The Dragon's Secret Baby Page 4

  Another shiver of desire ran through her. She closed her eyes, fighting to keep hold of her mind. But the only thought that kept rising in her mind was that people were already dead and by the time this was done, she might be dead, too. She had had opportunities in the past to have sex and decided against it. A few times she had regretted the decision to say no. Would she regret saying yes to Virdi right now?

  Maybe. Maybe not. But at that moment, she didn't care.

  Dominque moved closer to him, reaching for him. His naked body was hard and warm in the night and she let her hands trace over the contours of his muscles, the burning desire in her core heating up the more she touched him. He groaned when she found him with her hand and she bit her lip. She knew how this part worked but had never had practical experience.

  "A little faster," Virdi moaned in her ear. "Yes, just like that."

  His hands ran over her body, focusing on her breasts for a moment before he reached under her shirt to find her belt buckle. Dominque gasped as he slid a hand into her pants, rolling her hips up towards him. The heat already in her core spread throughout her, warming her thoroughly.

  Virdi continued to kiss her neck, more roughly this time, his teeth scraping over her collarbone. His motions between her legs made everything tight and she clung to him with her free hand, struggling to remain focused on her own job. Eventually, she couldn’t take it anymore and pushed her pants off entirely. The Dragon moved between her legs, pulling one over his hip.

  "I'm ready," she blurted as he probed her entrance.

  He began to push in, his size stretching her, causing it to sting a little but then he withdrew. Dominique groaned.

  "You're not ready." Virdi's voice was low, husky and caused the tightness inside of her to coil even further. "We have to be patient."

  Dominque whimpered. She reached for him again but this time he laid over her and pinned her wrists above her head. He began to grind against her, hitting her in all the right spots. Dominique cried out, arching herself to him. She struggled to keep herself still, wrapping her legs around his hips. Virdi chuckled as he delved into her neck again.

  "I like that little shiver you do when I kiss you here," he murmured, kissing her collar. "You are an incredibly sexy woman, Dominique Mennel. All curves. Not like the other women in your camp, skin and bones. Lush, thick thighs perfect for squeezing a man between."

  She had never heard her body described that way before. Dominique groaned, rolling her hips towards his in time with his motion. His mouth moved to her breasts, making her groan again and he moved back, pressing against her again.

  "I'm going to enter," he told her. "Tell me if it hurts."

  He pushed in slowly. So slowly that Dominique was afraid that she might pass out as she held her breath, waiting for him to find his place. He settled inside her, so big she felt all stretched out but surprisingly there was no pain. She expected it and waited for it when he began moving–but waves of pleasure were the only thing to wash over her. Sweat beaded her brow, brought on by anticipation, desire, and the humid heat of the jungle.

  Virdi's hands grasped her hips as he thrust, steadily increasing his pace. Dominque thrashed back and forth, digging her hands into the loamy earth. All her muscles coiled. She rose her hips in time with his rhythm, crying out every time they fully joined. Above her, Virdi grunted. She wished she could see his face but the dark was as deep as ever.

  The Dragon dropped over her suddenly. He pressed a searing kiss to her lips. That kiss undid everything. Bright white lights flashed before her vision, every tense muscle uncoiled. She thrashed and jerked under him, a high-pitched scream bursting from her mouth. Somewhere in the haze of pleasure, she felt Virdi finishing. He collapsed over her, laying limply. It was difficult to breathe with his weight on her but Dominique pulled him closer, kissing fiercely.

  After the shockwaves eased, Virdi rolled over, exposing her to the air. She shivered and moved closer, resting her head against his chest. She waited for a moment, not certain what she was supposed to feel. But she was glowing inside, a giggling joy bubbling in her chest and she smiled.

  "That was amazing," she whispered.

  "Yeah. It really was." Virdi sounded surprised. "I didn't actually think it was meant to feel that good."

  His words surprised her. "What do you mean?"

  "The two women I was with before… I never really enjoyed it. It was more of a chore than anything else. Huh." Virdi yawned. "Maybe it was just because you were a virgin."

