Chapter Seven
All the pent-up pain and sorrow of the last year seemed to pour out of Sam at once. Maybe it was because for the first time since she’d discovered Brian’s body, she felt safe. Her mentor had been her only true friend, her family. She barely knew Ezra, but he’d saved her life and given her a temporary safe haven. It was more than she’d expected when she’d set out on this mission.
There was something so solid about him. It didn’t hurt that he was sexy. He felt…right. She didn’t know quite how else to phrase it.
“You’re safe.” His deep voice seemed to surround her before it seeped into her very bones. Ezra was just one man, but she felt as though nothing could harm her as long as he held her in his arms.
This surcease of fear was temporary. She knew that. She couldn’t hide here forever. That would only endanger him. He might think he understood the danger, but she honestly didn’t think he did. No one could unless they’d seen firsthand just how far the Knights would go to protect themselves and their secrets.
Ezra scooped her into his arms and started moving. She lifted her head long enough to see him heading toward the stairs. “Where are we going?” She sniffed back the tears, hating that she’d succumbed to them. She’d cried endlessly after Brian’s death. Then she’d been approached by Gervais Rames with his claims about the Knights of the Dragon. Her sorrow had quickly turned to anger.
She’d been on enough archeological digs, discovered enough artifacts, that she understood certain items had a particular energy, an even mystical power about them. It wasn’t that she didn’t believe such things existed. Many would consider her gift for finding such things to be magical. But her beliefs didn’t extend so far as to believe dragons were real.
Throughout the annals of time, people had killed to get their hands on these mystical amulets, statues, and texts. She’d just never thought her mentor would die for one of them. His life had been worth so much more than any book.
She hadn’t cried since, until now.
“To bed.”
She didn’t know if he meant to put her to bed to rest or if he planned on joining her there. Funnily enough, the idea of getting naked with him didn’t bother her at all. In fact, it was exciting.
She’d almost died. Had expected to die. For the past year of her life, she’d been insulated from the rest of humanity, living in a dark world where secret societies killed and got away with it because they had money and power. Most people lived their entire lives in ignorance, never knowing such people existed.
Sam wished she could go back to a time when she’d been blissfully unaware of such things. But there was no turning back the clock. No way to forget the things she’d seen and learned this past year.
Gervais had introduced her to a world of influential people, money, and deadly games all driven by their belief in dragons. He had a vast knowledge about the Knights, and when she began to look into it herself, she’d finally been forced to admit he didn’t seem to be as crazy as she’d first assumed. Not that she believed dragons were real, but there were powerful, dangerous people who did.
Ezra placed her in the center of the bed and then stretched out beside her. He watched her intently with the most mesmerizing eyes she’d ever seen. She had her hand halfway to his face before she stopped herself. What was she doing?
“No. Don’t stop.” He clasped her hand in his much larger one and pressed it against his cheek. He closed his eyes and inhaled sharply.
His features, like the rest of him, were bold and rugged. She ran her thumb over his bottom lip. He growled and nipped at the tip. A blast of heat jolted through her. Sam knew she was playing with fire but didn’t care.
There could be nothing between them but these stolen moments in time. She had to leave. Staying in one place would only make it easier for the Knights to find her. Aaron Dexter was out there somewhere, looking for her. She could feel it in her bones.
“What are you thinking about?” He took hold of her hand and brought her palm to his lips. He kissed it and then nibbled on the tip of one of her fingers. “You seem so far away.”
And she didn’t want to be. She wanted to be right here with Ezra Easton, the stranger who’d plucked her from the sea.
“It’s not important.” He frowned and then nipped her finger, not hard enough to hurt, but enough to startle her. “Ouch! What was that for?”
“Don’t lie to me.” He rolled, covering her with his enormous body. He held his weight on his forearms so he didn’t crush her. His wild, vibrant scent surrounded her. There was no mistaking the hardness pressing against her leg.
“I’m not lying.” She shrugged when he frowned. “There’s just no point in talking about it.” A tear trickled from the corner of her eye and down her temple, disappearing into her hair. She hated the weakness.
Ezra groaned and licked the next salty tear before it could slip away. “We’ll talk, but later.” He brushed light kisses over her cheekbone, angling toward her lips.
This was a mistake. There was no place in her life for any kind of relationship. But this wasn’t a relationship, was it? This was two people coming together in extreme circumstances.
What did it matter how she justified it to herself? She wanted Ezra. There was an empty spot deep inside her she suspected he could fill. She’d been cold and afraid for so long. She wanted to reach out and grab some heat, some human comfort, some sense of connection.
Their lips met, and the cosmos exploded. It was the briefest of touches, but it totally rocked her world, changing it forever.
He stared down at her, and she imagined the shocked expression on his face mirrored the one on hers. “Ezra.”
