by Amelia Jade
“The Council has agreed to hear your message.”
“Excellent,” the princess said. “Okay Miranda, you heard her. Let’s—”
“Tomorrow.”
The princess stopped mid-sentence as she turned back to look at Klara. “Tomorrow?”
“Yes,” Klara said, almost sounding apologetic about it.
Daxxton’s eyes narrowed next to her and he inhaled deeply, but other than that, there was no reaction from him.
“And why such a delay, if I may ask?” the princess spoke again, eyebrows raised in polite curiosity.
“Oh, you know how these things are. People are scattered, need time to get back to Cadia proper and such,” Klara said with a wave of her hands, as if it were completely acceptable.
Daxxton snorted this time, earning him a reproachful glare from Klara, but nothing further happened.
“Every day I am gone from Tanith, I run the risk that Fenris will make a move,” the princess said through gritted teeth. “I have been away for too long already.”
“Yes, I know. I did stress urgency. But, these things take time,” Klara said. “You wouldn’t want for us to rush it, and then people decide against doing anything because they weren’t aware of the full scope of the situation, now would you?”
Miranda bit her lip, fingers clenching into fists as she resisted the very strong urge to say something very, very unwise.
Now is not the time. Wait for when it is necessary.
“Very well,” the princess said. “You will notify me of when and where once you have, ah, sorted out such trivial details?”
“Of course,” Klara said with a sweep of her arm that she turned into a short, very short, bow.
Then, before the princess could say anything more, she swept from the room.
“Bitch,” Daxxton said, speaking into the silence before anyone else could. “That whole thing smells like horseshit. She just needs more time to set things up so that she can turn it to her own advantage. I bet she told the Council that you asked for the meeting to be tomorrow.”
“No bet,” Miranda replied for the princess, who was taking deep, calming breaths to relax herself.
“Nolan, take the princess back to her quarters, please,” she said for the benefit of Daxxton.
“Yeah, probably a good idea,” the princess agreed. Her eyes flashed knowingly to Miranda, and a smile crossed her face.
Miranda’s jaw dropped open, but before she could respond, the princess was gone, Nolan at her side.
She knows! Miranda didn’t even bother to ask herself rhetorically how the princess knew. It must show, somehow. Dammit, she would need to keep more of a damper on her emotions then. If the princess could see it, then others probably could too.
She stifled a groan. If Nolan knew, then everyone would know. She hoped fervently that the princess had had the good graces not to tell Nolan anything.
Unless Nolan was the one who told her.
“Everything okay?” Daxxton asked.
“Huh? What?” She looked up.
“You’ve got a rather unhappy look on your face.”
“Oh. That. It’s nothing serious,” she said, waving a hand in dismissal. “Just something ridiculous.”
Daxxton looked at her for a moment, then shrugged, accepting her explanation.
“Care to review the security layout?” he asked.
“Yes. I should have done that already,” she replied, cursing herself for being so lax on the job. That wasn’t her normal style! She was letting him distract her from her job, and letting her trust in him further that problem.
Time to focus on the task at hand. You have a job to do.
***
They roamed the grounds of the Nova Estates as Daxxton pointed out the various security teams he had in place. Pairs of wolves and big cats roamed the outskirts, strictly as a warning system. They had very clear orders to call in any ground-based incursions and then get out of the way. This fight would be decided by heavy hitters, and there was no point in them getting killed just for trying to be honorable.
Closer to the house, video cameras were monitored by a three-person team inside the house, along with aerial infrared cameras that would pick up incoming shifters miles before they were a threat.
“This is impressive,” she remarked as they passed by a pair of grizzly shifters walking the perimeter of the house itself.
“Well, don’t forget, I’m staying there as well,” he joked, implying that it was all for his own protection, not for the Tanithians.
Miranda laughed alongside him, reveling in the ease with which the pair got along. The tension from earlier had evaporated as they had fallen into their respective roles in regard to security. Now they were just two professionals doing their jobs, and that was something that seemed to comfort them both just then.
“So, what does the princess intend to even say to the Council?” Daxxton asked casually.
“Like, exact words? Oh, I’m not sure. She’ll probably tell them of the things Fenris has been doing lately. Ask if anyone actually knew about them. See what kind of reaction that gathers, I would assume.” Miranda frowned. “How do you think the Council will react? Despite our mutual distaste for it, I’m sure you’re more knowledgeable of the inner workings of Cadia than I.”
He grimaced. “Oh how I wish I weren’t.”
Miranda grinned. “I believe it.”
He nodded slowly. “I think you will find some support. I know there is a faction that dislikes the money and the power-hungry faction that Klara represents. Unfortunately, they are in the minority. The best thing your princess can do is to find a way to word it so that the Council realizes they will lose money and influence if they don’t intervene.”
Miranda nodded. She’d already been thinking along those lines. “I wish…”
Daxxton halted his steps. “You wish what?” he asked, turning to look at her when she didn’t finish her sentence.