  Were a virgin. Meaning she wasn't anymore. Dominique waited for a moment, wondering if regret and anger were going to crash down on her as she considered what she had done. But there was no anger, no regret. She grinned as her eyes fluttered shut. Even if this didn't discourage the other Dragons… it was worth it.

  Chapter Six

  Virdi

  Dominique's soft breathing was the only sound he wanted to hear. When he focused on it, everything else seemed to melt away, along with the reasons why they were there. But the other sounds of the jungle kept reminding him that there was more than just him and her in this moment. As wonderful as their joining had been, it was only a single moment and he couldn’t forget that. Morning would bring all its dangers back and he had to stay vigilant.

  He had to get her to the Temple of Heaven to find out who her true mate was. The original plan to take her to his mother wasn't going to work. The Temple was closer, and he needed to do his best to make sure another clan didn't get the glory of taking her there.

  But circumventing his clan in doing so could result in them considering him a traitor. It was a fine line to walk, between gaining more power and gaining too much power. He was expected to prove himself worthy of gaining prominence but only through increasing his clan's glory.

  And that was ending up harder than he thought. Even if he did take Dominique to his mother, Skaldi might not even take her to the Temple of Heaven. What if her mate was from a rival clan? Skaldi wasn't the kind of person who would allow what was best for everybody to override what was best for her. He knew from experience that she didn't care about anybody or anything except increasing her position.

  In the end, Skaldi would probably pair Dominique with some perfect charming man and hope that human fertility, what with them being able to have children with whoever they slept with and not just their mates, was enough to still produce the Emperor.

  Virdi ground his teeth together. Why should he allow his mother to keep tamping down on his own dreams and position? If he took Dominique directly to the Temple maybe he would be shunned from his own clan but as a guardian of the Emperor's Mother, he would be welcome wherever she went. And wasn't that a better position than being Skaldi's son, anyway?

  But then, maybe not. Her mate might not appreciate the fact that he had slept with her. Virdi tightened just thinking about the way they mingled together. Thinking back, it wasn't a particularly long lovemaking, but it was better than anything he'd experienced before. He had told her the truth; there were only two other women he'd been with before, and neither had been particularly satisfying.

  He snorted, shifting slightly. Maybe Dominque's mate would refuse her because she wasn't a virgin. There was a strong perception among Dragons that they were unable to have sex and not be mated for life. Virdi knew that was ridiculous. He had believed it once, before his first woman. But she had used him and thrown him away as soon as she was done with him. He had been the one to suffer when he tried to get the elders in the clan to declare they were mates; they only mocked him for giving away such a precious part of himself and assured him he'd have no mate because of his carelessness.

  Maybe they were right, though. He had never found a mate. Maybe it was because he had slept with two women, now three, and hadn't committed to any of them.

  He shook his head, dislodging those thoughts. He and Dominique understood each other. This wasn't because they were looking for anything permanent, it was a convenient way to discourage their pursuers. Lots of
the Dragons would consider her unable to mate properly now. It was just an arrangement of convenience, and he didn't have to worry about getting hurt in the end.

  When dawn started to seep into the sky, Virdi woke her and told her to dress. She yawned, smiled shyly at him, and pulled her pants back on. The sweet smell of jasmine and honey surrounded him and he cleared his throat.

  "Did you bleed?" he asked awkwardly. "If you did, then the other Dragons will be able to follow our trail more easily."

  Dominique paused. She shrugged. "I don't think so but I didn't check. Can't you smell it?"

  He took an experimental whiff. "No."

  "Then I guess I didn't."

  Virdi nodded. There was any number of reasons why she didn't bleed, but he couldn't help but pride himself a little. Among dragons, it was a badge of how good a man was in bed if he didn't make his mate bleed on their first time together. It proved patience, gentleness and most of all that the woman was fully excited for him.

  They started off again, although Dominique moved a little stiffer than she had the day before. Virdi wasn't sure if that was because of what they had done, or because she slept on the ground, or a mix of both. In any case, progress was slower than he wanted. By noon, he could hear her stomach rumbling and found a few fruits that were safe to eat.

