Resurrecting Her Dragon (Dragon Guard Series Book 13) (19 page)

But his phoenix had no intention of letting him rest. From one heartbeat to the next, she took his erection back into the splendor of her mouth. Placing both her hands around the base, she worked him in and out, sucking and humming until he was helpless but to release into her waiting mouth. She devoured all he gave, continuing to work her lips up and down until he began to harden again.

It was blissful torture and Rory longed to return the favor. Putting his hands under her arms, he slid her up his body and rolled them over until he lay comfortably in the haven of his mate. One more quick move had Rory’s head between Claire’s thighs with her legs lovingly over his shoulders. With his mouth just inches from her center, he rubbed his nose against her warm, wet curls. Her scent filled his being. It was sunshine and light, hope and home. It was the promise of an eternity of bliss. Rory knew in that moment he had to taste her nectar or go insane. Giving in to temptation, he licked up and down the glistening seam of her pussy.

Groaning deep in his throat, her taste burst upon his tongue. Needing to have his mouth all over her and his tongue buried deep inside her, Rory placed his hands under her bum, lifted her hot, wet center to his face, and began to feast. Driving his tongue into her warmth as far as he could go, Rory licked every inch he could reach. Curling the end of his tongue, he teased the bundle of nerves he knew from experience set her on fire.

Claire’s hands grabbed his curls; pulling with such force he was sure to be bald. But he just couldn’t care. She gasped for breath and he smiled against her skin. Using the flat of his tongue, he licked her outer lips from bottom to top, teasing circles around her clit on every pass. Her legs tightened around his head. Her heels dug into his back. She moaned and mewled as he sucked her swollen nub between his lips, teasing it with his tongue until Claire shattered, his name on her lips.

Rory continued to drink the honey that flowed from his phoenix. He nuzzled and nipped her puffy lips until her hands slid from his hair and her breathing began to slow. Carefully lifting her legs off his shoulders, he massaged her gorgeous thighs, loving the feel of her flesh in his hands. Looking up her body, he was once again breathless from the beauty of his mate. There had never been anything as beautiful as his mate lying in his bed, completely satiated from his love, looking like the queen that she was.

He kissed her hip, made his way to her belly button, and then nibbled his way around her stomach to the sweet spot between her breasts. Their hearts beat as one; one in body, one in mind, one in soul...always.  He kissed just the tips of her hardened nipples and chuckled as she arched her back, begging for more attention.

Kissing up her neck, he paid special attention to the flaming infinity symbol. He would never tire of seeing his mark on her skin. Claire sighed and moved her head to the side, allowing him greater access. He spent long glorious minutes nipping and kissing her silky skin until her nails dug into his biceps.

Claire surprised him by grabbing his head and slamming her mouth to his. Rory immediately opened to her. He loved her passion, her heat, all of his phoenix. His mate was as strong in bed as she was everywhere else. Her hands in his hair and her tongue working his mouth had him ready to explode again. He shifted his hips, pushing into her until he could go no farther. The feel of her muscles contracting around his erection made it impossible for him to hold still. Sliding out of her until only the tip of him rested within her opening, he commanded, “Look at me, Claire. Look at your dragon who loves you more than life itself.”

Thrusting into her, he pulled right back out, starting a rhythm that Claire easily met stroke for stroke. They stared into one another’s eyes as their passion exploded. He pushed her knees toward her chest, lifting her bottom off the bed, going deeper into her. Rolling his hips, the head of his cock caressed her sensitive bundle of nerves. The walls of her vagina closed tighter, pulling him closer, keeping them locked together. Moving back, he slammed into her, bumping her clit with his pelvis and causing them both to struggle for their next breath.

Claire’s mouth opened in a silent scream as she reached her climax. Her beautiful grey eyes holding his with the promise of eternity, he was helpless but to follow her anywhere. Rory loved his phoenix with all that he was.... completely and totally with no reservations.

Hours later, after making love until neither could move, Claire was laid across his chest as he enjoyed the feel of her long silken tresses sliding through his fingers. Sighing in her sleep, his phoenix whispered his name. Slipping into her dreams, he saw her reliving the flight before their marking. He watched as dragon and phoenix flew together, one in flight, one in spirit, one in love. His heart filled to bursting with the love only the one the Universe made for him could inspire.

