His chest ached as badly as if a horse had kicked him and stopped his heart. “You expect me to walk away from everything and go into the world completely alone, not knowing if you and Father are dead or alive?”
“You must! Don’t argue. I love you, and I want you to live.” Alair glanced somberly around the cabin. “Choose a few things you’d like to keep, but don’t take photographs or anything that could identify you. Do you remember that cave we used to visit every summer?”
He nodded, suspecting the worst.
“I’m going to store a few of my paintings there and set fire to everything else in the cabin.”
When he saw the pure determination in her gaze, he froze.
“It’s the only way.” Alair gently placed her fingertips on Jace’s forehead and pressed firmly. “Break the link,” she pleaded. “Do it consciously, do it now, and don’t look back. If you love me and want a future of your own, do it.”
“JACE.” DEVON STIRRED beside him. “Are you awake?”
“Yes.” He drew Devon close to his chest.
“I thought so.” Devon rose on one elbow and looked at him. “I can’t sleep either.” She took hold of his hand, brushed a light kiss across his fingertips, and slid it between her thighs. “Touch me.”
His breath caught as he allowed his fingers to graze the silky tangle of curls before stroking them between her thighs. Heat rolled off her smooth skin, and her naturally provocative sexual scent mixed with subtle Marduko pheromones slammed into his senses hard.
Devon wrapped her hand around his shaft and guided the head so close it nearly touched. “Can you reach the backpack?” she whispered.
“Yes.” He stretched his arm toward the pack.
“Grab a condom please, before I burn a hole in these blankets. I’ve been lying awake waiting for it.”
Jace accidentally knocked the pack over and pawed at the side pocket, trying to reach inside. “That’s the dragon bite talking. It’s still in your bloodstream.”
She reclined onto her back with one knee crooked and stretched her arms above her head. A wicked smile crossed her lips. “At this point I don’t care what caused it. I just want it taken care of—now.”
He knew the more they kissed, shared dragon bites, and fucked, the more Devon would want. Once the pheromones were in her blood, her desire could only burn hotter. “I’m going to be a little more careful this time.” He tore a condom open and swiftly rolled it down his shaft. “I’m not going to kiss you.”
“Why?” She looked disappointed. “I love your kisses.”
“It’s not fair. I feel like I’m taking advantage.”
Arching against the blankets, she spread her legs. “Go ahead, take advantage. Please.”
He slid on top of Devon, carefully taking his weight on his elbows, and settled his body between her thighs. She wrapped her ankles behind him and gripped him tight. Her embrace was possessive. Being trapped against her was intoxicating, and he had to remain still for a moment and collect his thoughts before plunging in and losing himself inside her.
Devon twined her arms around Jace’s neck and drew him closer. “Kiss me,” she pleaded. “I want to feel the rush.”
Beau stirred on the blankets beside them, his eyes half-open with a sexy, drowsy expression. He pulled himself onto his elbows and gazed at Jace. “She wants it.” He leaned forward as his hand claimed Devon’s throat. “Give it to her.”
Jace mouthed, “Wait.” He’d wanted to take Devon without manipulations or tricks.
Beau ignored him. He swept a few strands of hair away from Devon’s throat, leaned down, and bit.
Damn! Jace winced. There went another chance to allow Devon her free will.
“Ah.” A sweet moan of pleasure crossed Devon’s lips as her eyelashes fluttered. A moment later she melted beneath Jace. “Oh my God. The bite is so....”
“Make her happy,” Beau demanded.
Devon writhed beneath him, so lost in sensation she could barely open her eyes, and when she did, her gaze had a misty, faraway look that made her appear as if she were already poised on the edge of climax. It was too much to resist.
Beau’s hand glided over his back, and his skin pebbled from the light touch. The reassuring but powerful gesture sent his heart soaring. It was so wonderful to share a bed with Devon and Beau and feel their limbs tangle with his. He dared to hope this was a glimpse of the future, but he didn’t feel good about taking Devon under the influence of a second dragon bite. This was all too new to her, and he didn’t want to be the cause of regrets tomorrow. Like it or not, he’d better back off. “Beau, it’s your turn.”
