20 Shades of Shifters: A Paranormal Romance Collection

by Demelza Carlton

  Strong arms wrapped around her too-large waist. "I thought you would've been asleep by now."

  Isis turned in her husband's arms and then looked down at the large belly that separated them. She groaned. "I'm as big as this manor."

  "You're beautiful."

  "Only if you're into beached whales."

  "I'm into you, no matter the size."

  "Playboy charms, Rock Dragon Osiris, are the reasons why I'm in this state."

  He was also quite handsome and sexy, in both his human and dragon forms. At six and a half feet and as dark-brown as his formidable dragon scales, there was much to admire about her husband and eternal mate. His wide-set eyes had a way of making Isis feel she had Osiris’s full attention, so focused could he be when he captured her with his gaze. His long nose with a wide base was a family inheritance he wore with pride. But his lips and intellect were what first drew Isis to him, despite the violent history between their clans.

  At a merger meeting between Dragon Investment Group and Kemet Holdings, Isis found herself dreamily listening to Osiris, the CEO of the fledgling investment company, as he gave an impassioned speech to DIG’s Board of Directors about his company’s reach and market share. It may have been a horizontal merger, with both companies in the same industry, but DIG didn’t need Kemet Holdings. They could’ve simply taken the company over, which all parties involved well knew.

  But Nut, in a rare moment of empathy for the Clan of Ombos, accepted their merger proposal.

  Osiris led her to the bed, and they sat.

  "You were the one to seduce me."

  “I asked you out to dinner. That hardly counts as seduction.”

  “You wore a tight and low-cut red dress.” He caressed her cheek, thumb gliding over lips and parting them for his kiss. Soft and gentle. "By the end of the night, I was yours. My inner dragon agreed. And you’re mine. The most beautiful sun dragon I’ve ever seen.”

  “I’m the only sun dragon.”

  “That doesn’t make what I said any less true.”

  After leaving Nebty and taking on a human form, some dragons chose to forget about their life on their abandoned floating island, foregoing their dragon heritage in exchange for absolute assimilation into the human world. While others, like Osiris’s Clan of Ombos and Isis’s Clan of Philae, combined their newly acquired human lifestyle with that of their dragon culture.

  The issue of how often and when to shift into dragon form remained an outstanding disagreement between the clans, even within clans. Isis and Nephthys, however, shifted only when in the presence of their mother and most trusted allies. Even Osiris had only seen her in dragon form once. When he finally did, the night of their mate ceremony and consummation of their joining, her rock dragon understood her refusal to do so before.

  There were times, many in fact, when Isis wanted to cast off her human shell and release her dragon, soaring above the clouds the way dragons were meant to do. She couldn’t, of course. Her responsibility outweighed her personal desires, no matter how unfair her position or how tempting the urge.

  He kissed her again, feeding the silent craving that began when she'd entered her second trimester and had yet to abate. Yes, she was his, not just in body but in heart and soul.

  Isis wanted Osiris in a lusty, primal way that was urgent and all-consuming.

  He pulled back, leaving them panting and unfulfilled.

  "I want to make love, Osiris."

  Eyes dropped to breasts that strained against the silk nightgown Isis wore. Long tongue came out and licked scrumptious lips, before parting and swearing softly. "You've had a long day, and you're exhausted."

  True, but that didn't mean they couldn’t make love.

  "You need your rest, not a horny husband pawing all over you."

  Ah, no, that was exactly what she needed, but Osiris was laying her down and tucking her in. He was right, but that did nothing to diminish her hunger for him. "At least hold me until I fall asleep."

  "That goes without saying." He spooned against her. The distinctive bulge against her backside let her know she wasn't the only one aroused and wanting release.

  “Make love to me.” This time, when she asked, Isis rubbed her bottom against Osiris’s pronounced erection. Over and again, she shifted against him, pleased when he moaned then settled a hand on her hip.

  “We shouldn’t be doing this.”

  His concession, which didn’t sound at all reluctant, had Isis turning her head to meet his dark eyes. Lust-filled, they slid from her face and to breasts that ached for his touch, preferably his wet mouth and busy tongue.

