Fuck, I needed him. I banged my head on the saloon’s bar top. I was so screwed.

Several hours ticked past since I left Quinn in our room. I’d debated about leaving him there and returning to Lighthelm on my own. If I hadn’t signed that damn contract making him my responsibility, I would have walked away. At least that’s what I told myself.

While I managed to stay away, it wasn’t easy. Copious amounts of alcohol would have helped. Teetotaling bastards. Tea just didn’t pack the same numbing effect.

Even though I couldn’t sense his thoughts, I felt his emotions, heavy and dark. He was worried. And upset. I didn’t want to care. I wasn’t anyone’s fucking pet. The more I said it, the angrier I became.

I hope he felt my anger, knew how much I hated what he’d done to me. Betrayal sang in my veins. I’d protected him and he’d stabbed me in the fucking back. Yeah, I got that he’d been in a desperate spot. I did. I just didn’t care at the moment. I wanted him to hurt the way I hurt. To feel the tearing desperation to be free.

I envisioned our link as a living chain, imagined myself tearing it to shreds. A burst of pain and anguish punched me in the chest; Quinn’s response to my feelings. Damn it. I couldn’t even hurt him without hurting myself.

“Don’t you stock any craft nectars or anything?” I groused to a giant behind the bar. His mouth dropped open and he eyed the empty teacup next to me. I wanted to roll my eyes. Giants looked so effing dumb, even when I knew they weren’t.

“Think you better stick to tea, dragon. Ain’t like to see you fall off your stool.”

“I’ll be the judge of that,” I growled, glaring at him. Disrespectful, to say the least.

The bartender didn’t react to my insult. Surprisingly. Giants might not be stupid like everyone assumed, but they were touchy when it came to matters of respect.

“Go back to your wizard.” The giant scooped up the cup and turned his back. “Krofom said you is itching for a fight. Better to do it with yours.”

“Where is that fucking cyclops anyway? I’ve got a bone to pick with him.”

“He ain’t here.” The giant tapped his head. “Too smart, that one.”

In other words, he saw what I’d do to him if I found him. That bastard probably knew all along we’d survive and I’d become Quinn’s familiar. Cyclopes weren’t able to tell the future to others—not directly. Hence the effing riddles. One I would never have figured out. But Quinn did.

And as grateful as I was that he had figured it out at the time, it didn’t make my sense of panic lessen now. Maybe that’s what Krofom meant by ‘a flame’s rebirth scorches both those it attacks, and those who wield it.’ We took care of the zombies, but at the cost of our freedom. I could almost feel the invisible bars caging me in. And wasn’t that ironic? Just a few short hours ago, I felt more free in my dragon form than I ever imagined possible. An illusion. I could shift, but I might as well step into a cage and lock myself inside.

The kicker? The more angry and resentful I became, the more I felt Quinn's pain and anxiety in my chest as if it were my own. Over time, would I even know the difference?

Perhaps I should have mated him. At least then I would hold some of the power. Quinn could be my little pet too. At least in theory. There weren’t all that many mated pairs in recent history. Not sure why. There’d been none in my clan and only one in another clan that I knew about.

The more I thought, the more convinced I became I should have mated Quinn when I’d had the chance. My dragon rumbled in agreement.

Was there any reason I couldn’t still do so?

It would definitely even out the shift in power between us. Might even give me the upper hand.

It would also tie us together irrevocably. No possibility of breaking that bond, except through death. Something I didn’t want.

Right?

My dragon huffed. I could envision it turning its back on me.

Well, I wasn’t just dragon, and instinct or no, I was also fairy. And this fairy definitely didn’t want to be saddled with a mate. Or anyone for that matter. I didn’t even like having Quinn’s contract temporarily. Could I imagine being his lord and master for the next several centuries?

An image of him naked and squirming in my bed flashed through my head. I groaned. So unfair. My dragon fought dirty. I could almost hear the bastard chuckle.

So there’d be some perks. Big deal. No, this was too complicated. Too effed up. I didn’t want a mate.