Devon looked surprised. “What?”
“Yes!” Beau playfully shoved Jace off Devon and rolled him aside.
Jace landed on his back and stared upward at the cave’s ceiling. He glanced sideways in time to see Beau aggressively snapping a condom down his shaft with both hands.
Beau knelt sheathed in front of Devon, who sprawled limp as a sleeping cat on the blankets. “Get on all fours,” he commanded.
Without hesitating, Devon turned over and settled onto her hands and knees. She openly presented herself to Beau with her arms stretched forward and her hips thrust high in the air. She glanced over her shoulder at Beau with a flirty look of expectation on her face.
Beau moved closer and teasingly rubbed the head of his cock between her thighs. “You know what’s going to happen, don’t you?”
Devon nodded and hurried to sweep her hair aside so Beau could more easily reach her bare throat. “You need it rough, don’t you?”
“So do you. I know what a dragon bite does. I’ve been on the receiving end plenty of times, so I know what you need.” Beau rubbed himself against her, growing slicker with every stroke. “I want you to know you’ll be cherished and loved. Jace can’t say it yet, but I will—I want to keep you. I want you to be ours, and I’d kill any man except Jace who comes between us.” He grasped Devon’s waist and held her still beneath him as he sank into her.
Tilting her hips against Beau, Devon adjusted to the steep angle and the provocative view made his mouth go dry. Watching was a bittersweet pleasure.
“Don’t move.” Beau gave Devon’s ass a firm smack with his palm.
She leaped in surprise. “What was that for?” A gleam of mischief shone in her eyes.
“Don’t move until I tell you to move”—Beau’s voice was a husky growl as he sank deeper—“or I’ll spank your ass until you’re on fire. Begging won’t do you any good either, because I’m still going to fuck you hard and fast.”
“Damn, what’s gotten into you, Beau? I like it. You used to be so shy.” Devon wriggled playfully in Beau’s clutches and feigned pulling away. It heartened him to see Devon giving Beau a bit of a challenge and Beau taking charge. Strong partners made a strong trio.
Beau gripped her hips and pulled her against him, then swatted her ass with his open palm. “Stay,” his tone was stern.
Devon froze, and he wondered what she was thinking. He became worried that Beau was taking things too far. “Speak up, Devon, if something doesn’t feel right.”
“Hush.” Devon appeared to be floating in her own little world. “I love it.” She arched back, her eyes closed. “But I’m going to be bad.” She broke free from Beau with an abrupt lunge and scrambled across the blankets.
Beau was quick to chase and pounce on top of her. He pinned her beneath him with decisive force. “Now you’re in trouble.” His voice ground to a harsh rasp. “I’m going to ride you twice as long.” He lowered his mouth toward her nape, nuzzled her throat and nipped.
Devon gasped a high, sweet sigh. “Oh my God, Beau!” She appeared stunned. “Start moving. Please—”
Beau sank into her with a slow thrust. “Do you want to belong to me?”
“Yes,” she squeaked.
“Will you share yourself equally with Jace and me and no one else?” He pumped faster.
Devon parted her lips, but no words came
out. Her breathing was quick and frantic.
“I need an answer.” Beau leaned over her and nipped her throat again.
“Ah.” Devon moaned softly as her body shuddered. “Please finish me.”
Beau slapped her ass with his palm. “That’s not the answer I’m looking for.”
Devon gulped a deep breath. “I want both of you.”
“Good answer. I’m going to be merciful and really fuck you.” Beau arched over Devon’s back as he went wild. The muscles of Beau’s thighs tensed like steel as he moved at a brisk pace.
Devon clawed the blankets as the multiple dragon bites surged through her bloodstream and left her out of control during what appeared to be a series of toe-curling climaxes.
Beau’s hips sped. He thrust into Devon with short, furious strokes and stilled. “God, that’s good!” He tipped his head back as he finished inside her. They toppled onto their sides and lay still for what felt like a long while. Only the rapid rise and fall of their chests betrayed any exertion.
