“He didn’t forgive it. He simply took our lives for those that were lost,” Rowan said stiffly.
“In other words, he saw reason,” Sophea said, flashing Rowan a smile that made him want to strip her bare and cover her with kisses. “Which is saying a lot considering that he was ready to smite Rowan where he stood. But back to this group wedding business…” She slid him a considering look. “If we did want to get hitched, then maybe that’s something we should consider.”
“See? Sophie is on board with it,” Gary said, his face scrunched up in thought. “I see it now… an orange blossom arch. The brides in ivory satin with lashings of antique lace trailing after them. Jim with baskets of flowers to be strewn. Me in a top hat, riding him, and cascading petals down the aisle…”
“Dude, I am not a pack mule. Not even for you,” Jim told the head. “But I do like the idea of a top hat. Aisling, can I have a top hat for the wedding?”
“Sophea,” Rowan told his mate, pausing a moment at that last word. He was a bit surprised at how strongly he felt toward her. Not that he wasn’t growing to be very fond of her before… the event… but now, no matter what she said, he knew in his heart that she was his mate, the woman placed on the earth to complete him and make him happy to the end of his days. Which had suddenly, thanks to the interference of the First Dragon, grown to an impossible number. “I’m at my limit. Either I’m going to have to fight every man here or I’ll kiss the breath out of your lungs in front of everyone.”
“Ooh,” she said with interest lighting her eyes. “Do I get to pick which you do?”
“Yes. And assuming you’re going to go for the kissing, I should warn you that if you don’t want witnesses to what I’m about to do to you after that, and believe me, I have a mental list that is growing with each minute you stand there being impossibly deliciously tempting, then you might want to ensure the others leave.”
“Now that’s what I’m talking about,” Jim said with a low whistle. He nudged Gary, and asked sotto voce, “You got a camera on you? A dragon claiming his mate for the first time is sure to be Internet gold. Viral video fame, here we come!”
“And I think that’s just about enough from you,” Aisling said before Sophea could reply to Rowan. She grabbed the demon by his collar, causing Jim to squawk, “Help, help, I’m being repressed!”
“You’re going to be a lot more than repressed if you keep that up,” Aisling told the demon, and with a backward look at Rowan, said simply, “It was very nice to meet you both. I’m glad you’re not a dragon killer any longer, not that I bought that whole story, because I know how stubborn the dragons can be about seeing things their way and only their way. Do let us know if you need any help with demons.”
“Don’t let us know,” Drake corrected her, taking her arm and escorting her from the room. “Mate, I’ve told you that you are not to undertake dangerous tasks while you are with child. I won’t have you risking yourself or the babe…”
“Three down,” Rowan muttered under his breath, looking out of the side of his eyes at Sophea.
She had a thoughtful look on her face, and was eyeing him back.
“What?” he couldn’t help but ask her.
“Just what’s on this list of yours? Is it something… wicked? Something to do with your chest? And me licking it? Is it a nipply list?”
“I like nipples,” Gary the head said sadly. “I sure miss mine.”
“I believe that is our cue to leave, as well,” Ysolde said, sliding her hand in Baltic’s. “I’ll repeat what Aisling said and welcome you to the weyr. It would be nice to see the red dragons rebound from the terrible tragedy that befell them. If you need Baltic’s sword arm, or my magic, do let us know.”
Baltic looked interested for the first time as he followed her out of the cabin. “Do you think we should stay? I haven’t gotten my hands dirty in a good battle in far too long, not even a heated practice session. Pavel is too busy mooning about his latest inamorato, and even Kostya is polite these days. That mate of his has ruined him for sport.”
“I heard that!” Kostya yelled, and stormed out of the door after them. “I’ll show you who’s ruined!”
Aoife gave Rowan and Sophea a wry smile. “So nice to meet you, Sophea. Rowan, welcome to the dragonkin. I’m glad to see you well. Let me know about the group wedding. I think one might be kind of fun. Kostya! Don’t you dare get yourself hurt again! If you keep breaking that collarbone, it’ll stay broken…” She was gone in a flurry of scattered threats toward her dragon.
