by Amelia Jade
Fire exploded at the apex of her legs as Garath slid his palms along the inside of her leg, and suddenly she forgot all about the cold. He pulled the flimsy gray cotton fabric aside. His finger slid across her slick center. Marie gasped at the shuddering sensation that spread through her body, her head falling back. Garath’s teeth nipped at the skin of her exposed neck, and she jerked at the added pleasure.
His free hand wrapped around her back, holding her tight to him. She buried her head in his muscular chest, cries lost in the bulges of his muscles as his middle finger rolled back and forth in gentle circles across her clit. Her fingernails dug deep into the skin of his shoulders, but he didn’t flinch.
Marie couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt anything so good. She wondered if anyone had ever touched her like Garath. Certainly she’d never felt such raw arousal before. The need to have him between her, inside her, yawned larger with every circle of his finger.
As if he could read her mind, one of his huge meaty fingers slipped inside her, easily pushing in with wetness his touch had brought forth. He moved it up in a motion and her entire body went rigid.
“Are you okay?”
“Again,” she gasped, unable to say more. But oh God she wanted that again. She’d been nearing the edge already, but—
Garath moved his fingers in time together, and on the third stroke Marie lost control. Her body tightened and she buried her face in his neck, crying out as everything came together into a tight little ball before exploding out through her body like the Big Bang itself. The world went blurry but she didn’t care, too focused on the beautiful agony brought forth by his touch.
It felt so good she thought, collapsing into a puddle in his arms. So, so good. Yet she wanted more. It somehow wasn’t quite enough.
“Do you want to go on?” he asked, whispering the question into her ear once she’d stopped shaking, her body resetting itself.
“Yes. I want you.”
Garath’s pants slid down, leaving him clad only in his tight silk boxers, the black fabric hiding little more than the fine lines of his cock. It did nothing to diminish the overall size of it.
Marie dipped her hand through the waistband, feeling the sheer solidness of it as she squeezed, watching Garath’s face.
His perfectly arched eyebrows lowered, eyes closing while the rest of his face bunched up in pleasure. She felt a thrill of control as his mouth dropped open and he groaned. God it was so hot to see his arousal, the way it was written across his perfectly sculpted lines. He wasn’t holding anything back now, letting her see exactly how he was feeling, and as she stroked him gently, she felt her body ready itself.
“Now.” She pulled his boxers down and Garath stepped up to the counter, his hands scooping under her waist and pulling her to the edge.
Chapter Ten
Garath
He watched her face for any sign of hesitation, but all that was showing was what he felt inside. Desire. Arousal. Lust. Whatever one wanted to call it. They were thick in the midst of it now, and things that might have seemed otherwise odd made perfect sense.
Marie guided him with her hand, swirling the tip of him gently across her clit and down to her opening. He was watching that, while she was watching him. Garath felt the tightness of his face as his anticipation rose.
His mate wanted him, and he was about to take her, to have her for the first time. They wouldn’t be truly mated until he could reveal to her his true nature and she accepted his love, but it was still a major step along the way.
Watching for any hesitation, he pushed inside of her at long last, both of them trembling with the need. There was to be no rushing it, lest he perhaps hurt his mate. She hadn’t been surprised by his girth, but that didn’t mean she was going to be able to easily accept it.
At least, he tried to go slow. But Marie’s insistence, her unabashed need to take him and have him, overwhelmed his sense of restraint. Her face dropped open as he buried his cock all the way inside her.
The warmth of her walls wrapped around his entire length flowed up and into his core. It was so powerful that he nearly lost control, forced to resort to an impressive clenching of his abs and arms to stave off an eruption that neither of them wanted just yet. It should have worked, but the way Marie’s eyes drank in ever engorged vein and muscle as he flexed only made the situation worse, and he was forced to pull out.
His hands found the counter and he leaned onto her, his head resting on her breasts as he heaved, drawing in air rapidly in an attempt to calm his trigger-happy body.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. Just wasn’t expecting it to feel that good.” He winked.
Interesting. Her blush extended below her collarbone. Far below, he noted as the faint darkening of her skin grew under his admiring gaze, reaching down between her breasts and even partially on to them, nearly to the top of her stomach. It truly was a unique and fantastic look.
“Stop it.”
He frowned. “Stop what? Stop staring at how beautiful you are? Not going to happen, no matter how much you tell me to stop.”
Marie frowned momentarily. “At least keep fucking me then?”
Garath’s smile grew. That was something he could do. Break over, he was invigorated and ready to feed her addiction to him, something that he was only too happy to do. Things were great, and soon the two of them could leave the base, Barton City, and most importantly the other dragons far far behind them.
Covering her mouth with his he felt her cries as she moaned around his tongue, barely able to keep track of her own movements due to everything else. The power of being in control filled his body, but he didn’t use it, instead opting to let things flow naturally, curious as to where they might take him. He’d never seen this side of Marie before, and he was intrigued.
Despite her self-stated dislike of her soft body, she seemed to be more at ease with it than he’d expected. Perhaps that was the effect of him, but either way, he was happy. This was a woman he could be with the rest of their natural lifespans, which, once mated, would be very long indeed.
