Chapter Sixteen – Magnus

“I like your family.” It was late afternoon and they were driving back to Fara’s house.

After leaving Sapphi’s house, they had returned to Ruby’s home. There they quickly updated her father about what happened at the museum, before Ruby hastily packed for their trip.

“I’m glad.” Ruby checked the rearview mirror and pressed her foot down on the pedal that made her car go faster. He still had not got used to the speed of these mechanical beasts.

“Are you running from something?” Magnus asked. His mate fascinated him, she was a complex mixture of emotions. Like gunpowder, he was never sure when she might spark and fizz and bang.

“That obvious?” Ruby asked with a sigh. “Knowing my mom the way I do, she’s not going to be happy about all this. I don’t need an interrogation right now. She still thinks Sapphi and I are kids. “

“You always will be to her. First, because she’s your mother, and second, because she’s been alive for so long. This world I’ve woken into is strange, I can’t imagine what it must be like for Fiona to have lived through all of those changes. Every step in human development, from horse-drawn wagons to cars. And this internet and computers. Clouds that are invisible.”

“When you put it like that.” Ruby stopped at a road junction and then followed the signs toward Wolf Valley. “I don’t want her to stop us from going. On the other hand, I don’t want her to confront Thorn while we’re gone. My mom is not exactly the kind of person to sit back and let things go.”

“Thorn is not yet a threat,” Magnus reminded her.

“I know. I wonder if I should have kept quiet about him.” Ruby’s forehead creased, and she rubbed her temples. She looked tense. Because of him. Magnus wanted to melt away her worries and fears.

Muttering a silent curse, he focused his mind on the wisps of memories that floated around in his head. If only he could catch hold of one and follow a trail to the rest of them. It would sure beat traveling halfway across the world to visit another dragon.

They reached the farm. Fara’s truck was gone, she must have already left for Sol’s house. They got out of the car and walked to the front door together, grateful for this short time alone. “I’ll leave a note for Fara. And the money your father gave me. Which I will repay in full.”

Ruby stood on the porch and looked out across the mountains. “We have a few hours before we can leave. Why don’t we eat and chill for a while?”

“Chill? You want to be cold? I thought a dragon would like to be hot.”

“Chill. Relax.” With an amused expression, she followed him into the house, which was unlocked.

“Oh, relax.” Magnus closed the door behind them. “That sounds like a good idea.”

“What does an old dragon like you do to relax?” she asked, running her hand along the back of the sofa as she entered the sitting room.

“I have no idea.” He followed close behind her. There was one thing he thought would relax them both, but he didn’t know if she was ready. They had shared kisses and caresses but did a modern woman like Ruby expect a ring on her finger and a marriage certificate in her hand before she gave herself to a man?

Or did the mating bond make those things insignificant?

She turned to face him, leaning toward him. “Is there something you want, Magnus Dumas?”

“Yes.” His hand cupped her cheek, his thumb caressing the line of her jaw. “It is the one thing I am sure of in my life. It’s the one thing I cling to when the rest of the world makes no sense.”

“And what is that?” she asked softly.

“You.”

She sighed, and her breath caressed his skin, sending shivers of anticipation down his spine. He’d wanted her since the first time they’d met before he’d learned about dragons and fated mates. He craved her, the touch of her lips, the warmth of her skin. They were meant to be together, no matter who he was, no matter what he’d been before.

Magnus realized that now. The man he was before was gone. Because the man he was before didn’t have a mate. Didn’t have Ruby. And as his lips descended to claim hers, the truth struck him. If he had to choose. If he could have only one—dragon or mate—he would choose his mate every time.

A whisper in his brain, soft as the summer rain as it fell in the creek beside the house he grew up in, told him he didn’t have to choose. He would have it all if he could only find the answers he needed.

But the answer was here. In his arms. Ruby.

He held her close as his tongue slid along her lower lip and she opened her mouth, letting him in. His arm circled her waist and he held her against his body, drinking in the warmth of her body, and inhaling the scent of her skin. She wrapped her arms around his neck, her fingers stroking the nape of his neck, and he shuddered with desire.

They moved as one, he lifted her off the floor and she wrapped her legs around him, pressing herself against his hardened length. Magnus slid his hand down over her bottom and turned around, walking back out of the sitting room and making his way to the stairs.