  “Why can I never say no to you and mean it?”

  Shifting onto her back, Isis raised one hand to the nape of Osiris’s neck and the other to his pants, stroking his erection. “Because, when it comes to this, our desires are the same. To deny me is to deny yourself.” The hand on his nape pulled him down for a thorough kiss, while her other hand slipped into his night pants.

  She groaned into his mouth at the feel of his thick dick in her hand, hard, ready and panty-wetting.

  “Damn, that feels good.” A thrust into her hand. “Too good.” He moved out of reach, his bare chest, muscular and so very lickable, hovered over her. “You first.”

  “Are you sure?” Her eyes lowered to the erection tenting his pants.

  “It’ll keep. Besides,” his hands pushed up her nightgown and pulled down her panties, then touched her with a single finger, “you’re a lit rocket ready to take off.”

  A finger pressed inside, two, long and thick and slowly fucking her. Knees lifted, legs fell open and to the sides, and hips gyrated to Osiris’s seductive rhythm.

  Even with her large belly between them, Osiris was still bigger than her, which she appreciated, even more, when he stretched his tall form overtop of her. Left hand pressed beside her pillow, while his right hand was stroking her to orgasm. Mouth captured her lips in a wet, sloppy kiss she felt all the way to her curled toes.

  Thumb rubbed clit, a fast cadence that had her wrenching her mouth from his, breathing hard and clutching at his brawny shoulders.

  “Yes, there. There.”

  He knew what she liked and how she liked it, which was why, when her orgasm broke and she began to shout and shutter, Osiris removed his fingers and replaced them with his tongue.

  “Osiris. Osiris.” His relentless tongue had Isis weeping her pleasure. One orgasm ran into another and into yet another. Tongue licked up and down. In and out.

  Up and down.

  In and out.

  Drenched and seeing stars, Isis ran her hand through Osiris’s cropped hair, massaging his sensitive scalp with her fingernails.

  He still lapped at her, licking and kissing but bringing her down, slowly, from her orgasmic high.

  “Is that what you had in mind?”

  She couldn’t breathe, no less answer Osiris’s smug question. But yes, that’s what she had in mind. She thought they’d have slow, lazy sex from the side. That he would lift her nightgown and slip inside. That would’ve been fine with Isis, to be held in her rock dragon’s arms, from behind, while they made love.

  “So good,” she finally said.

  Rising onto her elbows, head still spinning from pleasure, she was about to tell Osiris to remove his bottoms so she could return the favor. But he was already yanking night pants and boxers off, then helping Isis to her hands and knees and pushing into her.

  They moaned at the joining. Isis sopping wet and Osiris magnificently hard.

  Hands on hips, he thrust into her, not forceful but not too gentle either. He set a steady pace and Isis settled into the melodic sway of their bodies. The swinging of her breasts and the rub of pubic hair against soft ass. The grunting of his enjoyment and the fall of sweat onto her back.

  Strong fingers tightened, and thrusts quickened.

  Grabbing three pillows, Isis shoved them under her stomach. With a grateful growl, Osiris fucked her in earnest. His orgasm had him driving in
to her like a great piston then holding Isis flush against him until he spent himself inside of her.

  With a sigh, they collapsed to the mattress. She closed her eyes, already half asleep when she felt Osiris cleaning her with a hand towel. He readjusted her nightgown and helped her on with her panties before pulling the cover over Isis.

  Rolling onto her side, Isis felt deliciously sated and unaccountably tired. "You'll work tonight?" she asked when Osiris didn’t rejoin her in bed.

  "I have a few documents I need to review for Monday’s board meeting.”

  "I left a list of baby names on the desk in your office. We need to settle on a name for our hatchling."

  Not that, while in human form, Isis could produce a dragon’s egg. She would give birth to their child, as a human female. If she’d been a dragon during conception, their child would’ve been a hatchling in truth. She loved her life in the human realm, but Isis disliked how less of a dragon she had to be to live there.