“Later.” He sealed his lips to hers, stealing her breath and all semblance of logic. He tilted his head slightly and deepened the kiss. She moaned, and when her lips parted, he eased his tongue inside.
He tasted as wild as the sea and slightly salty. She’d always been the kind of girl who liked salty more than sweet. He groaned, and the sound vibrated all the way to her toes, making them curl.
He pulled back and stared down at her, both of them panting for breath. “If you want me to stop, say so now.”
This was the moment of truth. It was her decision. What did she want?
Sam knew if she told Ezra to go, she’d regret it for the rest of her life, no matter how long or short that might be. She raised her arms and wrapped them around his neck. “Stay,” she whispered.
His eyes seemed to blaze like turquoise fire. He had the thickest lashes she’d ever seen on a man, but they in no way detracted from the fierceness of his face. If anything, they emphasized the harsh planes and angles of his cheeks and the hardness of his jaw.
“You’re sure?”
She nodded. “I’m sure.”
…
Ezra had never heard such beautiful words in his life. So simple, but they made his heart race and every muscle in his body tightened in anticipation. Sam wanted him.
She was here in his bed with her arms wrapped around his neck.
Maybe he was crazy. Maybe this was all some elaborate scheme of the Knights, but he just didn’t see how that was even possible. Inside him, his dragon half roared with displeasure that he was even questioning what they were about to do. His more primitive half wanted him to claim Sam.
Her taste was on his lips, slightly sweet and salty from the food she’d eaten. That gave him pause. She hadn’t eaten nearly enough. Neither of them had. The food was still on the kitchen counter, growing colder by the second.
He would make her something else when they were done. Because nothing short of a nuclear blast could make him leave this bed.
He kissed her, groaning when she slid her hands down his broad shoulders and dug her fingernails into his shirt. He wanted her hands on his bare skin. He pulled back and yanked his shirt over his head. Her eyes widened and then narrowed as she visually traced his tattoos.
“These are so beautiful. So wild and primitive.” She ran her fingers over the curve of one of the symbols and on to the next one. His dick was as hard as bedrock. Having her hands on his chest was making him crazy, but also content in a way he’d never been.
That’s the way it had been for both his brothers. Their dragon sides had known the right woman when they met her. Ezra had given up hoping it would happen for him. Never had he expected to pluck his woman from the sea, but it was fitting.
“I’ve never seen anything like them before.” He could hear the wonder in her voice, but that was all. There was nothing to suggest she understood what it was she was seeing.
“They go all the way down your arm, too.” Her fingers followed, flowing down his arm to his wrist.
He had to get her naked. He started to reach for her and remembered her injury at the last second. That stopped him cold. What in the hell was he doing? Not only was Sam still healing from her wound, only minutes ago, she’d been crying over the death of a friend. He was taking advantage of her.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“You’re injured.” It was hard to get the words out when every cell in his body was screaming at him to just shut the fuck up. Sam was here, warm and willing. He could smell the faintest hint of arousal. It made the fine hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. He wanted to bathe in her scent until it covered his entire body.
She frowned and glanced down at her arm. “It doesn’t feel that bad.”
“The bullet grazed you. Took out a layer of skin. You lost some blood.”
The corners of her mouth lifted. He’d found her beautiful when she was wet and bedraggled. Clean and warm and smiling, she was radiant. “You can do all the work. I’ll just lie here.”
She was teasing him. He couldn’t remember the last time a woman had teased him like this. It made the weight of the years he’d lived and survived slip away. He felt younger, more alive than he had in centuries. Usually, only the ocean made him feel this way.
“I can, can I?”
She nodded. “Uh-huh.”
“Well then, I should get busy removing your clothes.” He waited to see if she would protest. When she didn’t, he levered himself off her and knelt beside her. He pulled off her socks, which were really his and way too big for her, and then skimmed the oversize pants down her legs. She was bare beneath them.
He stared at her long legs and slightly rounded hips. Sam was strong and lean and all woman. He wanted to crawl between her legs, but he wanted her totally naked first. He reached for the first button on the flannel shirt and slipped it through the hole. He wanted to rip the garment open, but that might harm or frighten her. He didn’t want that. She was a gift, and like any present, she was meant to be unwrapped slowly, to be appreciated.
The pulse in her neck was fluttering wildly by the time he undid the last button. He eased the edges back and stared down at her breasts. They weren’t overly large, but they were well formed and tipped with tight pink nipples.
Ezra groaned and lowered his head. He had to taste her. He trailed his tongue around the outer edge of her nipple before dragging it over the very tip. Sam cried out and pushed closer. He opened his mouth and covered her. She tangled her fingers in his hair and held him close.