“Wow.” Devon trembled as she gripped the blankets. “That was almost too much,” she muttered. “Those dragon bites are sweet but harsh. I thought I was going to jump out of my skin.”
Beau carefully pulled free of Devon and tossed the spent condom into the flames of the fire, where it instantly hissed into oblivion. He reached for Devon and drew her into his arms. “Are you all right?” He rocked her against his chest with tenderness. “I would never hurt you. It’s not always like that. I wanted you to get a taste of what I feel for you. That’s what full-blown Marduko sexuality feels like. It’s fierce. I thought it would be better to experience it now than be surprised later.” He kissed her lips. “But we can be gentle too.” He lowered his face and licked the bite marks on her throat with care. “The bites could be sore for a few hours, but this will help them heal. By tomorrow they’ll be gone.”
Jace slid closer and spooned Devon from behind. Her soft, warm body was a perfect fit against his.
She snuggled between him and Beau, making herself comfortable.
Jace pulled the blankets around them and reached out to embrace Beau too. “Doesn’t this feel right?”
DEVON SHIFTED ON THE blankets. Restless tension gripped her spine and refused to allow her some much-needed sleep. Her mind was alert and ready to flip past the many life-altering events of this remarkable day.
Jace and Beau lay on either side of her. Their breathing was steady and deep, and she assumed they were peacefully lost in their own private dreamlands. Their solid bodies radiated far more heat than was needed to be comfortable. She longed to kick a leg from underneath the covers and cool off, but couldn’t.
Perhaps it was the lingering effects of multiple dragon bites, but she was already longing to make love again, and wished someone would wake up and be interested in the same thing. She gazed upward at the flickering shadows on the cave ceiling, thinking.
She allowed her hand to roam across the silky strands of dark hair running down the center of Jace’s chest.
Jace grumbled in his sleep and drew her near.
“Are you awake?” She deliberately woke him.
Jace gently stroked her face. “I thought I was only dreaming that you were here with us.” He kissed her lips. “I’m so glad it’s not a dream.” He slid his hands down Devon’s body and pulled her beneath him. He was already hard as he settled between her thighs. “This is how we should always wake up.” He pressed inside her with a firm, easy stroke.
She surrendered to him with a soft sigh, loving the feeling of being taken by a warm, half-asleep man. Holding Jace close, she tangled her fingers in his tousled hair as she brushed her lips against his. He felt so good; this truly was the way she should wake up every day.
Jace moved with lazy strokes that hit her sweet spot in just the right way. The muscles of his back tensed, and heat poured off his skin. Lying beneath him was a consuming experience that thrilled her senses. The excitement built to an almost unbearable pitch.
He leaned closer and whispered in Devon’s ear, “Do you think you could accept us?” A slight note of desperation hovered below his words. “Could you ever love me?”
She already did, but it was far too scary to say so. What was the rush? She looked into his expressive eyes. “It could happen.”
Jace locked his arms around her as his pace increased. His breath and the rhythm of his heartbeat matched hers. “Devon—” He pushed deep and came hard with a rough moan.
For a fleeting but intense moment all boundaries between them faded, and she felt like she and Jace were a single being, bathed in love. His release triggered hers. She shuddered beneath him, riding her own climax that rolled on and struggled to stay with the feeling of closeness a few moments longer, but was frustrated that she couldn’t. A heartbeat later she was merely Devon again. It was hard to come down and once again be separate.
As she lay breathless under Jace, she caressed his shoulders. It was only as she began to drift back to earth that she realized they’d not used a condom. She started to comment about it, but for some reason stopped. A part of her wasn’t upset about it at all, and she questioned why.
“Devon.” Jace gazed down at her, looking troubled. “I didn’t—”
“I know,” she interrupted.
He became somber. “I won’t rush you, but when you’re ready to make a commitment without the interference of a dragon bite in your system, I want you to permanently link with me. A mate link is a serious thing to accept, but I need you to look into my heart and mind and know I’d never abandon you or Beau. I’m not that kind of man.”
