“Yes, you are,” said Tracy. “You are a Shifter, Sinesta. You did get Turned. So whether you like it or not, that Black she-Dragon is your responsibility. It’s you.”
“I didn’t ask for that!” Sinesta shot back. “I didn’t ask for any of this!”
“Neither did we,” said Everett. “But that doesn’t change a thing. It’s still our responsibility. After all, that’s what fate means.”
Tracy glanced over at her mate, half-smiling as she wondered if she should poke him for saying that he didn’t ask to be bonded with her. But she knew what he meant. She understood what he meant. But did Sinesta understand? Would she accept her responsibility to tame her own dragon? Why would she? She was in heaven, wasn’t she? Dancing merrily through the clouds or whatever?
But even as the thought crossed Tracy’s mind, a dark shadow seemed to pass over that place where Sinesta stood. At first Tracy thought it was the Black she-Dragon flying out of the Darkness, reunited with that twisted version of Sinesta. But then she realized that it was a shadow that was passing over that so-called heaven where Sinesta had been dancing like a dervish.
“That’s not heaven,” Tracy blurted out. She scanned the other human spirits in that place, and she shook her head as the realization dawned on her. Yes, the souls there were happy, but they were not free. They were still trapped by their attachments to the world of flesh and blood! Why else were they amusing themselves by wearing fine clothes, eating and smoking, drinking and dancing? “It’s just a way-station, some in-between place where souls are learning about the afterlife. That’s why so many are fixated on what brought them physical joy on Earth. To move on, they need to let go of those attachments.” She focused back on Sinesta, who had turned away from them again and had struck up her dance once more.
“It’s no use, Tracy,” said Everett, sighing as they watched Sinesta twist and twirl her way through the party in the clouds. “Her only attachment seems to be to what must have brought her joy on Earth.”
“Dancing?” said Tracy with a frown. “So we’re just gonna let her dance away into the fluffy clouds while her dark Dragon burns the world to a crisp?”
“Nope,” said Everett with a grin. He glanced at the golden rope tethering the two of them and shrugged. “We’re going to complete our task. We’re going to bring her back to her dragon.”
Tracy stared up at Everett. “Um, are you saying we’re going to kidnap a human soul from the afterlife and feed it to a dark, feral dragon?”
Everett shrugged. “That’s exactly what I’m saying, dear Eliza. You in?”
Tracy shook her head in disbelief. Then a smile broke and she shrugged too. “Yeah, I’m in. After all, that’s what fate means, right?”
15
After all, that’s what fate means, right?
Everett grinned as he took his mate’s hand and dove down to that place where Sinesta was dancing the day away. He knew that they probably didn’t need to “fly” down there like superheroes, but it seemed appropriate under the circumstances.
“Whee!” said Tracy from beside them as they blasted through a cloud barrier that smelled like lavender, the two of them hand in hand, buck naked and shameless. “Hello, people! Don’t worry! We’re just passing through!”
But the human souls seemed oblivious to the two flying cat-Shifters, and as Everett grasped Tracy’s hand and brought her down for a smooth landing, he realized that the souls were oblivious of one another too! What had looked like some big party was in fact a group of disconnected souls, unable to see each other!
A strange sense of desolation washed over Everett, and when he looked at his mate, he knew Tracy felt it too. Something had changed.
“What’s changed?” Tracy asked as they stood on what felt like soft ground. “This place felt joyful when we were looking down from above. But now that we’re here, it feels . . .”
“It feels dark,” growled Everett, tightening his jaw as he felt his tiger stir inside him. “We need to hurry, Tracy. The Black Dragon is getting more out of balance. It must have consumed that twisted version of Sinesta.”
He glanced down at the golden rope connecting the two of them together and stretching out to infinity beyond. It was still thick and strong, but it appeared to be tightening, like someone—or something—was pulling on it!
“Feels like it,” Tracy said, noticing that the golden rope had gone taut. She reached for the rope and tugged on it three times. “Hold your horses! We’re bringing her to you!”