“Bee,” Rowan said.
She fluttered a hand at him and tucked the other one into the crook of Constantine’s arm. “I know, you want some private time with Sophea. And, I assume, to come to grips with what’s happened. I have to admit I’m not quite clear on the latter, but since you’ve evidently not suffered any ill effects—that I can see—I’m going to assume you’re hale and hearty and can continue on with the job of getting the ring from that thief.”
“That thief is a very nice old lady, and he is not going to steal anything from her,” Sophea said, bristling.
Bee looked taken aback for a few seconds. “He’d better, or there won’t be much of a world left.”
“No stealing!” Sophea took a step forward, yanking her sword from her back as she did so.
Rowan caught her arm and pulled it down, pinning her to his side while Bee sputtered indignantly at them. “It’s all right, love. You don’t have to go Xena all over my sister’s ass. I’m not going to steal anything.”
“I knew it!” Constantine said, frowning fiercely at Rowan. “The Dragon Breaker has betrayed us. I told you that we couldn’t trust him.”
“My dear,” Rowan said politely to Sophea, “would you mind if I borrowed your sword? I have to beat a man about the head and shoulders with it.”
She handed it to him with a smile.
“I’d like to see you try,” Constantine said, starting forward.
“For heaven’s sake, Rowan!” Bee snapped, pulling her dragon back to the doorway. “Don’t you know any better than to antagonize dragons? Especially wyverns. They’re very quick to take offense.”
“He started it,” Sophea said, taking back the sword and sheathing it when Rowan reluctantly handed it back.
Bee rolled her eyes and pushed Constantine out of the room, saying as she left, “I don’t care how you get that ring… just get it. The world is lost without it.”
“And then there were two,” Rowan said, looking at Gabriel and May.
“We have a cabin on the ship,” Gabriel reminded him, obviously amused by the proceedings. His expression turned serious when he added, “To be a wyvern is an onerous task on its own. To be created not only a dragon but a wyvern must have consequences. If you have questions or need assistance, know that May and I are at your service. She has unique insight into what it is to become a dragon, and I have been a wyvern for many decades.”
“Thank you,” Rowan said, deciding that he would tolerate Gabriel and May being on the same ship as Sophea so long as they kept their distance.
“We’re on the deck below this one if you need us,” May said, then the pair of them left, closing the door quietly behind them.
“At last, we are alone,” Rowan said, striking a dramatic pose.
“Mmm.” Sophea seemed to be distracted by a thought.
He tipped her chin up. “Penny for your thoughts?”
“I’m wondering why Mrs. P didn’t come down to see what was up. That golden light thing was… phew. Intense.”
“She’s not a dragon. She wouldn’t have felt it.” He cast a glance toward his bed and wondered if Sophea would object to him simply shredding the clothes off her before working through the many and varied demands that filled his mind. He decided that given the sparse state of her wardrobe she would mind, and simply picked her up and carried her over to the bed, depositing her on it and kneeling to untie her sandals.
“Just what do you think you are doing?”
she asked as he freed first one foot, then another.
“I believe the term is ‘claiming my mate.’ At least that’s what the others seemed to feel I need to do.”
Sophea sighed, a sound that turned to a moan when he bent down and kissed the inside of her leg. “Oooh! I suppose I could stay for a bit, although I would like to check that Mrs. P and her priestly entourage are okay.”
“Why wouldn’t they be? There’s a vast herd of bodies crammed into her room, so any attacker would stand little chance of getting through to her. And in addition to that, you told me she locked her door, and you locked the cabin door.” He rubbed his cheeks on the tender flesh of her inner thighs. He loved the scent of Sophea’s skin. It was as if she’d bathed in wildflowers, a slightly spicy, vaguely floral smell that reminded him of sunlit meadows in the flush of summer, flowers moving gently in the breeze.