He wanted to roar with satisfaction. Something inside him clicked into place like a bank vault slamming shut. He’d bring ruin to the world before he’d let anyone take her from him.
He’d thought he understood what his brothers felt for their women, but he hadn’t. There was no explaining what was happening between them. Sam was his, just as surely as the ocean was.
It was that simple and that complex.
She completed him in a way he couldn’t even begin to speculate. Right now, he had to claim her. He needed to hear her cries of pleasure, hear his name spill from her lips.
He kissed his way over to her other breast.
“Ezra.” His name was little more than a breath of air, but the savage satisfaction it brought him was unparalleled. He sucked her taut nipple into his mouth, savoring the cries of her pleasure.
It wasn’t enough.
His pants were annoying him. He left her long enough to strip them off. Her eyes widened when she got her first good look at him totally naked. “Wow, your tattoo goes all the way to your ankle.” She lifted up slightly, supporting herself with her good arm.
He didn’t want to talk about his tattoo. Not now. He wrapped his hands around her ankles and slid her legs apart. She licked her lips and his cock seemed to swell even larger. What would it feel like to have her mouth wrapped around his shaft? He’d find out, just not today. She was still healing. He’d take care of her, take care of them both.
He knelt between her spread thighs and lowered his head. He inhaled first, taking in the musky scent of her arousal. She wanted him. She was pink and damp and all his.
But he wasn’t ready to take her. Not yet. Not until she found satisfaction. He wanted to watch her come, to see what she looked like when she orgasmed.
He ignored the throbbing of his cock and the way his balls squeezed up close to his body. He would make Sam come first. And then he would claim her as his own.
…
Sam held her breath as Ezra lowered his head. Her breasts felt swollen and her nipples ached for his touch. She’d never found her breasts to be all that sensitive before. Obviously, Ezra was a whole other class of lover. His touch ignited flames of desire deep within her. It was like dropping a match on dry tinder. Maybe she was reacting so quickly because she’d been in a dry spell. She hadn’t had a lover in over two years. Or maybe it was Ezra himself. There was something compelling about the man.
When he touched his clever tongue to her most sensitive part, she sucked in a breath. He lapped at her like he couldn’t get enough of her. He stroked up one side of her labia and down the other.
Whimpers of need broke from her lips. She gripped the covers beneath her. Her left arm pained her slightly, but not enough for her to ask him to stop.
Then he stroked the flat of his tongue over her clit. Her lower half jerked upward. “Oh God,” she cried. Ezra growled, he honest to God growled, and the vibration shot through the tiny kernel of nerves making her shudder.
He pushed one thick finger inside her, not stopping until it was inserted all the way. She’d never gotten this hot, this fast. She was so close to coming she could almost taste it. “Ezra.” She didn’t want to wait. She wanted the glorious release that only he could give her.
He pulled his finger back to the edge of her slick channel and slowly pushed it back in. She was panting hard now. She reached down with her good arm and gripped a handful of his thick hair. She wanted more, needed more.
Ezra sucked her clit and pulled his finger out once again, this time curling it so he hit the sweet spot inside her. Sam’s entire body bucked, her thighs trembled, and she called his name.
He did it again, and her cries echoed around them as she came. Everything inside her clenched hard before releasing with a sigh of relief. Tears stung her eyes, and her heart raced. She was exhausted yet exhilarated. Never had an orgasm taken over her in this way.
Ezra raised his head and watched her. Then, like a great predator, he prowled up her body until he was hovering over her. He kissed her, and she tasted herself on his lips.
She felt the nudge of his cock against her inner thigh. Like the rest of him, it was big. She wasn’t sure she could take him, but she was more than willing to try. She parted her thighs and he broke off the kiss to stare down at her.
…
Ezra licked his lips, tasting Sam. She was beautiful when she came, so open, so raw. He hadn’t even had her yet, but he was already more satisfied than he’d ever been in his long years.
She was watching him, her cheeks flushed, her green eyes slightly glassy. He frowned. Had she shed more tears? He didn’t like that. He wanted only pleasure for her.
She lifted her lower body slightly, pressing against his cock. Liquid seeped from the tip, and he gritted his teeth. He had to get inside her. “I’ll take my time,” he promised. At least he hoped he would. He’d never been this on-edge before.
He positioned the head of his shaft at her opening and pressed inward. Her body was naturally resistant to the invasion, but he kept a steady inward movement until it stretched to accommodate him. He was breathing as though he’d swum a hundred miles at top speed.
He forced himself to stop and breathe. Sam was panting, too, her eyes wide open.
“Does it hurt?” He didn’t know what he’d do if she said it did. Then he corrected himself. If it hurt, he’d stop. It was that simple.
She shook her head. “Feels full.” She took several breaths. “Feels good.”
