Chapter 5

What Mateo wanted was to back his gorgeous mate against that glass window behind her, hike up her dress, and slam into her body. It didn’t matter what kind of underwear she wore. He could slide the material to the side and plunge right in or rip the damned things off. Either way, he could make it happen within seconds. Then he wanted to sink his teeth into her neck, branding her as his forever. Her scent, sweet and warm, enveloped him, urging him—and his dragon—forward.

When her small hands came to rest on his chest, her fingers caressing his skin, he groaned. Damn it. She deserved so much better than him, but he was too much of a bastard to let her go. He never would. Not in a million years. She was his. In a world where most people were assholes, she was his little piece of heaven, and he wasn’t about to let her slip through his fingers.

She made a soft mewling sound and melted against him, making his cock twitch. He needed more. Bringing his hands down, he pulled her hips closer, pressing her tighter against him. He needed to feel every inch of her. Needed to devour her. He released her lips, kissing his way to her ear. Her sweet whimper when he growled against her skin had his dragon pushing for more, and for once, he had no intention of holding back. His. She was his.

Ours, his dragon protested.

Ours, he agreed before he bit at the tender skin beneath her ear.

Sloane gasped, and her fingers dug into the skin of his chest.

“Let me take your dress off.” It wasn’t a question. He was past caring about niceties. Not that he’d been bothered about them to begin with.

When he nipped at her skin again, then licked over the tender spot, she moaned. For a second, he thought she hadn’t heard him, but then she took a small step back and turned to face the window again. She reached up and pulled her glorious hair over her shoulder, exposing her back—and the long zipper that ended at the base of her spine.

He took his time, kissing the back of her neck, then its base, right on her shoulder where he would place his bite. The zipper came down with a rasp that had his blood pumping hot in his veins, and again, he had to fight the urge to haul her skirt up right then and there. The image of taking her from behind had his dragon surging forward.

Now. Mate her now, the beast rumbled into his mind.

No, he snapped at the beast, his growl accentuating his command. Look. See how beautiful our mate is, Mateo urged, softening his tone as he stepped back, letting his gaze travel from her neck down the long line of her back.

Sloane gasped and looked over her shoulder at him, a small smile tugging at her lips. “He’s close, isn’t he?” she asked, her voice huskier than it had been.

Before he had a chance to answer, she let the dress slip a little lower, revealing flared hips and the rounded, top curve of her ass. A black strip of silky material forming a little T didn’t cover a thing except for the very center of her crease. It would be so easy to snap it and uncover his prize. But he wouldn’t do that. Not yet. As hard as the dragon pushed him for more, he wanted to savor every second.

“He is.” Mateo traced a finger from her neck to the very edge of the flimsy material. Goose bumps rose on her warm flesh. Every part of her was so soft he wanted to get lost in it.

“So, what are you waiting for?” Her grin widened, and she lifted her hands from where she’d placed them on her chest.

His heart pounded, and his breath stuck in his lungs. The shimmery black material that had kept most of her body from his view slid over each luscious curve to land in a pile at Sloane’s feet. All that was left was the black thong, the sexiest sheer stockings he’d ever seen, and the red heels gracing her feet.

“So beautiful.”

But before he could reach for her, she stepped away. His protest died on his lips as she turned. She slipped a finger down her chest to the valley between her breasts, drawing his attention. Her long, gorgeous locks covered the right side, but on the left, her full, rounded breast teased and tantalized him with the nipple jutting out. A small black V of material covered her but did nothing to mask her scent. Her sweet arousal perfumed the air, luring his beast closer to the surface. His growl rumbled from his throat before he could stop it.

***

Sloane couldn’t quite catch her breath. Mateo’s hungry gaze raked over her body, and it was all she could do to keep from leaping at him and wrapping herself around him. His dragon growled as he looked all the way down to her stilettos and back to her face again. The rumbling sound was too rough to be coming from anything other than the primal beast. But instead of frightening her or pushing her away, the sound made her pulse race and her body throb.

She should slow down. Take a step back. Get to know the man—and the dragon—before she committed her life to them, but the she-dragon inside her already knew what it wanted. Jolts of pleasure had streaked through her at the sting of his teeth against her neck, and he hadn’t come close to breaking the skin, much less marking her as his own. She wanted it, though, and at that moment, she was willing to do just about anything to get it.