  Osiris kissed her forehead. "I know. I've given it a lot of thought. Let’s talk about it in the morning. We still have a little time before your due date. Go to sleep, my sun dragon." He kissed her again, leaning down to meet her lips when she opened her eyes. "I love you, now stop talking and go to sleep."

  When she closed her eyes, Isis knew she would dream of Osiris, their baby, and tomorrow. What she didn’t know, couldn’t know, was how her life would change from dragon love to tragic lore.

  Chapter 2

  Still not ready to turn in for the night after reading Dragon Investment Group’s first quarter financial results, Osiris flew away from Philae Manor and toward Mount Mitchell in Yancy County, North Carolina. He loved the feel of the wind on his face and the smooth glide of his thick wings as they cut through the air. As a dragon who spent most of his life as a human, Osiris reveled in the freeing sensation that only came with being in his natural form and taking to the sky. The only thing that would make this moment better would be the presence of his mate and wife.

  They’d never flown together, didn’t know the joy of playing in the air or even making love under the waxing moon above their mansion home. Through no fault of her own, Isis was denied the pleasure and unbridled liberty of being a mighty dragon. So was Nephthys, but his sister-in-law found other outlets for her caged dragon spirit, mainly men, sex, and unrepentant fun.

  Isis, however, had been thrust into an adult role long before she should’ve. Without Geb by her side, Nut spoiled her daughters to fill the void in their lives, but also relied, too heavily in his opinion, on her oldest daughter.

  The seventy-foot rock dragon increased his speed when red eyes glimpsed the Appalachian Mountains. One of these days, perhaps after their baby dragon was born, he’d be able to talk Isis into flying there with him. Osiris landed on the highest peak in mainland North America. Mount Mitchell was segmented by mountain passes and valleys. His sharp claws scratched against the uplifted rocks, the texture not very different from the rock formations that comprised his dragon scales. Unlike the constant sounds of New York and the polluted air, up there Osiris breathed deeply of the fresh air and soaked in the silence of the warm night.

  Yes, Isis needed to experience this feeling in dragon form, even if she couldn’t do it in Nebty. Closing his eyes, Osiris sat in silence and listened to the harmonious sounds of nature. He could stay like this for hours, but he gave himself only one. He didn’t want to be away from Isis too long, especially this late in her pregnancy. He probably should’ve told her he’d decided to go out for a quick flight, but he hadn’t wanted to interrupt her rest. When he’d peeked in on her before leaving, she was sound asleep.

  Osiris sensed the subtle shift in the wind, which had him raising his eyes to the sky. A familiar dragon flew toward him. He hadn’t expected the dragon, although Osiris wouldn’t mind the company.

  Landing with a loud thud, the rock dragon didn’t move when the other dragon claimed the space beside him.

  “I thought you went home after the baby shower. By the way, thanks for coming. If you hadn’t, I would’ve been the only male there. Co-ed baby showers are not the thing.”

  “Yeah, well, I enjoy a room of gorgeous women. And there was free food.”

  Osiris snorted. Beautiful women and good food, great motivators for most men. “How did you know I was here?”

  “I stuck around to talk up the cute caterer. I helped her clean the kitchen and pack her supplies. In return, she gave me a container of leftovers and her number. On my way out, I saw you leave. I took a chance you’d come here. We need to talk.”

  “About what?”

  “You know. Don’t play stupid.”

  He did know. But Osiris was getting tired of going back and forth over what he considered a dead-end topic.

  “My answer hasn’t changed.”

  “You’ve lived at the Philae Manor for ten years. How could you not have seen them?”

  Osiris shifted to the right before turning to face the other dragon, who stared out into the darkness with a dispassion Osiris knew to be false.

  “I haven’t seen the scepters because they aren’t there.”

  “In the decade you’ve been mated to Isis, she must’ve mentioned the scepters at least once. In bed, a post-coital conversation after she came on your face.”

  “Watch your mouth.”

  Dark eyes and a large head turned to take him in, followed by an angry growl. “Why should I watch my tongue? We all know you take orders from Isis, at work and in bed. Does she ever permit you to be on top? Or maybe she shifts and fucks you with her tail while you’re in human form.”