  As they sat down to rest and eat, two figures stumbled out of the bushes. Virdi jumped to his feet, pushing in front of Dominique. Adrenaline flooded his system and he opened his mouth, calling the fires from his belly. The breath rolling over his tongue tasted of smoke and ash.

  "Esther!" Dominique cried in delight. She pushed Virdi aside and ran to embrace one of the intruders.

  Virdi blinked, swallowing his flames back down. It was indeed Esther Doron, with Claire Perry beside her. Both humans looked exhausted and wary. Esther had a few cuts on her face and her glasses were missing. Claire had a large bruise on her collarbone. The redhead also gave Virdi a suspicious glance but when Dominique pulled her into a hug, the suspicion disappeared from her face.

  "We thought you were dead," Claire declared. "We saw him dragging you off into the forest and I thought he killed you. They just attacked for no reason! The Dragons–they were killing the students. Esther and I ran. It's that egg. We have to get rid of it!"

  She pointed at the egg, which Dominique still carried in a sling made of her long-sleeved shirt. Her arms were completely scratched up by pushing through the brush and there were red insect bites rising on her shoulders. Virdi brushed an ant off her elbow. Once they got to the Temple, he would go get some ointment to help ease the itching.

  "The egg isn't going anywhere," Dominique said firmly. "Virdi is going to take me to a place, so that I… well, so the Dragons stop hunting the egg."

  Esther pulled Dominique away from the Dragon. "You're not going anywhere with him."

  "He's helping me," Dominique said again. "Let go of me, I'm not in any danger!"

  Virdi stepped forward, raising his hands to reassure the women and to explain what was going on. He never had the chance. Claire picked up a thick branch and swung it at him. It hit his head hard, knocking him off his feet. Dominique cried out–and then all the women screamed. Virdi's head spun as he glanced up. Blood tasted in his mouth. Seriously, he was going to have a concussion that he couldn’t heal from if this kept up.

  Purple wings filled his vision. He sprang to his feet and a gold-spiked tail struck him in the chest. It sent him flying back and he collided with a tree. The air burst from his lungs, heart stuttering. Alom brushed Esther and Claire aside with one wing, then pounced on Dominique as she scrambled away from him. She screamed and the king Dragon took flight. She was in his claws, being carried away. Wide eyes locked on Virdi.

  "No!" he shouted, his fires roaring.

  The world dipped and swayed around him, but Virdi still forced himself to follow after. His feet wouldn't move properly and he stumbled. A burst of flame flowed out of his jaws, strengthening him. He shifted and threw himself into the air. His wings beat the air and he quickly lifted himself out of the trees. Alom hovered just above him, Dominique clutched to his chest, something shiny in his back legs. As Virdi rushed at him, he dropped the thing.

  A heavy iron net spread out. Virdi tried to dodge it but it landed hard over him. His wings tangled and he plummeted to the ground.

  Dominque's scream followed him down. He hit the ground at an angle that sent pain jarring down his spine, darkness washing over his vision. His lungs screamed to draw in air but they wouldn’t obey his signals to do so. His wings twitched weakly around him. A puff of smoke streamed from his nostrils. The net dug into his body. He tried to claw it off but the impact had left him utterly helpless.

  "Help me get this off of him," Esther said.

  "No way!" Claire grabbed Esther and pulled her back from Virdi. "Didn't you see what just happened? We have to get out of here and call the authorities. These Dragons just want to kill us and if we let him out, he'll eat us!"

  Virdi growled in annoyance at the woman's hysterics. He needed this net off him so he could breathe but the way he'd fallen, he couldn't get his wings or legs out. It was a heavy net too and if he shifted, the situation would be even worse. His growl didn't seem to calm the redheaded woman, though, and she dragged her colleague even further away.

  "We can't just leave him," Esther argued, but she didn't sound too convinced anymore.