“Well… I guess that’s true. And I’m really not against staying here with you for a bit… although I do think we need to discuss that whole mate thing. If you recall, I was married to another dragon, and that makes me his mate. Maybe I can’t be yours because I was Jian’s mate. Although that wouldn’t be very fair.”
Rowan looked down at her where she lay before him, his to claim, the woman who was put on this earth for him, and couldn’t help but feel that he was stepping into her late husband’s shoes. “Sophea… this is going to sound awkward, but I don’t know how else to say it. Are you comfortable with this? With me?”
“Of course I’m comfortable with you,” she said, rubbing her leg against him. “You’re beefy, but not so beefy that you are unreasonable.”
He nipped her calf. “I mean with us. Me being a dragon. More specifically, I now hold the position your late husband held.”
She looked thoughtful at that, but smiled after a minute’s thought. “You know, I think Jian knew what was coming—although how he could is beyond me, but then again, he was a ghost talking to me at a séance, so who am I to quibble about impossible things. He seemed to be telling me that someone else was coming into my life, and to embrace it. Embrace you. So if you’re feeling like you’re suddenly a Jian substitute, don’t. I don’t think of you that way at all. Jian was himself, and you are an entirely different man. Both good, just different.”
“You are wise beyond your years,” he said, feeling a tightness in his chest relax. He’d never had a relationship with a widow before, and wasn’t sure how to proceed without feeling like he was stomping over her memories.
“Hardly that. But I have had some time to reflect since we were in Munich.” She fluttered her lashes at him. “This feels right.”
“We have an obvious connection,” he said, sliding his hand up her bare leg. She shivered in response, and he took the moment to reach behind her to unhook the leather bodice. “I am now a wyvern. You are a wyvern’s mate. We were meant to be together.”
It was amazing just how true that was, and how quickly his mind had adapted to his changed circumstance, and yet already he was having difficulty remembering the time before the event.
“Now you’re being overly dramatic,” she chided, but smiled as she did so. “Why don’t we just enjoy the moment, and worry about what sort of a relationship we will want after we’ve dealt with the whole situation with Mrs. P and the ring?”
He peeled the bodice off her, instantly possessing himself of her breasts, the weight and heat of them in his hands making his blood sing. Desire blazed into being within him, roaring to life with an intensity that threatened to overwhelm. It wasn’t until the pressure built up within him that he noticed the floor around them was on fire.
“Is that you or me?” he asked, pausing a moment in the torment of her delightful breasts.
Sophea, who had pulled off his shirt and was nibbling a path along his neck and shoulder, paused to look down, her eyes narrowing. “Yours, I think. Wait.” Her forehead wrinkled as she focused, and eventually managed to set her feet afire. “Yes, that’s yours. Mine feels a bit different.”
“Ah. We should probably stop it, since I doubt if the carpet is fireproof.”
“Smart thinking.” They both tamped down their respective fires until nothing was left. “Now then,” he said, returning his attention to her silken delights. “Where was I?”
“About to give me a chance to play with your nubs,” she said, pushing back on his shoulders until he released her.
“No,” he said, turning his attention to her skirt. How did it attach? And more important, how did he take it off her?
“Excuse me? Did you just tell me no? I assume your mind is muddled by the trauma of being zapped into dragonness, and that what you really meant to say was ‘Yes, Sophea, I will gladly let you reciprocate the wonderful feelings you’ve been experiencing, for I, too, am looking forward to having my nipples molested.’ That is what you meant to say, right?”
“No,” he repeated, and having discovered the hooks and eyes that closed the skirt, undid them until the skirt was loose. He stood up, pulling her up with him, causing the skirt to slide down her hips to the floor with a leathery whoosh. “Another time you may work your lusts upon my nipple nubs, but right now, I must do this.”
“That’s just selfish, hogging all the nipple-based pleasure-giving fun—” Sophea started to protest, but he stopped her by kissing her soundly.
“Let me do this,” he said softly, giving in to temptation and nibbling on her adorable earlobe. “I can’t explain why I have to, but I feel like I must or I’ll explode.”
