, I find it hard not to try to pull you into me.”
“We can try it. You know, see if that works. I’m all up for you being inside of me—now—right here.”
He ignored that last part like she’d suspected he would. That Dragon was too cautious when it came to her. Amber aimed at fixing that. Early morning light began to peek through the outline of the blinds of the room.
Amber allowed their intimacy to blossom. They were in their bed, in their private Lair, having private mating time. Instead of it being unsettling, experiencing Noran’s boundless capacity of love for her did the opposite. It settled her. Over the last day or so Amber had processed what being mated to him meant.
Even though his team had backed up her research data, none of it meant anything to her now. Gone was the insane drive to prove something to anyone. No, now all Amber wanted to do was experienced what mated life had to offer and find her place in the Clan.
She couldn’t cook, wasn’t a great housekeeper, had no desire to do any gardening, and yet Amber didn’t feel lost or directionless. Her excitement was in learning everything she could about her mate, his kind, and all the other worlds that existed beyond the limitations of human imagination.
Amber wanted all of this without that crazy need for public acknowledgment. She wanted to keep her new life and world a secret as much as Noran, and the Clan did. Everything fell into place. Amber was meant to love this Dragon from the start. Becoming a scientist had been the best route her limited ability to know had taken to make their meeting and mating happen.
In hindsight, Amber didn’t see her presence on Sanctuary land and meeting Noran as anything but the invisible hand of a benevolent deity. She made a mental note to have that conversation with Noran later.
The idea of deities beyond Earth was something she found fascinating. His Goddess was a delightful enigma Amber planned to investigate more. In the meantime, she’d work through everything in proper priority.
Top of her list—make love to her Dragon.
Amber looped her out leg over Noran’s and moved closer. His body heat seemed to rise with her action. That’s what she needed for encouragement. There was no way he’d be able to deny her now. Noran needed her as much as she needed him. They needed this time together. It had been over a week!
“What do you think you’re doing?” came the smooth deeply masculine sound.
“I think I’m doing what we need right now. Noran, don’t try to play me. I can see you need me as much as I need you.” He attempted to create a little distance as Amber felt the outline of his hard cock against her upper thigh. “Oh no, you don’t.”
She wouldn’t beg, but Amber wouldn’t be meek either. Before the first word of protest left his mouth, Amber pushed Noran back and straddled his body. The pajama top she wore went flying into the distance. Amber wanted to laugh when she watched vibrant green eyes track the trajectory of her garment.
“Don’t worry, I’ll clean that up later�
��much later,” she teased. Learning her Dragon’s quirks was awesome. The fact that she was a slob mated to a neat-freak had already proved interesting.
“I wasn’t worried about that.”
“Don’t lie to me, Dragon.”
“Okay, maybe I was slightly interested in where it landed. I’m a Dragon. We like to know where everything is and that it has its proper place. You need to understand that even our hoards are organized, not like those terrible fairy tales where everything is thrown on the floor in a messy nightmare.”
The giggle filled the room. She couldn’t help it. Noran was everything she wasn’t in a good way. Their Lair was spotless and she never felt like he expected her to clean.
“I know, you take pride in keeping order. I think that’s why I’m free to be my messy self.” Amber bent over to place a kiss on his bottom lip.
She sucked it in, licked in tiny little circles and then released it with a pop. To add to her seductive agenda, Amber swirled her hips around to match her actions. The growl from her mate was worth it. She’d have him deep inside her in a few minutes.
“You’re an astute vixen. Goddess help me, but I want you.”
“I know and I aim to have you as well. Now, take these off.” She pushed the waistband of the bottoms to her matching pajama top down.
When she ran a hand through the dark hair of his pubic region, Noran’s body bucked in reflex.
“Amber…”
“Take them off, or I rip them off,” she said, knowing it would take a lot of effort but willing to give it her best try.
Noran propped himself up on his elbows. She got off of him and waited, not ashamed that her mouth hung open with anticipation. With grace to rival a cat burglar, Noran moved in the dimness of the room to remove his pajama bottoms. Her smile grew into a giddy laugh when he looked at her and tossed the pants in the direction of her top.
“See, I’m able to adjust.”
“That you are.” Her eyes were riveted by the impressive hard on her mate wore.
His member stretched out stiff, thick, and gorgeous. It needed to be licked and tasted. Amber wanted to take him long and deep into her mouth. Determined to keep her composure, Amber waited for him to rejoin her. Her body tingled with a throbbing ache.
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