Chapter 13
Keva stared up at the ceiling as they entered Dagen’s house, her eyes wide. When she’d been at Arya’s place, she’d been aware of how big the female’s home was, but there had been so many people milling around everywhere it had seemed almost cozy. This was so different. It was just her and Dagen in his giant home. Without all the noise and people she was very aware of the massiveness of everything.
She looked up at the stairs, wondering how high the ceiling of the second story was. A huge, gorgeous sparkly chandelier hung from the center of it, the moonlight from a skylight glinting off the crystal.
“What is it?” he asked, holding her bags.
“Nothing. Your home is beautiful. And so huge.”
He laughed lightly. “Yeah. It’s definitely a dragon thing. A lot of us have what are basically launchpads in our backyard. It’s a giant space where we can shift and take to the sky.”
“That’s pretty awesome,” she said, smiling. Like helipads, basically. But for dragons. Man, the things she was learning. And she would love to see Dagen fly.
“We also have huge bedrooms and huge showers. I know you must be exhausted. You can shower in the guest bathroom or mine. And mine’s better. I’ve got a dozen different jets and plenty of space.”
She knew he was just being kind but the thought of him joining her suddenly flooded her mind. She imagined him pressing her up against one of the walls and… Nope. She had to cut that thought off right then.
But it was too late. Lust flooded her system, and that was when she realized that of course he could scent it.
Damn shifter senses!
She knew shifters had incredible sensory abilities, but it was easy to forget. When his eyes went pure dragon, she cleared her throat. “That would be great,” she rasped out, cursing herself that her voice was all uneven. It was becoming harder and harder to remember why she needed to resist this man. Because the thought of getting naked with him sounded pretty damn perfect right about now.
He looked as if he wanted to say more but simply nodded toward the stairs. She followed him up the winding staircase, aware of how lush this place was.
They’d had to drive through a private security gate just to get into…she wouldn’t call it a subdivision exactly, but it was a gated community for sure. Only dragons or other shifters were allowed in this territory, according to him. And they owned thousands and thousands of acres of land, including uninhabited mountain ranges. He’d told her that eventually they would sell it or basically transfer it to another entity to keep it in dragon hands. They had to move every so often to disguise from the humans the fact that they aged so slowly.
“This is you,” he said, opening a huge door. It was definitely taller and wider than normal, likely custom made. He hadn’t been kidding about dragons liking space.
She stepped inside and smiled at the fluffy, California king-size bed. “This is nice, especially for a guest room.”
He lifted a shoulder. “Everything in the house is supersized.”
For some insane reason, her gaze flicked downward—to his crotch. She was pretty sure that everything about him was supersized too. Feeling like a giant pervert, she looked away. But not before she heard him growl low in his throat. Damn it, she needed to keep her thoughts to herself or just not think about him in a sexual way at all.
But that was impossible. “So—”
Her words were cut off when she turned to face him and suddenly he was all up in her space, his lips crushing hers. Just like that, another rush of heat spread through her, scorching and all-consuming.
Groaning, he pulled back. “I’m sorry—”
Keva grabbed his shirt, pulling him right back to her. Hell no. If he was going to start something, she was going to finish it. Or at least get more than just a sad little taste. She had to, felt possessed with the need.
Oh God, she should totally stop this, but instead she wrapped her arms around him, and just like that found herself pinned up against the nearest wall as he took her mouth with his, plundering and teasing. She was completely and utterly lost.
Heat flooded between her legs as she arched up into him, moaning into his mouth. Why had she been resisting this? Resisting him?
As she clung to him, he shoved his fingers through her hair as he pinned her in place. Everything about him was so much bigger than her and the way he was gripping her should have scared her, but she felt nothing other than protected.
Wanted.
And she wanted him right back. Hell, she’d never wanted anyone with the intensity that she desired him. She’d been trying to fight it since that adorable apology he’d given her in her shop, but it felt pointless now as her nipples beaded tightly against her bra. She was coming apart at the seams, desperate to feel his naked body pressed against her, to feel him pushing deep inside her.
It was as if he’d woken something inside her. For years the idea of sex had repulsed her. Then when she’d gotten used to the idea again, she’d been too scared to make herself vulnerable with anyone. Especially a shifter. Now? She wanted everything with Dagen.
He hoisted her up slightly so she automatically wrapped her legs around his waist as he continued teasing her tongue with his. The little growling sounds he made were turning her on even more.
She nipped at his bottom lip, grinning when he moaned in that ridiculously sexy way. But she froze when, through her heavy-lidded gaze, she saw flames.
Actual, silvery, ice-blue flames. Everywhere!
“Dagen!” she cried.