He flexed his hips and drove in another two inches. His eyes almost rolled back in his head it felt so damn good. Having Sam under him, having her hot channel cling to his dick, was the most unbelievable thing he’d ever experienced. And he was barely inside her.
Sam lifted her legs, and he slid deeper. She hooked her ankles around the backs of his thighs and pulled him toward her. The muscles in his arms ached as he pushed his clenched fists into the mattress and held his weight off her. He had to be careful not to put too much pressure on them, or he could drive them right through the bed. And wouldn’t that kill the mood.
He gritted his teeth and thrust, not stopping until he was seated to the very hilt, every inch of his cock inside her.
“Oh God. Oh God,” she repeated over and over.
Ezra captured her lips, stealing the words from her. His cock was pulsing heavily, beating in time with his heart. Her inner muscles clamped down around him suddenly and unexpectedly.
Ezra tipped his head back and yelled, just managing to swallow back the roar of satisfaction that wanted to escape. He began to rock his hips back and forth, only pulling back a couple of inches before thrusting in again.
“Ezra,” Sam moaned his name. Her sheath sealed around him, squeezing.
He rocked faster. “Come for me.” He wanted her to find release once again. “Sam.”
As soon as he said her name, her entire body convulsed. Ezra let go. His orgasm shot from the base of his shaft and out the tip. It was never-ending. He shook and shuddered, gripped handfuls of her glorious red hair and held on.
She dug her fingernails into his back, sending him off on another spasm of release.
He lost all track of time. When he finally collapsed, he had enough presence of mind to ease to the side so he didn’t crush Sam.
He wrapped his arm around her and threw one of his thighs over her legs. He was totally spent and relaxed. He closed his eyes and savored the moment. Sam snuggled closer to his warmth. He managed to snag one end of the comforter and flip it over her so she was at least partly covered.
This was something worth fighting for. Sam was worth fighting for.
…
Aaron Dexter was not in a good mood. It had taken them hours to reach the shore in the lifeboats. They hadn’t contacted the coast guard. The only person he’d contacted was his employer. Or rather, his employer’s watchdog. That’s how he thought of Birch. The man had no other name that he knew of, and everyone in the Knights knew the man’s loyalty was to one person—Karina Azarov.
In the hours since, he’d checked in at a local motel, showered, and changed into clean clothes that one of the crew had acquired for him. Now he was sitting at a local coffee shop getting his ass chewed out over the phone.
“Find the woman or her body,” Birch ordered.
Aaron wanted to smash his cell phone on the table, but that wouldn’t change the reality of the situation. His ass was on the line, and all because some archaeologist had managed to take an important artifact.
“I’ll need another boat.”
“I’m contacting a local salvage company—Easton Salvage. They’re not the biggest operation in the region, but they have the best reputation. You can contact Kent Osmond.” Birch rattled off the phone number. Aaron didn’t bother to write it down. He had a name and a company, he’d find the man. “Go with them if they’ll let you. Ms. Azarov wants you on site.”
“How can I do that and look for Sam’s body at the same time?” He didn’t want to spend long hours on some rusty salvage ship. He’d been cooped up long enough. It was his boredom that had led to his game of cat and mouse with Sam. He’d wanted her to think she was escaping before he captured her. And look where that had gotten him.
“Figure it out,” Birch told him.
“What about the cell phone footage?” he asked before Birch hung up on him. “Was there anything on it?”
“Inconclusive. Not enough to say for sure, but it was most likely a whale. There were some in the area, and it’s big enough to be one. It’s rare, but not unheard of for a whale to ram a ship.”
Birch hung up before Aaron could ask any more questions. The waitress walked over to his table, coffeepot in hand. “More coffee?”
“Yes.” He waited until she’d filled his mug. “Where can I find Easton Salvage?” She was obviously a local, and it didn’t hurt to cultivate some contacts. The fact that she was young, blonde, and pretty also didn’t hurt.
“Down the road about two miles.” She pointed to the right. “Can’t miss it. They’ve got a big sign outside.”
“Thanks.” He gave her a wink. She blushed and hurried away. He took his time and drank his coffee while he made plans. Karina and her pit bull might think they owned him, but he wasn’t about to fall in line for anyone. He had his own agenda.
He left enough money on the table to cover his bill and a big tip. She’d remember him if he came back. It was always good to have a few local sources for information, and he’d learned over the years that waitresses were the best.
He pulled on his coat, pocketed his phone, and headed out. He had a salvage company to find. And then, dead or alive, he’d find Sam Bellamy.
And if she still had that artifact on her, he was going to use it to buy his safety from Karina Azarov. She might be the leader of the Knights, but there were others who weren’t happy with her leadership. And Aaron was a man who took advantage of opportunities where he found them.