The next morning, Dragon woke after the most restful sleep he’d had in a long time.

Jade was curled against him, her slender body and long legs intertwined with his, one of his hands on her breast, the other on the swell of her stomach. He brushed her nape, inhaling her scent that was now mixed with his.

He looked at her shoulder where his teeth’s round, shallow mark beckoned to him. His dragon cried and roared, and it took all of Dragon’s willpower to ignore the animalistic imperative once again. He meant what he had said to Jade. He would wait for her consent and work on their relationship until his soulmate accepted him completely and without reservation.

In the meantime, he would take great joy in their physical union that went beyond pure pleasure and bordered into metaphysical with each new act.

Jade moved against him, wakening his dormant manhood that sprang proudly looking for her warmth. She turned toward him. A small smile appeared on her sleepy face as she slowly opened her eyes. Her hand reached lower between them.

“Good morning,” she said, caressing him lazily.

“The best of mornings to you.” A moan escaped his mouth, and he added, “But mostly to me—”

Her stomach’s gurgling was echoed by his own rumble, and they both burst out laughing.

“Maybe we should eat something first,” she finally said.

“I hate to agree but you’re right.” He pried her hand open and brought it to his chest, pressing it against his heart to let her feel his galloping heartbeats before raising it all the way to his lips for a kiss.

He helped her pull on a fresh change of clothes, and she dressed him, trailing kisses from his lower abdomen to his chest before she buttoned his shirt. Only the notion that she needed to eat prevented Dragon from making love to Jade. His need to satiate his powerful desire for her grew stronger instead of lessening, and until he marked her, it would only worsen.

He grabbed the gramophone’s horn and ordered a large breakfast.

“We can’t possibly eat all that food,” Jade commented when he hung up.

“Dragon shifters are a voracious lot.” He stole a kiss before adding, “I’m ravenous—”

Winding his arms around her back and under her knees, he lifted Jade from the bed and walked to the living room. His lips took hold of hers, feeding his sexual appetite with morsels of his soulmate. It was just nibbles before the main meal, but they would sustain him until he satiated his cravings.

He sat in one of the large wingback chairs at the oval glass table in the living room. The chair had been reinforced to withstand his weight and was spacious enough for two. Jade made to slide to the side, but he adjusted her on his lap and whispered in her ear, “I’ve been without you for too long and need to feel you against me.”

Jade relaxed in his hold and leaned her head against his chest. “It doesn’t make you vulnerable? This depending on someone else for happiness is new and it scares me.”

He leaned to kiss her crown. “I’ve never felt as strong as I feel now with you in my arms.”

Tilting her chin, she looked up at him. “Aren’t you crippled by the fear that anything could change and ruin what we have?”

He shook his head before brushing her mouth. “I’m worried about everything where you are concerned, but love conquers all, and as long as you are by my side, I am the happiest man alive.”

Jade brought her hand to her chest and pressed her palm against her heart. “Sometimes, thinking of us hurts. I’ve been alone all my life, and now I have you and a child to care for.” Her eyes took a faraway look. “Making love with you is so intense, it makes me forget who I am and how this—” she gestured between them “—started.” She paused before adding, “When I’m with you, nothing else exists. I’m worried it will consume me.” She caressed the spot over her heart as if she were staving off pain. “It’s too much.”

Their breakfast arrived, and Dragon waited for the servant to lay the food on the table and leave before talking again.

“What we have is precious and doesn’t happen often.” He took her chin and angled it to access her mouth. “I was destined to marry two women I would’ve respected and felt affection for but never loved, then you came along, changing my life.”

Jade’s stomach rumbled, reminding him why they had moved to the living room.

“Let’s eat something first.” Reaching around her, he fixed a plate with bread rolls and roasted meat. He cut the meat in smaller bites and broke a chunk from the soft bread before bringing the food to her lips.

Jade angled her body on his lap, slightly leaning away to receive his offering. Enthralled, he watched as her red mouth, swollen by his kisses, opened and accepted the bread and meat. She swallowed the morsel, and he couldn’t help but trace the column of her throat. Once she was done, her eyes hooded and darkened with desire. She parted her lips once more, inviting him to feed her as she reached for one of the rolls and brought it to his mouth, mirroring his gesture.

They fed each other, and with each bite, the atmosphere heated until Dragon thought he would burn. When the air between them vibrated with sheer lust, he couldn’t hold back any longer. He stood, sending the chair against the wall. With one hand he kept Jade firmly against him, while with the other, he cleared the table, sending plates and glasses crashing to the floor.

Worried about losing control and hurting her, he slowed his movements and gently laid her on the glass surface, placing her arms above her head as her legs dangled from the edge. He nudged her thighs apart with his hands, moving between her legs. Leaning over her, he trailed kisses along her eyes, the point of her nose, the corner of her lips, her throat, and down to the collar of her shirt. He raised his eyes to hers and found her grinning. His teeth grazed the skin around her collarbone before throwing his head backward and rendering the fabric with a loud rip. Her lovely breasts exposed for his pleasure, he sucked one nipple in his mouth and teased it with his tongue.

Jade’s hands pulled him down, her fingers greedily touching him. He softly bit on her nipple as he caressed her other breast before traveling toward her pants. She raised her hips to help him lower the leather garment encasing her long legs like a second skin.

Trembling with need, he jerked her pants away and made short work of his own, tearing the flap of his trousers before he shimmied them down to his knees. He united them with a long stroke, his dragon roaring loudly and extending his wings in his mind, spurring his lust into a frenzy. The sight of her swollen belly calmed him immediately, and he thrusted into her, focused on her comfort and pleasure as he kept his beast at bay.

Jade hooked her legs around his waist, her fingers raking his back. Her touch would leave signs on his skin, and he loved the idea. Dragon took hold of her mouth for a long kiss, his hips rolling against hers, drawing out her moans as he changed speed from slow to fast and slow again. After several minutes of such ministrations, she whimpered, scratching his back and telling him what she wanted.

Dragon brought them both to completion in a growing fever, using his entire body to pleasure her. His hands stroked and caressed as his mouth kissed and sucked, his teeth biting and grazing her skin, while he pumped into her warmth, filling her completely. When her moans became loud cries and her channel tightened around him, he let himself go and reached his explosive ecstasy.

“Jade,” he whispered, collapsing to the side.

She pulled at his arm, silently demanding he cover her.

He obeyed but kept his weight off her. “I don’t want to crush you,” he explained when her nose scrunched in displeasure. His hand trailed along the swell of her breast and down to the apex of her legs, making her sigh.

“You make me feel whole,” Jade said, her big, black eyes welling with tears. “I don’t know how it happened, but you are lodged here—” she pressed the heel of her hand against her heart “—and it feels right.”

She shivered, and he splayed his hand against her stomach.

“Is this what being in love feels like?” Jade asked.

“It is, my soulmate,” he hoarsely answered. “And so much more.”

In the aftermath of their lovemaking, all his senses were amplified. Her words and her bright eyes touched him deeply. With the utmost care, he scooped her up, her lithe body feeling like a feather in his arms. He brought her to their bed where he cradled her and softly kissed her, wishing for time to stop and reality to disappear, leaving them alone in their bubble.

The outside world intruded a few minutes later when the gramophone rang, announcing an incoming call.