Finding the Dragon (Dásreach Council Book 1) (36 page)

Seeing those dimples helped Alvena relax more than the fancy tub had. He was still Kai. Still her Kai.

“Okay.” She sighed.

They stood and stared at each other for quite some time before the air on her skin made Alvena shiver.

“Um, I guess I’d better get dressed.”

“Alright, lass, there are a few things that you might be able to sleep in and shirts for tomorrow. I didn’t know your jeans size, so you’ll have to wear the sweats I bought or your dirty jeans.” He rambled as he looked at her from head to toe.

Al glanced down quickly to make sure the barely there towel covered the important parts.

“Oh, I’m sure these will be great.” Alvena looked around the bathroom trying to figure out what to do.

“Step back. I’ll close the door for you.” After she moved back into the bathroom, Kai grabbed the door handle and pulled the door closed.

Alvena laid her head against the closed door. What was she going to do with that man?

“Oh, and lass, I’m going to call Dar while I wait on you, so don’t worry about hurrying.” His voice startled her. The man was always sneaking up on her and startling her, whether with his actions or his words.

***

Kai stood by the door just listening to Alvena move around inside of the bathroom. When he had returned and didn’t hear her, just the water and noise from the jets on the tub, the worst case scenarios had popped into his head. He hadn’t wanted to bother her, wanting to allow her time to enjoy the bath, but he had to make sure she was still in there and still safe.

Her look of gratitude when he had handed her the bag of clothes, was priceless to him. It had made it worth asking for directions to the store and then driving over and searching through the 24-hour stores’ women’s department. He had gotten a few strange looks, but his Alvena was worth it. The older lady who had looked at him in the underwear aisle was priceless on her own, she had made it very obvious her thoughts about him being there. It made him laugh how people never think twice about a woman buying pants, but see a man looking through the women’s under things and they think he’s a perv.

He shoved away from the wall and went to the phone beside the bed. He really needed to call Dar and find out if there was any news about his brothers, but then again, maybe he should contact the council. He needed to let them know about their flight and see about getting some men to the airport to help protect his mate. He would not take chances with Alvena’s life.

He dialed the number he knew so well and waited. It rang several times, before a familiar voice picked up.

“Hello, Marcus, this is Kai.” He waited for the man to stop babbling at him, before continuing. “Aye. I know. I hope Dar has kept you filled in.”

“Yes he has, but Kai, you should have contacted us sooner. We feared the worst. Dar said that three of you have found your mates. Is that true?” Marcus responded in his calm but authoritative voice. As an Enforcer on the current Council, Marcus had an innate need and ability to get the answers he felt he needed to protect his people.

“Yes. Myself, Charlie, and Malkum. However, what with the attacks and us running to keep ahead of them, we haven’t been able to really get any farther than telling the women about the Dásreach and that they are our mates. Truthfully, I have no idea what is going on with Charlie or Malkum. The last I talked to Dar, Charlie had reported in, but had refused to really tell him anything.” Kai explained to the man that he knew from his many meetings with the Council.

“What’s your plan? Where are you?” The Council Enforcer wanted to know.

“Well, that’s why I’m calling. Alvena and I are going to be taking a flight from Shreveport to Denver tomorrow morning. We’ll be coming in on United Airlines flight number 6099. It should get in around 12:30 p.m. I would like to have some men waiting on us. I don’t want to take a chance of my mate getting hurt. However, there is a traitor in the Dásreach and he is telling these arses where to find us. We had to escape just yesterday again.” Kai’s anger was simmering too close to the surface.

He took several deep breaths and found a bit of calm. Thinking of Alvena helped, of her warm skin and moans from the night before. His skin began to burn for a completely different reason and his mind wandered. Kai prayed that he hadn’t messed things up with his stupidity from earlier. He hadn’t stopped to think how his actions would affect her. He had only thought of getting the flight they needed to get her to safety. His blood ran cold at the thought of losing her just as he had found her. To never touch that skin, look into those eyes, smell that mix of flowers and cinnamon that was uniquely her would devastate him. She might not believe it, but it would. She was the only one for him and he had to get her to see that.

