Burning for the Dragon: BBW Dragon Shifter Paranormal Romance (Fated Hearts Club Book 1) (5 page)

She rolled her eyes. “It’s stupid. A stupid thing. I walked
in on my idiot ex and then-boss. So I quit the job and the man and found a
different job."

“Betrayal is a hard hurt to endure.” And one he’d correct,
if he ever found out the names of those two. They’d look good in the color of
ash.

“It’s fine. Really.” She nearly echoed his words. The same
lack of conviction was in her tone as had been in his. “I’ve moved on to better
things.”

The flashy grin didn’t quite meet her eyes. Jealousy didn’t
factor into his concern. Her take-no-shit attitude and walking out of her job
didn’t lend to her running back or pining over the cheater. He didn’t want her
to feel she had any blame in the actions of scum.

“And these better things, are they what you want?” He didn’t
bother hiding the heat of lust in his eyes.

She looked out toward the river and the city and mountains
beyond. He could almost see the wheels in her head turning as she considered
the question. That surprised him. If she were so insistent on getting him to
answer the question, shouldn’t she have expected it in turn? It made him sad
that she didn’t feel validated enough to expect him to care.

“I want to care.” She said finally. A half smile pulled up
her lips. “About the full children and even little Halfie. The white picket
fence and the mangy mutt that begs for table scraps. I want something to care
about, even if it isn’t in those forms.”

He just stared. He’d intended to turn the conversation back
to heavy flirting, but she’d floored him. He was used to people wanting
things
.
Buildings built to their specification in the business world, or dresses and
jewels in the dating world. Give and take of items were his norm. But she
didn’t want objects. She wanted to love and be loved.

Luca felt the last piece of the puzzle fall into place.
There was no denying it. She was his mate and the one meant to be at his side.

With the thought, heat thudded through his veins. He knew he
needed to get her alone. He needed to touch her and feel her against him. If he
didn’t get her in a private space soon, there was no telling if he could
contain himself. He doubted his cousin would appreciate an exhibition in the
middle of the restaurant.

“How about we get out of here?”

The smile reached her eyes when she said, “That’d be nice.”

The check came and the plates disappeared with a waved hand.
Luca threw bills onto the table, not caring how much he overspent. He needed to
get Penelope away from there and in his arms.

The limo pulled around as soon as they stepped through the
doors. He paid good money for it to lurk just around the corner and wait for
his texted summons. He again waved the driver away and opened the door for his
mate himself. No one would get close to her.

Penelope gasped at the quickness in which she was settled
into the plush seat of the limo. She’d only just agreed to leave with Luca when
he was ushering her out the door of the restaurant. The man certainly knew how
to go after what he wanted.

She gasped again as the door closed behind Luca and he
pulled her immediately into his lap. He didn’t grimace or make a noise at her
weight. It was surprising, after years of comments on her weight from
boyfriends.

Perhaps Vera was right and shifters enjoyed the bigger
girls.

“I’ve wanted to feel your curves against me all night.” His
lips barely caressed her ear, but she shivered anyway. His tongue snaked out
and traced the outer edges of the sensitive skin, and her shiver jolted through
her limbs. “This dress is perfect for you.”

“Luca,” she breathed. “The window.”

His hand snapped out and hit the button to raise the
partition between the driver and their space. She intended for it to slow him
down, but there was no slowing down the dragon beneath her. The heat of his
body seeped into her own and warmed the cold spots she fully thought would be
in a deep freeze for life.

A strong hand grabbed the plait of her hair and tugged her
head to the side. Luca’s lips were hot against her exposed neck and shoulder.
Each kiss made her heart pump hot blood to her limbs, heating every inch of her
skin.

Her eyes fluttered closed as he tasted every inch he could
reach. She ceded control over to him and reveled in the feeling of being
possessed. She had no doubt where the night would end and couldn’t wait to feel
all of him against her. Her nipples tightened and desire arrowed straight to
her clit. Her panties were already growing damp, just from his mouth on her
skin.

Luca trailed hot kisses up to her ear and pressed his lips
against the soft spot below her lobe. The chain of her necklace felt cold under
his breath. “No silver this time. Good girl.”

The compliment sounded hot in her ears and warmed its way
down her spine to settle in her core. She’d pleased him and he rewarded her.
His free hand pulled down the sleeve of her dress and his lips soon followed.
He kissed and licked back up to her ear, then scraped his teeth against the
soft skin of her neck.

“Luca…” She moaned quietly.

“You have me so hard, sweet.” He mouthed against her neck. A
small jerk of his hips pressed home the fact.

His hand trailed up her thigh and she obediently parted her
legs for him. His deep chuckle only set her further on fire, but he didn’t slip
under her dress. His palm skimmed her rounded stomach and up her sides until he
grabbed her breast.

