by Ines Johnson
What did he like about her? Other than the fact that she was the only human female available.
"I'd like to kiss you,” he said. “May I?"
Here it was. Her first kiss. He was close to her. His lips closer than Kimber's had been. She waited for the butterflies to riot in her stomach. And waited...
Chapter Sixteen
Kimber waited by the window. He wouldn't admit that he'd been waiting there all day for the first sign of her. The moment he saw the blue dragon flying in the sky was the first moment he let out an exhale.
Last night, the night of her date, he’d stayed in the mines pounding the earth with his bare hands. Staying home and not running off to see what her date with Izem was like had nearly torn him to pieces. His dragon was a raging beast inside of him all night and into the next day. But today was family dinner, something Cardi and Ilia had insisted on after watching some television show. Today he was glad for the longstanding tradition.
The moment he saw her red hair in the sky the beast settled, marginally. As she came closer to the castle, while flying on Rhoyl's back, Kimber inspected her face. She was smiling, laughing.
Oh, Goddess. What if she'd had a good time on her date? What if she had had a really good time. What if she had let that furry beast touch her, kiss her, or do more.
Rock crumbled in Kimber's hand. His claws came out and he dug into the frame of the wall. No matter how many deep breaths he took, he couldn’t get his blood to cool.
They landed and Cardi stepped off of Rhoyl. She rubbed her nose against his. As she leaned over Rhoyl her backside was to Kimber. The raging beast in him noted that her ass did, in fact, look like ripe melons. His anger cooled, but his ardor spiked.
Kimber cursed under his breath. Then he cursed again, this time at Konan for putting the thought into his mind.
Turin was wrong. Kimber knew that when Cardi turned. Her breasts were definitely not C cups. He'd seen the number in her bra. It said D.
Now he was thinking about her bras and breasts. No matter what he did, he couldn’t see the little girl who had come to him all those years ago. Truth be told, she had always looked this way. Had she ever been a little girl? Or had she just seemed that way to him in that first moment when everything in him told him he had to protect her from his father?
Kimber knew that in human years Cardi had been legal the moment she'd been brought through the Veil. The Valkyrie wouldn't have brought her to the dragons otherwise. They castrated child molesters.
He knew the moment she entered the castle. Her scent wafted all the way up to the rafters. It was the smell of overripe berries. His favorite dish.
How was he going to make it through this dinner?
"You didn't bring your new man?" Ilia was saying when Kimber entered the dining room. "What? You were afraid we'd eat him?"
"We wouldn’t have eaten Izem,” said Elek, taking his turn to hug Cardi. "It would take me a whole day to skin a full-grown lion."
The others laughed at the joke, but Elek did not.
"It was only a first date," Cardi said. "You don't bring a guy home to meet your family after the first date."
Her face contorted as if she was thinking about something contradictory. She must have brushed the thought off because her features evened out. Her gaze met his.
"Hello, Kimber."
Kimber stepped out of the shadows. "Good evening Cardinal. You're looking..." His gaze scanned her body taking her in as if for the first time. She wore a simple sundress. No lace. No frills. Just her.
"You're looking very beautiful today."
Cardi’s breath caught. Her lips worked for a moment before any words came out. "Thank you."
Kimber nodded. They stared at each other for a second. He didn't go to her and offer her a hug. He knew better than to let his dragon get too close. If it got its claws on her now it would not let go.
Worse, if it smelled a hint of lion on her, it would tie her up and then go on a tear until all of the cubs' blood was running between his fingers. That would not bode well for the accord talks and peace in the land.
They all took their places at the table. Kimber sat at the head. Cardi looked at her normal spot beside him but then opted to sit in the middle of the table next to Poppy who was taking off on her honeymoon with Beryl in just a couple of days.
"Oh, my favorite," Cardi beamed as Elek sat the dish of stewed gazelle down in front of her. "And it's well done."
"Yes, of course, it is,” said Elek.