“Kai. Kai, answer me.” Marcus must have been talking to him for some time based on the irritation in his voice.

“Sorry, Marcus, it’s just… well… she’s my mate.” Kai replied lamely. The man on the other end chuckled.

“Oh, yes, I had forgotten about the troubles of first finding a mate. I don’t envy you that. But, I will help you keep her safe. Men will be waiting on you in Denver. I will try to be with them or if not, hopefully, Jenson.” He replied.

“I appreciate it.” He heard the hair dryer stop in the bathroom. “I better go. I still have to call Dar and Alvena is almost done with her bath. Until tomorrow.”

“Until tomorrow, Kai.” Kai could hear Marcus still chuckling as he hung up the phone.

He sat for a minute, listening to the sounds of his mate in the bathroom. He could get used to listening to those noises each and every night as she got ready for bed or every morning as she got ready for the day. Even the small things about her intrigued him. Maybe he could call Dar tomorrow he thought as he heard the door creak open. Alvena stepped out in a rush of heat and moisture. She stood by the door looking uncertain in the t-shirt and shorts he had bought her in the nightwear section. They looked like something that could be worn out, but he could tell she was uncomfortable in them as she tugged at the shorts to make them come down longer on her shapely legs.
Damn.
The sleep outfit might be just a tad small on her. Kai grinned and his breath hitched as he followed those glorious legs to her toes.

“Did you say you wanted to take a shower?” Alvena asked.

“
Oh. Yeah
.” Kai responded a bit suggestively, before realizing how he had said it and grinning as Alvena’s cheeks reddened.

Her blush deepened as he jumped to his feet and walked to her.

“I’ll just get that out of the way before I eat then shall I?” Kai winked at Alvena, “The food is on the desk if you want to go ahead without me.” He offered.

“Oh, that’s okay. I can wait for you.” She answered as she looked up into his eyes.

He tucked her hair behind her ear and cupped her cheek.

“It won’t take me but a couple of minutes.” He slid his fingers down her jaw line, letting them reluctantly trail off of her silky skin, before turning to grab his bag of clothes.

He hurried into the bathroom and closed the door before he could change his mind and before Alvena could even respond. Sometimes it was good to be Dásreach. The extra speed would keep him on track to make up for his earlier mistake. As he adjusted himself, Kai realized that if they were going to eat, a cold shower was on his agenda.
Might as well get it done
, he thought as he stripped and stepped into the shower. He flipped the lever all the way to cold and tried to calm his thoughts and blood.

***

Al sat and waited for Kai in the orange chair. She had thought about getting into the bed and curling into the blankets, since the t-shirt and shorts didn’t cover much and after the bath her heated skin was chilled by the cooler air in the room. However, she was nervous about Kai coming out of the bathroom to find her there. He said he would only be a few minutes. So, it wouldn’t kill her to wait for them to discuss the room arrangements and what the expectation was.

Who was she kidding? She knew what the expectation was. The hard on Kai had sported as he rushed into the bathroom made it completely clear what his body wanted. She only hoped that his mind wanted the same thing.

Al was cold sitting in this uncomfortable square chair, so she stood up and went to the dresser. Pulling out the drawers she found them all empty.
Don’t they usually have an extra blanket in these rooms?
She stood and looked around to find Kai watching her. Heat burned in his eyes.

“You know, I love your arse.” His voice sounded full of gravel.

“Um…” Al could feel herself blushing. What do you say to something like that? “I love yours too.” She responded without thinking. Her hand slapped to her mouth.

“Good. Because it’s the only arses that either of us are ever going to look at again.” Kai stalked towards her.