Another image shoved its way into my consciousness. This one not so pleasant. Brandsome holding Quinn down as he . . . whoa, I didn’t need that visual. It enraged both my dragon and fairy side. Quinn was mine.

I must have bared my teeth because the bartender’s round face split into a big, goofy grin, his three teeth visible.

“Should go talk to that wizard of yours. Will make you feel better, I knows it.” He wiped a sopping cloth over the countertop. “Love ain’t easy.”

I snorted. I didn’t love Quinn. Not exactly. Lust, of course. Wanted to own him, sure. As long as he didn’t cramp my independence. And yeah, I knew how screwed up it sounded. I scrubbed at my face.

Quinn’s pull wrapped around me like a siren’s song. I could resist it, sure. Made me unhappy and miserable, but I could do it. At least so far. I didn’t know if it would get worse the farther away from him I moved. Between the images of naked Quinn my dragon seemed content to torture me with, and the sadness and longing I sensed in Quinn, I was going crazy.

Maybe I should make him pay for all he’d done. Show him what it was like to belong to me. Renegotiate how things were going to be between us. My dragon and fairy sides both approved of that plan. I wouldn’t even need to mate him. I held his contract, after all. He technically belonged to me and I could do just about anything I wanted with him. If I invoked the anti-resistor clause, he’d be compelled to do my bidding. The rage coursing through my veins made taking Quinn in hand—before he got ideas of his own—seem like a fantastic option.

Leaving some coin on the counter, I hopped off the stool and strode up the stairs to our room. I paused outside the door when I heard Quinn’s telltale humming. My dragon wanted to join his song. Well, fuck that. I wasn’t feeling sorry for him.

Instead of knocking, I threw the door open and it crashed against the wall.

Quinn uttered a muffled curse and hopped up from the sofa where I’d left him. He’d automatically assumed a fighter’s stance and though impressed with his fearlessness, the position served a direct challenge to my dragon. I slammed the door behind me, then threw the deadbolt.

Quinn watched me, his gaze wary, his posture frozen.

I licked my lips. His eyes followed the movement. Gotcha.

I swaggered toward him, letting my anger lead. He didn’t run. More fool him. Closing in, I yanked him to my chest. He crashed into me, unresisting.

“You’re drunk,” he muttered, his words muffled against my chest.

“Hardly. Can’t get anything stronger than a breakfast blend.”

He sighed. “So you’re just pissed off at me then. Great.”

“It is great, Quinn. Really great. Because I chose it. Not you.” I moved us back toward the bed, but he didn’t even put up any resistance.

“Twig, I’m not trying to control you—”

“Sure. For now. But how long? You can’t tell me it’s not tempting. All that leashed power at your fingertips.” We bumped into the bed and I hoisted him up onto it. He still didn’t resist, though his frame went rigid. He scooted back on the mattress making room for me.

“Do you really think I’d do that to you? After being at Brandsome’s mercy? You think I ever want that kind of control over another?” He crossed his arms over his chest, waited for me to launch myself on the bed. I felt his outrage through our link.

If I wasn’t so panicked I might have felt sorry for comparing him to Brandsome. Except I was. And there was no guarantee he wouldn’t become like the unicorn once he got used to the idea.

After pulling myself up next to him, I shoved him to his back and rolled on top of him before he could react. Though his eyes widened, he didn’t look scared.

“It doesn’t matter if you want the power or not, Quinn. You have it.” I pushed up on my forearms so I wouldn’t squish him with my weight. “It makes me so angry that I want to hurt you, put you under me, make you feel what I’m feeling. Own you right back.”

He sucked in a sharp breath, his skin flushing. His hand trembled as he brought it to my cheek. “Please, Twig, I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to trap you, I swear. And if it makes you feel better, it goes both ways. Just as my emotions influence you, yours influence me. When you’re unhappy, I’m unhappy too.”

I narrowed my eyes at him. Was he speaking the truth?

