I laugh at his blatant, incorrect assumption. “It is not a matter of understanding her better. I merely find Cait’s confounding behaviors and reactions exciting, invigorating. You find her intriguing, whereas I find her provocative and enthralling.”
His puzzled expression is amusing, but I say nothing, and I leave the matter be.
“Oliver told her she is akin to catnip for dragons. He told her a good deal more as well.” The stern expression on his face tells me I may not care to hear this.
“My brother never breaks the rules. He does not even bend them in the slightest. What would possess him to do such a thing?” I do not know why I ask though, sure Cait drove him to it, whatever the cause.
“I was not in the room at the time, but I am told she outright stated she did not trust him, and ordered that he was to remain in custody with Corrin for so long as he is unable to commit his allegiance alongside his kindred brothers. Caitriona will not abide by his insistence to attempt to appease both sides,” Dante states matter-of-factly, and I have no doubt she did not hesitate to remove Oliver from his self-appointed pedestal. “I believe the so-called ‘icing on the cake’ was her calling him Snobby Dragon. He found his nickname less than pleasing.”
“Of that, I have no doubt.” Snorting in laughter, I’m disappointed to have missed it.
“Caitriona never calls me by anything other than my name.” His comment is quiet, full of his own disappointment.
There are many ways I could respond: anger or jealousy while he continues holding onto his feelings for her, wistfully desiring Cait to see him differently, but I cannot begrudge him the very emotions I suffered watching Dante with her. “Dragons will always mean something to her others will not, even though she does not realize what quite yet. Her response to us is unique. Cait has held no fear of the Dracopraesi from the moment we met, so unlike any others.”
“No. She does not fear any of us. I should have known immediately there was far more than appearances told. A human woman, even one as equivalently fair-born as Caitriona, would never react to any of us the way she has from the beginning, with no fear, no awe, no tendency toward submissiveness, as Corrin’s reign has ingrained as proper. Knowing how and when to play the suitable role is part of her high-society upbringing, but it is most definitely not in her nature.” He purses his lips thoughtfully. “I suppose if I had given it more consideration, I might have taken a DNA sample. A relatively simple test could have revealed if the mitochondrial mutation had reached the anticipated maturation stage in Caitriona.”
“And I am quite certain she would have appreciated the scientific analysis of her state of being just as much as she must have loved being told she is dragon catnip, Dante.” I shake my head, unsure whose approach to Cait’s destiny is worse, though I am not particularly doing a stellar job myself. “I am going to find Cait.”
***
“Do not get too comfortable. She is not for you.” Entering the living room to the sight of Cait asleep on the sofa, head in Jai’s lap, legs draped across Claaron’s, they both appear quite pleased with themselves, in the height of their glory, basking in her attention, though she is unconscious.
“Yes, and clearly she is for you, Theo. She stepped one foot into the room, saw you had not done something she told you to, and came storming back in here too furious to be near you,” Claaron remarks with a grin. “Right now, I do believe she likes us far better.”
Jai smiles innocently. “Cait loves me.”
I find it difficult not to growl. “I do not doubt she does, Jai.”
“Cait loves her dragons.” His voice is soft, yet sure of his words.
“Yes. Perhaps many dragons will love her.” This is something I had not expected, did not foresee. “But I love Cait quite uniquely.”
He nods with his impish grin. “Our North Star is your mate.”
I want to take his words and hold them, keep them somewhere safe, trust they will never die, will remain true as only that which Jai sees can so surely be. “Then you will not mind if I take her from you.”
“After we suffered through painting Cait’s nails, the least you could do is let us keep her one night.” Claaron can’t resist teasing me.
“No.” I’m in no mood for teasing and quite adamant in my expectations. “I will not.” Without further discussion of the matter, I scoop Cait into my arms, holding her close, pleased to find she curls against me, sleepily wrapping her arms around my neck.
She opens her eyes for a moment as I walk toward the hall to her bedroom, our bedroom. “Theo.” Cait half smiles and buries her face in my bare skin, and I feel her breath on me, the way she inhales my scent. “You remind me of the fireplace at the lodge in Aspen where Uncle Thomas took me skiing.”
Cait comparing me to a fireplace leaves me at a loss for a response. “Do you wish to go directly to bed?” I want to talk with her, and do not want to allow her to remain angry, but I will not push her if she is too tired.
“If my nail polish dried, I’d like a bath.” She yawns as I reenter the room, and I realize she has no idea how late it is.
“It will be fine.” I continue to the bathroom, knowing if I lay her on the bed, she will fall back asleep then become furious in the morning I did not let her take the bath she wanted… if she remembers she wanted one. As human males used to say, I am already in the doghouse. I do not wish to stay there. She might banish me to sleep in my office.
She sits on the edge of the extravagant garden tub as I run the water, adding jasmine scented bath oils I find in a cabinet while gathering everything I believe she will need. Cait stands suddenly, and I turn, expecting she may fall, not awake enough to be safe, but she begins removing her clothes, eyes wider and brighter than I anticipated. I cannot take my own eyes off her, though I am unsure if she feels I am in any position to have such a right, watching her undress.
