The Dragon's Heart (Dragon Lore) (32 page)

Ryuu
, he loved how her body felt under his hands. He loved the way she responded to him, the way her body came alive for him, the way she opened up to let him all the way inside of her. Not just her body, but her heart, and her very soul.

Moving in, he dragged her head back and hitched her up, his mouth devouring hers.

This time, he told himself he was going to take his time with her. She deserved it. She deserved to be worshipped, adored, given the world, even if it meant denying the need trying to burn him alive from the inside. He would give her this.

At least that was the plan. His sweet little mate had other ideas. Desperate and restless, she arched her body into his, her mouth hot and consuming as she moved against him. Before he could stop himself or slow them down, he was inside her.

Just like that, all the rage he’d kept inside over three millennia built into a raging boil.

As he pounded the last of his battle lust into her, her perfect body wrapped around him, accepting him completely. When he finally let her hands go, they gentled him. They slid over his chest, his shoulders, down his arms until their fingers laced, all the while her gaze stayed steady and even, trusting and open on his. It was what she’d been trying all along to give him. Love.

His strokes slowed, deepened, finally–finally–finding the gentleness his Shelby deserved as everything in his world finally swung right. She was here, and she wanted him. She loved him.

Having no idea how he managed it, he somehow found the strength to let her go over the fine edge first. As her head fell back, her body clamping around his as she screamed his name, his own release roared out of him.

Her body slumped against his as his knees gave out. He took them both to the floor, though he was careful to keep the hot spray of water directly out of Shelby’s face.

Her hands slid up his chest and over his shoulders before they looped around his neck, her body curling in tight against his. “Daniel, you’re shaking,” she murmured, her lips brushing lightly against his jaw.

“Yeah, I know.” He closed his eyes, resting his head gently on hers. His voice was hoarse. “I’m supposed to give you up, Shel. It’s the right thing to do.”

She tensed with fury and fear, but he cleared his throat and continued before she could interrupt him.

“I don’t belong in your world, and you sure as hell don’t belong in mine. I’d never fit in with the people in your life, and mine is nothing but danger. We’re still at war, we may always be.” This time, it was her body that shook. He tightened his arms around her, sure if he let her go, she’d find something to hurt him with. “I was right from the beginning. You weaken me. I’ll never be able to go into battle again without worrying about getting home to you, or what my death would do to you.”

“Are you done yet?” she asked, her small hands shoving against his chest as she started to struggle.

“No. Be quiet and listen.” He carefully hid his smile when she let out a furious snort. “You’ll weaken me,” he repeated. “And then I decided…” He blew out a breath as he looked for the words he needed to say, more terrified than he’d ever been in his life. He’d spent his entire existence fighting so he’d never have to be vulnerable again, and yet, it’s exactly what he was. “I don’t give a shit. You belong in your world, and I belong with you. After everything, I’m just too goddamned selfish to give you up.”

She went still for a long, tense minute, before she let out a strangled sound and used all of her puny force to shove away from him. The desperation in her eyes humbled him.

Her face crumpled abruptly as she swung out, her small fist connecting with his already-bruised shoulder. “Damn straight you’re too selfish, Daniel.” She started to shake again as she just glared up at him, and used his favorite word against him. “
Ryuu
. You scared the hell out of me!”

“I love you.”

* * * *

That did it. The storm inside of her broke, all the terror she’d been holding in for so long poured out of her in a massive wave of sobs. She crumpled, wrapping herself so tight around him her muscles ached with the strain.

She didn’t care. He loved her, and he wasn’t going to let her go.

He held her until her tears dried up. Somewhere along the way, he’d gotten them from the bathtub and onto the bed. It took a while before her sobs finally faded into hiccups, but when they finally did, she wiped at her face and straddled him.

“I love you, Daniel.” She sniffled away the last of her tears before taking a deep breath. She knew he was going to argue with her, but she’d been thinking about this for a while so her mind was already made up. He was just going to have to accept it. “I don’t want to act anymore–no, it’s my turn to talk,” she warned him, covering his mouth with her hand when he tried to argue with her, grinning at the absurd amazement in her king’s eyes. “I’ve thought about this a lot. I don’t love acting, not the way I love you, and my heart just isn’t in it any more. But…” she smiled because she was excited about this. “I have other things I want to try doing with my life. I want to be free, and I want to try writing a screenplay of our story.” When his face went stark white, she grinned and leaned down to kiss him. “Don’t worry, since dragons don’t exist, it will be a pure fantasy movie, but it’s something Hollywood hasn’t done to death yet.”

He bit her hand gently until she finally removed it so he could talk. His fingers brushed the hair out of her face. “Don’t do this for me, princess,” he murmured, his gray gaze dark. “If I can handle you, I can handle anything your world throws at me.”

She let out an arrogant snort on his behalf. “Of course you can.” She lowered herself enough to slide her fingers through his, until her face was directly above, her hair falling like a curtain around them. “I’m not leaving it completely, but it’s not my world. I’m real here with you. I belong with you.”

His eyes searched her face for a long time. “Be sure, Shel,” he murmured. “I can’t take anything away from you. You’ve worked too hard for this.”

She curled up on his chest, her hand resting protectively over the mark on his heart. “I love you, Daniel. This is where I belong.”

He closed his eyes and smiled. A genuine smile that lit him up so completely her heart stuttered in her chest.

He skimmed his fingers over her back, a low growl rumbling in his chest when his cell phone started to chirp.