Kimber wrinkled his nose at the very dead and dark meat on Cardi’s plate. But that's the way the girls liked it. The blood ran from the males’ meat, with only a little fire at the top and bottom.
Cardi's stomach growled as she reached for her knife. Kimber frowned. Had she not been eating? She pushed up her dress sleeves and prepared to dig in.
"What is that?"
Knives screeched to a halt against the porcelain plates. Forks halted on their way to mouths. Everyone turned to Kimber. His gaze stayed on Cardi's forearm. There was a red mark on her arm that had never been there before.
"Oh, that?" She rubbed a hand over the spot and then gave it a scratch. "It's just a bug bite. Izem and I..."
She paused, looking under her lashes at Kimber. Then she steeled her back and went on.
"Izem took me on a midnight picnic at the watering hole for our first date."
"There are megas at the watering hole," said Kimber. "He didn't have anything to cover your skin."
"He didn't realize that I'd get bitten. It's his first time dating a human."
Kimber bit his tongue until he tasted blood. She had never been harmed by anything under his care. He'd always thought about her safety first and planned thoroughly to protect her.
"A midnight picnic sounds lovely," said Chryssie, ever the peacemaker. "Did he cook?"
"Well,” Cardi hedged, slicing into her tender meat, “lions aren't known for cooking. He did present me with the best cut of meat."
"I'll bet it was raw," said Kimber. That's why her stomach was grumbling. She hadn't been able to eat.
"He had blossoms.” Cardi sliced her meat into finer and finer pieces. “He tried. At least he's trying."
Kimber ground his jaw. But when he spoke his voice was gentle. "Eat your food, Cardinal. It's getting cold. We have your favorite for dessert as well."
“Ben and Jerry’s Cherry Garcia?”
He nodded.
Cardi tried to swallow her grin and failed. "Thank you."
If Izem was to be her choice, so be it. But the male needed lessons in how to care for her. She was strong, but she was also breakable and the lion needed to understand that.
The clanking of silverware and the gnashing of teeth became accompanied by music from a boombox. Cardi looked up fork halfway to her mouth. Her grin could not be contained this time.
Cardi's eyes brightened. "Is that Madonna’s Crazy For You?”
"Yes," said Corun with a grimace. "Kimber thought it would be nice to play during dinner since you enjoy it so much."
Cardi turned to him, but Kimber wouldn't meet her gaze. He was too busy wrangling his dragon.
"And after dinner, we'll have a tournament," said Beryl. "Kimber let us hook up the gaming consoles in the Great Room."
"That sounds awesome," said Cardi.
Her voice sounded different. Kimber looked up to see if she was in pain or any discomfort. There was a tear in her eye, but he didn't scent any blood. And she was smiling as she wiped the tear away.
"This means a lot to me," she said, her gaze on him. "I missed you guys."
"This is your home, Cardi,” said Ilia. “This will always be your home and we will always be your family. Even if you have a litter of cubs."
Kimber excused himself. That was as much as he could take.
Chapter Seventeen
Cardi couldn’t help but notice that Kimber didn’t stop looking at her all through dinner. He couldn't stop looking at her now as she sat on the couch next
to Ilia and Beryl in the game room. She'd even felt his eyes on her when she'd been flying here. His gaze wasn't the cold hard ice of diamonds. There was brown there, which meant Kimber the man was stalking her, not the dragon.
Cardi pressed a sequence of buttons on the game which took her opponents down.
"She won," growled Beryl.
"She always wins," said Ilia.
They were right. Cardi always won. Tonight might be the night she won the long game, the one she'd been playing since her first night here.
"It's getting late," said Corun from the other side of the room. His arm was around Chryssie. "I need to get my mate to bed."
"Sure," smirked Beryl as he pressed start on a new game. "That's why you two are headed off."
"I'm kinda tired too, Beryl," said Poppy.
Beryl’s fingers hovered over the control for a split second before he looked up at his mate. Then he flipped the controller and grabbed her up in his arms.