“It doesn’t need to be like a traditional wizard-familiar bond,” he continued, his palm now stroking my cheek. “You aren’t simply an animal, so it makes sense we’d change things. I-I can’t give you your freedom, but I can not take advantage of the link. You don’t want me in your thoughts? Done. You don’t want me to order you around? Okay, I won’t. I-I don’t know if I can shield our emotions from one another, but when we get back to Lighthelm, I can look in one of my books and see if there’s a way.”

His words were heartfelt and I sensed his sincerity through our link. That wasn’t what doused my anger, though. After saying his piece, he turned his face away, tipping his chin back and baring his neck. The sign of submission sent molten heat shooting throughout my nerve endings. My dragon surged forward, canines dropping, the desire to mate Quinn almost unbearable. His gesture was his acquiescence and my dragon couldn’t be happier.

I needed to pull back. I wasn’t ready to mate him, even though my dragon disagreed. And his submission wasn’t freely given. Not really. As he’d said, he’d been under Brandsome’s hoof for three long years. That he was offering to give over his control to me doused my anger in a way that nothing else could. I shook with the desire to bite him and used all of my strength to shove my dragon down. I panted with desire, and throughout it all, Quinn just lay quietly under me, waiting for my decision.

After several minutes of deep breathing, I leaned in and licked his neck above his collar, then latched on and sucked up a large mark. I needed to give my dragon something or he wouldn’t quit until I’d buried my fangs deep into Quinn’s flesh. Quinn moaned as I left mark after mark along his beautiful skin.

He was perfect. His skin mottled with the nips, his eyes closed as he panted. When his legs parted farther, I wedged my hips in between. We both groaned from the pressure of our hard cocks rubbing against each other.

I reached between us, made short work of my clothes, then went to work on his. In moments I stripped us both naked, pressed skin to skin. Though he was short in comparison to me, he was a nice size for a human, with long graceful limbs and well-developed muscles. I ran a hand along his side, then gripped his hip, pulling us even more snug.

His hands still remained on the mattress, his knuckles turning white from gripping the sheets, and his head still turned away from me with his neck bared. I’d never seen a more gorgeous sight. His lashes fluttered as I leaned in and licked a stripe down his neck.

His heart beat rapidly, his breathing shallow. He wanted this as much as I did.

“Damn, you’re magnificent,” I muttered between kisses and licks.

“Me? You’re the one who’s too good to believe.”

I stilled. “Quinn, are you sure you want to do this? You have the right to say no. You’ll always have that right with me.”

“Shut up and fuck me. We can swap tender words later.” Quinn’s voice ended on a laugh.

I smiled against his skin. “Demanding human. I’m going to go slow, but I need to be inside you. Now.”

He nodded, his thighs suddenly clutching me tight. It killed me to break his grip on my hips, but I needed to grab some lubricant. I was large enough to hurt him if he wasn’t ready. I had a feeling he was definitely up for the challenge.

Rummaging around in the bedside drawer, I pulled out a pot of Slick Dick’s Enchanted Snail Lubricant—guaranteed to give any creature a slick ride. I set the lubricant pot on top of a new stack of bedside books. I noticed a distinct theme. Sex with Humans for Dummies. So, You Want to Screw a Human. And Human Bed Slaves: Yay or Nay? Nice. Giants had some sense of humor.

Removing the lubricant lid, I dipped my fingers in the smooth oil, a faint smell of dragon-licorice scenting the air. Mmm.

Reaching for Quinn again, I ran my fingers over his cock, not giving him a tight fist, just gently slicking him up, teasing him with my loose grip. He grunted, swore under his breath. His hips thrust up once.

“Nuh uh,” I gently chided, testing his resolve. Giving me his submission couldn’t be easy for him. The way he’d fucked my mouth—was it only a couple days ago?—I could tell he preferred a more dominant role. That awareness caused goose bumps to ripple over my skin, both with desire and with unease. I’d never wanted to submit to anyone before, and neither had my dragon. If you asked me before meeting Quinn, I would have said it was absurd. But feeling his desire, knowing what he’d been through and how little control he held over his own body did something to me. Made me want to give him something I’d never given another.

But not today.