Pushing her hair back, Sloane uncovered herself for him, waiting, watching as he took her in. Mateo’s hands clenched and released, and a muscle in his jaw leaped. His dark, whiskey-colored eyes lightened with golden amber flecks, the pupils elongating into slits. Beneath his skin, the shadow of black scales advanced and retreated, never quite breaking the surface.

“Sloane,” he whispered.

The plea was all it took. Before she could process what she was doing, Sloane had her arms around Mateo’s neck and her body plastered against his. His hands came down to cup her bottom, pulling her against him. Every hard ridge of his chest pressed into her soft flesh. His cock strained against her lower belly. Lips and teeth collided as he took her mouth. She opened to him, desperate for his invasion.

His fingers curled, the nails scraping lightly at the skin of her ass cheek, then with a sharp tug, her delicate panties were gone.

Mateo moaned into her mouth, the sound deep, satisfied. When he pulled away, leaving her breathless and her lips tingling from his kiss, she leaned in, wanting more. But Mateo was already moving. He dropped to his knees before her, keeping his gaze locked with hers as he grasped her ankle. He waited for her to brace herself with a hand on his shoulder before lifting her foot and slipping her shoe from it, then did the same for the other.

With the gentlest touch, he traced the lacy edge of her stockings with a rough fingertip before dipping his head and following the same path with his tongue, ending on her inner thigh. His fingers tightened on her hips as he took a deep breath. His heated exhale teased her skin, making her moan and clutch his shoulder tighter. He was so close. Her pussy throbbed, and her legs trembled.

His grin widened. Without breaking her gaze, he bit her inner thigh. Not a gentle nip, but a bite that made her gasp as need blossomed from that spot to fill her entire being. “Mateo, please,” she begged. The slow throb that had her dragon panting turned into a pulsing desire so desperate she couldn’t think.

He brought his face closer. His hot breath fanned her tender folds, making Sloane whimper. “What do you want?”

Her fingers trembled as she tunneled them through his hair, tilting his face up a little. “You. Now. Right now.”

His nostrils flared, and in an instant, rather than have his face buried between her thighs as she’d expected, he had her up in the air in his arms. One moment, she was clinging to him, the next, he had her pressed against the floor-to-ceiling windows. Mateo hoisted her up, placing first one thigh, then the other over his wide shoulders. Sloane did the only thing she could—she hung on to his hair as he dove in, burying his face in her pussy.

He slid the velvet tip of his tongue all the way up, circling her clit, then down again before plunging it inside her. With his arms on either side, he kept her where he wanted her, secure, yet unable to do anything but hold on and take what he gave. His pleasured growls vibrated against her with every stroke, making the pulse in her clit throb harder.

“Too much. It’s too much, please,” she begged as she fisted Mateo’s hair, pulling him closer.

Rather than slow him down, her pleas had him lashing his tongue across her clit over and over. When her moans became a steady litany of his name on her lips, he sucked the sensitive flesh. The soft pull on her throbbing nub had her closing her eyes and pressing her head against the glass. He increased the pressure, sucking harder, flicking his tongue over the tip, then repeated it again. She couldn’t help thrusting her hips forward, taking more—needing it all.

His fingers dug into her waist where he held her steady as he feasted. His hungry growls grew louder along with her whimpers. Fiery heat bloomed in her chest, spreading, filling every part of her, until pure pleasure exploded through her entire body.

Her screams filled the room. Mateo slowed but didn’t stop until the very last tremor and contraction subsided.

She was vaguely aware that Mateo was moving and taking her with him. He’d lowered her, plastering her chest against his. Her legs wrapped around his waist. It wasn’t until he set her down on the bed that she dared open her eyes. She’d taken everything and given him nothing in return. Well, that was about to change. Mateo stood next to the bed, his chin still glistening with her juices and his eyes half-lidded, and lowered his boxers. His cock, long and hard, stood against his belly. Licking her lips, she looked up at him again.

His dark hair stood on end where she’d grasped and tugged at it in the throes of her orgasm. Now it was his turn. She couldn’t wait to taste him, touch him, learn every part of him.

“Don’t even think about it,” he warned, his voice deep, raspy.

“What?” she asked, blinking up at him as she got onto her hands and knees, facing him.

“As much as I want those beautiful lips wrapped around my dick, there is no way I’m coming anywhere but inside you right now.”

She moved a little closer. “Who says you can’t have both?”

“Not this time, mate. One swipe with that little tongue of yours, and I’m done.” He took hold of his shaft at its base and stroked up to the tip, then released it with a moan.