Holding Claire close, he closed his eyes, enjoying her dream and adding some of his own to it. Drifting to sleep with his mate in his arms, Rory whispered into her mind,
“You are my everything, always and forever, I love you, mo banríon fiery...”

“N
o, it’s not that.” Olive sighed. “It’s just that...well...”

“It’s just that you’re freaked out at the prospect of a mate. Hell, I would be, too,” Ettie finished her sentence for her.

Ettie had far less attitude than usual, especially after hanging out with the dragons and the werepanthers. It made Olive wonder what secrets her cousin was keeping, but that would have to wait until she figured out her own issues.

“No, that is not it at all. I
want
a mate and a family and all the mushy stuff that comes with it. It’s just that...well...” she paused, knowing what she was about to admit would either make her cousins turn into mother hens or mockingbirds. She prayed for the former. Clearing her throat, Olive looked at her hands and said, “He scares me.”

There was dead silence for almost an entire minute, in which the dove shifter refused to look up. She feared what she would see on the faces of her cousins, who were actually more like sisters.

Finally, just when she was deciding how to get out of the room and up to her room without having to look up, Gabby asked, “Has he done something to make you fear him, Olive?” Her tone was low and she had a smile on her face, but Olive could see the promise of retribution building in her light brown eyes.

Quickly heading off Gabby’s anger, Olive reassured her, “Oh heavens no. He’s barely spoken two words to me and I can feel what a good man he is. Honorable, loyal, just everything the dragons are supposed to be and more.”

“Then what is the big deal?” Gabby relaxed back in her seat and waited for Olive to answer.

“I guess y’all aren’t gonna let this go so I’ll just spit it out. But I promise if you laugh at me, I’ll put bird seed in all your shoes. So you have to promise.”

She waited for everyone to nod their promise and then said, “Okay, here goes, I know I’m probably being silly, but I just get this feeling that he’s trying to change, be something he’s not or something he’s not comfortable with, and that’s because of me.”

“Okay, I’ll bite. What do you mean?” Karleigh, the youngest of the cousins and by far the most out of touch with anyone that wasn’t in their family, asked.

“I guess the easiest way to explain it is that I catch him staring, or I see him trying to smile, but the happy never reaches his eyes. There’s pain there, I can feel it, like deep down pain and loss and a whole lot of guilt.”

Olive wanted to help him. By her very nature she would’ve wanted to do everything in her power to make the Guardsman feel better no matter who he was, but as soon as she recognized him as the man from her dreams, all bets were off. She was drawn to him like a moth to a flame. His pain became her pain.

“You do know it’s the twenty-first century, right Ollie? It is perfectly acceptable for you to walk right up to him and ask him out, get to know the big galoot and then say, ‘By the way, I’m your mate. Wanna get freaky?’” Tilly laughed out loud while Olive thought about kicking her shins for what she said and for calling her by her childhood nickname.

“Yes, Matilda,” Olive used her cousin’s given name just for spite, “I do know what I can and can’t do. But what if it’s something I can’t help. What if...oh hell, I don’t know...what if he...well...killed someone or something?”

“Oh my Heavens, Olive, get a freaking grip. Think about it. If that was the case, you would know. You would feel it. Even if he wasn’t your mate, you’d still feel it. It’s who you are.”

What Ettie said made sense. She did have that ability. It came along with the whole dove gig. Bird of peace, bird of love, bird of healing, bird of protection; her kind wore a lot of hats Then there was what Olive personally brought to the mix. Her natural affinity for people, along with her sense of what someone was feeling like way down deep in their soul, and the insight to know at first glance if someone was basically good or rotten to the core. If someone had a secret, it didn’t last long, because Olive knew about it.

Feeling better, Olive stood and hugged Ettie then asked, “Anyone want tea? I’m making.”

“Sure, I’ll take some,” Gabby and Tilly answered in unison.

“None for me,” Karleigh chirped, holding up her Diet Coke.

“Can I have mine with honey, please?” Ettie asked, sitting down at her laptop to find a local seafood restaurant.

