Seducing the Dragon: Part Three (7 page)

Even in the faint light of the moon, he could see her wry look. “Just don’t play tricks and ‘drop me’ so you can catch me again. I’m not a fan of roller coasters, and I may be sick all over your dragonhide.” She frowned. “What color dragon are you, by the way? I’m supposed to mate you, yet I have no idea.”

His inner beast poked out.
Let me take over and show her. Words are not enough. I will protect her.

With a growl, he forced his dragon back again and squeezed Evie’s soft sides. Even through her cloak, he could feel the warmth radiating from her body. The touch helped him to focus. “Blue. I reckon you could call it a cerulean blue, which is the best kind.”

Evie’s voice was light. “I don’t know about that. I always fancied the purple ones myself.”

Blue is better. Let me show her.

Stop it. We’re nearly to the takeoff area. Let me explain more to our female so she isn’t afraid of us.

Quickly. There is danger everywhere while we remain here. You may think you can protect her, but a dragon can do it better. I am stronger. This is a fact.

Shut it.
“Evie, under normal circumstances, I love when you tease me. But right now, love, I’m close to losing control. Every time you mention how another dragon is better, it drives mine a bit crazier. Until you’re safe, we need to feed his ego. Can you do that?”

She leaned against him and his inner beast’s attempts to break free lessened just a tad. “Then make sure he knows that while it’s a bit selfish of me, I’m glad you’re the one taking me to safety. I know it’s odd considering I only met you the other day, but whenever you’re near, I feel safe.”

The words warmed his heart. “I feel the same way, lass, and once all of this is over, I plan to mate you in front of the entire clan so I never have to let go of you.”

“Bram.”

Squeezing her tightly against his side as they walked, he picked up his pace. It was going to be hard enough to leave her in the morning. He’d best treasure what time he had. After all, he would do whatever it took to rescue wee Murray from the dragon hunters, even if it meant leading a team himself on a raid. There was always a possibility he could die.

Not that he’d mention that to Evie, at least until his dragon was under better control. He needed her to not only tame his dragon, but also to pick apart her brain. If he told her about his plans to rescue Murray, she would argue and be unwilling to do what needed to be done so he could focus.

