by Katie Reus
Though he hated to let her go, he set her on her feet before him. The second her heels hit the ground, she shoved at his chest, her expression livid, eyes narrowed. He didn’t move.
“What’s the matter with you? Why would you do that in front of everyone? You can’t just manhandle me like that.” Her voice shook and her cheeks were flushed a delicious pink as she took a step back from him. That rise in color spread down her neck and over her barely hidden breasts. God, he just wanted to shred those laces with his claws and reveal all of her. “Quit staring at my breasts,” she hissed with a soft stomp of her heel.
His gaze flashed to hers. “Why? They’re mine.” The bold statement tore from his lips, his inner dragon in complete agreement. He was a fucking Alpha and tired of pretending he didn’t want to claim her. She might think this pull between them was casual, but it wasn’t for him. He wanted her for his mate and not just because of fucking biology.
Her full lips parted, her eyes widening in pure surprise. Just as quickly that surprise shifted and she let out a huff of annoyance. “Did you actually just say that?”
He took a step toward her, untamed energy like he’d never felt before pulsing through him. “Why’d you leave like that? And why the fuck were you grinding with some other male, dressed like this?” He couldn’t actually be sure that she had been but it was a guess.
When her cheeks tinged a bright crimson and she glanced down he knew he’d been right. “You acted like I meant nothing to you,” she finally said, her voice low, shaking with emotion. If he’d been human he might not have heard her. She looked back up at him and the hurt in her gaze did him in. Shit. All the anger he’d been feeling dissipated.
“Keelin—”
Swallowing hard, she shook her head. “It was humiliating. You didn’t even put your arm around me or on the small of my back or…anything. I know how possessive you are and I don’t care if it sounds stupid, but you acted like I was no one to you.”
“You’re not angry because she was walking around half-naked?”
Keelin blinked in true surprise. “You had no control over that. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t like it.” That anger was back as she said the last part.
He was an idiot. Risking her rejection, he took a step closer so that barely a foot of space was between them. He wanted to touch her so badly, but resisted. Because if he started something, he wasn’t stopping. And he wouldn’t be stopping tonight but first they needed to talk. Apparently. He hated talking when they could be doing more important things. “I wasn’t sure what their true intentions were and I didn’t want them to know you mean so much to me. It would make you an instant target.”
Her eyebrows pulled together as she stared up at him. “You acted like an asshole to protect me?”
“I didn’t… Damn it, yes. But I wasn’t trying to act like one. I need you safe, Keelin.”
“You just let an entire club full of supernatural beings know I mean something to you.” Her expression turned wary then, as if she’d decided what he’d just done negated what he’d said about his earlier behavior.
“Because you let some male put his hands on you.” The words came out as a growl. He grabbed her by the hips and tugged her against him so that she could feel his erection against her stomach. Screw keeping his distance. He needed his hands on her.
Her fingers splayed over his chest and he hated that there was any clothing between them. “We were just dancing.”
“Yeah, with you dressed like this,” he growled, a pop of anger resurfacing. He hated that he’d hurt her, but he was still pissed some asshole had touched his female. He wanted to rub his scent all over her so no male would come near her.
“Like what exactly?”
“Sex.”
Her lips pulled together in a thin line and she didn’t deny it. How could she when her dress looked more like lingerie. Hell, it probably was.
“With no fucking panties,” he continued, letting one of his hands stray down to the hem of her dress right in the front. Instead of shoving the dress up, he let one of his claws extend and split the material, careful not to touch her skin. He sliced all the way up to the laces and kept going. They popped free one by one, splitting right in the middle until he reached the last one.
The dress fell open, hanging loose on her body.
“That’s not my dress,” she whispered, her eyes wide, the arousing scents she was throwing off potent and sweet. Her body started glowing, the soft gold filling the room in a bright, beautiful light.
“Did you let that bastard touch you?” He didn’t know why he was asking. He should just let it go. But some dark part of him needed to know as he devoured her with his eyes, desperate to get his hands and mouth all over her. Now he finally understood why his brother was so fucking pussy-whipped over his mate. Females made you insane. But he knew Keelin was worth it.
She hesitated. “My hips.”
“Not these?” he asked, sliding his hands up over her ribs and side until he cupped the full mounds of her breasts. They were surprisingly heavy, her nipples hardening against his palms. He hated that his fingers were callused, that he could mar her soft skin in any way.
But she shuddered and arched her back at his touch, her eyes going heavy-lidded. She still hadn’t answered so he pinched her nipples lightly, needing her full attention. Her eyes flew open, her breath hitching in her throat.
“Did he?” he demanded softly.
She shook her head, her gaze falling to his lips. When she licked her own, he didn’t fight his groan. He wanted to capture her mouth now, hard and demanding, but he held back. Instead, he placed his hands on her shoulders and slowly turned her around. A giant mirror was on one of the walls—the one next to the huge bed they’d be using very soon—and he wanted her to see herself. To see how utterly beautiful she was in his arms.