  “You’re an asshole who doesn’t know when to leave well enough alone.”

  “And you’re a pussy-whipped dragon who couldn’t do the only thing I’ve ever asked of you.”

  “You asked me to spy on my mate and to steal the scepters.”

  “I asked you to restore pride to the Clan of Ombos.”

  “Even if I wanted to give them to you, I don’t know where they are. Nut and the twins never talk about them. Not ever.”

  That was true, as far as it went. Osiris owed the dragon nothing, and he damn sure wouldn’t betray Isis. Hadn’t dragons betrayed one another enough? Why did some, like the selfish asshole who’d interrupted his peaceful musings, not see how a single act of disloyalty, one hundred years ago, had harmed and denied dragons so much?

  Instead of a powerful nation, they lived as confederate clans, disjointed and lost. They were a species without land and a looming threat of losing their culture. With each succeeding generation not born on Nebty, the further they would grow from true dragon life. As it was, the youngest of the dragons that escaped the scourge of demons, like Isis and Nephthys, remembered nothing of their native land. Osiris’s memory was little better, even though he’d been ten at the time.

  If not for the elders’ use of oral history to connect the present to the past, young dragons would know nothing of Nebty and the twin deities.

  “You’re such a disappointment, Osiris. I should’ve known you couldn’t be trusted to do what needed doing. Ten years and nothing but a worthless hatchling to show for your time with Isis.”

  Osiris lifted into the sky. If he stayed longer, he wouldn’t be able to contain his anger. If it were any other dragon, Osiris would’ve locked his teeth around his neck and squeezed until life drained away. The dragon wasn’t worth it. Jealousy was a terrible thing.

  Osiris had a good day. More, he had a beautiful, amazing mate and they were expecting the first of what he hoped to be a mansion full of hatchlings.

  He began to fly away but came to a careening stop when the dragon said, “Isis has turned you against us. If she doesn’t know where the scepters are then she’s no use to us at all.”

  Osiris turned and rushed the other dragon, his roar and fire exploding from him in a gust of rage. How dare the dragon threaten the mother of his child. How dare—wait. What had the dragon said earlier? On my way out, I saw you leave. I took a
chance you’d come here.

  The dragon flew through Osiris’s fire, ready to battle, but he was already turning away. He had to get back to the manor, had to make sure the threat wasn’t an idle one. He didn’t think it was, which had Osiris flapping his dark wings hard and fast.

  Out of nowhere, a dragon crashed into him, but not the dragon pursuing Osiris. The rock dragon recovered from the shock of the strike but didn’t counterattack. He didn’t have time to waste by getting into an aerial battle with the forty-foot-tall wood dragon.

  He took off in the direction of New York.

  Another dragon appeared in front of him, its white scales a beam of light in the sky and coming straight for him.

  Increasing his speed, Osiris powered into the lightning dragon. Hard rock crashed into electrified scales. He tumbled through the sky from the impact. Before he got his bearings, the three dragons surrounded him.

  “Tell us where the scepters are and we’ll let you go.”

  “I told you. I don’t know where they are.”

  “I don’t believe you. I think you’re trying to protect your mate.”

  Of course, he was, but not in the way the dragon meant.

  In the sky, flanked by dragons he thought of as friends and family, Osiris knew how King Geb must’ve felt when his northern border guards led the uprising against his rule and sided with the demons. Osiris wouldn’t end up like Geb. He refused to die and leave his mate alone to raise their hatchling. Despite the ugly history between their clans, Isis and Osiris had found love when others thought them natural enemies.

  He wasn’t a coward and traitor like his father. Osiris had spent years working to rebuild the trust of the Ombos clan. In some circles, his mother was shunned, despite her lengthy friendship with Nut. Thanks to his father, and others of his ilk, families were ripped apart. Those guilty weren’t around to blame and judge, so some took out their anger on what was left of the Clan of Ombos. They hadn’t deserved the backlash. Yet, with his marriage to Isis and the merger with DIG, some of the hardliners had begun to come around.

  The dragons closed in on him.