Penelope moaned as he kneaded her flesh. She wanted him to
rip off the material so she could feel his skin on hers. She rocked against his
lap and delighted in the thick press of his cock against her ass. It would have
to do until they were safely in his building.

“That’s it, sweet. Show me how much you want this.”

His voice drove her on. She ground her hips into him. His
chest rumbled with a purr at each pressed stroke of her against him and her
body responded for him. Her pussy clenched around nothing, aching for him to
fill her, and her clit throbbed. The need for him slid through her until she
could think of nothing else.

She was a total hussy and she couldn’t be bothered to care.
Luca was a man in a million. Billion. Trillion, even. She wanted him like she
wanted to live.

“You smell intoxicating, sweet. I can’t wait to taste if
your cream is just as delicious.”

“Fuck,” she breathed. The bald honesty in his tone triggered
another bubble and burst of pleasure in her veins.

“Soon, sweet. Soon.” Luca chuckled darkly in her ear.

***

Luca needed to give his driver a big, fat raise. The limo
arrived almost as fast as if he’d taken wing back at the restaurant. He pulled
Penelope to her feet and into his arms as soon as he exited the car.

He eyed the building. Too many lights were on inside. Too
many potential witnesses to his dragon form. Fuck, indeed.

He pulled his beast back from the edge. It roared and spewed
fire when it realized he meant to take the elevator like any normal man. He
grabbed hold of Penelope’s hand and pulled her along with him, not bothering to
stop for a word with the doorman.

Luckily, they were alone when he punched the button to
summon the elevator. It opened almost immediately, and he pressed the button to
close before anyone else could join them. He would rather burn the next
passenger than share the space he and Penelope occupied.

She nearly trembled next to him. Her sweet scent filled the
small space and a fresh wave of lust zinged through him to settled hotly in his
balls. He was already hard as a rock and ready for her, but he doubted she’d
want him to take her against the cold glass. Still, she was too far away for
his tastes.

She flicked her eyes at the predator she was trapped with. A
note of anxiety entered her scent. He crossed the small space between them and
backed her up, pressing her against the glass. Anxiety turned to excitement
when his hands gripped the railing at her back and locked her between his arms.

Her body fit against him like she was made for him. His hips
pressed against her and he had to shut his eyes against the pressure. He held
onto himself; he wouldn’t embarrass himself before he even got her naked.

She was to be his mate. But there was so much to explain to
her still, so much that she could reject. He wanted to growl and breathe fire
as much as his dragon when he made the decision to keep his fangs to himself.
For now.

His lips brushed against hers but didn’t quite connect. The
temptation to kiss her almost overrode the desire to tease. The heady scent of
her excitement drove him on and urged him back in turn. He flicked his eyes to
the floor numbers they sped past. His was so soon.

“I’m glad you decided to come upstairs,” he breathed against
her lips. “Because I’m going to taste you. Then I’m going to fuck you.”

Penelope’s groan when he stepped back at the door’s opening
ding made his cock twitch painfully. Soon, he told himself. He’d be sheathed in
the perfect woman soon. After he made her beg for it.

***

She tried to form any thought but yes. Nothing came to mind.
She ran on instinct alone, and couldn’t be bothered to feel wrong. He felt too
good for it to be bad. She was going to combust if she didn’t get to feel him
inside her in seconds.

But nothing could be as simple as stripping down and getting
dirty. Especially not with her man in a trillion. He had other ideas, and they
included excruciatingly slow torture.

He led her out of the elevator and down the hall, of which
there were only two doors. Neighbors weren’t a thing for dragons, it seemed.
She didn’t have a chance to check out the type of furniture or decor he liked
before she was pushed back against the closing door and finally, he kissed her
fully.

His taste exploded on her tongue. Sweet and dark, with all
the notes of a wood fired barbecue. Delicious. Decadent. She couldn’t pick one
word to accurately describe him and she couldn’t care. All she knew was that
she never wanted it to end.

Was she crazy? Yes. She’d known him for only a short time.
Did she care? Not a damn bit. Everything about him felt safe and sure.

His hands cupped her cheeks and tilted her head further up.
He took advantage of the new angle and delved her more completely. She opened
everything to him then, stroking and tasting when he pushed his tongue into her
mouth and chasing him when he retreated.

Penelope fisted her hands in his shirt and locked her knees.
She feared she’d trip over herself if she didn’t hold on for the ride. It was
the right thing to do, as Luca murmured into her mouth and wound his arm around
her body to pull her flush against him. Pleasure rolled through her at the feel
of his hard length pressing against her soft stomach.

He tugged off his jacket and she could feel more of his
solid chest. Her hands roamed over him and couldn’t wait to feel the skin
below. Silk over steel, that’s what she was sure he’d feel like. So lovely and
so strong.