"Was that too rough?" Beryl asked.
"I liked it," Poppy was breathless. "Do it again."
She squealed as he raced with her up the stairs. A loud door slammed a moment later. Sure, they were going to sleep as well.
"You want a rematch?" asked Ilia picking up the discarded controller.
"No, I think they're right," said Cardi. "It is getting pretty late. And I have to work in the morning. I should head home."
"Not this late at night," said Kimber.
Inwardly Cardi cheered. Outwardly, she looked up at him, face full of innocence. "Seriously, Kimmy. No one's going to bother me on the way. Not with lions out prowling the night."
Kimber's jaw ticked. It took everything in her to keep the mask of innocence on her face. She’d barely worn any makeup tonight. Grimmald didn’t have a decent mirror in the apartment, so she’d been only doing the bare minimum. She didn’t want to look like a scary doll.
"Fine,” Kimber said finally, resignation filling his voice. "Do you want me to call Izem on the crystal?"
"What? No. I..." Cardi stood and approached him.
Kimber’s body tensed. His eyes glowed brightly at the edges, but they remained mostly brown. There was a ticking sound coming from him like he was grinding his molars.
All she wanted was to put him out of his misery. All she wanted was for him to put her out of her misery. All she wanted was for him to finally admit that he had feelings for her.
"Do you want me to give you a ride home?" Kimber asked.
"You don’t have to shift,” she said. “You can walk me.”
"It's far, Cardi."
"It's just up there." She pointed to the second level of the castle. "I figured I could sleep here tonight. If that’s okay?“
Kimber nodded his head and stepped back for her to precede him. Instead, Cardi tucked her hand in the crook of his elbow. His eyes glowed ice cold but his skin was hot.
"Thank you for dinner," she said as they started up the stairs. "Everything was wonderful. I'm glad I can still come here."
"This will always be your home. You will always have my protection. No matter what you choose."
No matter what she chose? There was that word again. Choice. Leona had mentioned something about Cardi choosing. So had Izem.
“Are you saying it’s okay with you if I chose Izem?"
Kimber’s hold tightened on her. "I want what I've always wanted for you, Cardi; for you to be safe and have a long life."
"What about my happiness?"
"Does Izem not make you happy?"
Double negative. She wasn’t good at those. So, she shrugged.
"He needs to learn how to care for you,” Kimber continued. “Really? The watering hole? Raw meat?"
They came to her old bedroom door. Cardi turned the knob but didn't go in. She leaned against the door frame and glanced inside.
Someone had straightened the room. But it was stripped bare of her colorful comforter, only a plain sheet remained on the mattress. All of her trinkets and toys were cleared off the dresser.
"This room really doesn't fit me anymore," she said.
"I agree. You've matured. I didn't like you working at first, but it's had a good impact on you. You're more responsible. You understand things better."
Cardi nodded as she turned to listen to him. She hadn't let go of his arm. She leaned on the inside of the door frame. Kimber rested his big bulk on the other side of the doorframe. Only a few inches existed between their bodies.
"You've grown into a remarkable young woman, Cardinal. I want you to know I'm very proud of you."
"Thank you, Kimber. That means a lot."
He nodded. Then he leaned forward. Cardi held her breath. This was it. He was finally going to kiss her.
And then he did. His head tilted and his lips aimed for the side of her cheek. Cardi turned her head at the very last second and caught his mouth.
Kimber gasped, but he didn't pull away. His eyes flew wide open. The brown iced over into diamonds in a flash.
There was only a sigh of air between them. Cardi held her breath and waited. Her momentary patience paid off. Kimber pressed into her, sipping at her.
This should have been her first kiss. Not the clumsy licking she’d experienced with Izem the other night. That had felt wrong. This was completely right.
Kimber pulled away from her and cursed. "I'm sorry. We're both tired. You should go to bed."
"I want to go to bed. Just not this bed. I want to go to your bed."
"Cardi..."
"Tell me no.” She pressed her chest against his, trying to close the distance between them again. “Tell me you don't want to."
