Dragon Waves: A Shifters in Love Fun & Flirty Romance (Dragon Island Hideaway Book 2)

by Rinelle Grey

  But he suspected she thought he was anyway.

  All this could be easily resolved if he told her who he really was. She’d have a better understanding if he could explain to her why dragons took relationships seriously. Deadly seriously.

  That was what he really wanted to do.

  If it were just his secret to tell, he’d do it in a heartbeat. But he wouldn’t be the only one affected by the revelation. It could have repercussions for his whole family and possibly their livelihoods. Sure, last week he’d told his brother to tell Zara who he really was, but that had been different. They’d known each other far longer and were talking about getting mated. And they’d made her sign a non-disclosure agreement before telling her.

  He had no idea if Audrey saw this as a serious relationship, or if she would walk away at the end of her holiday and forget about him. He liked to hope it was something more, but they hadn’t even reached a point where they could discuss that.

  And if he asked her to sign a non-disclosure, he suspected that she’d freak out. She was far more skittish than Zara. Far less willing to trust.

  But he suspected that someone who won her trust would have it forever.

  He just wasn’t sure how to do that.

  “Look, I have no idea if this is real or not,” Hayrian admitted slowly. “I’m still trying to figure out what these feelings mean myself, or where this is going. I wasn’t expecting any of this.” He hesitated, his feelings still so new, it seemed risky to put them into words. But not to could be a far greater risk.

  He took a deep breath, and continued, despite his reservations. “All I know is that I’ve never felt like this about anyone before. What that means… well… I don’t know. But I want to find out. I do know that I would never intentionally do anything to hurt you. Despite that, there’s a chance one, or both of us, could get hurt. But without taking that risk, there is no reward.”

  Audrey was listening intently, so he continued, voicing his thoughts as they ran through his mind rather than following any plan. He wasn’t sure if it was even possible to convince her to trust him, but he certainly wasn’t going to give up without giving it his best shot.

  “Yes, it’s safer not to take that risk, to stay on the shore, but then you never get to experience the excitement of jet skiing. Or discovering a deserted island. By keeping your distance, by not taking that chance, you protect your heart, but can you really be happy that way?”

  Audrey drew in a breath, staring at him, her eyes wide. “You could be describing my life up until now,” she said slowly. “I’ve definitely stayed on the shore, played it safe. Even going out with Mark, that was supposed to be safe. He had money, he was a gentleman, he was supposed to be the one who never hurt me. Some joke that was.”

  Hayrian took another chance and reached out and took her hands. “Do you know what I see when I look at you, Audrey?”

  She shook her head wordlessly.

  “I see a woman who wants to experience all the world has to offer, but is too worried that she’ll fail or get hurt.”

  He could see the recognition on her face in a flicker of pain. His words rang true. She knew it too. She nodded slowly. “But what do I do? How do I get past that?” she asked, desperation and agony in her voice.

  “You have to accept that it might not work,” Hayrian said gently. “I could assure you that I would never do anything to hurt you, but believing that, trusting that, that has to come from you. The only way you’re going to know if I’m telling the truth or not is time. You have to realise that you can’t control everything, and that you might not even want to. That, just possibly, there’s some wonder out there that you haven’t even dreamed of yet.”

  Her eyes were alight as she looked at him, and he wanted to tell her, to show her, who he truly was.

  Not for the first time, he envied his father. His brother, Damrian had always felt sorry for their dad, for the fact that he’d lost everything—his family, his clan. But in Hayrian’s mind, his father had been in the enviable position of having nothing left to lose. He’d had no responsibility to his family or clan, no one whose life could be messed up by his actions, no one to consider except himself.

  That was real freedom. Freedom Hayrian didn’t have. His choices right now were bound by responsibility to his family and possibly even to the clan he’d never even met. He didn’t resent it. He loved his brothers and sister, and he was sure he’d love his clan too, once he knew them, but he couldn’t help being painfully aware of the responsibility weighing him down and dictating his choices.