It reminded Olive that she still didn’t know how long they were staying with the dragons. It wasn’t that she had any pressing business at home or was in a hurry to leave. She loved spending time with Claire and her new mate and all the others. It was just that it seemed every time she turned a corner, there
he
was.

Carrying the tea to the living room, Olive reminded herself once again to see what everyone’s plans were. Setting the tray on the table, she handed Tilly her tea just as the doorbell rang. Since she was the only one up, the dove said, “I’ll get it.”

Walking to the door, a strange sensation overtook her. She felt like as soon as she opened the door nothing would ever be the same again. Shaking her head and dismissing the feeling as nothing more than her imagination spurred on by her discussion with her cousins, Olive opened the door and nearly fainted. It was
him
and he was carrying flowers.

Holy crap on a cracker. Now, what the hell am I gonna do?  

“W
ell, la dee da, lookie here, Miss Fancy Pants. You have an invitation to the gala celebrating the Katsaros Industries and Roma Tech merger.” Cyn’s admin and long-time friend, Adele, sing-songed as she fanned herself with what looked to be an expensive off-white linen envelope while doing her best model walk into Cynthia’s office.

“I have no idea why I would be invited to that. I’m just sales consultant for a drug company. I don’t know diddly about tech. And besides, I don’t have anything to wear.”

“Well, you better get your butt in gear. Dust off that credit card, baby, cause you’ve got the golden ticket.”

“What the hell are you talking about? What golden ticket?”

“Girl, get your head out of the books and catch up on your pop culture. There is more to life than the newest anti-inflammatory or anti-depressant. You have a VIP ticket to the big show. It says you’ll be sitting at one of the tables next to the head guy, his new wife, and the other big wigs. You have to go so I can live vicariously through you.”

Cyn shook her head. How in the hell had she ever gotten on the guest list for something so prestigious? These people were the movers and shakers, kings of industry. Hell, most of them were from other countries, highly educated, rich from birth, and way out of her league.

Grabbing the invitation from Adele, Cyn saw the signature that had obviously been signed with the sender’s own hand at the bottom of the beautifully embossed correspondence and had to sit down before she fell down from shock. Running the pad of her thumb over the signature, a chill ran down her spine and an image formed in her mind. 

It had only taken one time, just a chance encounter at Starbucks two years ago in Dallas, and Cyn had been hooked. The spark of recognition between them when they’d touched had been electric. Sort of like déjà vu but stronger, and maybe a little different. It didn’t make sense but it was oh so real. Long after they’d parted ways, Cyn couldn’t shake the feeling that their meeting wasn’t completely coincidental. Not that he’d planned it or anything stalkerish, but that they were ‘supposed’ to meet, like it was a destiny kind of thing. 

He was tall, had light brown hair that she knew would be wavy if he didn’t tame it with products, and hazel eyes that mesmerized as the smooth golden in the center spread to an almost green before turning brown at the edge. To say Roman Marinos was good-looking was like saying South Fork was a farm. He was amazing and had an accent so exotic it curled her toes. She hadn’t even told Adele about their chance encounter and Cyn told her friend everything.

Lost in thought, Cyn jumped when the intercom on her office phone buzzed. “Sexy man voice on line two,” Adele chirped.

“I have told you a million times not to give the people on the phone nicknames.”

Cyn cut off Adele’s rebuttal by answering the phone. “Cynthia St. James, how can I help you?”

“You can accept my invitation to the KI/Roma Tech gala.”

Her mind went blank. Her palms began to sweat. Her heart beat like a bass drum. Cyn thought she might pass out. Recognition like no other filled her mind. Dumb luck had walked up and smacked her in the back of the head again. How could it be possible? How could the man who’d she dreamed about every night for two years be on the phone? Wasn’t it enough that she thought about him every spare minute of the day? Now, he was on her phone?

He owed her nothing, just as she owed him nothing. He’d replaced her favorite London Fog trench coat after spilling coffee on it and even bought the dark brown leather gloves she’d been eyeing for weeks, almost as if he read her mind. She’d tried repeatedly to return them only to have him refuse.