Julia Mills - Her Dragon's Heart (Dragon Guard Series Book 8)

by Unknown

  “They are protective to a fault and will fight to the death to defend those they hold dear. They seek justice at all turns. They have meticulous and ambitious attitudes and use a combination of their minds and hearts to make all decisions. They love hard, strong, and endlessly. They never lose faith in whom or what they believe in. To mate a bronze dragon is to accept all that they are and honor the power shared between mates.

  “Now is the time of the marking. May the Universe continue to bless you and yours all the days of your lives together.”

  The Elders left the beach as the Guardsmen positioned bamboo panels around the couple, giving them privacy where before there had been none. In a flash the dragons were gone.

  Staring at the man she loved more than her own life, Melanie felt his love deep in her soul. He smiled that smile that made her weak in the knees and let her know he’d heard her thoughts and that he felt exactly the same way. The longer they stared at one another, the more brilliant his eyes became until she realized they were glowing.

  Jace lowered his mouth to hers, stopping just as their lips touched, and whispered, “Tá tú mo ghrá eternal. Ta’ mo chroi istigh ionat,” before capturing her lips with his.

  Melanie could feel Jace and his dragon everywhere. She was consumed with a heat that laid her open…body, heart, and soul to her mate.

  A sting on the left side of her neck caused her try to pull back. Jace held her close, left her lips, and trailed kisses across her jaw and down her neck, reaching the tender spot that had stung only a moment before. He licked and sucked the offending area until all thoughts of anything but their naked bodies loving one another were banished from her mind.

  She placed her hands on either side of his face and pulled his mouth to hers, kissing him until they were both again breathless. Jace pulled back and it was then that she saw the glint of mischief in his eyes. Grinning a sneaky grin of her own, she asked, “What’s going on in that beautiful mind of yours, Mr. MacQuaid?”

  “So many, many things, Mrs. MacQuaid.”

  She loved the sound of her new name on his lips and leaned in to give him a kiss, but he pulled back. “I want nothing more than to kiss you everywhere for every moment of the rest of our lives, but we have a reception to go to and I have a surprise for you.” Jace waggled his eyebrows. Melanie laughed out loud.

  Picking her up while she still giggled, Jace wound around the bamboo panels and using his enhanced speed, took her up the stairs and across a tiny meadow to a blanket spread out under a large oak tree with a picnic basket sitting in the center. Kissing her behind the ear, he gently sat her on the blanket before opening the basket and joining her.

  In the blink of an eye, Jace’s hand removed a small velvet box from the bin and set it in her hands. Melanie looked from him to the box and back again. “But I didn’t get you anything.”

  “Oh, but you did, Mrs. MacQuaid. You gave me your heart and there’s nothing more in all the world I could ever want.”

  Taking a deep breath to keep from crying and ruining her makeup, she opened the small hinged box and stared at its contents, completely dumbfounded. There, highlighted by the soft bronze velvet, was a thick platinum band with a tiny bronze bell hanging from an intricate Claddagh setting.

  Jace lifted the ring from its velvet pillow and the bell tinkled like the wings of the fairies she played with as a child. Melanie placed her hand in her mate’s outstretched palm. As soon as their skin touched, the jolt of electricity she’d come to associate with Jace zipped through her body and landed deep in her womb, making her wish they could skip the reception.

  Having heard her thoughts, Jace barked out a laugh and agreed. His expression switched to thoughtful in the blink of an eye and with his smooth baritone voice he spoke directly into her mind. “With this ring I thee wed. Wear it as symbol of our love and commitment. May this ring be blessed so that he who gives it and she who wears it may abide in peace and continue to love beyond life’s end.” Then he slipped the ring onto her finger.

  The tears she had been fighting to hold back all day began to fall. “Hey there. No tears. Today’s a happy day.” Jace pulled her onto his lap and placed butterfly kisses on her cheeks and forehead, drying her tears as he went.

  “And these are happy tears, Jace. You make me so very, very happy.”