Bared to me, Cait shows no hint of embarrassment. She is the embodiment of the Goddess, everything a woman should be: soft curves, slopes and valleys to explore, a delight for the hands to traverse. Her silken, mahogany hair cascades down, curtaining over the fullness of her breasts; my eyes are drawn to the feminine curvature of her hips—womanly, beautiful.
“Do you want me to be with Dante?”
The question pulls me to her unrelenting gaze. “No.” I cannot explain my actions, the foolish words I speak, but I do not wish to lose her.
Cait steps toward me, reaching one hand out. Her fingers glide along my stomach, sending a shiver coursing through me, her touch cool on my skin as her hand finds its way to my chest. “Then why does it feel like you keep giving me away to him?”
“Truthfully?” Truthfully, to keep her with me, to never lose her, I may be willing to break far too many rules, and to cross lines between my duty as a dragon and my desires as a man.
“Don’t lie to me.”
She moves nearer, her body against mine, making breathing difficult, yet she wants answers to complicated questions. “I do not deserve your love, Cait. I fear my honor cannot withstand adhering to my responsibilities, to my duties in the face of…” I take an uneven breath, grazing her body with my eyes, my self-control threadbare, my desire intent on taking her in this moment. “… you. You are my North Star, Cait, but stars burn far hotter than dragon fire, and I fear you may burn me.”
“You don’t need to deserve my love, Theo. I’ve given it to you, and I’m not taking it back.” Her hands snake around my neck, fingers in my hair, and I cannot resist the need to hold her closer, touch her, feel her in my arms. “And I think you’re the only one who can handle me without getting burned… or can at least survive the damage.” She laughs. “Take a bath with me.”
I do not answer. I kiss her, leaning her back as I shut off the water, pushing my shorts down, kicking them out of the way before sweeping Cait off her feet, and lifting her into the tub as I step in. “Do you not want to relax?” I ask, pulling her into the water with me, enjoying the way she settles atop me, straddling
my lap, arms around my neck again.
“With you in here?… No.” Playful, biting my ear, Cait rocks her hips, teasing me, eliciting a deep growl, and I slide my hands down, grasping her, directing her body closer, easing her to where I desire her most.
“Then what do you want?” My voice is husky in my need for her, but the teasing, the playfulness… I love that part of Cait.
Her hands on my face, she holds my gaze steady on hers. “I want you to give in, Theo.” It is not a soft request but a demand, sending a surge of arousal through me. “You. Are. Mine. Don’t fight it.”
Cait’s lips are on mine, hard, insistent, hands fisting my hair, and she’s taking control, grinding her body to mine, finding ways to pleasure herself with my body. I am a willing slave to her desires, no intention of fighting her punishment for my resistance in accepting her love. Slipping a thumb between us, I add to her pleasure, rewarded as she takes me in hand, still holding my head by my hair in one fist, controlling me as best she can, and I allow it, want it, finding it erotic in ways I would not expect.
My Cait.… Always unexpected.
She bites my lower lip, slow and enticing, then pulls back, grazing her teeth in sensual torture before running her tongue along my lips, a divine apology for the pain. “I’m not sure what ‘North Star’ means.” A breathless moan escapes as her arousal heightens with the pressure of my thumb. “But I know it’s important,” Cait whispers, “that I’m important. So don’t deny what I want.” Commanding yet pleading, she drives me mad.
“I will not. Never again.”
I swear it, hoping I can satisfy her every need, fulfill every role she wishes, and I ease two fingers into her, my tongue capturing my name from her as she cries out, tightening her grasp on me, her desire fueling my own. Cait is so near the edge already, driven by many strong emotions or by the sense of control, I do not know. “Cait.” I yearn to feel her, to be inside her, to claim her as she claims me.
The water splashes me in the face as she responds with little guidance, my hands on her hips. She rises to her knees, still gripping my shaft, stroking, urging me on with her until she impales her body with mine, gasping at the fullness, and I growl out a sense of satisfaction, as physically connected to Cait as I feel in every other way.
Cait is not shy in her wants, in her needs. Letting go, leaning back, and placing her hands on my legs, she sets her own pace. Her body arched so beautifully before me, I explore her with passionate caresses, roving every curve with my hands, marveling at the softness of her skin under my fingers, finding her nipples and rolling them, pinching them into stiffened pink peaks. “Harder,” she moans as she moves faster, rougher, her need building, and I comply, further aroused by her desire for dominance.
She rocks her hips, riding me vigorously, and I cannot resist the temptation to take hold of her, lifting her out of the water as I reposition, sitting on my feet for better leverage, keeping her body against mine, allowing me to match her own movements and thrust into her with the passion she so desires.
Grabbing my shoulders, steadying herself, Cait digs her nails into my flesh, crying out my name, incoherent exclamations following. ‘More’ is the only intelligible word she speaks, and I give it to her: more, everything, the passionate love I promised her—the fire of a dragon.
One arm wrapped around her waist, I tangle my fingers in her hair, pulling her, guiding her, arching her back, baring her breasts, flicking her nipples with my tongue, teasing them with my teeth, commanding Cait to come for me in the ecstasy rising to a crescendo within her.… And she does.