He slowed to kiss her more thoroughly, pausing until her insistence he continue was too great for him to ignore.
“I made a promise to you,” he growled, lifting her free from the counter and lowering her to the ground. “And I intend to keep it.”
Marie gasped as he spun her around a little more roughly and bent her over the island. His hand connected firmly with her ass. The yelp was more pain than anything else, confirming his earlier thoughts that she’d enjoyed it when he spanked her.
Reaching forward, he gathered up her long brown hair into his hand, able to wrap it around his thick fist once before it got too tight. He pulled on it gently, just enough for tension. After that, if she wanted it harder, it would be up to her.
Garath’s free hand slipped across her hips and between her legs as he bent over her, his digit easily find her throbbing clit and sliding over it. He wanted his mate to come yet again, before he himself could no longer contain his own climax.
“Oh fuck.” Marie went flat against the counter, hands splayed wide as he thrust against her from behind. He could feel the muscles in her body tighten as she attempted to push back into him, but each time his finger circled her clit again she went limp. It was simply too much for her, and he drank in the knowledge that his mate was overwhelmed by what he was doing to her.
“I want you to come,” he commanded, his huge frame allowing him to easily speak into her ear. “Now. For me. Do it.”
The reply was filled more with pleasured sounds than actual words, but Marie did as he’d ordered. Her body bucked and thrashed in throes of ecstasy, pinned between him and the marble counter, unable to move, her head locked in place by his grip on her hair. She shuddered and he felt warmth pour out from inside her, coating him again.
When she finally went limp he let go of her hair, watching it cascade across the dimples in her back near her shoulder blades, the sight engo
rging him even further. He was in full lust now, eager to keep going as hard as he could until it was his turn.
Garath gritted his teeth and forced himself not to give in, waiting instead for Marie to recover both her mind and her breath. Once she shivered and pushed herself back up onto her elbows, he knew she was ready to continue. Starting slowly at first, he built up speed, holding onto her hips this time.
“No more,” she gasped as he started to play with her clit some more. “I’m good. I’m done.”
He stopped as commanded. With his fingers at least. Marie didn’t object to the continued thrusts of his hips. The mesmerizing sight of her body bouncing as he slammed into it caught and held his attention, the gorgeous curves making him harder than ever before. Before he knew it he was going as hard as Marie could take it. Her fingernails scratched along the marble, spine arching and lifting her into the air so that her breasts bounced more vigorously.
“I can’t,” he gasped, unable to hold out for much longer.
“No,” she begged. “I’m so close. Please…” Her hand pushed between her legs, and the walls clamped around him so tightly he nearly exploded then and there.
But his mate hadn’t said he could do that inside her, so he gritted his teeth and forced himself not to come. Not yet. Once his mate was pleasured, then he could be. The task of not going over the edge took dragon-like strength, but he heard the sudden change in breathing and his mate abruptly slammed her free arm onto the counter and buried her face in it, screaming his name.
Garath could hold out no longer at that, and he withdrew. He shot all across her rear and lower back as he emptied himself with a mighty roar that was followed by repeated gasps of her name, which was the only thing that his brain could say intelligibly.
He was forced to brace himself on the counter as well, his legs weak and wobbly. It should have been embarrassing, a dragon unable to stand, but Garath knew that with his mate it would always be like this. She made him weak in the knees, and he was perfectly okay with that. Because she would make nobody else like that.
Grabbing some paper towels, he cleaned her up, and then the two of them retreated to the bedroom. He swept up Marie into his arms, where at last they fell across the oversized bed to bask in their mutual glow together, his hand locked in hers, their heads twisted to look at one another.
As they both recovered the fullness of dinner hit him again, and he saw it do the same to Marie, her eyes drooping. Sliding closer, he pulled her into him, then flipped the free half of the comforter up and over them. Marie made happy noises as she snuggled into his embrace. Moments later she fell asleep in his arms.
Garath couldn’t stop himself from smiling, wishing he had a camera to record the utter perfection of the moment. His mate was his, and nothing anyone could do was going to change that.
Chapter Eleven
Garath
Moving carefully so that he didn’t disturb the sleeping beauty at his side, Garath rose from the bed and stretched. Joints and tendons popped as he reached for the ceiling, some of them loud enough he wondered how Marie didn’t stir. But she was fast asleep still, leaving him free to admire the resting beauty. Her eyes moved slightly as she dreamed, the gorgeous full features of her face resting easily. He wondered what those icy blue circles were seeing just then. Visions of him, perhaps? He could only hope.
Body feeling limber, he padded over to the washroom, reflecting on how much his life had changed in the past month and a half. He’d been awoken into a new world, a new age, and was told he was going to fight some demons from another world, and that to do so he would need his mate.
Skepticism and disbelief had followed. According to Colonel Mara, the officer in charge of the entire dragon “program” as it was being called, he had adapted the worst to his new surroundings. Probably because they’d told him he was going to have to work with a bunch of other dragons. There was no way he was going to do it. He was going to find his mate and then they were going to leave this all behind them. That was the plan.