  CHAPTER NINE

  He had been officially mated to Melanie for exactly three hours and they had yet to be alone. Both the man and his dragon were at the end of their proverbial rope. It was time to carry her back to Rory’s house and consummate their mating before Jace spontaneously combusted.

  She’d met his mother and brothers, who loved her at first sight, just like he knew they would. They’d cut the cake, danced all the dances, and accepted congratulations from people he wasn’t even sure he knew. It was time to get the hell outta dodge and he was going to make it happen.

  Making his way across the makeshift dance floor, he finally found his wayward mate chatting with the other ladies. “Oh no, he’s got that look.” Kyra teased.

  “Yep, he sure does.” Kyndel winked. “Guess we better say goodnight.” She laughed, closely followed by everyone at the table.

  Jace knew he should be more discreet but that course of action had flown out the window about two and half hours ago. He wanted Melanie so bad, he’d suffer embarrassment and harassment for years to come just to be alone with her. “Guess the gig is up,” he confessed while lifting Melanie into his arms.

  “Jace! Put me down!”

  “Oh, I plan to, in about ninety seconds.” The words were barely out of his mouth before they were speeding away, stopping only when they were on the porch of Rory’s house. The older Guardsman had graciously moved out of his home and taken his other houseguests for the duration of their stay, a gift Jace would make sure was repaid.

  “I hear there’s a human custom where the man carries his mate over the threshold,” Jace commented, holding onto his composure by the thinnest thread.

  “Yes…there is.”

  Slowly and deliberately, Jace lowered his lips towards hers, stopping right before they touched. “Then we’re going to do this right.” He growled just as their lips met.

  He kissed her with all that he was, pouring his undying love into her so that she would never doubt how truly special she was to him. He stepped over the threshold, slammed the door shut, and tore through the house like a man possessed.

  Reaching the bedroom, he gently laid her on the soft down of the white eyelet comforter he’d placed on the bed earlier in the day. Unable to be even a few inches from his mate, Jace settled on top of Melanie, holding his weight on his forearms positioned beside her head.

  When her legs went around his waist bathing his throbbing erection in her delicious heat, he thanked the Heavens for the strategically placed slits on both sides of her gown.

  Jace rolled his hips, holding her body captive, loving the look of complete abandon on her face. His hands felt their way across her hips, up her ribs, and rested lightly at the sides of her breasts, enjoying their fullness. His thumbs teased the area close to her nipples through her dress. He smirked as Melanie arched her back, trying to force his touch. He hadn’t meant to torture her but had to admit watching his mate loving his touch had just become his new favorite pastime.

  Unable to stand his own torment a moment longer, he reached around her body, quickly locating the ribbon that held her bodice to her chest. Lifting her into a sitting position, he kissed and tasted along her collarbone, making short work of the satin cord that was keeping her dress in place. One pull and the bodice fell. His mouth watered as her voluptuous breasts and berry-colored nipples were revealed. Licking across first one and then the other of her hardened peaks, he was rewarded with an “Oh my God, Jace…please…please never stop,” moaned from low in her throat.

  Needing to leave no part of his mate untouched, Jace took the nipple between his lips, teasing it with his teeth and tongue until Melanie bowed her back, pushing more o
f her breast into his mouth, and begging him to never stop.

  The scent of dianthus in the summer sun filled the room as he drove Melanie’s arousal higher and higher. His dragon pushed and roared in his head, demanding to taste their mate’s nectar. Assuring the beast they would soon taste all of her, he continued his seduction. Releasing her nipple, Jace latched onto the other, working her dress down her body and over her beautifully rounded hips. His fingers slowed as the lace of her underwear teased his fingertips.

  He left her nipple, kissing the valley between her breasts, tasting and marking every inch he could reach of her erotically curvy body. He reached the silk of her panties with his lips and inhaled long and deep. Melanie’s wonderfully unique scent left him unable to resist any longer. He knelt between her thighs, dragging the gown from her body and throwing the offending garment over his shoulder as soon as her feet slipped free. Ripping the tiny silk strings of her panties, they followed her dress, and finally his Melanie was gloriously naked and open to do with as he pleased.