  Virdi tried to raise his head but the movement made flashes of white dance over his vision. His lungs heaved. Something dropped in behind him and the women started screaming. He caught the glimpse of a blue tail flicking in disappointment and the net was ripped away. The violence of it flipped him onto his back and he found himself staring up into golden eyes.

  Great. Just when he thought this couldn’t get any worse. The universe hated him.

  "Virdi," his mother said in her usual cool, emotionless tones. "You've disappointed me yet again."

  ***

  Virdi fiddled with the sleeves of the suit he was dressed in. His mother's palace was built in the style of ancient Maya pyramids but she had filled it with decoration reminiscent of their supposed Viking ancestry. She herself wore a pale blue dress, similar to the color of her Dragon, her bleached-white hair braided around her head. A pale silver circlet sat on her head and her pet jaguar lay at her feet, watching the two caged human women as they huddled together.

  "Mother." Virdi bowed stiffly towards her.

  "Ah, if it isn't my son," Skaldi drawled, her dark eyes glittering. "The one who swore he would bring me the Emperor's egg. And he has."

  Her long fingers wrapped around the egg sitting in her lap. Dominique must have dropped it again, to keep it from Alom's clutches. Skaldi's thumb rubbed over the mark near its top. Virdi was silent. He hated these games she liked to play. If it were up to him, he wouldn't even have to acknowledge that she was his mother. But he would do what he had to in order to get Dominique back–and win himself freedom from this woman.

  "The egg without the girl is useless," Skaldi continued. "Why didn't you bring her back to me at once? She will be the Emperor's Mother and I will not have the Emperor born to another clan."

  "I will get her back," Virdi vowed. "Alom thinks he's a sky-god but he's just a man. I will—"

  "You will do nothing. You already failed me but I have a solution to the problem you've created." Skaldi smiled as she continued to caress the egg. "The egg is useless without the girl but the girl isn't the only one who can bond with it. So we merely have to kill the current bonded." She glanced at the cowering humans. "And bond it to another."

  Virdi stood still, staring in horror. She couldn't mean… His stomach dropped, his hands went cold and his fires nearly snuffed out. No.

  Skaldi smiled, looking back down at the egg. "Leave me, Virdi. I can't stand to look at your foolish face any longer."

  Chapter Seven

  Dominique

  Alom might as well have put her in a cage hanging from a tree for how har
d it was to find a way to escape.

  Dominique glared out of the tiny window. Outside was a sea of green. Huge, broad-leafed trees grew so closely together they looked like she could walk over them, rolling in waves that disappeared into the distance. She wasn't sure where she was anymore, but the king Dragon had carried her for hours to this mountain-top palace. It was made all of stone, spread out with massive steps and corbel arches that were a staple in Maya architecture. Any other time she would have been excited to explore the place, to learn more about what techniques were used to construct these buildings.

  Being a prisoner put a damper on her enthusiasm. The room was dark, cramped and cold. The Dragon had dropped her in here as soon as they arrived almost two months ago. Fancy cloaks made from fur and feathers were delivered daily, as were golden bangles, jade earrings and even a few stelae that looked to be the genuine articles. She kept the cloaks because she would freeze without them, especially in the thin green dress she had been given, but refused everything else.

  The door opened and Alom stepped in, carrying the normal fare of hot chocolate and cupcakes he tried to bribe her with every day. The smell made her stomach rumble but Dominque didn't move to take the food. She set her jaw and glared at him.

  "Are you ready to see if you and I can be mates, my dear?"

  Virdi was wrong about her not being locked in a tower. She clenched her hands. "My answer is the same as it has been the past two months. No chance in hell. And you can go there, too."

  Alom sighed. In her more naive years, she fantasized about being kidnapped by a handsome, rich king who would slowly fall in love with her–but that was just a fantasy, the plot of a romance novel. And she hadn't really fantasized about the abduction part, just the slowly falling in love and rescuing him from his miserable, lonely existence. She had no desire to look at this king for another second. Anybody who went around kidnapping women wasn't someone she was going to fall in love with.

  "As you said, it's been two months," Alom said. "If you don't find a mate soon, the egg will die, along with the Emperor."