Her entire stance softened, her head turning so that her lips brushed his as she melted against him. “I’m sorry. I forgot that you were just bopped on the head with dragon emotions. We are such kick-ass people, of course you feel things stronger than you did before. And I would very much like you to make love to me.”
“Another time,” he promised as he stripped her of her underwear before hurriedly removing his own clothing, “another time I will allow you to lead. But right now… mmrf.” The last word was garbled when he buried his face in her belly.
She giggled and simultaneously sucked in her breath. He looked down at the incredible sight of her lying beneath him, her eyes shining with a light that beckoned to him, her body so perfectly made to fit his, he couldn’t imagine ever considering any other woman. But something wasn’t quite right, some urge was riding him hard, making him want something… more.
“You are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, and to the end of my days, I will thank whatever gods were responsible for sending you to me,” he said, bending down to press a kiss to her sweet lips.
She sighed. “That is the nicest thing that anyone has—eep!”
Without warning, he flipped her over onto her belly, that delectable, soft, enticing belly, and spread her legs enough to settle between them.
“Don’t ask questions,” he said, pulling her hips up while sliding a finger into her heated depths. She was, thankfully, ready to receive his attentions, which was good since he didn’t think he’d be able to last another second. “I don’t know why I have to do this, but I do.”
“Well, it’s a little different, but I don’t suppose it’s—goodness gracious, great balls of fire!” She almost sang the last part of that sentence when he slid into her with one powerful thrust of his hips. “That is… wow, that’s… oh yes, do that move to the left again.”
He moved to the left, and then to the right, and then just because he was a man who believed in covering all the bases, upward and downward as well. As he bent to kiss the back of her neck, intending on trying a few diagonal moves that he hoped would have her squealing with joy, an urge came to him, overpowering him, driving him harder and deeper into her, the pressure building inside until he swirled his tongue on the back of her neck, and breathed fire.
Sophea was already moaning and thrashing around beneath him, but when the fire bathed them both, her muscles tightened around him, and she yelled something incomprehensible into the pillow. He gave in to his own orga
sm, his body feeling as if he’d been filled with liquid gold that was lighting him up from within and pouring out into her.
“Okay,” she said some minutes later. He was frankly surprised to hear her speak, simply because he was amazed he hadn’t succumbed to the perfect ecstasy of the moment. He opened an eye to find himself lying on his back, Sophea’s hair brushing his chin, her hand gently caressing his chest. “That was incredibly fabulous. Seriously incredibly fabulous. I wasn’t sure when you flipped me over like that, because for a minute, I thought you were heading for the wrong door, but then when you made those little swiveling moves, and then that whole fire thing… wow. Just wow. You can do that any time you like.” She tipped her head back to bite his chin, but before she could do so, she winced, and reached a hand to the back of her neck. “What the…?”
“Oh, that.” He felt an odd mixture of pride and guilt. “I’m sorry about that. I’m afraid I was so caught up in the moment that I breathed fire on you.”
“It hurts a little,” she said, rubbing at the spot. “The fire didn’t do that before.”
“Maybe it’s because it was my fire, and I’m not in control of it yet,” he said, sitting up to look at her neck, hoping he hadn’t seriously injured her. To his amazement when he lifted her hair, he beheld an odd marking.
“Well?” she asked, turning her head when he just stared. “Did it blister? Is it gross? Should I see a doctor? It’s not that hurty, just a little stinging, like a sunburn.”
“It’s… I appear to have… I’m not sure how it happened, but evidently I… for lack of better word, marked you.”
“Marked me how?”
He made a vague gesture. “To be honest, it looks like a henna tattoo. Only this one looks to be crossed swords over a circle.”
“Great. Now I have a weird sword thing on my neck.” She rubbed at it a little more then lay on her back and stared up at the ceiling. “What are we going to do, Rowan?”
“About your neck? I could ask the captain if there is a doctor on board—”