“I wish,” she said, her voice stronger this time, firmer. “That we could simply appeal to the good in them. To show them the evil that is Fenris, and for them to realize that if they don’t do anything, Fenris will do this to other strongholds. That they won’t stop until they, not Cadia, are the power to be reckoned with.” She growled. “But we can’t, because not only would that not work, but it would be seen as us asking for help, instead of showing Cadia the truth. We can’t do that without risking breaking our neutrality.” She threw her hands up in the air helplessly. “It’s a huge circle of bullshit!” she practically shouted.
Daxxton just looked at her.
“I’m finished,” she said. “Sorry.”
He smiled gently. “It’s okay. Sometimes we need to vent. I know that you’re in a shitty situation, and one that doesn’t allow you a whole lot of leeway. It’s tough, but I think together we can find a way to make it work. Cadia isn’t as far gone as you might think.”
Miranda desperately hoped that was true. If it wasn’t, then Tanith was doomed, and her people along with it.
Chapter Seven
Daxxton
They continued walking around, stopping only for a short break for lunch.
As they ate in mostly silence, each of them preoccupied, Daxxton tried not to study her. It was tough, because his dragon was awake and encouraging him.
That realization struck like a lightning bolt. His dragon always fought him on the subject of women. The first few times it had been tough for him to even be with a woman sexually because of the guilt and pressure his dragon exerted. It had gotten to the point he’d just learned to deal with it, shunting it aside for the few hours it was necessary.
But not with Miranda. Whatever was going on between them, his dragon realized it was more than just a desire to romp in the sheets.
Oh, that desire was very much present as well, he thought, flexing his legs as subtly as possible in hopes it would drain away some of the blood rushing elsewhere in his body. His eyes weren’t helping the matter, dragging over h
er slightly-exposed cleavage over and over again.
The black shirt she wore was form-fitting and hugged her luscious body, but its collar dipped low enough to show him the swells of her breasts, which drove him wild. It was worse now as she was slightly hunched over while eating her sandwich, revealing even more silky-soft skin.
Focus.
Yeah right. Like that’s going to happen.
His brain was at war with itself, influenced by the push of his dragon, which urged him to reach out and touch her. To run his fingernails up her arm. To sink his teeth gently into her neck. To—
Okay, that’s enough. I can only flex my legs so much, thank you very much. I need to be able to stand up shortly, so let’s stop imagining me leaping over the table and taking her, right there…
He rolled his eyes as his own brain betrayed him.
A few minutes of slow breathing and meditation cleared his brain, and relieved his, ah, problem.
For the moment.
“All done?” Miranda asked as a servant stepped forward to take her plate.
He would never get used to that. The Nova residence had servants everywhere. The pair hadn’t had to even go inside; they’d simply placed their order of food with a servant, who had then brought them their meals when they were ready. A ridiculous waste of wealth, in his opinion. To Klara it was nothing but a symbol of her status, but to him, it reeked of the desire to prove she was better than those around her.
“Indeed,” he said, pushing his plate back and handing it to the servant.
And as quickly as that, they were alone. Their dining spot had been located at the center of one of the hedge mazes, and the pair slowly made their way through the far side, seeking the exit.
The perfectly manicured greenery closed in around them, isolating them from the world but for a sliver of gray sky above.
There might be snow later, he thought idly.
“This is an intense maze,” Miranda commented as the bushes arched over the walkway, hiding even the sky from them.
The path was dimly lit by the light that filtered through and nothing more.
“If you’re scared you can hold my hand,” he teased, without realizing what he’d offered.
It had been a joke. That was all. Just a way to poke fun at her. And yet…
“Are you sure?” Miranda asked, her voice thick with nerves.
Was he sure? Shit. What the hell did he do now?
Take her damn hand you idiot!
“Yes?” he replied, the word coming out more like a question than the answer. But, it had the desired effect.
Did he desire it?
Of course he did. But Kyra.
He waited for the images of his first mate to come unbidden. To remind him of the price she’d paid for his actions. Then would come the screams. First for mercy, and then of pain. They always followed him, never letting go.
But nothing happened, except for five deliciously soft and tender fingers pushing their way through the spaces between his own, reaching tentatively at first, but with confidence as he didn’t flinch or pull away.
Daxxton had no idea what had changed, but it was clear something had. He shouldn’t be able to be in such a situation without his mind, and his dragon, making it violently clear they didn’t like it. But instead, he was fairly positive his dragon was happy.
Confused, he decided that the best thing to do was to stop it before it went any further. So he made the conscious decision to pull their hands apart.
Which of course, is exactly when his dragon decided to rebel, snatching a minute piece of control of his body away from him, and forcing his fingers to squeeze against Miranda’s in a show of affection.
You little traitor, he thought, sending the mental emotion through the link he shared with his dragon. But the entity that lived within him, not sentient, but definitely aware in a certain, indefinable way, simply laughed.
“This is nice,” Miranda said next to him, breaking the silence that had descended over them as he waged his mental war.
“It is, isn’t it?” he agreed, sounding surprised at his own words.
The scuffing of footsteps on the interlocking brick pathway in front of them broke the spell, and their hands dropped away.