He looked like a thug next to her, but he didn’t care. Her long blonde hair fell down around her face and breasts in waves. Her peaches and cream skin was flushed pink everywhere, her gray eyes glowing an incandescent silver. Sliding his fingers under the leather straps at her shoulders, he pushed the ruined dress off her until it fell in a heap at her feet. Soon he was going to bury his face between her legs.
Leaning down, he nipped at her neck, then earlobe, his gaze on hers in the mirror. He slid a hand over her stomach and down to her mound. He cupped it possessively and was pleased when she sucked in a breath at her unmistakable wetness. “This is mine too.”
She swallowed hard again but didn’t respond. More importantly, she didn’t argue.
But it wasn’t enough. “Say it.” He needed to hear the words. Needed to know she wanted him as much as he wanted her.
She held his gaze, stared back at him in the mirror, her eyes dilated with arousal. “I’m yours.”
It felt like a giant fist reached into his chest and squeezed his heart. Bran inhaled deeply, letting her scent and her words flow into him. The hand at her mound tightened as everything male in him bellowed in triumph. She was his and by the time they left this room she’d know it in every cell of her body.
Chapter 13
When Keelin’s hand slid down over his, essentially cupping herself over his touch, Bran’s dragon rippled beneath the surface just like when he’d first met her in Montana. She made him crazy, made him understand how a male could give up everything for a female. Deep down he knew he’d do anything for her. It didn’t matter that they were still getting to know one another. Everything about Keelin called to him.
Unable to stop himself, he raked his teeth against her neck again, knowing he was playing a dangerous game. She wasn’t ready to mate, his teeth shouldn’t be anywhere near her neck.
She moaned and her eyes drifted shut as she bared her neck to him. Damn it, no. The way she made herself vulnerable with him meant she trusted him.
He wouldn’t take away the mating choice from her. He couldn’t do that and live with himself. His damn dragon had other ideas.
“Wi
ll you touch yourself for me?” he whispered next to her ear.
He watched her in the mirror, not surprised when her eyes flew open. He sensed her apprehension and not for the first time he wondered if she was a virgin. The thought of her with any other male made him crazy, but at the same time the thought of being with a virgin was terrifying. He was barely civilized half the time. He was not the male to take her virginity. When she didn’t respond, he continued. “Are you a virgin?”
She shook her head, but he sensed her apprehension still, pushing against the surface. That bright gold glow dimmed a fraction. No!
“Are you nervous then?”
Her shoulders relaxed a fraction as she nodded. “Yes,” she whispered. Her honesty humbled him.
Even though he’d originally brought her in here ready to fuck raw and hard he realized they’d be doing things differently tonight. He was surprisingly okay with that. Because he wanted Keelin anyway he could get her. Pathetic? He didn’t care.
“Will you stroke your clit so I can watch?” he asked, his gaze clashing with hers in the mirror. The sight of her in front of him, completely naked and open to him, with him behind her, bigger, stronger and so damn brutal-looking—it made him want to be gentle for pretty much the first time ever. And this moment was more important than ever, because it was with Keelin.
Instead of responding audibly, she squeezed his hand, silently telling him to move. He did, but only sliding it higher to cup one of her breasts. As he did, she slowly started stroking herself, watching him intently.
Her breathing increased as her finger moved slowly, unsure at first. Watching her like that made him desperate. A low growl built in his throat at the sight.
When he started teasing both her breasts, rubbing his thumbs over her nipples, she let her head fall back against his chest, becoming more at ease. Even with her heels on she was so much shorter than him. He loved watching her like this, wanted to remember this forever.
Mesmerized by her stroking, he nearly jerked away from her when he realized the ceiling and every other surface in the room was coated with a pale gold flame. It wasn’t burning them and it wasn’t high, only an inch or so. Just as it registered for him, she saw the flames in the reflection of the mirror and froze.
Keelin turned in his embrace, her eyes supernova. “What—”
“It’s me.” His brother had told him this could happen when or if he ever mated. Bran hadn’t been sure he believed him but it was clear he’d started the mating process. Something he’d already known, but seeing the actual manifestation of how his clan mated made him even more determined to claim her. To protect her from anyone and anything.
“Is this part of the Devlin clan’s…” She trailed off, clearly not wanting to say the words. Because mating was apparently off-limits.
In a thousand fucking years he never thought he’d want to settle down but now that he’d found the right female he hated that she was so damn resistant to mating. How could she not feel the pull that he did? He wanted to crawl out of his damn skin.
“Yeah,” he rasped out. “Don’t worry though. I won’t…” Now he couldn’t finish the thought. But he wouldn’t bite her. It didn’t matter that they were both showing signs of the mating with her glow and his fire, until he bit her while he was inside her, he couldn’t solidify their link. And he was through talking. He needed to watch her come for him, then push inside her and make her his.
Cupping her mound again, liking that she was now facing him, he slid a finger inside her with no warning. She was so slick, so wet. And would taste amazing.
“Oh,” she moaned in surprise, leaning into him, her fingers sliding up his chest in a way he was coming to crave.