Today I needed to show him how it felt to be owned by a dragon. Let him understand that even though he bound me to him as his familiar, I wouldn’t be his docile little pet.

When he opened his eyes and focused on my face, I grinned, showing my canines. He sucked in a harsh breath, his lips parting. I continued to tease him with my loose fist, not giving him what he needed, watching the battle that waged in his eyes. He wanted to push me over and show me who was boss. Well, I had news for him. I would breed him so good, so hard, there’d be no doubt it wasn’t him.

“Spread your legs farther. I want to watch you come undone.”

He groaned, his fingers still in a death grip on the sheets. He did as I asked, pulling his knees toward his chest, opening himself for my greedy eyes. So fucking hot. I continued to tease him with one hand while dipping the other back in the oil pot and getting my fingers nice and slick. He watched the oil run down my palm, his chest rising and falling erratically.

With one lube slicked finger, I wrote mine across his chest in the language of my mother’s clan.

I tweaked a nipple, not gently either, before trailing lazily down his abs, then the crease of his thigh. Moving to his entrance, I tapped him once with my index finger, watched in amusement as his hips arched off the bed.

“Nervous?” I chortled. Yeah, I was a bastard.

“Fuck you,” he said between clenched teeth.

“That’s hardly submissive of you, Quinn. My dragon might get the idea you’re not truly submitting.” A growl came unbidden to my throat.

“I’ve got my legs in the air, my ass on display, and my throat bared in submission to your beast. I think we can all agree I’m doing a bang-up job,” Quinn bit out.

I chuckled again. Such a sweet and feisty human rolled all into one.

This time when I returned to his entrance, I didn’t tap. I lightly swirled a finger around until I’d slicked him up. His appreciative moan hit me like an arrow to my chest, and a now-familiar warmth spread to my heart. The heady rush of emotion seemed to pool there whenever Quinn felt pleasure. I craved being the one to make him moan. Or smile. Or laugh.

But I didn’t feel emotion during sex. Not ever. At least not until Quinn. Emotion meant . . . commitment. A loss of freedom. I needed to pull back.

This was a trap.

What was I doing?

“Twig?” Quinn’s husky voice broke over my name. “What’s wrong?”

I shook my head, reaching for my control. Only I didn’t find it. It had been stripped away by a blond-haired human with a sassy mouth. My breathing became shallow, my throat too tight. I couldn’t do this, no matter what my dragon wanted. I wheezed and began to roll off Quinn, until a gentle hand rested against my rough cheek. Just his touch, slowed the racing of my heart, chased away the shadows of fears I’d never faced down before.

“Hey, we don’t have to do this. It’s okay. . . . If it’s too much, I understand.”

Looking into his half-lidded gaze, I was lost. Lust and something I could now identify as affection lingered there. My breathing leveled out and the terror released its piercing hooks. I kissed him softly then, memorizing the texture and heat of his mouth. He melted into me, opening for my hunger, dishing back his own.

Our thoughts might be blocked from each other, but I could sense his want, his need through our link. How could I deny him? My hand returned to his hole and I slowly pushed inside, my finger sliding in and out in a gentle rhythm. His passage clamped down, hot and tight, another moan spilling into my mouth. Without breaking our kiss, I added more oil and glided back in past my second knuckle. He tensed.

I forced myself to release his mouth.

“You okay?”

“Oh yeah.” He nodded vigorously.

On my next withdrawal, I added a second finger and more oil, gently stretching him.

“You don’t have to treat me like I’ll break. It’s not like I’m a virgin.” Though his words were without inflection, a stab of despair moved through our link.

Pausing, I asked, “Were you a virgin when Brandsome . . . ”

A harsh nod was his only response.

“Ah damn, Quinn.” I began to pull my fingers out, but his hand clamped around my forearm, stopping me.

“Don’t feel sorry for me. I want this.” He arched his hips, while making sure we were eye-to-eye.

There was so much I needed to say. Instead, I leaned forward and kissed him. His lips were already swollen from our kissing, an audible sigh escaping when our mouths fused again. He released my arm and I slid my fingers deep while simultaneously coaxing his lips open with my tongue.

