A little while later, Citrine was lying on the bed, looking up at Robbie, slightly confused.

“So this is what you had in mind, huh,” he remarked, raising an eyebrow.

His arms were raised above him, and Robbie had hastily tied both his hands to the bedposts with rope she’d found in the utility closet of the basement.

His muscular, sexy body was spread out before her. After the fight, he’d changed into a soft tee shirt and some jeans, and she liked the way she could make out the rise of his rounded pecs, his thick biceps, even the rows of his abs.

The wolf inside her was pacing, wanting to take its mate.

Citrine was going to find out what it meant to be claimed by an alpha she-wolf.

“Of course. Why else do you think I did this?” Robbie replied, body thrumming with anticipation. The anticipation of being in control this time, of taking her fill of her mate. Of enjoying every second of their time together, knowing what would come at the end.

“You can stop thinking about what you’re going to do and just do it,” Citrine said wryly, raising an eyebrow.

“What?”

“Dragons can read minds. I usually resist, but I figure it’s fair play since I’ve been captured…”

“Well, stop it,” she said, wrinkling her nose. “Until I say you can.” She crawled over him on the bed, straddling his taut midsection and trim hips with her legs.

His almond-shaped, golden eyes just watched her closely, devouring her with his gaze as she did the same. She could tell he wanted to be the one on top, but for now he seemed obliging enough, letting her set the pace.

She extended a claw and tore his shirt down the middle, revealing that perfect set of pecs and abs she could never seem to get enough of and tossing the shirt aside. Her mouth almost watered, and she was instantly wet as she ran her hands along the ridges and valleys of sculpted muscle.

“You’re not the only one who gets to tear clothing off, you know,” she said, making Citrine smile.

“Yes, I see. But if you could spare my jeans, I’d be very grate—”

He was interrupted by the sound of his pants being ripped through and taken off as well, and he just laughed as she came back atop him.

“Nope,” Robbie said. “Don’t worry, I’ll buy you some more.”

“Hey, that’s my line,” he said, straining for the first time against the ropes, making his muscles bulge and tighten. Robbie knew if he wanted to break it, he could snap them like silk threads, but he kept himself restrained.

Beneath her she could feel the thick bulge hidden behind his black boxer briefs, and just the slightest touch of it against her legs, against her hips, made her tingly with want.

For a moment, she just touched his length, running her hand against it, teasing him, and he groaned in arousal. The bed shook slightly as he tensed, and for a second, she feared he’d snap the frame in half. But he was ever the one whose control exceeded all expectations.

“You do know that I could be doing a lot of nice things for you right now if you untied me, don’t you?” Citrine said, fire in his eyes as his gaze roved up and down her, and it was as though she could feel his hands on her breasts, his finger on her center. The memory of it was so intense.

“Maybe so. But that doesn’t mean you’re getting free,” Robbie said, pulling off her shirt and jeans so she was half naked now, like Citrine, and then leaning down to kiss the man that was so close to being her mate she could almost taste it.

She couldn’t stifle her moan as his tongue thrust inside her mouth, pleasuring her, reminding her how much control she really had when it came to Citrine. It was like wildfire all over as she felt him flick the tip of his tongue up along the roof of her mouth, then thrust deep where she was most sensitive.

It was as if Citrine were the best of both worlds in every way. Perfect control and unfettered power. Quiet, logical intelligence and relentless pleasure. He knew her so well now; Robbie only hoped that now that his dragon was unleashed, she could catch up.

“We have forever to do that,” Citrine said, ending the kiss and looking up at her with those soul-piercing eyes.

“Reading my mind again?” she chided playfully. “It’s going to take me a while to get used to that, you know.”

“Well, we have a long time. Though I only try to read thoughts when I can tell you want me to know them. I can resist if you want me to.”

“No, don’t. I trust you. Just like I trusted you earlier. I just didn’t trust myself to believe in being so happy, in going after what I really wanted.”

“Well, you did. And now look where we are,” Citrine said, his sculpted lips turning up in a calm smile.

Emotions aside, though, Robbie couldn’t ignore the hungry she-wolf inside her. She placed several kisses along his shoulders, over his body, claiming him as he’d claimed her so many times already in such a short period of time, marking him however she could possessively.

Then with several hurried motions, her remaining clothes were gone, along with his underwear, and she straddled him one last time. Carefully, she positioned herself over his hard length, thick and delicious and tantalizing.

“No looking back,” Citrine said, satisfied at the sight of her naked atop him.

“No looking back. Just you and me,” Robbie replied, and she set her hips slowly onto his member.

Effortlessly, he slid into her, soft as velvet and hard as iron, filling her completely, even more erotic without any barriers separating his body from her own. She moaned and her hands dug into his chest as she became swept up in an overwhelming torrent of pleasure and warmth.