Kimber’s pale eyes were so clear that Cardi could see the confusion in them. ”You chose Izem."
Why was he going on about this choice? “Kimber, what do you want? What do you choose? I know you were stuck with me after your father’s challenge-"
"Stuck with you? I could've let you go. I could've given you to one of my brothers."
"Are you saying you chose me back then?"
He bit at his lower lip. Then he let out a breath. The air must have come from deep within because it warmed her through.
“If I had known then what I know now?" He let out a little laugh.
Cardi's heart dropped to her stomach. Here it came. If he had known she would be so much trouble he’d never have claimed her.
“If I’d known that you'd turn out to be such an amazing woman, I would've ended the fight with my father faster. I would've claimed you sooner so that you wouldn't have a choice now."
Cardi had to fight past the harsh pounding in her chest as her heart resurfaced. “I don't have a choice. I never had a choice. It was always you. It was always going to be you.”
"So you choose me? Over Izem?"
Cardi had already told Izem that it wasn’t going to work between them. Not after that kiss. She’d walked away feeling nothing. She craved her independence, but she couldn’t go through life not feeling fire. She was a fireblood. The lion’s fur was just too cool.
"Izem doesn't like Madonna. He gave me raw meat. I have bug bites. I-"
She was cut off by another kiss from Kimber. This kiss wasn't gentle. It was a claiming kiss.
"Please, Kimber. Please choose me back this time."
Kimber lifted her off her feet. She wrapped her legs around his waist. She could feel the heat of his erection against her core and she gasped.
"Not just for this time," he growled, "for all time."
Yes. Yes, it worked. She had been a little worried there, but she finally got her dragon. It just took the equivalent of thirty years in human time. And now he was going to claim her. Thank the Goddess she wore a matching panty and bras set tonight.
Kimber kissed her all the way to his room. She was only aware that they’d arrived when he slammed his door closed behind them. Then he tossed her onto the bed. Cardi landed with a bounce.
"Are you gonna be a good girl?" he said as he loomed over her like a beast off his
leash.
Cardi saw spots of brown in his eyes, but the dragon was clearly in control. "Probably not."
"Good,” he growled.
Chapter Eighteen
Kimber was out of control. Not him -the man. Him the beast -the dragon.
Cardi was on the bed. The bottom of her dress had risen up, exposing her creamy thighs. Where were the long spindly legs of her youth? Had her legs ever been skinny? Or had they always had that fleshy bit at the crest of her thigh that made his canine's water?
He needed to bite. The desire was beyond his control. The beast would have her.
The flare of her nostrils told him she wanted it. The way her teeth tugged at her lower lip told him she needed it. And her words?
"Kimber, I need you."
If he hadn't believed any other signal, including the sweet heat of arousal seeping from her pores, the words coming from her mouth cinched the deal. She wanted this. She wanted him.
And she would have him, growled the dragon.
But safety first.
Kimber grabbed some rope from a chest and began the ritual of binding. It was for her safety. But of course, the dragon took pleasure in seeing the marks the ropes made on her skin. Fire burned in his gut when he pulled her body taut and bound her arms over her head.
For the first time since he’d known her, Cardi was silent. Her gaze remained wide as she watched his every loop and knot. But her mouth stayed shut. Well, she panted in little wanton gasps. But she didn’t say a single word.
With her hands bound, Kimber tied the end of the rope to the bedpost. Cardi’s back arched off the bed as he did so. He saw his mistake then. He’d left the pullover dress on her. Looked like he would be sending Morrigan on another clothing run.
A rip tore through the air as the fabric was rendered into two. Miraculously, his Cardinal still did not offer a single protest as he tossed her tattered dress to the ground. Instead, her flat belly trembled and she pressed her knees together.
Kimber reached behind her and freed her D cups from their holder. Her pink nipples strained as he uncovered them. He gathered one pert berry in one hand. The other he dipped his head down for a taste.