Sloane sat back on her heels, spreading her knees further apart when his gaze traveled down her chest and past her belly. She brought one hand up to her breast, tweaking her tight nipple while bringing the other hand down between her legs.

She hadn’t managed to stroke her clit once before the bed dipped in front of her, and he was there, pushing her back.

“Mine,” he said, his voice gruff.

He followed her to the mattress, pressing her body into it, his weight a welcome pressure. His cock rested between her legs, hot and hard, but not inside her where she wanted it most. She tried to move, to get more friction, but he pinned her to the bed and lowered his lips to hers in a slow kiss that stole all reason.

She was the one who was supposed to be driving him wild, just as he’d stolen her control a few moments earlier, yet she was getting lost in him all over again. It was time to take her dragon by the horns.

She pulled her lips from his and kissed his jaw, scraping her teeth along the hard edge, teasing him as he’d done her. When she reached his ear, she nibbled the shell, and his whole body stiffened against her. He moaned and thrust his hips, rubbing the hard length of his cock against her.

Damn, that felt good.

“Do you know what I want, Mateo?” she whispered the words into his ear as she brought her hands down his back, cupping his ass, squeezing it and pulling him closer.

“Tell me.”

She nipped his ear again. “I want to feel that hard cock of yours inside me.”

He groaned and pressed his lips to her shoulder. “I’m holding on by a thread here, mate.”

“Don’t hold back.”

“I don’t want to hurt you.” He scraped his teeth along her shoulder, back and forth, his tongue darting out to taste her skin as he did. When he thrust against her again, another throaty moan slipped free.

“Please, Mateo, I need it. I need you.” She accentuated each sentence with a small bite, each one a little harder than the last.

“Sloane,” he growled against her skin.

“Now,” she demanded before she bit his shoulder hard. The coppery taste of his blood flooded her. She hadn’t intended on giving him her mating bite, but when the spicy taste of him coated her tongue, the she-dragon inside surged forward. Her teeth pointed, and when she clamped down, they sank deep. Pleasure rushed from her soul, saturating her entire being, but she didn’t have time to bask in it before he was moving. His roar shook the windows and rattled the framed picture on the wall. He lifted himself from her body long enough to adjust his position before he plunged all the way in.

Mateo paused with his cock deep inside her, and she could hardly breathe. Not because of his chiseled chest crushing her into the mattress or how he filled her as full as she could be, stretching her to the very edge between ecstasy and pain. It wasn’t even the waves of pleasure pulsing from where his body joined hers, invading every bit of her. No, it was the intensity of his stare as he looked her in the eye.

“You’re mine, Sloane. Forever.”

She tilted her head, knowing what was coming—craving it like an addict did their next hit. When he bent his head to her neck and his teeth pierced her skin, pleasure exploded from that spot, consuming her. She closed her eyes and pressed her neck deeper into his bite, savoring the throbbing heat overwhelming her senses.

Mateo, teeth still buried in her shoulder, pulled his hips back, then thrust, fast and hard, taking her soaring higher as he did it again and again. Each time, she licked or nipped at the mark she’d given him. His sexy growl filled the room, only broken by her moans as he pounded into her.

Wrapping her legs around his hips, she met his thrusts with hard ones of her own, taking her mate, giving herself to him.

“Come for me,” he commanded as he snapped his hips, driving into her. His pelvis brushed against her clit with every thrust, and she was powerless to stop. Waves of ecstasy washed over her as she squeezed and released around him, gripping his cock as he plunged and retreated.

Mateo’s smooth strokes faltered as he slammed home one last time and held himself deep inside her. His jerking cock sent her flying over the crest again as he filled her with his seed.

They lay there for a long time, neither of them speaking. After a while, he’d turned onto his side, allowing her to breathe a little easier. Not that she would complain—she loved having his weight on her—but snuggling against him as he stroked her skin had her and her dragon practically purring with a contentment she hadn’t had in a long time—if ever.

Her eyelids grew heavy. How long had they been lying there holding one another? She pressed a kiss to his chest and closed her eyes. She was drifting away when a hard knock came at the door.

“Laundry service,” a harsh male voice came from the other side, startling her into a seated position.

“Go into the bathroom and lock the door,” Mateo hissed.

In an instant, he was up and standing, using his body as a shield between her and whoever had dared knock. She didn’t argue, didn’t question. She grabbed her dress and locked herself in.