  She was absolutely stunning. Truly the most magnificent creature he’s ever laid eyes on. As slowly as his need to be inside her would allow, he took in every inch of her glorious body. Jace started with the deep wine polish that covered her toes, up her shapely legs that would soon be wrapped around his body in ways most people only imagined, to her soft thighs he’d dreamt of having under his head from the first time he’d watched her walk away from him. Her rounded stomach, along with all her curves, begged to be loved over and over again.

  “Jace?” His name on her lips drew his gaze.

  “Yes, mo ghra’?” He crooned, massaging her thighs, making sure to brush the outer lips of her pussy every chance he could get. The way her hips jumped at every touch made his cock jump in his pants.

  “Jace…I want…No, I need….” She panted.

  “What is it you need, mo chroi’?” He teased, running his index finger up and down her slit, already wet with the proof of her arousal.

  Her breathing grew more ragged and her head thrashed from side to side as she begged for him to continue. Jace marveled at the vision of Melanie in the throes of passion, her head thrown back, her eyes closed tight, her mouth open as she called his name like a prayer to the Heavens.

  “I…Jace…Oh my…Jace…yes!” She wailed as he pushed through her folds and teased her opening, the juices of her arousal wetting his hand. Her pussy contracted around the tip of his finger, attempting to pull his digit farther into her warm wet passage. Adding another finger, he began gliding them in and out, her honey providing the perfect lubrication. His thumb drew lazy circles around her swollen clit while his fingers drove her higher. Every few swipes he bent his fingers so the tips would gently brush the very special bundle of nerves that made Melanie wild with pleasure.

  Needing to taste her more than he needed his next breath, he pulled out his fingers and answered her whine at the loss by driving his tongue into her pussy as far as he could reach. Her taste exploded on his tongue, flashes of light bursting before his eyes. He devoured Melanie like a starving man, swallowing every drop of nectar that flowed from her. The more his tongue moved within her, the more of her he drank in until he felt drunk. Her legs came over his shoulders, closing around his head, making breathing almost impossible, and still he consumed all she had to give.

  He felt her tense just a second before her orgasm overtook her. Screaming his name, she came on his tongue, filling his mouth until her juices ran down his chin. He continued to lick and massage as she came back to earth.

  Looking up, he found her smiling a lazy smile and gazing at him through passion-filled eyes. His only thought was to keep that exact look on her face for the rest of their lives together.

  His cock pulsed against his zipper and it was then that he realized he was still completely dressed. Not wanting to leave his place between her thighs but needing to feel her skin against his, Jace stood in one fluid motion, threw off his surcoat, tore the black long-sleeved T-shirt over his head, and had his pants kicked in the corner as quickly as possible.

  Climbing onto the bed, he held himself above Melanie, only a few inches separating their lips. Ever so slowly, he slid into her warm, wet channel. Inch by inch, he joined with his mate, shaking with the effort it took to go slow. Every contraction of her inner muscles pulled him farther into her body, milked his cock, and begged him to move faster. Summoning all his control, Jace held back. Sweat covered his chest and ran down his back.

  Melanie was so wet and ready, her excitement growing so quickly that her juices flowed freely from her pussy, puddling between them. When he was seated completely within her, he held completely still, reveling in the feel of his mate wrapped so tightly around his cock. He watched her face, eyes closed in passion, sweat dotting her upper lip, and lips parted while she panted. “Look at me, mo ghra’. Look at the man that will love with all that is in this life and the next.”

  Melanie’s eyes flew open. Jace felt the electricity only they could create sizzling stronger and brighter. She wrapped her legs around his waist and held tight as he began to casually slide in and out of her. She met him stroke for stroke. Their pace accelerated until he was pistoning in and out of her dripping channel, driving them both to the release they so desperately needed.