  So he kept his mouth shut and settled for looking at Audrey, trying to project everything he felt about her into his eyes in an attempt to tell her truths he wasn’t even sure of himself.

  She stared back, searching his face as though trying to see into his soul, and for a few moments, Hayrian wondered if she would guess. There was no way she could know, of course, he’d been painstakingly careful hiding the truth for decades, but he couldn’t help wishing…

  “I won’t be afraid to live the life I want anymore,” Audrey said firmly, lifting her chin. She looked at him, a fierce hunger in her eyes. “And right now, I want you.”

  Her words unleashed a desire deep in Hayrian’s body and soul, pushing away his worries about telling her who he was.

  “I want you too,” he said, his voice a low growl. He leaned forwards, intending to kiss her, a real kiss this time, not the light, teasing one he’d given her last night.

  But before he could, she put a hand on his chest. “Before we take this any further, we need to talk. I need to know what you want from this. We need to be on the same page.” She hesitated, then a shudder ran through her, and she said softly, “I know this probably isn’t going to go past this week, but in that time, I need to know that I’m the only one.”

  Her words set up an immediate need to deny it. To say that this could be far more than that. But this time, caution got the better of him. Without telling her who he was, he couldn’t offer anything more than these few days.

  The promise she asked for though—that he could give her without reservation. “I have no interest in any woman but you, Audrey.” He didn’t put a time limit on it. He didn’t have to. She’d given one, and she would assume he was referring to that.

  But the reality was, he suspected that his loyalty would be hers for far longer than this week. Any thoughts of other women had faded completely out of his mind days ago. If he couldn’t have her, he didn’t want anyone. And he couldn’t see that changing anytime soon.

  She smiled, a hesitant, uncertain smile, and Hayrian wished there was something he could say that would reassure her. But he had no promises that would hold more weight than those he’d already given her. So instead he leaned forwards to kiss her, hoping to show her with his lips what he couldn’t explain with words.

  When his lips met hers though, a blinding heat flashed through his body, and any other thoughts fled his mind. She was perfect, delicious, enticing. How could he ever think of letting her go?

  At first, Audrey held back, her kiss restrained and cautious. He could feel the moment she surrendered. The moment she accepted the risk and decided to keep going anyway. Her lips softened and parted slightly, and her body pressed closer towards his.

  That moment was the most delicious of all. She was his. Her body knew it, even if her mind had not registered it yet.

  Hayrian slipped an arm around her and pulled her close. Lucky this island was deserted.

  Even more so, he hoped there were no problems at the resort and his family didn’t need him any time soon.

  Because now that he’d kissed her, his whole body clamoured for him to make her his with an intensity he’d never felt before. He had no idea what was going on, but he had no desire at all to fight this urge.

  It felt right. It felt good.

  It felt like he’d been waiting for this his whole life.

  Chapter 12

  This time, when Audrey followed Hayden aro
und the corner to the hut, she felt only a little bit uncertain. She still wasn’t completely sure she was making the right decision, but she was willing to take the risk. She wasn’t going to let her fear rule her life. Not anymore.

  She was eager to see this place, both because of its uniqueness and because it was important to him. But more importantly, she was excited because she was eager for what she was pretty sure they were going to do when they were inside.

  Even if that wasn’t on Hayden’s mind, and that kiss he’d given her certainly indicated that it was, she would be more than happy to make the first move. It fitted nicely with her new ‘take a risk’ motto.

  Once they were inside though, Hayden seemed more focused on showing her around than anything else. “It’s pretty small,” he said apologetically. “Usually I’m the only one here.” He waved in indication of the space.

  The circular room was small. The kitchen was simply a row of benches curving along one wall and a bar fridge. A lounge and a wall mounted television was at the back. Most of the room was taken up with a big bed, covered with a pure white comforter, facing the sliding glass doors, overlooking the veranda and the ocean beyond.