His mouth was just as hot as the rest of his body and I took my time to explore it. He relaxed into my touch, meeting each stroke of my tongue with one of his own. I’d had lots of sex, but this was something more. Maybe it was because of the bond we now shared, the excitement that sang between us. His emotions stroked mine, just as my tongue stroked his. It was . . . well, I didn’t really know. Just felt like I was coming home.

I reluctantly broke our kiss and slid slowly down his body. Since I couldn’t remove the collar to reach the rest of his neck, I focused my attention on his tattooed shoulders, tracing the ink with my tongue. I rumbled as I outlined each one, enjoying the strong interlacing patterns, almost knot-like in their design. They fit him.

I continued to stretch him gradually, a third finger joining the other two. He rocked gently on my hand as I prepared him, moaning each time I brushed his pleasure spot. He might not need it, but I wanted him to know I’d take the time, that he was worth it.

Kissing down his torso, I ran my tongue over his well-defined abs, then followed up by tracing the curve of his hipbone. I ignored where he most wanted my mouth and continued to run my tongue down his thigh to his knee. He groaned. Impressed he managed to stay still. I’d have to try harder. Moving back up his thigh I slid my tongue in the crease where hip met pelvis. He chuckled.

“Come on. Now you’re just being mean.”

I smiled against his skin, ignoring his words, reveling in a leisurely exploration. I wanted to memorize every touch, every taste. After I finally took my fill of teasing him and he was squirming under me, I nuzzled his balls, my breath hot against his skin. His hands vibrated where they held the sheets.

I paused my explorations, watching until his fingers loosened on the sheet and his body began to relax. Then I lunged forward and swallowed his dick. He shouted, his back arching and hands going to my hair in a death grip. I would have laughed, but considering my mouth was quite full, I concentrated on applying just the right amount of suction as I moved up and down his length. I loved hearing him pant like he was the one choking on cock instead of me.

His thighs began to shake and if possible, he hardened even more in my mouth. I gripped his base, squeezed, while pulling off him. He mewled and called me some very inventive names. I’d have to remember a few.

“Dammit, Twig. Are you ever going to fuck me?”

“So impatient.” But I was also done waiting. Moving into place, I added some oil to my length and pushed inside him. His body was ready. Even so, I wasn’t what one would call small, so I was careful not to move too fast. No easy feat since both Quinn and my dragon urged me to greater speed.

When I finally sank to the hilt, both Quinn and I groaned. So hot, so perfect. I rested our foreheads together, giving him a chance to adjust. I hadn’t even started moving yet and I was ready to blow. I forced myself to think about unpleasant things—like the Alphae’s list of membership principles and some of the legislation on running a business that I’d become familiar with when opening my detective agency. Worked better than a charm.

“Move,” Quinn hissed. His hand came down sharply on my backside and my dragon surged to the surface, my fangs dropping through my gum line. Before I could pull back, I was pounding him into the mattress. I tried to wrest back control from my beast, but it felt too amazing and the noises Quinn made didn’t help. He wrapped his arms and legs around me and held on.

My aggression increased as I found his pleasure spot, pegging it with each stroke. His nails raked down my back and I roared, loving every second of giving my mate pleasure. And I needed to face facts; he was my mate. I’d been fooling myself to think otherwise, or that Brandsome had anything to do with this gut-deep connection.

As I fucked him in long, hard strokes, my eyes wandered to the junction where his shoulder met his throat and I couldn’t look away. One simple bite and he’d be mine. Centuries with him didn’t even seem enough. As I bent toward his neck, he gripped my hair tight and yanked me away and into a blistering kiss, his tongue shoving to the back of my throat like he’d consume me if he could.

Our tongues dueled, a give and take, with no prisoners. When we finally broke apart to breathe, my lips automatically began moving down toward his neck, every instinct driving me to mate him. I didn’t have the will to resist any longer.