She broke their kiss and nipped the sensitive skin of his neck as he climbed the stairs, swift and sure with his woman in his arms. Turning right at the top of the stairs, he headed for the room he’d called his own since Fara found him. Kicking the door open, he strode inside, placing Ruby down on the bed.

She scooted back, and began to undo the buttons of her shirt, while he dragged his T-shirt over his head and threw it to the floor. A moment later, his new pants followed, then he realized he still had his hiking boots on. A moment of unmanly hopping ensued as he dragged both pants and boots off his feet.

Sweeping back his hair, he stood before his mate. Did she like what she saw? He was nervous. Out of time. Out of practice. He hadn’t slept with a woman for a few centuries or more. Surely making love to a woman had not changed.

“Come join me.” She patted the bed beside her as she shrugged her shirt off her shoulders and kicked off her boots. “There’s plenty of room.”

That wasn’t exactly true. Fara’s guest bed was only a single. Sol had used it before he got a place of his own. But they would manage.

Magnus placed his knee on the bed and crawled like a predator about to claim his prey to sit beside her. Ruby’s eyes flicked down to his lips, and her hands went to the buttons of her jeans.

A gentleman must always help a lady, so he pushed her hands gently aside and undid the buttons, and then helped her wriggle out of them. He had to admit, he liked it when she wriggled. Her breasts bounced, no match for the lacy fabric that tried to contain them.

“How do I…?” A woman’s undergarments were not what they used to be. No more laced corsets.

“There’s a clasp.” Ruby’s fingers guided him to the small clasp that held her bra in place. Once open, the fabric fell from her body, revealing her wonderful breasts.

“You are the most beautiful creature I have ever seen.” He stroked her soft skin, and she shivered, her eyes dilating as she turned to face him.

“My dragon disagrees, she says she is the most beautiful creature you have ever seen.” Ruby brushed his hair back off his face and leaned forward, her lips touching his.

He nipped her lower lip and then kissed her, his hand cupping her breast in his hand. Brushing his thumb over her nipple, he teased the sensitive bud, tweaking it between his thumb and finger, until Ruby squirmed on the bed. She reached for him, and curled her hand around his hardened length, stroking him. Was she trying to make him lose control?

He moved, easing her backward so she lay on the bed. With her free hand, she reached for the pillow and positioned it under her head, while he hovered over her body. Resting his weight on one elbow, he slid between her thighs. He wanted their foreplay to last longer, but if he didn’t claim her now, he would come too soon. The scent of her, the warmth of her, the touch of her hands and the kiss of her soft lips were too much.

She overloaded his senses. “You are an incredible woman, Ruby.” His eyes locked with hers as he shifted his weight forward and she guided him toward her.

“You’re not so bad yourself,” she murmured against his ear, before grazing her teeth along the sensitive lobe.

He groaned and thrust forward, entering her, filling her with a primal need. Ruby met him stroke for stroke as she urged him to claim her as his. With each thrust, he knew she claimed him, too, as her own true mate. A mate who had slept for hundreds of years just to be here by her side.

Magnus pulled out and then lunged forward, taking his time, hanging on to the last thread of his self-control. He cupped her breast and lowered his head to claim her taut nipple into his mouth, rolling his tongue around and around as he tortured the turgid flesh.

Her breathing quickened and she raked her fingers down his back as if they were talons. Magnus threw his head back as his orgasm crashed into him. He could hold on no longer. His seed spurted into her, filling her as her inner walls pulsed and throbbed. She came around him, their bodies joined as one.

Their mating bond was complete, they were joined on a deeper level. As she nestled against him in the narrow bed, he held her close until her breathing subsided and she lay quietly in his arms. Magnus never wanted to let her go. Damn his memories, damn the trip to the Himalayas, they should just stay here in each other’s arms.

“What are you thinking?” she asked, stroking his cheek and kissing his chest.

“That I wish we could stay like this forever.” He could not lie to her.

“Me, too.” She pushed herself up onto one elbow. “But I know we have to go.”

“Perhaps when we reach our destination we will have time to enjoy each other.”

She chuckled and kissed his chest, her hair tickling his skin as it fell down over her shoulder. “I would like us to enjoy each other many times.”