  “It’s beautiful,” Audrey breathed. “It must be very relaxing when you want to get away.”

  “It is,” Hayden agreed. “In fact, I usually don’t want to leave.”

  Audrey could see why. In fact, she’d be more than happy to spend the rest of her week right here with Hayden. Pity his family probably couldn’t live without him that long.

  “There’s a fully appointed bathroom through here,” Hayden said, opening the only other door in the room to reveal a gorgeous bathroom, with what looked like a full-sized spa, right in front of floor to ceiling windows that opened out onto the ocean. Lucky the island was, as he’d said, very private.

  Audrey couldn’t help gaping. “Do you think we’ll have time to try that out?”

  As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she wanted to take them back. It seemed a little forward to suggest that she wanted to try out his spa. Especially since she hadn’t brought her swimsuit.

  But Hayden just laughed and said, “Maybe.” He glanced over at the bed, then back to Audrey. This time, when he spoke, his voice was low. “But maybe there’s something else we should try out first?”

  Audrey didn’t need to be asked twice. She flashed him a grin, bounced over to the bed, and sat down on it. She wasn’t even noticing the view now, at least, not the one outside the window.

  Hayden walked towards her more slowly, staring at her as if drinking in the sight of her. And from the smile on his face, he obviously liked what he saw.

  For a moment, Audrey felt a little self conscious. It hadn’t even occurred to her that this might be happening today. She’d thought they’d fly around in the helicopter for a few hours, then return to the resort. So she’d worn comfortable, practical clothes, a pair of jeans and a singlet top. She suspected her underwear didn’t even match.

  What was she thinking? It wasn’t like she was going to be wearing clothes for long, not if everything went the way she hoped.

  So she deliberately let go of all her insecurities and instead focused on Hayden in front of her.

  That was a much better thing to think about.

  He crossed the room and sat on the end of the bed beside her. Taking her hands in his, he angled towards her, and Audrey did the same. “Look, I don’t want to pressure you,” he said softly. “Honestly, just being with you is enough to make my day. Even if we just sit and talk, then head back to the resort, I’m okay with that. We’ll be lucky if we don’t get interrupted by someone calling me with some emergency as it is.”

  His words only made him more endearing. It had been a long time since Audrey had dated, but even so, she could remember that there was a lot of pressure to get to this point. For Hayden to make that sort of statement, well it certainly made it easier to believe everything he’d said to her earlier.

  The things he’d said earlier, about this being like nothing he’d ever felt before, echoed in her mind. She certainly knew what that felt like. She was experiencing the same thing. It was good to know the feeling was mutual.

  All of that made it easy to lean towards him and say softly, “Well, I’m glad that you’re okay with that, but I’m not. I’ve been dreaming about this since last night. No one better interrupt us, because I might just scream.”

  Then before Hayden could even respond, she kissed him.

  For a moment, he didn’t move, perhaps startled by her actions, then his arms went around her, and he pulled her close, kissing her back with a fierce passion.

  Perhaps he wasn’t so okay with just sitting and talking after all.

  Audrey couldn’t help grinning against his lips, then giggling a little.

  Hayden pulled back and stared at her, a mock hurt expression on his face. “Is there something amusing about my kissing?”

  Audrey grinned at him. “I was just wondering how you’d feel if I said that now I wanted to just talk.”

  Hayden stared at her for a moment, then he laughed. “Sure, what shall we talk about?”

  He was perfectly serious too.

  The fact that he would flip like that without so much as a complaint warmed her heart. She knew it couldn’t be easy for him because it would be next to impossible for her.

  His self control only increased her attraction to him.

  Audrey slid closer, her thigh pressed up against his. “Well, we could talk about this…” She kissed the side of his neck. He gave a soft groan. “Or this.” She let her tongue flick out across his collarbone. “Or maybe even this.” She nibbled his bottom lip, then got distracted, sucking it, enjoying the soft groan he gave.