Sinesta was still dancing in the distance, her eyes closed, mouth frozen in a smile, arms above her head as she twirled and twisted. Everett tried to grab her, but the golden rope was too tight, pulling him back like he was on a leash!
“Bloody hell,” he muttered, looking back and frowning. “The Black she-Dragon is getting darker, more out of balance as it consumes all that hatred that the dark Sinesta carries with her. It’s so far out of balance that maybe it doesn’t want this part of its soul back! Tracy, give me your hand. This is gonna take our combined strength.”
“Gonna?” said Tracy with a wry grin. She closed one eye and raised the other eyebrow. “Is that a word in the English language? How very improper of you!”
Everett felt a smile break as he locked his fingers with his mate’s, feeling their connection counter the pull of the dark dragon. He took a breath and nodded at her, and they both stepped forward together as one, their combined power allowing them to move. Step by step they got closer even as the dragon tried to pull them back, pull them down to its dark place.
“One more step,” Everett grunted, feeling every muscle in his body flexed to the max, his tiger roaring inside him, his mate with him every step of the way. “And gotcha!”
Both Everett and Tracy reached out their free hands at the same time, clamping down on Sinesta’s arms and gripping tight. Time seemed to stand still in that moment, and the two Shifters glanced at each other.
“Um, now what?” said Tracy, blinking as she forced a smile.
“Now we fulfill our destiny,” said Everett, gripping his mate’s hand tight as he felt the dragon pull on their cosmic leash. “We put the pieces of Sinesta back together, bring the Black Dragon into balance, bring the entire world into balance. Then we go back to the world, have babies, and live happily ever after. After all, that’s what fate means, right?”
“That sounds nice,” said Tracy, taking a breath and steadying herself as that rope got tighter, the tension building up to breaking point. “But are you sure there won’t be another twist before we get to the happily ever after?”
Everett shrugged, and just then the dragon yanked all three of them back towards the Darkness, pulling them through space and time, through heaven and hell and everything in between. The two Shifters roared as they spun through space, both of them holding Sinesta’s soul tight, all of them spinning . . . spinning . . . spinning . . . until they were covered in shadow, a shadow that felt like night itself.
It was the Black she-Dragon, and they were inside her belly once again, pulled back to where it all began for them! Everett looked over toward his mate to make sure she was all right, and he grinned when he saw her breathless and smiling, her face flushed with the excitement of their journey. Perhaps it was all in their heads, but bloody hell it felt good! It felt like this was right! Like they’d accomplished what they were chosen to do! Their task was complete, and now they would get their reward, find their peace, their happily-ever-after!
“Let go!” Everett roared to Tracy, nodding toward Sinesta, who looked oddly calm, like she’d gone into a trance or was perhaps passed out. “Give her back to the Black Dragon. We’re done here, Tracy!”
Tracy nodded, releasing Sinesta just as Everett let go as well. The two Shifters were still holding each other’s hands tight, and Everett glanced down at that shimmering golden rope that seemed to be shining so bright he wondered if it w
ould burst into heavenly flames!
“Done? Really? Did we really just save the world?” Tracy squealed as the two of them kept spinning, this time up along the dragon’s belly like it was getting ready to spit them out like a cat pops out a hairball! “No more twists? Happily ever after?”
“No more twists,” said Everett with a calm confidence. He could feel his tiger’s sense of control return in the most exhilarating way, and he knew it was content. The tiger had a preternatural sense of impending danger, and if it was calm, it meant the danger had passed. It wanted nothing more than to revel in the simple joy of being with its mate. Just the two of them. Always and forever.
And then the dragon coughed them out into the open universe, and Everett closed his eyes and held his mate tight as they twisted and turned toward their happily ever after.
16
This is happiness, Tracy thought as she felt Everett’s big hand hold hers as they spun through the ether, coughed out of a Black she-Dragon’s mouth, complete and unbroken, their bond stronger than ever. We went to hell and back together, and we’re still together. We’ll always be together.