“You are making fun of me.” He brushed her hair back from her face and tilted her chin up.

“Never.” She giggled and kissed him, her chin resting on his chest. “I always wondered who my mate would be. And out of all the men I imagined, you are not it.”

“Is that a good thing?” he asked, unsure of himself. “I know I’m old-fashioned, but I will learn your ways.”

Ruby shook her head. “I don’t care if you never change. I like you for you. With your funny words.”

“I will allow myself to be flattered,” he told her solemnly.

“Please do.” She kissed his lips and then slid off the bed, walking cat-like to the door. “I need the bathroom. Don’t disappear on me.”

“Never.” He lay with his hands behind his head, waiting for her return. Images of the paintings came to him. Was he still capable of such work? Could he capture a moment in the same way as he did before?

Sitting up, he scanned the room for the paints and canvas Nadine had loaned him. Getting off the bed, he grabbed his clothes and dressed quickly before setting up the easel and canvas. Then he opened paints and inspected the brushes Nadine had included.

“What’s this?” Ruby asked when she entered the room. “Are you going to paint me?” She struck a strange pose, with one hand under her chin, and one at the side of her face as if making a frame.

“Sit.” He indicated the bed, and she picked up her shirt and put it on, before sitting on the edge of the bed looking sultry and alluring. “Perfect.”

He set to work, sketching out an outline and then adding more details. He worked in a frenzy, losing himself to the process. There was no thought to how the paint met the canvas, it was all instinct. With his defenses down, stray thoughts roamed in and out of his head. Unlike before, he did not try to grasp hold of them, he simply acknowledged them and let them continue on their way.

Images of his mother, of her smiling face, of her pride in her children, brought tears to his eyes but still, he worked, adding more red to the brown to highlight Ruby’s hair. Next, he added golden flecks to her eyes, making them come alive. Just as his past came alive to him. His sister, tall, lithe, with eyes of green and flaming red hair. She was vibrant, the paintings in the museum were faded in comparison.

But then she turned from him and behind her, he saw a man holding a knife. The knife flashed in the sunlight and then she was gone.

His hand holding the brush dropped to his side and he struggled to breathe, the air wouldn’t inflate his lungs.

“Magnus.” Ruby was by his side, taking the brush from him and helping him to the bed.

“She died.”

“Who died?” Ruby asked.

“Emilia. There was a man with a knife.” He raked his hand through his hair.

“Was it Peregrine Manning? Did he kill her?” Ruby asked, naked fear in her eyes.

Magnus tried to bring the image back to him but it was too painful. “No.” He was certain it was another man. A man with an unkempt beard and wild eyes. “No, it was someone else.”

“I’m so sorry.” She placed her head in his lap. “I didn’t see her death certificate when I searched for your name.”

He stroked her hair, comforted by the silky feel of each strand. “It’s not your fault.”

At last, as the light started to fade outside the window, Ruby got up and sat on the bed next to him. “I can’t force you to remember. I can’t force you to get your memories back. If you don’t want to go, we can live like this. Make new memories.”

“No.” Magnus stood up and began to clear away the paint. “I have to know.”

“All right.” Ruby looked at the window and the gathering twilight. “Grab whatever you need to take, and let’s go.”

“Wait.” Magnus crossed the room and pulled her into his arms. “I’m sorry, I ruined the moment.”

Ruby lifted her head and looked into his eyes, her fingers tracing the line of his jaw. She kissed him, her lips briefly brushing his. “You didn’t ruin anything.” She put her fingers to his lips. “Don’t thank me. You don’t have to. We’re in this together. I know how devastated I would be if someone killed... If something happened to Sapphi. I want to find out who did this for Emi’s sake. And yours.”

He nodded. “I’ll pack.” He cleared the rest of the paints away in a daze. He’d always known Emilia was likely dead. But he hadn’t expected her to die in such a brutal way. As they left the house and drove back to Bear Creek, he accepted a cold hard truth. The memories he sought might hold visions of joy and happiness, but they may also hold death and pain.

But whatever they showed him, they were his and wrapped up in those memories was the reason he was here today with his mate. And for that, he would endure whatever hurt and distress haunted his past.