Luckily, she remained silent during the last few minutes of their walk. They approached the takeoff area and headed for the covered space next to Sid’s surgery-slash-cottage. Once Sid’s staff finished preparing the basket for his female, he’d have to hand over control to his dragon. He only hoped Evie could handle him in dragon form. His beast was in no mood to be polite or restrained.

~~~

Evie watched as the two teenage dragon-shifters finished preparing the large basket for her use. While a bit larger than the type of baskets used for hot air balloons, the rectangular shape was similar. Well, except for the large, metal upright handles attached to the two longest sides of the contraption.

Since Bram hadn’t released her since they’d left Mel and Tristan’s cottage, she snuggled against him. “Are you sure they’ll hold? Your talons are sharp and could rip the basket to pieces with one wrong move.”

Much as his voice had been since leaving the cottage, it was tight with restraint. She wondered how much longer he could control his dragon. “I would never hurt you. Barring a high tech laser cutting through the material, it’ll hold.”

“If you say so.” She looked at her dragonman, the moonlight highlighting the planes of his face. “Tell me what will happen if you lose control of your inner dragon on the way to this location. I need to be prepared.”

He clenched his jaw. “A dragon protecting his or her mate is unpredictable. He will do whatever he bloody well feels like. I’ll see everything happening, yet I have little control over his actions until I manage to take control again. However,” he brushed her cheek with his free hand, “he’ll never hurt you, love. Never.”

It was the second time he’d called her love, but since this was the North of England, she forced herself to not read too much into it. Everyone from bus drivers to shop clerks called a woman “love”.

She nodded just as the two young dragon-shifters approached them. The teenage boy with red hair spoke up. “It’s all ready, Bram.”

“Right, Miles, then off you go. I know you two have a tendency to sneak off, but until this dragon hunter situation is cleared, stay where you belong. I can’t waste the resources to go looking for you if you get lost.”

“Yes, sir. I understand.”

The teenagers walked away and Bram slowly released his arm around her waist. Cupping her cheeks, he kissed her gently and pulled away. “Right, lass, I’m going to shift now. Remember, if the chance arises, feed my dragon’s ego or I’ll have the devil of a time shifting back once we reach our destination. Even then, if I do shift back, he may try to claim you once before he hands the reins back over to me. I hope you allow it.”

Even in the mostly darkness, she could see the worry in his eyes. “Don’t worry, Bram, I’ve worked with dragon-shifters for a long time. It’s going to take a lot to scare me away, and I doubt you’ll ever do so. I agreed to be your mate, which means accepting both sides of you. If your dragon needs sex to clear his head, then I’ll do it.”

“Don’t be too enthused about it. You tired of me already, lass?”

She smiled. “I want to say something, but I can’t. This feeding your dragon’s ego thing is one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do.”

Bram chuckled. She loved the deep, throaty sound. “It won’t be for much longer, and then you can do your worst.” He kissed her nose. “And I look forward to it.”

Resisting the urge to hug him and never let go, she gave a light push against his chest. “Before something bad happens, let’s get this party started. I want to watch you shift, then I’ll crawl into the basket.”

With a nod, Bram released his hold and walked ten feet away. She could barely make out his outline in the faint moonlight. Would she even be able to watch him shift? She’d only seen a dragon shift a handful of times, one of which had happened during her training. Disappointment flooded her at the thought she couldn’t give Bram’s dragon the proper attention he deserved.
Later. I’ll fawn and swoon over his dragon form later.

As her dragonman unfastened the strap over his shoulder, she decided the darkness might be a good thing after all. Then she wouldn’t be distracted by his naked, toned, and lickable body.

The sound of his clothes falling to the ground filled the air right before his body gave off a soft blue glow. Admittedly, she’d never seen a dragonman shift at night. She had no idea their bodies glowed in the process; daylight masked that little secret.

Two seconds later, the glow intensified as Bram’s arms and legs grew into appendages with sharp-tipped talons, a tail and wings extended from his back, and his head morphed into the long, narrow snout of a dragon. The twenty-foot-tall dragon glowed for a few seconds before the light faded. Even with the brief glance, she itched to touch the bright blue of Bram’s dragonhide.

The dragon huffed and motioned his head toward the basket. “Right,” Evie said before rushing over to the contraption. Gawking would have to wait.

As soon as she crawled over the four-foot-high wall of the basket, Bram jumped into the air and beat his wings to hover in place. He slowly maneuvered to where she waited and delicately gripped the metal rings. The twenty-thousand pound plus dragon above her head had far more grace than she’d believe possible.

With precise movements, the bottom of the basket gave way to her weight as they rose into the air. Since peeping over the side of the basket would be useless in the dark, she tugged her cloak tight around her body and closed her eyes to enjoy the sound of dragon wings beating above her as the wind rushed through her hair.

Chapter Seven

The steady rhythm of his wings helped Bram to rein in his inner beast, just barely. He had a feeling once they arrived at the safe spot, his dragon would want to claim Evie to cover her in their scent before he had to leave again.