I do not stop her from screaming out my name, do not quiet her, but continue thrusting, harder, unapologetic in claiming her. Let them all hear. Cait calling my name, her body clinging to mine, and knowing she is undeniably mine in every way draws me beyond the edge, a thunderous roar released as it does. A rite of my claim, an instinctual declaration.
Fingers still tangled in Cait’s soft hair, I pull her to look me in the eyes. “You. Are. Mine.” I make the same declaration of possession. “As I am yours. No longer will I forsake our marriage, Cait. You are my wife in the eyes of the Goddess.”
And I kiss her deeply, sealing my promise, forging our souls as one in the fire of stars and dragons.
Chapter 20
*Cait*
“I know what I said, but that was last night, and this is a new day. Today, I want him out here. I want you all out here.” Claaron pauses as though he might argue before turning to get Oliver.
“Would you like me to keep watch over Corrin?” As much as I appreciate Dante’s offer, I shake my head. “You trust him?”
“No, but I would hope he’s not quite so insane as to try escaping with a houseful of dragons… and you, all practically twitching in anticipation of the order to pop his head off.” Rearranging the four dragons’ engraved water bottles that are still taking up space in the refrigerator, I finally find my cranberry juice. “Do you honestly think he’ll be a problem?”
“Corrin is always a problem,” comes the answer as a very large and warm body presses me against the counter when I reach for a glass, opening the cabinet before I do and getting it down for me. Theo leans over, kissing me on the neck, his stubbly face grazing across my cheek, and the rise in my own body temperature has nothing to do with the heat radiating from him.
“I could have gotten that.” Pouring the juice, I pretend he is not the most distracting thing in the world.
“Of that, I am quite sure. You are capable of many feats.” There is an undeniable smirk in his voice, and I’m glad Claaron hasn’t returned to the kitchen. A small snort of laughter slips from Liam at the island.
Turning around to face Theo in the small space he allows between us, I open my mouth, ready with a sarcastic comment, but those green eyes, smoldering, ablaze with all we’ve reclaimed in each other, stop me. “Whatever am I going to do with you, Crazy Dragon?” I tease, shaking my head.
He lifts me onto the counter, missing knocking over my glass by a mere inch, placing me at eye level to him. “I am quite sure you will figure out something, Cait.” Theo manages the perfect façade of seriousness. “Now… about this meeting…”
“Do you think that evens the odds?” Claaron enters the kitchen, smirking. “Putting her at your height won’t give you any advantage, brother. My money is still on Cait any day.”
Theo gives a good-natured huff of faux disbelief, and Dante steps nearer, out of the corner by the refrigerator. “Indeed. I would wager my entire collection of Zambian emeralds on Caitriona. Dear friend or not, I would bring a hell you hath not seen down on your head and allow her to finish you off should you ever harm her… in any way.” His tone is steely, cold, and the unspoken again, lingers in the air.
It’s hard not to glare at him, knowing he means well. “I don’t believe that’s necessary, Dante.”
With a slight bow of respect, he steps over alongside Jai and Clifford as they join us from the living room. My dragon, Theo, stands rigid, unmoving, jaw set tight, refusing eye contact with me. “You are my ward, Cait. I will not harm you. I am eternally in your service, honor-bound to protect you. A destiny such as yours permits no kindness toward failure.”
“And this,” I say, taking his face in my hands, forcing him to look at me, “is why I wanted Oliver here too. I want every dragon with me, even the wishy-washy fence-riding dragon, to hear this. Yes, I am your ward, and you are my dragon, Theo.” I let my hands slide from his face along his neck, wandering across his shoulders and down his arms, grasping his hands, intertwining his strong fingers with mine. “But you are more. You are mine, and I am yours.” I can see he wants to argue, to refuse accepting such a statement in front of his brothers.
“Cait…”
“No. Whatever being the North Star means, whoever I am to the dragons, to them…” I wave a hand around the kitchen at those gathered; Jai, Clifford, Liam, Claaron, and Oliver, even Dante, though I don’t know how he fits into this. “Whoever I am to yo
u in that respect, you are my equal, Theo—the one I love, the husband I chose. The day we met, after court… what did you tell me marrying you would mean?”
The corner of his mouth twitches, and I know he recalls every detail of the day, the events leading to those words he said, just as I do, even more vividly with his supernatural memory. “Unconditional eternal love, protection, loyalty, fidelity.” He omits the promise of being a most passionate lover, but I think the entire apartment, possibly a few floors of the building, got that idea last night.
“You may not want this broadcast until whatever change I’m going through is complete, until you feel I’m safer, but in front of those here, those you trust—that we trust—I promise you the same.”
He releases one of my hands, running a finger along the dragon crystal hanging at my neck, his necklace I wore today and never want to take off again. I hold a piece of Theo near me every second of the day. “Then let it be acknowledged by those present that you are my wife, Cait. I am your husband, and we are one. Though we cannot marry in the truest eternal bond before your transformation completes, the honor of a Pendragon is unquestionable, and my promise unbreakable, Cait.” He places a chaste kiss on my lips, smiling. “However, you can promise me many things, but I am a dragon, and you cannot promise to protect me.”