A gentle palm against my cheek stopped me. Our eyes met. His showed both desire, but also worry. It came through our link as well. He was scared. He tipped his neck so I could finish the mating bond. His distress increased and I saw the pounding of his pulse at the base of his throat and felt the slight tremor of his body.

Something wasn’t right. He seemed to be fighting himself, waging some kind of internal battle.

Though my dragon grumbled, I forced myself back toward his lips, giving him a gentle kiss. Surprise showed in every line of his face. He went to tip his chin up again, but I captured his mouth, soothing him more than inciting.

Instead of mating him, I concentrated on how amazing our sweat-slick bodies fit together with each movement; how tight he gripped my length as I kept a punishing pace; how his eyes rolled back in his head each time I hit just the right spot.

I lowered myself over him, so that his cock was caught between our bodies, the friction of our sweat-slicked abs making him moan my name.

“Twig, I’m gonna . . . oh fuuuckk.” Quinn tightened his grip on me and convulsed as his cock shot a thin trail of cum onto our stomachs and chests. His words, and the fact he was practically strangling my dick, sent me over the edge a moment after him. Fire raced down my spine, pooled in my balls. No holding back now. I unloaded inside his ass, my vision whiting out, my limbs shaking with the effort to keep my weight from crushing him. I roared in triumph as I painted his insides. Mine, mine, mine, I chanted. His, his, his, whispered my dragon.

When I collapsed after I’d been wrung dry, I rolled him on top so he could breathe. Neither of us spoke, and I could practically hear his heartbeat sync with mine. After a moment, I captured his hand and brought it to my lips.

“We okay?” he asked, a crooked grin on his face.

“I guess being a wizard and familiar could have certain advantages.”

“Mmhmm.” He idly traced my new markings, the scale-like displays covering a large portion of my body in intricate designs. I hadn’t taken the time to look the markings over, but I had to admit, they were striking. Pride filled me. I was a real dragon.

“You were always a real dragon.”

“Didn’t realize you’d turned our thoughts back on.”

“I didn’t.”

“Oh.” I ran my hands down Quinn’s back, exploring the texture and resilience of his skin. He sighed as I kneaded sore muscles.

“If you keep that up, we won’t get any sleep tonight.”

Tempting to make a lewd quip, though I held back. Time to change gears. “Are you afraid I’ll hurt you?”

“Huh?” Quinn pushed up on my chest so he could see me better. “Where did that come from? Why would you ask that?”

“I just felt your fear when I neared your neck. You seemed to want me to mate you when we started and then it changed. Did I do something to scare you? I know my dragon can be a little overwhelming—”

His hand covered my mouth.

“No, Twig. Nothing like that. I’m not afraid of you. I know you wouldn’t hurt me.”

I nipped his palm playfully and he jerked it back.

“Then what? I don’t want to do anything to scare you.”

“I-I wasn’t scared. Not of that. It’s just . . . at first you wavered, and I didn’t want you to have any regrets. Then when we got into things . . . look, I don’t know what’s going to happen with us and when I thought about being mated and giving Brandsome control over both of us . . . Twig, he owns me. I don’t want him to own you too.”

“So, it wasn’t that you don’t want to be mated to me?” If that came out more timid than I meant, well, it wasn’t every day I considered mating someone only to have them hesitate.

He clasped my cheeks between his hands. “I’d be thrilled to belong to you. It’s just . . . I’m not really free, am I?”

“You will be, Quinn. I plan to buy you from Brandsome. Besides, we’re already wizard and familiar. I won’t be able to stay away.”

His face clouded over, then cleared. “I’m going to look in my books and see if there’s a way we can modify the bond. I’m sure I can do something. But a mating is different, right? There’s no way to change that unless one of us dies. Or is that not the way it works?”

“No, it’s definitely how it works.”

“Then, I think it’s better we wait. I’ll figure out a way so that if things go wrong, you won’t be compelled to be with me all the time. Brandsome never needs to know we’re wizard and familiar. We’ll hide it.”

“You think that’s possible?”

“I think so.” He smiled. “In fact, I’m sure of it.”