She looked over at Everett, smiling as she saw his beautiful black hair flow like strands of pure energy, his eyes burning bright with his tiger’s spirit, his naked body glowing with the golden light that surrounded the two of them. He was looking back at her, his eyes both focused on her and lost in her at the same time.
“What?” she said, blinking and looking away for a moment as they spun like golden snowflakes. “What are you looking at?”
“You,” he said without hesitation. “Just you. It’s been chaos from the moment we met, and I just want a moment to look at you, Tracy. To really look at you.”
“Weirdo,” she said with a self-conscious giggle that sent a shiver through her body, making her bobcat purr in the background. She could tell that her cat was bursting with joy, mewling as it basked in the pleasure of being so connected to its fated mate. She giggled again as Everett just stared at her, but she knew what he meant. They’d never really had a chance to just be a couple, had they? Everything about their courtship had been a whirlwind of urgency! They’d been killed after their first kiss! Even their first mating was filled with urgency! Then learning about their own pasts, facing the choices that their parents had made, finally facing Sinesta’s splintered soul.
Now it’s time to face him, my mate, my always and forever, Tracy thought as she looked back into Everett’s eyes and smiled. She didn’t feel the need to say a word. It didn’t seem necessary. She already knew so much about his past, the kind of man he was, the kind of animal he was. Everything they’d gone through together had showed them each other’s souls.
Exactly, whispered her cat from inside her. Now show him your body, girl. Without shame. Without self-consciousness. Without thought. We are bonded mates, and we can travel freely through Light and Darkness. So experience that freedom. Enjoy that freedom. Discover what it truly means to be balanced, to be human and animal at once, to love both sides of yourself, both sides of ourselves.
Tracy could feel her heat rising as her bobcat’s whispers faded away. Everett’s gaze was moving down along her curves, and she could feel his hunger rising, the need of the animal in him coming to the fore, taking over. Around her the universe was darkening, but it felt beautiful, safe, natural, and Tracy understood what her cat had meant. She had nothing to fear from the Darkness. She was the Darkness just like she was the Light, just like she was body and spirit, human and animal.
“Take me,” she whispered, seeing the flame ignite in her mate’s eyes as he reached across and grabbed her by the back of the neck, drawing her into his body. “Take me, Everett.”
He kissed her just as she said it, the energy of the kiss making her world explode from the inside, sending her spinning away as their lips locked, their tongues touched, their bodies merged like they were one. She could feel them being transported by that kiss, taken to that place she knew was the Light.
She gasped as suddenly she saw the snow-capped mountains of Colorado rise up like a vision, and then she was on the hard ground of the foothills, her mate on top of her, kissing her deep, kissing her hard, kissing her with everything he had.
“Ohmygod,” she managed to whisper as she broke from his kiss long enough to take in the scent of the wild mountains she’d loved as a child, as a kitten, as a girl discovering who she was. A girl who was now a woman. A woman who’d just saved the world!
She arched her back as Everett dragged his tongue down along her bare neck, pushing his face between her breasts and breathing deep like he wanted to inhale her. She could smell his masculine scent strong in the crisp air, and she moaned as Everett coated her breasts with his saliva like he was marking her as his, his alone.
“I want to eat you up,” he growled, raising his head and grinning at her. He raised an eyebrow and then shrugged. “In fact, I think I will eat you up!”
Tracy squealed as Everett opened his mouth and took her left nipple between his lips, sucking so hard she thought he actually might swallow her whole! His hands were beneath her, cupping her ass and squeezing with the strength of his tiger, fingers digging into her flesh as he sucked her boobs until both nipples were pert and sharp like arrowheads. A moment later he was kissing her round belly, tickling her belly-button with his tongue, coating her all over with his tiger’s mark, claiming her in her beloved mountains, where she was most comfortable, where she was herself.
“This is all I want,” he whispered against her glistening stomach, his breath hot like fire against her skin. “You. Every part of you, Tracy. Inside and outside.”