  “Well, if that’s how the conversation is going to go,” Hayden said with a growl. He cupped her cheek, then ran his fingers down the side of her neck, following the strap of her singlet down across her chest, sending a shiver of anticipation through her. “We could talk about this.”

  “Oh yes, that sounds like a great topic,” Audrey said breathlessly.

  “Or this…” Hayden pushed her gently back onto the bed, and then lay down beside her, his hand caressing her hip.

  “My, you’re a master of interesting conversation topics,” Audrey managed, though getting the sentence out took quite some effort. She arched her back towards his hand, not even sure what she wanted him to do, only that she wanted more. So much more.

  “Oh, I have plenty more subjects we could discuss,” Hayden began, but Audrey had had enough.

  She reached up and put her hand behind his neck and pulled him down towards her. “Enough talk, more action.”

  He held back, just a little, grinning down at her. “But talking is my best skill. Everyone says so.”

  Audrey growled at him, and he laughed. “All right, all right. Maybe I do have a few more skills up my sleeve, though I don’t share them with just anyone.” Then he kissed her.

  And this time, Audrey didn’t feel the least bit insecure or jealous at his comment… because he was here with her, kissing her like she was the only woman in the world. And she was kissing him back just as urgently.

  A need spread through her, starting where their lips met and coursing through her body faster than thought until she ached all over.

  She’d never experienced anything like this. She was ready for him already. She wanted him desperately, and all they’d done was kiss for a few moments. By the time they took their clothes off, she’d probably be ready to explode with need.

  And yet, she also wanted this moment to never end. This was something special, something amazing. And she suspected that no matter what happened tomorrow, or next week, she wasn’t ever going to forget these few hours. So she wanted to enjoy them to their fullest.

  She wanted to remember the feel of Hayden’s lips on hers, the sensation of him running his hands over her body, sliding them up under her shirt, tucking them into the small of her back and pulling her closer.
But there were so many sensations, and the intensity of the feelings were so overwhelming that it would be far too easy to just lose herself in them.

  He pulled back for a moment and smiled down at her. “Are you okay?”

  Audrey nodded quickly, lest he think that she wanted to back out. “I’m good. Great. Don’t stop.”

  He laughed at that, but he didn’t immediately kiss her again. He opened his mouth as if to say something, and a strange look entered his eyes. For a moment, Audrey almost felt they’d changed somehow. The blue seemed deeper, almost glowing, and his pupil elongated for a second, almost like a tiger’s eye. She couldn’t tear her gaze away from him.

  Then he looked normal again, and she blinked a few moments. Had she imagined it?

  She must have because there was no other explanation.

  “I have no intention of stopping,” Hayden said, his voice gravelly, and before Audrey could think any more about his eyes, he was kissing her again, this time even more intensely, even more intoxicatingly, and any memory of strangeness was pushed aside to be dealt with later.

  If she survived until later.

  Hayden seemed even more focused than he had before. His hands were firm as they ran up and down her body, scrunching her singlet up and tugging at the waistband of her jeans. He nuzzled at her breast, teasing her nipples through the thin fabric.

  Audrey gasped in deep breaths as waves of desire washed over her. This was far more intense than any lovemaking she’d ever experienced, more than anything she could even have imagined. This was the stuff of movies or books, the love scenes that were too intense to ever be true. It was all those combined.

  She pulled at Hayden’s shirt, trying to get it over his head so she could see his chest, but it was caught between them, and neither of them wanted to break away to remove it. He pulled at it as well until Audrey felt the fabric rip. She wasn’t sure if he’d done it or she had, but for some reason, the sound was intensely satisfying.

  She pulled at it again, and Hayden shifted a little, just enough that she managed to remove the offending fabric. She gave a purr of satisfaction, and ran her hands over his broad chest, feeling the muscles that she was pretty sure didn’t come from flying a helicopter.