That was still what he intended, even now after he’d found his mate in Marie. He would tell her the truth when it was time, and together they would go. It amazed him to think that after over a century of searching in his previous life, he’d never found a mate. A week and a half ago, as his month-long orientation was coming to an end, a freak accident had introduced him to the only woman he would ever love.
Exiting the washroom he glanced at the bed, watching her once more. The little heart-shaped face, even in sleep, was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. He just wanted to go to her side and kiss her forehead, but experience had told him she would awaken to his touch, and right then she needed to sleep. He grabbed his clothes, yet again tossed haphazardly around the room, and left her bedroom behind.
They were at Marie’s house after having spent the previous two nights at his. This time around he’d waited up for her. She worked a rotating shift, and she’d gotten home nearly an hour past midnight. But he’d been waiting and ready. Marie had wasted no time, and the two of them had gone right to the bedroom.
It had been a whirlwind three days since they’d first gone to bed together, but now they were making up for perceived lost time, something Garath was perfectly fine with. With his mate he would always be ready to satisfy her, no matter what she needed.
Pulling on his boxers and jeans, he surveyed her house while doing up his belt. It wasn’t large, but it was likely all she had been able to afford at the time. A boxy affair, there were two bedrooms and a washroom in between them along the back side, facing the entryway. On one side the kitchen ran the entire length of the house, while the other had her couches, television, and a door he presumed led to the basement.
“Hey, sleepyhead.”
He turned as Marie emerged from the bedroom behind him, clad in a rather transparent black shift that did nothing to hide her body from him. Something stirred inside him and he started toward her, biting his lower lip as his eyes roved freely over her near-nakedness, the slight covering of flimsy fabric almost more arousing than seeing her completely unclothed.
“Easy there, tiger,” she said, putting up a hand to slow his approach. “I think you wore me out last night.”
“I missed you,” he stated bluntly.
“I could tell then, and I can still feel it now. So I’m sorry, you hornball, but you’re going to have to wait until tonight I think.” She pushed up against him, driving Garath wild. “And you’re going to treat me right this time. Slowly. Candles. Gentle. Make love to me. Is that understood?”
Steam had to have been gushing from his ears as she whispered throatily to him, describing what she wanted him to do. Garath nodded, not bothering to hold back the rumbling growl in his chest as he started counting down the hours until he could have her again.
“Good.” She smiled, her voice lighter. “I’m going to take a shower now, and then we’ll get some breakfast, how does that sound?”
Garath perked up at that. He liked food. “Yes, please. I’m starved. It takes a lot of work to properly please you.”
“Like you’re complaining.”
“With you? Never.”
Marie turned to go, but she paused as his thick hand closed around one of her ass cheeks, giving it a good squeeze. He let go after a moment and gave it a gentle slap, urging her onward. His mate laughed lightly and disappeared back into the master bedroom, and moments later he heard the shower start to run.
My gods, she’s perfect. How have I lived for so long without her around?
It wasn’t a question he could answer, but he was glad he didn’t have to go any longer without her by his side. Life was just infinitely better with Marie around, no matter what they were doing. Even the odd times they bickered, he never doubted that minutes later they would both be apologizing, much preferring to be attacking each other with kisses instead of words. Nothing would get between them, he was confident of that.
His stomach rumbled, reminding him that it needed
food, and soon. I’ll get to you, he promised, looking around the house for a distraction. Marie liked to enjoy her showers, which meant it would be twenty or thirty minutes before they were headed out for breakfast. That meant he needed to occupy himself for a full half hour, otherwise he would probably start to get cranky.
Unfortunately, there was next to nothing to do. He wasn’t an avid TV watcher, though he’d sat through several episodes of some show about doctors and human anatomy that seemed to have Marie going from highs to lows in nanoseconds. To him it was utter drivel, but she enjoyed it, so he kept his comments to himself. It was a small price to pay to have her cuddled up next to him for several hours, clutching at him and burying her face in his chest. He smiled at the memories. Good times indeed.
His eyes strayed from the television to the door next to it. Shrugging to himself, he decided to go explore the basement. Maybe it had a secret passage in it. Dragons loved secret passages. Pulling open the door, he looked for a light switch, but after flicking it, nothing happened. Curious but unfazed by the darkness, he descended the steps, carefully testing the wood each time to ensure it could support his weight. It creaked noticeably, but otherwise held up fine.
Garath reached the bottom and found the light hanging from the ceiling with a metal chain dangling from it. He pulled on it gently, and the light flickered to life. The basement was small, like the house above it. There were no signs of a secret passage that he could detect, much to his disappointment. What was it with humans and a lack of secret rooms or tunnels? So boring.
The only thing that caught his eye was a bulletin board pinned to the far wall. He almost didn’t notice it, but his height allowed him to see over the makeshift wall that had been set up in front of it. Curious, as he noted several pictures upon it, he headed over to it. He wondered why Marie had it set up in the basement, away from everything. Maybe it was her wedding ideas, something she wasn’t interested in sharing. Garath knew women always fantasized about that sort of thing.