Tracy felt her wetness flow out of her as he spoke, and then Everett was between her legs, his face pushing deep into her triangle, his lips kissing her lips, his tongue sliding past her opening and curling up against the front wall of her vagina.
“Oh, shit,” she groaned, her eyes rolling up in her head as Everett dragged his stiff tongue along her inner walls, rolling it around like he wanted to taste every inch of her secret space. She was so wet it felt like a river flowing from her, and she groaned again as she heard her mate slurp and swallow like he was drinking from a mountain spring.
“You taste so good,” he whispered, his voice thick with ecstasy. Her eyelids were fluttering as the ecstasy rolled through her body in waves, and it took a moment before she could focus enough to look at him. “Here. Taste yourself.”
With a mischievous grin he rose up and smacked her lips, forcing her to taste her own juices. His heavy cock pressed down on her mound as he lay on top of her, and the sensation of his hardness on her clit made Tracy open her mouth wide.
“Salty,” she muttered with a smile. “Is that really what I taste like?”
“You taste sweet like honey,” he said with a grin. “What do I taste like?”
Tracy blinked, and then she gasped again as Everett kissed her gently and then leaned back, straddling her carefully before leaning back again until his cock stood straight out over her breasts like a log. She took a moment to just stare, feeling herself close to climax just from the sight of his thick shaft, its red tip shining with his clean oil, drops of his pre-cum falling on her naked nipples like dewdrops at dawn. Everett’s face was twisted with need, and he groaned as he lowered his cockhead to her left nipple, coating the erect nub with his natural juice. He dragged his cock along the curve of her breasts, down through the valley between her rises, marking her other nipple before leaning back again.
“Oh, God, Everett,” Tracy whimpered when she saw the arousal marking his handsome face. “Come here. Bring it here. Let me taste you.”
She reached out and gripped his cock by the shaft, groaning when she saw that her fingers didn’t even go all the way around, he was so damned thick. With her other hand she cupped his balls, marveling at how heavy they were, her mind clouding over as her pussy tightened like it wa
s yearning to feel him empty himself into her.
“Bloody hell, that feels so good, Tracy,” he growled, his eyes rolling up in his head as Tracy stroked him, massaging his balls gently as she lovingly jerked his foreskin to and fro. She watched how his lean, hard abs tensed up with her touch, how those muscles on his massive chest tightened and released as she brought him closer to climax.
Tracy smiled as she imagined Everett exploding all over her, coating her breasts with his thick semen. The thought made her own wetness flow so hard she could feel it pool on the ground beneath her ass. She smiled as she pulled his cock closer to her mouth, kissing his red tip, rolling her tongue all over his cockhead until Everett arched his head back and roared like the tiger he was.
Above him the magical skies looked like they were darkening, and Tracy smiled wider as she felt her heat rise. Slowly she drew Everett into her mouth, opening her throat as he pushed himself in, deep in, all the way in until his balls were against her damned chin!
“Bloody hell,” he muttered again, holding her head in his big hands, fingers curling her hair and pulling until she could feel her roots screaming with the most wonderful pain. Everything had been gentle and slow thus far, but as the skies turned to a deep purple and the Light began to fade to Darkness, she knew the animal in her mate was coming out.
She was going to bring out the animal in him.
With all her might Tracy sucked, her eyes almost popping out of her head as Everett roared again and pushed down her throat so deep she thought she might choke! Then he was fucking her in the mouth, his thrusts going harder as she sucked and swallowed, her entire body shaking as Everett held her head in place and slid his mighty cock in and out until her chin was dripping with saliva and his pre-cum.
Above them dark clouds were forming, and Tracy could feel their arousal taking them to that place where animal lust reigned supreme. But it didn’t feel ominous or threatening. She understood that balance didn’t mean equilibrium. It meant they could take each other to the edges, to the extremes, to the boundaries!
Taken for the Tiger Page 10