Shelby tensed and started to sit up, but he tightened his arms around her waist. “Leave it. They’ll call back.”

She shot him a look as she slipped out of his hold and went to dig his phone out of his jeans pocket. “It could be about Adrian.”

“Ryuu.”
He sat up and dragged a hand over his face, his eye ticking violently as he snatched the phone out of the air when she tossed it to him. “I forgot about Cage.”

* * * *

He didn’t want her to sit by him when he read the message. She’d seen enough ugliness already, but he had to remind himself, if they were going to do this, she wouldn’t want him to shield her from his world. A hint of a smile tugged at his mouth. He was sure she’d find a way to hurt him badly if she thought he was trying to protect her from something.

So he waited for her before he pulled up the text, a bad feeling settling in his gut the second he realized the message was from Micah. Dragan never contacted him, and even now, it was only one word.

Nothing.

Shelby let out a strangled sound as Daniel showed her the message. “What are you going to do?”

“Keep looking.” His arm hooked around her waist, and he pulled her into his lap. “We’ll keep looking until we find him, one way or another. Luca and the others are out searching, and they will continue to scour the city, tearing it apart brick by brick if they need to.”

She leaned her head against him. “We should go see Seren.”

He kissed her head. “I know, and we will. Gabriel is with her right now, and she’s more of a daughter to him than anything else. That’s his little girl. He’ll take care of–” his words cut off abruptly. “How did Micah get to you?”

“Gabriel called him. He said they finally had the weapon to take out Alexi, and Micah needed me to get close to him.”

Dragon silver. Fuck. If they weren’t careful, this could open up a whole new hell for them if that weapon landed in the wrong hands.

He shook it off. There was nothing he could do about it at the moment, and there was something else on his mind. He lowered his chin to the top of her head. “Shel, what happened with your father, you know it wasn’t about you, right?”

She settled against him. “I’m trying, Daniel,” she said quietly. “He traded my life so Alicia could be a star.”

“He was a bastard and a coward.” He sat up, pulling her with him. “He was a coward in every form of the word. He cheated on his wife instead of working out whatever problems they had, and took the easy way out again by pretending you didn’t exist and getting you out of his way. He used you and he hurt you, but sacrificing your life wasn’t something I would ever risk happening again. You know that, right? Why I killed him?”

“I get it.” She lowered her gaze to his bare chest, her fingers tracing along the water scars on his damaged arm. “He never loved me.”

“Hey.” He hooked his arm around her waist and pulled her into his lap. Wrapping his hand around her hair, he tugged her head back so she had to see his eyes. “I doubt he loved anyone more than his own skin. A real man doesn’t cheat on his wife and abandon his child to make his life easier. He had a choice. He always had a choice.”

She snorted out a pathetic laugh. “My death was the easiest way out.” When he winced, knowing he sounded like a jackass, she leaned up and rested her head against his. “What about Alicia?”

“There’s a dragon on the Los Angeles police force. I’ll tip him off, and he’ll take care of it.”

“Of course you will,” she murmured. “You fix everything for me.” Her gaze was steady, even, and despite the pain still in the depths, his mate was rock solid and holding. “I’ve been hiding behind characters for so long because I thought I wasn’t good enough. But you love me. You. The strongest, most amazing man I’ve ever met, loves
me.
Not a character, not who I pretend to be, but me. You make me strong, Daniel, and I’m real. For the first time in my life, I feel real.” She grinned. “I’m the queen of an entire race of dragons, and I’m more real than I’ve ever been in my life. Who knew?”

He didn’t answer. He didn’t know what to say.

Instead of trying to find words he knew he’d never be able to say, he decided to show her just how much she meant to him. His grin was pure wickedness as he jerked his head at her. “Come here, mate.”

She sighed and shook her head sadly at him, enchanted impishness flashing in the depths of her pale green eyes. “Work, work, work, it’s all I do.”

He growled as she pushed his shoulders, taking him to the bed and fusing her mouth with his.

* * * *

It was another hour before she let him come up for air. He had to admit, life with his Shelby was never going to be boring. Every time he thought he had her figured out, she’d find some way to pull the rug out from under him again.

Because they were both sprawled face down on the bed and gasping for breath, he was surprised he had the energy left to lift a hand to brush a strand of sunshine behind her ear.

“I love you, Shel.” His heart hammered in his chest at the way her eyes lit up at the words, and it shook him how something so simple could make her so happy. He’d tried so hard to find something of worth to give to her, but he’d had it all along. “I won’t let you change your mind about me.”

She managed a pathetic-sounding snort. “Not possible, Daniel.” She reached out and twined her fingers with his. “Every time I think I’ve reached the end, that I couldn’t possibly love you more, you do something that has me falling all over again.” His brow must have furrowed in worry and confusion, because she tugged on his hand, forcing him to look at her. “Don’t question it. I love you. You. In all your glorious jackass bastard-ness.”

“Well, at least I know you have no illusions about me,” he drawled, flashing her a crooked grin. He brought her right hand up to his mouth, pressing his lips against the fingers she’d used to punch Micah. Instead, he kissed her, then pulled them both to their feet. “I’m starving, and we need to get you some clothes.”

She lifted her arms to stretch, smiling as his eyes moved over her perfect breasts. “Food does sound good.”

It only took them a few minutes to get dressed and back into the truck. They didn’t speak until they’d been on the road for a few minutes, and then he heard her blow out a shuddering breath. “You are not allowed to die on me, Daniel Ashborne. You know that, right?”