Once she’d calmed slightly, she began to move, raising her hips and then lowering again over him, the sensation so incredible she could barely think. Bright lights clouded her vision as she tried to not come right then and there.

She felt slightly dizzy just from the heightened pleasure of it and pressed her hands to his chest as she fought to regain her balance. She’d wanted to be on top this time, to show him just how much she wanted him, just how much he was hers. But now part of her just wanted to relax and let him take over.

There was the sound of creaking, then two loud pops as the bed rocked from side to side. Before Robbie even knew what was going on, Citrine’s hand was on her back, whirling her around and reversing their positions effortlessly, despite still being inside her. Suddenly, she felt soft bedding and sheets beneath her, and above her, Citrine’s lips curved up in a wicked smile.

“Let me take care of that for you.”

* * *

Citrine hadn’t meant to break free of his restraints, really. He’d had every intention of letting Robbie take things all the way for the two of them for the claiming (and then taking her again his way immediately afterward).

But when he’d heard her thoughts, heard her feelings, he couldn’t just sit idly by anymore.

Not to say he thought she couldn’t manage the act. But he sensed she wanted him to take care of her, and that’s what he was going to do.

“I’m not going to ask how you did that,” she said, eyeing the bent bedframe. “I’m just grateful. Now take me all the way,” she said, leaning up to his ear and whispering in it.

Citrine’s dragon roared to life, and at that, he slowly slipped out of her, then thrust inside, the friction even more intense than a moment ago.

Robbie orgasmed immediately, grasping Citrine’s shoulders as he held back, wanting to make her come as much as possible despite the fact that, without protection, he could feel her body tighten around him even better than before.

She was so beautiful bared beneath him, face tightened in release, dark curls lying beneath her on the bed, full breasts and curvaceous figure joined with him hip to hip.

When she came back to reality, he began to move again, slowly this time. The more he drew out the motion, the more she tensed, the more openly her body yielded to the pleasure.

While he made a steady rhythm, pumping in and out in steady succession, he propped himself up on one hand, using the other to squeeze her breast, pressing his thumb into her nipple and arousing her even further.

His own body was on fire, and he was a hair’s breadth from going into a feverish frenzy.

But he stayed steady. And when Robbie was close, he reached his finger between them, poised over her center.

“Citrine, I…” Robbie tried to gasp out.

But her body interrupted her own words as she fell over the edge into pleasure, and Citrine rubbed his finger across her tiny nub, further deepening her descent into release.

Over and over she said his name, coming harder than perhaps ever before, writhing and thrashing futilely against waves of sheer sensation.

By the time she was done, she looked exhausted and happy and close to going again all at the same time.

“I love you. That’s what I was trying to say,” she said, summoning her breath.

“I know,” he said, leaning down and placing a kiss on her lips, then her cheek. “I love you, too.”

This was it. Then it would be forever.

And Citrine couldn’t think of a happier thought even if he tried.

Citrine propped himself up on both arms now and sped his pace, increasing the motion between them more with each thrust. And every time he entered her, meeting skin to skin all the way, liquid lightning coursed up his back and his fingertips buzzed from the tension deep within his body.

His grip tightened in the sheets beneath him, and he held on as Robbie wrapped her legs around his back, pulling him into her and further deepening their connection.

Robbie was speeding out of control inside, too, and between moans, gasps, and uttered oaths, she was doing her best to hold on to the fiery-hot pleasure that burned between them for as long possible.

Then, unexpectedly, Robbie jumped first, coming just as he thrust into her one last time, pumping with every millimeter of his length. A second later, she pulled him with her, and Citrine free-fell into a swirling release that turned his senses upside down from the power of it.

And then, deep inside his soul, he heard his dragon roaring, claiming, satisfied. Somehow he thought he could imagine her wolf doing the same, marking its territory in his heart forever.

Citrine was pulled back by the hammering of his heart in his chest as heat coursed between them where their bodies met, and it seemed to set off yet another mini orgasm in Robbie as she went tense again.

For what could have been minutes or hours or days—it didn’t really matter—Citrine held Robbie close in his arms as she relaxed, her breathing returning to normal, not wanting to let go until he absolutely had to.

Finally, Robbie spoke up, head back on the pillow, relaxing.

“That. Was. Amazing.”

“Yes, it was, mate,” Citrine said

“Mate,” she said softly. “That sounds a lot better now that it means a lifetime with you.”

“I’m glad,” he said, still gazing at her as if she were a treasure he had never expected to find.

“Well, mate. Want to go again?” Robbie asked, wiggling her eyebrows.

“How about this time we try it the other way around?” Citrine suggested.

“Sounds like a plan to me.”

And as he pounced on his mate, he took a second to wonder at how things had worked out so wonderfully.

He had tread through time and space to end up where he was now. And fate had brought him to Robbie, who was better than he could have ever imagined.

With her, the sun he’d thought was setting was now rising, and together, they could face a beautiful new dawn.