He had no shirt on and his jeans hung unbuttoned and low on his hips. She couldn’t help but allow her eyes to graze over his skin. He was golden, as if the radiance of the sun reflected from within, not dark toned like she was but sun kissed.
Kissing. Yes. I want to kiss every inch…oh, his lips.
She thought as her eyes clung to his face. He took a step towards her. Just one. Slow. Step.

Al’s flight or fight reflexes were firing and she started to hedge around the bed away from the man, no, dragon that stalked her. Kai’s face had that now familiar sharpness to it that she saw when he partially shifted to his dragon. His blue eyes glowed with an inner fire. And, she could swear she just saw smoke drift from his left nostril.
Shit. The man’s lost it.
Al’s back hit the wall beside the bed and Kai stood at the other end of the walkway made by the bed and the wall beside it. He looked at her and grinned.

“Nowhere to run, lass.” His nostrils flared as he took in a deep breath and licked his lips. “I can smell you, Alvena. Are you going to be a good lass? I’ll give you what you want.”

Al gulped. Every muscle in her clenching and unclenching, screaming for what only Kai could give her. But, he was definitely not acting like the Kai she usually saw. This Kai was full of lethal grace. His muscles flexed and bulged as he stood there breathing hard in front of her. She couldn’t help but let her eyes travel his whole body. It was a body that she wanted against hers; she couldn’t deny that, as her eyes landed on the bulge in his unbuttoned jeans. He obviously wanted her too.

Alvena looked to her right at the wall and her left at the bed. She could go over the bed to the bathroom and lock herself in until Kai calmed down. She wanted him, but she wasn’t sure she could handle this side of him. Her decision made, she looked back to the right and started moving to left. She was over the bed and jumping off the other side when she felt hot hands grab her around the waist and pull her back against a hard body. He kept their forward motion and soon had her pinned between him and the wall. She should have known that his speed would be greater than hers. Maybe she had. Maybe what she wanted was him to chase and catch her. Fire raced from where his hands rested on her waist. From their movements her shirt had slightly lifted and his pinkies were now branding themselves on her skin. Al wanted to have his hand prints burned all over her body. She pushed back against him, trying to get closer. Hoping he would do something, anything, just as long as he touched her and relieved the ache deep in her soul, in the core of her where something unfurled just for this man.

“Ah, Ah.” Kai gripped her waist tighter. “You were a bad lass, you don’t get to call the shots my Valkyrie.”

Al whimpered. Kai’s voice had a weird quality to it. If she was to describe it, she would describe it as smoky. It was smooth and gravelly. It slithered through her insides and fired all of her cells into overdrive.

“Kai?”

“Aye, lass?”

“It hurts, Kai.” She whimpered.

“Oh, lass. We can’t have you in pain.” A tongue stroked up her neck.

Kai turned her in his arms. She rested with her back to the wall. Grabbing her hands in his own, he guided their joined hands up her sides, past her neck and over her head. She looked up into burning eyes. Something other than Kai was in their depths. She watched as his pupils flashed from human shaped to slitted. Back and forth. Al could see his dragon looking back at her. But, she could also see the man. She gazed at him for long moments and was comforted by the presence that resided within Kai. She wasn’t sure how, but she knew that he cared for her as much as Kai did. Maybe for the first time she could actually say someone, no, two someones cared for her and she could trust in her feelings, trust herself to know the feelings of this man, this dragon, in front of her. Al relaxed into Kai’s hands.

Flames flashed through her as she submitted to his desires. He pulled her hands around his neck and grabbed her by her ass and lifted her up and into his groin. A very hard and long ridge met her from under the denim of his jeans.

As soon as her lips were in range, his came down on hers. Possession. That was the only way to describe the contact. His tongue probed and she opened to him, allowing him everything she could give. There was a time when Al hadn’t appreciated the art of a kiss. She had thought the people she spent time with were crazy when they bragged about how great of a kisser their boyfriend or the guy they were with was. She now knew that none of them had someone like her Kai. His kisses were pure fire. Molten lava. They burned his sweet and smoky taste on to her taste buds.