  She grabbed his shoulders, her manicured nails biting into his skin as she crushed her chest to his. The feel of her pebbled nipples rubbing against his chest created a friction he thought would set them ablaze. Shifting his hips, he caused his pelvis to bump her clit and his cock to rub the sensitive bundle of nerves atop her channel with every stroke. He could feel her orgasm building, bringing them both to the edge of something bigger and better than either had ever imagined.

  Buried deep inside his mate, Jace felt her muscles contract even more tightly around him until he was sure they had become one in body, just as they already were in spirit.

  “Trust me, mo chroi’, let go and trust me. You’ll never be alone again,” he groaned and thrust into her so hard and fast he bumped her cervix. The exquisite sensation undid them both.

  Melanie and Jace came with such force their bodies shook and it was hard to stay conscious. He had no clue if the shouting he heard was his or hers or both. He watched as his exquisite mate floated back to earth and could not resist placing butterfly kisses on her face and neck. He rolled to the side taking her with him, and lovingly placed her across his body, enjoying that she was boneless and spent, and he had made her that way. A peace he’d never known flowed between them. She opened her eyes and he was once again hopelessly lost to the one the Universe made for him. Jace knew there would never come a day when he would not need this woman with every fiber of his being.

  Hours later they lay completely exhausted, her head on his chest, their legs intertwined while their sweat soaked bodies cooled from their lovemaking. Her hand rubbed tiny circles on his chest, causing the bell on her ring to tinkle almost continually.

  Sitting up, he positioned Melanie on his lap, kissing her finger above and below her ring. “Emma made this ring especially for you, even before I’d worked up the nerve to speak to you for the first time.”

  “Really?”

  “Really. The bell is made out of one of my dragon’s scales.”

  “Oh, Jace, that’s amazing, but why a bell?”

  “Have you never heard the old saying?”

  “I don’t remember one about a bell.” She furrowed her brow and he could tell she was trying to recall one.

  Pulling her tight to his chest, he looked deep into her eyes as he lowered his lips to hers. As soon as they touched, he answered in the way of mates. “Every time a dragon kisses his mate, a bell rings. And I really hope you like the sound our little bell makes because I plan to kiss you every minute of every day.”

  Melanie’s chuckle sounded in his head, quickly followed by a sigh that said she was onboard with his plan for the future.

  “I love you more than the stars in the sky, Melanie Rose
MacQuaid.”

  “Yesterday, today, and tomorrow. I’ll love you forever, Jace MacQuaid. Just keep this bell ringing.”

  EPILOGUE

  How could he not have seen that his one and only heir was fated to mate a dragon shifter? And not just any dragon shifter but one of the Dragon Guardsmen of legend. Had he known, he could have placed wards specific to the giant winged warriors. He could have taken her anywhere but to his beloved coven, to the home of his followers. Melanie was the

  one of legend and now she was ensconced in a dragon clan, mated to a shifter.

  It wasn’t that he cared so much about the people themselves, but the sheer numbers and generations of Dorcha he had lost was something he didn’t have the time to regain. The number of witches and wizards and lineage coupled with the influence of the homeland of their founders had been a huge source of power for the Grand Draoi and in one fell swoop he’d lost all of it.

  The saving grace had been his foresight to have Soren and Mara keep the Grand Priestess on the other side of the mountain. At least they were able to continue their pursuit to ‘persuade’ Calysta to give them the location of the Thanatos spell. Their ability to bring the Dark Lord back to Earth would secure Cleland’s place of power and give him the immortality he so desperately desired.

  Of course, he also a backup plan for his backup plan. Hidden inside the soul of one of his followers was a spell of his own design. An incantation that if worked by him and him alone would bring all the dark magic practitioners in the world together for the purpose of opening the Hell Mouth to the Demon ar ríchathaoir. Once the spell was activated and its courier sacrificed, the Draoi would be able to bring a piece of Hell to the Earth. Its inhabitants would be beholden to him, servants that would then help him find Thanatos.

  He wondered what his precious Meli Rose would do if she knew her oldest and closest friend carried the ritual that could destroy the world.

  ~~~~~~~