He kept sliding his tongue along her own as he started to
drag her backward. One cautious step after another was pulled from her. She
kept her eyes shut and trusted in Luca, but that proved the wrong decision.

They backed into a table, sending the picture frames perched
there clattering as they fell. Luca laughed, and it slunk thickly in her ears
and down her body. Her giggle turned to a squeak when he bent to hook his arm
under her knees and around her back.

“I’m too heavy!”

Luca pressed his nose against her neck. “Never, sweet.
You’re the perfect size. These curves were made to be worshiped.”

If that wasn’t enough to melt a girl’s heart, she wasn’t sure
what was.

He carried her through the penthouse too fast for her to get
more than a quick impression of an open floor plan and a huge bank of windows.
Deeper into his life he took her, until he brought her into his bedroom and
dumped her unceremoniously on the bed.

“Mmm, that’s where you belong.”

She caught his eyes and preened under his attention. He
liked her curves? Well, she would just rub her hands from her hips to her
breasts. She saw his chest stop moving for a second when she pressed the
overflowing mounds together.

“Mine.” He growled.

His words aroused her even more. Her pussy again clenched
around the nothing he should be filling, and her clit ached with the desire to
be touched and tasted. His dark, lust-filled eyes captured her gaze and held her
still when all she wanted was to strip right there and pull him on top of her.

One knee hit the bed, followed by one of his hands. Then the
other knee, and other hand. He crawled her backward until she settled against
the pile of pillows at the top of the bed. He caged her body with his own and
pressed his hips into hers.

Penelope’s eyes fluttered closed. His weight was perfect,
his heat extraordinary, and she wanted him. Needed him. The realization slammed
into her. She’d accepted that she wouldn’t have a lasting relationship and
sentenced herself to being the crazy cat lady of her building. But Luca
reawakened her desires and her needs. Right then, she needed him.

She snapped open her eyes at the sound of tearing cloth and
the rush of cooler air down her frame.

“Hey!” She glared at the split remains of her dress. Then
she caught sight of the wicked claws tipping Luca’s fingers. An electric thrill
jolted down her spine. He could do so much harm with those claws, but he
treated her so delicately.

“I’ll buy you as many more as you desire.”

Well, that spoke of more than one night together. Or more
dresses being sent to her workplace. She certainly hoped for the more than one
night.

He lined his body up with hers and she thought he’d take her
then. But no, he was still dressed. She wanted to scream with the building
frustration inside her. She wanted some wicked claws of her own to shred his
clothes away.

When he smoothed his hands over her cheeks and dropped his
heated eyes to her lips, she thought he would lean in and kiss her. Instead, he
pressed his nose against her neck and inhaled deeply. Her nipples brushed
against his chest as he moved south. The delicate scrape met with the ache in
her pussy for a full on attack of her control. She wasn’t one to beg or voice
her concerns, but he and the desire he sent coursing through her veins made her
bold.

“Please, Luca.”

He shifted his weight and a hand passed between their
bodies. A quick tug and he’d pulled the cups of her bra down. His fingers
pinched and rolled her nipple until she arched into him for more.

But he was gone, sliding further down her body and leaving
her panting against the pillows. She bit her lip as he kissed his way down her
ribs and over her stomach. She jumped when his mouth touched the ticklish spot
along her hips, but he pressed on and settled between her thighs.

“So delicious, sweet.” His beard roughly rubbed against her
inner thighs, marking her as his. His chin rested against her mound and his
eyes met hers. He looked at her like she was a feast meant for a starving man.

A moan started low in her throat and spilled over when his
fingers tore at her panties. She wasn’t even mad. Goodbye, black lace. Hello,
sexy man. His desire was written plainly on his face. She’d never been treated
like a decadent prize.

His breath was cool against her slick skin when he pressed
his mouth to her slit. His fingers stroked her lower lips while his mouth
sought the hidden gem at the top of her sex.

“Yes.” She trembled against him when he flicked his tongue
against her clit. But he didn’t stay there long. He traced her pussy, teasing
and tasting her. His eyes didn’t leave her face as he gauged her reaction to
how he touched her.

It melted her to him, more than she already felt. He was an
attentive lover and determined to make her enjoy herself before they got to his
portion of the show. She wanted to tell him that she didn’t need special
treatment, but he was too good and too hard to resist.

A new burst of pleasure rolled through her when he probed
further between her folds. He started at her center and traveled back north.
That became his rhythm. A slow tour of her pussy, followed by quick flicks of
her clit. Over and over until she moaned and rolled her hips for more.

Luca growled and the vibrations of it echoed through her
body. The percolating bubbles of pleasure grew and grew until she was just
about ready to burst. She wanted him, wanted more.

She nearly cried out when he pressed one finger into her
pussy. She groaned, but he didn’t stop. He pulled out only to push two fingers
into her. He stretched her with only his fingers, but she craved more. Always
more.