A moment later, two big grizzly shifters meandered into view in bear form, ambling down the pathway. The pair stopped for a moment as they came upon the unexpected visitors, but once they recognized Daxxton, the big animals simply nodded and continue to walk.
He and Miranda flattened themselves against the wall of greenery in order to give the titanic animals room to pass, but even then it was a tight fit. Daxxton always marveled at how big they were compared to their feral cousins. If he were anything but a dragon, he would fear the grizzlies of Cadia immensely.
The pair of guards disappeared around the next bend, and his gaze returned to Miranda. Her eyes were mere specks of darkness in the gloom, such a dark shade of brown they were black to even his eyesight. But he could make out her flushed smile at the way the two of them had almost been caught like teenaged lovers.
Something awoke within him at the way she suddenly bit her lip.
“Inside?” he asked, his voice deep and gravelly, a very different tone than anything she would have heard from him before.
The change in his voice, plus his question, would make it very clear to her what he was thinking.
“Uh-huh,” she said, nodding shakily.
***
The thick steel door to her room closed with a clang, at odds with the wooden appearance of it, but Miranda barely noticed.
Her attention was focused on Daxxton’s hands as they slid up her sides under her shirt, his warm fingers running across her soft skin with a powerful tenderness that she’d never felt from a lover before. The sheer strength in his frame could be felt through that one touch, and yet she’d never been treated so tenderly before at the same time.
It wrought shiver after shiver from her as he moved up behind her, his grip tightening ever so slightly as he pulled her into him. Muscles pressed against her back, and Miranda felt her nipples harden under her bra, the sensitive nubs pressing through the material, straining for attention.
“We shouldn’t be doing this,” she breathed, her knees going weak as his mouth found her neck, hot breath washing over her moments before his lips sucked gently on her skin.
He kissed her neck all over, forcing Miranda’s eyes into the back of her skull as she moaned softly at the attention he was giving her, and the reaction it was getting from her body. She could feel the heat pooling between her legs already, and Daxxton had barely even begun to touch her, let alone undress her!
The heat that poured off his body was incredible, infusing her skin with a searing warmth that made her do nothing but crave more.
As if reading her mind, Daxxton peeled off her shirt, his lips pausing at her ear.
“I know,” he rumbled deeply, the words so low-pitched she could feel the vibrations across her skin as he spoke. “But I can’t seem to stop myself.”
“Good,” she said, the word practically a moan as his strong hands ran across her stomach and up to drag fingertips over the swell of her breasts. “Don’t stop,” she gasped as her bra seemed to magically fall away. “Please, don’t stop.”
A deep, manly growl sounded as his hands cupped her breasts at last, thumb and index finger gently pinching and rolling her nipples, tweaking them lovingly to produce nothing but an endless stream of pleasure.
“Daxxton.” She moaned his name as he held her tight, one hand still playing with her breasts, the other moving down painstakingly slowly, over her soft stomach and past her waist.
Miranda knew what it was seeking, and she urged him onward in his quest, whimpering and moaning as he slowed his process some more, making her wait.
Teeth nipped at her earlobe before sinking into her neck. Miranda hadn’t thought it possible, but her nipples hardened even more as a slight burst of pain shot through her system, drawing a
gasp of delight from her at the way it mingled with the pleasure.
Daxxton kissed her softly, before his teeth bit her again, lower this time. Not hard enough to leave marks, but enough to sting in a way that drove her insane.
She needed him. Right then and there.
“Take me,” she breathed, dropping her hands to her sides and questing behind her, feeling his cock under his pants as it pressed into her from behind.
She wanted him inside of her.
Not one to say no, Daxxton’s fingers leapt to her waist, swiftly undoing her pants. Fingers dipped inside her waistband and he pulled her pants and underwear to the ground in one swift motion, dropping to his knees as he did, so that her ass was right at his face level.
Then, without warning, a hand placed itself on her back and pushed her forward at the waist. Miranda gasped in shocked delight and bent over, her face pushing into the softness of her bed even as she stuck her ass out at him, exposing herself for him to see.
“Oh my,” he practically purred, his finger sliding up the inside of her thigh while she simply stood there and let him do as he pleased to her.
That same finger encountered her wetness, using it to help Daxxton slide it back and forth across her clit, a sensation that drove Miranda wild. Her fingers tightened into fists around the comforter, and she moaned louder into the material, pulling it to her face as he continued to touch her.
It was just one finger, but Miranda was already so aroused it didn’t matter. He was going to make her cum from simply sliding that one digit across her clit.
“I’m going to explode,” she begged. “Just a little harder, please.”
At first he didn’t respond, and she thought he was going to continue teasing her. Miranda wasn’t in the mood for that. She wanted to be fucked by the gold dragon, and she wanted it soon.
But a moment later Daxxton responded, his finger increasing its pressure, and to her delight, moving a little faster as well, finding the perfect rhythm to drive her wild.
“Yes, like that,” she said between gasps, her hips beginning to buck as he pleasured her. “Don’t you dare fucking stop,” she growled as her orgasm built, and built.