The odd-colored flames danced all around them, but they didn’t seem to be burning anything. And that was when she realized they covered him and her as well. Oh my God, she was on fire. Sort of.
“I’m sorry. I should have warned you. I didn’t plan on kissing you though,” he muttered.
The flames flickered down slightly but still covered every surface. It was beautiful, stunning, and the color of his eyes.
“What is this?” she whispered. She’d thought she was ready for anything but this was totally new and a little scary.
His jaw tightened once, but he answered. “When a dragon meets his mate, that realization can manifest in different ways. For my people—my bloodline—it manifests through fire. The only reason it hasn’t manifested until now is because we haven’t been physical. Once I officially mate with…” He cleared his throat. “With my mate, the manifestation goes away.”
Holy crap, that was a lot of information. “What do you mean…mate?” It seemed pretty self-explanatory but she wanted to be certain she understood.
“I think you know exactly what I mean.” His expression was intense, though he hadn’t let her go.
“Are you saying I’m your mate?”
“Yes.”
“Feel like expanding on that a little bit?” she asked, her fingers digging into his shoulders. Because she got the sense that this was a whole lot different than a simple relationship. And she didn’t trust anything her ex had told her about matings or shifter relationships. She wanted the truth from Dagen.
“I knew what you were to me when I met you. Or my dragon half sensed it anyway. Shifters don’t always know right away, but I did.”
“So when you said you would just be friends with me, was that true?”
“If that was all you ever offered, I would take it. But I want more. I’m always going to want more. I want to be with you. I want to be your mate.”
She had some knowledge of shifter dynamics, but again, she wanted it all spelled out so there was no confusion. “That’s like being married, right?” Which, holy wow, that felt weird to say since they’d only met a few days ago.
“Sort of. But it is truly for life. Mates don’t split up. Or if they do, it’s rare and I’ve never known a mated couple to split. And for dragons, mating is different than with other shifters.”
She let her legs fall from around his waist as she took in all of his words. Her arousal was still simmering underneath the surface, but this was a lot to digest. “Different how?” She wondered if they had some sort of kinky ritual.
“It’s a lot to explain and I would rather not right now.” His flames completely died then and she wondered why.
“Why? Is it because I’m human?”
He blinked once. “No. I don’t want to tell you because you’ve just been through a lot. I don’t want to pile more on your plate. I don’t care that you’re human and not shifter, if that’s what you’re asking. I wouldn’t care if you were a wolf shifter. I’m simply not telling you right now because…maybe I’m not ready either.”
“Ready for what?”
“Ready for your complete rejection.”
On instinct she reached for him, wrapping her arms around him. “Why are you so sure that I would reject you? Is it because… Do dragons mate in a kinky way or something?”
He paused, his lips twitching once as he said, “No.” But then that serious expression was back. “You didn’t even want a relationship with me and now I’ve told you that you’re my mate.” He gently cupped her cheek. “Maybe I want to get to know you more before I lay everything on you.”
Sighing, she leaned against his chest and listened to the steady beat of his heart, wishing they were skin to skin everywhere. “Maybe I’m an idiot and I want more than I said I did. I…want to be more than friends.”
His body went impossibly still in that moment and she heard his heart rate kick up just a fraction. “You want something with me?”
She pulled back slightly so she could look up into his eyes. “Yes. I don’t know precisely what I want yet, and this mating news is a whole lot to deal with. But…yes, I want to be with you.”
“We will be exclusive,” he growled out.
She’d learned to decipher his growls. And she loved the possessiveness in his expression and tone. “Obviously.”
The way she said obviously seemed to ease something inside him because the tenseness in his shoulders loosened. “Okay, then.”
“Okay, then?”
He nodded, pulling her fully into his arms. The man was still completely hard too, his erection pressing against her. And those flames had started to dance over his skin and hers.
“You were a little bit surly with some of your friends earlier today.” He’d seemed so chill that his behavior had surprised her—even more surprising, none of the men had seemed to think it was odd.
“Now that you know you’re my mate, I can be more honest. When or if we ever mate, until that point, I’ll probably growl at any male who gets too close to you. Whether they are happily mated or not.”
“Is that a shifter thing?”
“Yes. And dragons in particular. Actually no, it’s just a shifter thing. We’re all insane.”
She laughed at that and leaned up on tiptoe to brush her lips over his. “I’m not ready for sex. Not yet.” Okay, she wasn’t sure if she was, which pretty much told her she might not be ready yet. “But I would like to share a bed with you tonight.”
His dragon bled into his eyes for just a moment before the man took over once more. “Then you definitely don’t belong in the guest room.” He picked up her bags and took her hand in his. “I want your scent all over my sheets anyway.”
That had to be the weirdest and sexiest thing any man had ever said to her. And she found she liked it way too much—she liked him way too much.