Even if he was still clothed. That was about to change soon too. Crushing his mouth over hers, he grabbed her by the hips and walked backward to the giant bed. Bigger than a California king or even the custom-size beds dragons tended to get, he’d never seen anything so big—which told him this was likely for multiple partners.
He snarled at the thought of sharing her, the sound ripping from him as Keelin’s legs hit the back of the bed. At least he couldn’t scent anyone else in this room. Bo must keep these places beyond clean.
“On the bed.” He knew he probably sounded like a domineering asshole but those were the only words he could force out.
She didn’t seem to mind, her breathing shallow and the scent of her desire overwhelming him as she continued to move backward. The pale gold fire covering the bed opened up for her, flickering all around her, but not touching. His cock ached as he watched her stretch out in front of him, her long hair falling around her face and breasts in waves. He couldn’t wait to fist her hair and pull her head back so that she bared her neck to him—no, damn it. He had restraint.
Moving quicker than he ever had, he stripped naked before crawling onto the edge of the bed. When he met her gaze he realized she was staring at his erection. She looked nervous.
Frowning, he stayed where he was, still crouching, even though every fiber in him wanted to take her. He reached out and gently picked up one of her ankles. Slowly he started removing the heeled shoe. “What are you thinking?”
“That you’re huge,” she blurted. Her cheeks turned pink and he knew she wasn’t trying to stroke his ego.
He slipped off the first heel then moved to the next, savoring the feel of her soft skin against his palms. She said she wasn’t a virgin and he believed her but that didn’t mean she’d been with shifters before. Because most dragons were big, especially the males. “Have you ever been with one of our kind?”
Those cheeks went from pink to crimson as she shook her head. “Just a human.”
He nearly swallowed his tongue at the way she said ‘a’, as in singular. Fuck him. He couldn’t help primal pleasure that punched through him knowing he’d be her first shifter. And her last. No one was going to touch his female. He was going to make sure she enjoyed this so much she’d never want to leave his bed.
He was going to have to go a hell of a lot slower than he’d planned. His cock throbbed almost painfully between his legs. Well tough shit for him.
Discarding the second shoe, he moved in between her legs, thankful that she easily spread them for him. Even her legs were slender and delicate-looking. Every inch he moved closer, the stronger her scent of desire grew and the brighter her own light illuminated the room.
He crouched down, dropping his head to her inner thigh, breathing in the heady scent of her arousal. His mouth watered. “Lay back.” A soft order.
She hesitated for a moment before letting herself fall against the silky cover. He nipped the sensitive skin of her inner thigh and she jerked, her hips rolling. Smiling against her leg, he moved higher.
She skated her fingers through his short hair, digging into his scalp. Oh yeah, he didn’t want her to let go. Unable to wait any longer, he moved fully between her spread thighs, sliding his hands up the inside of her legs as he moved. Without warning, he ran his tongue along her wet folds.
She jerked against him, maybe in surprise or just pleasure, letting out the sexiest moan he’d ever heard. He wondered if that human had ever kissed her like this or if this was her first time. He licked her again, savoring her taste and wondering if he’d ever get enough of her. She was fucking perfection. He’d never imagined he’d be with a female like her. Now he couldn’t imagine being with anyone but her.
“Bran.” His name tore from her lips as he continued stroking and teasing. Hearing his name on her lips made him even more possessive than he thought possible. He slid a finger inside her, not surprised by how tight she was. She was so damn slick he knew he’d have no problem sliding right into her tight body. And he was the one turning her on so much.
His balls pulled up tight at that thought, but he was making sure she came first. Because it didn’t matter how many lovers he’d had in the past, he knew that once he got inside her, he wouldn’t be as long as he wanted—not the first time. It was one of the
reasons he hadn’t let her touch him in that booth yesterday.
Flicking his tongue over her clit as he started stroking two fingers in and out of her, he grinned when he felt the tips of her claws scrape against his scalp. The bite of pain was welcome, letting him know she was losing control.
“Faster,” she demanded, her voice hoarse.
He increased his pace and the pressure of his tongue until her inner walls clenched tighter and tighter, the ripples of her orgasm starting.
“Bran!” she shouted and tore her hands from his head as her back arched against the bed. He heard the sound of ripping material as she writhed against his face and fingers, the slickness of her pleasure coating his fingers.
“You’re mine,” he growled against her, unable to stop the words from escaping.
As her orgasm punched through her, he withdrew his fingers and crawled between her legs. Though her eyes were half-open and she was coming down from her high, she reached for him, clutching his shoulders and pulling his face down to hers.
He cupped her face between his hands as he positioned himself between her legs. Slowly, he pushed past her folds, trying to give her time to adjust.
“Do it,” she ordered, her breathing out of control, as if she couldn’t wait to feel him inside her.
Unable to wait any longer, he slid into her, the feel of her tight sheath almost too much for his barely-there control. Slanting his mouth over hers, he began pumping into her with no damn finesse. He’d wanted to be gentle, but she wrapped her legs around him and dug her heels into his ass. Urging him, harder and harder.
It was too much. Everything about her was too damn much. He could feel his flames licking higher around them but ignored everything except the sensuous female beneath him.