Under normal circumstances, he would love nothing more than to pull Evie close and devour every inch of her body. But his clan needed him. If his beast lost complete control, he would let them down. His actions might even kill them.

Maybe if he knew the reasons behind his dragon’s protectiveness of Evie, he could think of how to rein his beast back under his control later. Then he would be able to help his clan.

While he had a chance, Bram decided it was time to wrangle some answers out of his beast.
Tell me why you are so possessive of Evie.

She is ours. That is all.

There is more you’re not telling me. I don’t understand why, either. You’ve always been open with me. We are one, and keeping secrets from one another is counterproductive.

To be happy, you must want her for her.

Bloody beast, I already do. What aren’t you telling me?

I will tell you when you’re ready. For now, I will protect her.

At the finality of his dragon’s tone, he growled inside his head. Deep down, he might know what his dragon was withholding, but it was dangerous to hope. True mate or not, he was keeping Evie Marshall.

His secret hideaway wasn’t too far from Stonefire’s land by dragonwing, and within ten minutes, he circled around the jagged peaks below a few times to ascertain if any humans were around. The land below him was part of the Lake District National Park, which technically belonged to the humans. However, the nearest village was miles away, and there were very few roads. Since it was only April, not many ramblers hiked the area either.

Bram had chosen this spot within months of taking over the clan. Every leader liked to have a safe haven. While no one wanted anything awful to happen, it was always good to prepare for the worst.

He was certain Evie would be safe here.

His inner dragon growled.
I don’t want to leave her alone. We must protect our mate.

Trust me.

Maybe. I will make sure no one will doubt she is ours. She must carry our scent.

Bram had been afraid of this.
We don’t have time for sex. We need to question Evie for answers.

No. We must make sure everyone knows she is ours. I will fight you to make it happen.

The urge to fuck his mate coursed through his body. His dragon roared inside their head.
We are here. I will gain control before we land. We will fuck her and scent mark her. No male must come near her.

As his dragon pushed to take control, Bram pushed back. He might be strong, but he was aware of how this was a losing battle. Images of him and Evie from earlier, when he’d fucked her from behind, flashed inside his brain. The dragon-half wanted Evie. If Bram was decoding the dragon’s feelings correctly, he wanted to protect the mother of their children.

Impossible. Evie couldn’t be pregnant, nor would she ever be. She was incompatible.

Wrong, wrong, you are wrong. She will be mother to our young. I will brand our scent strongly. No males will dare approach her.

His dragon’s words piqued his curiosity.
Tell me what you mean about her being mother to our young. Tell me, and we can fuck her once.

I will fuck her anyway. I don’t need to bargain.

Since his dragon was stubbornness incarnate, Bram knew this was a losing battle. It was best to agree for now and pounce when his inner beast least expected it. Post-orgasm, he should be able to regain command of his mind.

Still, it was best to allow his beast to think he won for the time being.
Fine, if we fuck her, will you allow me to talk to her again?

Yes, after.

Okay, we fuck her. But be careful. She is in the basket. We must lower her gently. Don’t take her until she’s inside our secret place.

Of course. I would never hurt her.

Beating his wings in long, slow motions, he carefully maneuvered his dragon’s form down through the jagged rocks. With great care, he laid the basket on the ground, released the metal rings, and moved to the side where an open area would allow him to land.

The second his legs touched the ground, images of kissing Evie, touching the soft skin of her breast, and finally fucking her flooded his mind. As wrong as it was given all the shit going on, his dragon’s need was spilling over into his human-half.
 

As his dragon repeated
Fuck her
over and over inside their head, he imagined his talons becoming hands, his snout shrinking to a chin and nose, and his wings merging into his back.

Usually when he shifted back into his human-form, his dragon would quietly retreat and either sleep or observe what Bram did. However, that wasn’t the case. His beast was shouting inside his head.

Fuck her. Now. We need her. Hand over control to me or I will lock you inside our mind and fuck her until I’m sated.

Alarm filled his mind at his dragon fucking Evie for as long as he liked.
Just give me a few more minutes. We can fuck her soon.

Determined to keep his human half in charge long enough to guide them inside, he ran over to Evie’s basket. She was already standing and staring at him. However, the constant pounding of his dragon’s need prevented him from noticing much about her face, let alone her feelings. Until he thrust his cock into her, he wouldn’t be able to do anything.

“Come. We need to hurry. My dragon needs to fuck you.”

Grabbing her hand, he pulled her along to the secret entrance.

~~~

Less than a minute after standing back on solid ground, Evie was being pulled along by a very naked Bram to some secret location so he could fuck her.

Her legs wobbled a bit as she tried to match her dragonman’s pace. The urgency in his voice had been real; she only hoped there was something other than rock at his secret hideaway. Her arse really didn’t want to sit or lay on cold stone or damp grass.