“Jace, one day at a time.” She lowered her voice when Beau stirred on the blankets beside her. “I’m not thinking clearly. Everything is coming at me way too fast.”
She suspected Beau was long awake and just being polite about allowing her and Jace a private moment to figure things out. She leaned over him. “Beau, I know you’re awake. What are you thinking?”
Beau opened his eyes. “Since no one is really sleeping, I think we should get up before dawn and go flying as a pack.” His eyes sparkled by the faint light of the fire. “It’s the most beautiful feeling in the world. You can ride on Jace’s back. The only sound in the sky is the snap of our wings beating against the wind. It’s total freedom to catch an updraft and soar. You can bring your camera. You’ll love it. We’ll return to the cave while our side of the mountain is still in shadow.”
She knew she would be terrified to climb onto Jace’s back and cling to him as he leaped off a rocky ledge, but she couldn’t say no to this amazing adventure either. If there was ever a time to tap her inner courage, it was now. “If you’re sure I’ll be safe, I’ll do it.”
Beau smiled. “I can’t wait to share our world with you.”
Devon traced her fingertips across Beau’s hand. “You already are.” She sat upright with a blanket drawn close. “I’m hungry. Let’s have something to eat and go flying before I lose my nerve.”
Chapter 12
Jace threw another piece of firewood into the smoldering flames and filled the aluminum pot with water to heat. He reached toward the backpack and sorted through several foil-wrapped MREs. “Let’s take a look at our choices.” He held the first packet toward the light of the fire. “We have oatmeal.” He glanced at a second packet. “Oatmeal.” He pulled out a third packet. “And cinnamon oatmeal. Who wants oatmeal?”
Devon raised her hand. “Actually, oatmeal sounds good.”
“Okay.” Jace dropped the packets into the pot of water.
Devon’s gaze drifted between the two men. “When you’re in dragon form and don’t have”—she hesitated to mention the dragon snouts—“human speech, how do you communicate?”
“We’re linked.” Beau was quick to answer. “I know what Jace’s thinking, and he has a mental image of what’s in my mind as well. If we’re apart and I really concentrate, I can send him a clear snapshot of where I am and what I’m thinking.”
�
��Really?” The sense that Beau was inside her head, poking around, was very real. Devon found the idea of another reading her thoughts and the subsequent lack of privacy a bit intimidating.
“You get used to it.” Beau’s gaze was piercing. “After a while it feels lonely to be unlinked.”
“I just felt a little exposed.” She stilled. “For a moment there I could have sworn you were in my thoughts.”
“I was.” Beau smiled. “All those dragon bites I gave you are opening you to the possibility of forming a link with me and Jace.” The smile drained from his face. “That is if you choose to. It’s completely your choice.”
“How is it done?” She sat straighter. “What if it doesn’t work out? Is it possible to unlink?”
“It’s possible,” Jace’s voice rumbled. “It just hurts like hell and takes a piece of your heart with it.”
The look of angst brewing in Jace’s eyes worried her. “Have you done it?”
“Yes.” Jace looked away.
“Why?”
“Because I was asked to.” Jace turned toward her with a sullen expression. “And I loved the people I was linked to enough to do it.”
Her heart dropped. “Was there an earlier mate?”
“No.” Jace shook his head. “They were my parents.”
Beau turned toward Jace. “We should tell her.”
“The Marduko are not a complete secret.” Jace stirred the packets in the pot. “There are covert groups who have long been in contact with us, even fought beside us and intermarried with the Marduko, but their tolerance of dragons in a modern world has run out. No one needs a dragon soaring above their battlefield anymore to intimidate the enemy. What once left militia in awed respect can now be accomplished with an armed helicopter. We’re redundant, and dangerous because they don’t understand us. One group in particular has made it their goal to eradicate the Marduko.”
“Why would they want to do that?”
The Lady Prefers Dragons Page 20
