For the Heart of Dragons Read online

  “Yes, come,” Raven purred as she rubbed her chest into Noah’s body. “They have this.”

  Desire washed over Noah as he wrapped his arms around the wanton woman.

  She rumbled a contented note and slipped her wrists from his fingers. “And I’ll see that you’re well taken care of.” Her hands slipped under his arms and up his back. “Just let me worry about everything for a while.”

  Torn between duty and desire, Noah shivered as need wracked his frame. He had never had a woman affect him as much as Raven did. The irresistible urges from his body and the insistent encouragement from his coworkers made up his mind, and he nodded his agreement.

  The purr rumbling from Raven dropped in tone, vibrating deeper into his body. “Good.” She leaned up and bit him on the neck. Not hard enough to break skin, but still hard enough to leave a mark. It drove a shudder through him as his knees nearly gave way. “You are mine.”

  Noah breathed hard as he leaned against Raven. A little voice in the back of his head yelled that he was making a huge mistake, but it was erased by the feel of her in his arms. Any protests he could have made didn’t matter anymore. He belonged to her now. He would do what she asked. No matter what.

  “Come,” she purred as she pulled out of his arms.

  A whimper slipped out of Noah at the loss of her touch.

  She took his hand and led him out the front door.

  Giving in to the need riding him, he tugged her to his side and wrapped his arm around her waist as they went down the short steps.

  She moaned in response and leaned into him. Taking his free hand, she draped it across her chest so he held her as they walked.

  Whatever warning voice that had been going off in his head died a silent death as she pressed his palm into her breast. Desire burned through what little restraint he had left, and his feet stalled on the path to the gate. Turning Raven in his arms, he crushed her against him as his lips descended to catch hers. The fact that he stood in front of the king’s birthday party with half of his coworkers watching made no difference to him. The only thing that mattered was the woman in his arms and the fact that there was too much clothing between them. His fingers found the top of her bodice, and he ripped it down, exposing her to the night air.

  She threw her head back and laughed in delight.

  Noah growled at the loss of her mouth and attacked the side of her neck with a line of kisses and bites. He bent her backwards as he worked his way down to the sensitive skin he’d exposed.

  “Raven!”

  The sound of Daniel’s voice cut through some of the lust riding his brain, making Noah pull back from the creamy skin he’d been worshiping. He turned just in time to see his boss storm down the few steps from the door to the ground.

  “How dare you come here at such a time and steal one of my men!”

  “Hello, Daniel,” Raven purred as she leaned in against Noah. “I don’t know what you mean.” She wrapped her arms around him, holding him to her. “He came willingly.”

  Noah felt Daniel’s eyes run over him. He wanted to stand up, away from the woman rubbing against him, but he couldn’t draw the willpower to break their connection. He opened his mouth to explain the situation, but nothing came out.

  “Shhh,” Raven soothed him before turning her attention back to Daniel. “You’re upsetting him.”

  “Release him!” Daniel growled.

  Release him? Those words echoed around in Noah’s head, breaking into the fog that had collected there. Some sense came back to him. What the hell is going on? He glanced down at the woman in his arms. He vaguely remembered her mouth on his neck, but that had been inside. How had they gotten outside?

  “Shhh.” Raven reached up and ran her hand along his cheek, tilting his head down so he would look into her dark eyes. “You’re mine.”

  The fog filtered back into Noah’s brain, smothering his thoughts. His arms wrapped tighter around Raven, pulling her into him again.

  Daniel growled at her but stopped several feet away. “Release him,” he demanded.

  This time, Noah just stared at him blankly. Why is Daniel making such a fuss?

  Raven twisted in his grip so she was facing Daniel. “Would you rather I go back in and take my pick of the male dragons inside?”

  Noah moaned a protest. He did not like that idea at all.

  “You would never get past me and my men,” Daniel challenged her.

  Raven laughed. “Very well, you can have your man back, but I will find me a man tonight. Even if I have to hit every club downtown. And you had better be sure I’ll take my sweet time about choosing.”

  Daniel snarled. “So you’re threatening me?”

  “Not a threat,” Raven said cheerfully, “a promise.”

  “Damn it, Raven,” Daniel cursed at her, “Noah’s a good man. I can’t stand to lose him.”

  Raven scoffed at him. “That was an accident.” Her voice held a hint of shame in it. “Anyway, I’m too old to deal with the whims of a mate. That’s why I chose a human this time. I just need him for a little while. I will see he is returned to you no worse for wear and properly rewarded.”

  Daniel bristled at the woman’s words. “I am not running a brothel for you to pick and choose from as you please!”

  Noah felt the woman in his arms tense as she worked herself up for a fight. His mind was still hazy with lust, but their argument had cleared it somewhat. If Daniel pushed her, she would make good on her threat. If Raven went clubbing as she was, she would drive all the male dragons in the clubs into a brooding. There would be chaos in the streets for days. He could stop that by simply going with her and being her plaything for the next few days. Either choice would mean a few days of chaos for him, but only one would save Daniel and Eternity a bunch of headache.

  “I’ll go.” The words were out of his mouth before the pair of dragons could throw down.

  Daniel stopped and stared at him. “You know what this means?”

  Noah nodded his head. He didn’t know exactly what he was getting himself into, but it had to be better than running riot control on brooding dragons. “I’ll deal with it.”

  Daniel stared at them for a long minute. Noah could see the indecision in his eyes. He was weighing the same choices that Noah had.

  “Fine!” He snapped the word so hard that his teeth clicked together. “But I want him to check in every day at noon. To me. Directly!” He pinned Raven with angry eyes. “And if he doesn’t make that call, I will personally show up at your door with a SWAT team and remove him. Forcefully, if I have to. Do I make myself clear?”

  Raven rolled her eyes. “Such dramatics,” she grumbled.

  “Am I clear?”

  “Yes,” Raven answered in an exasperated voice.

  “Then take him and get the hell out of here!” Daniel snapped again.

  Shaking her hair back from her face, Raven stepped out of Noah’s arms. She turned around to face him and shifted forms. Black scraps of satin fluttered to the ground from her ruined dress.

  Noah looked up at the massive, black dragon in awe. Her scales glittered as the light from the chateau reflected off her hide. She bent at the knee and lowered her head so Noah could climb on to her back. A hand landed on Noah’s shoulder, pulling his attention back to Daniel.

  “I will come if I don’t hear from you by noon,” he warned. “I just pray that it’s not too late.”

  Noah swallowed hard as fear raced through him. He’d never seen Daniel so worried about sending one of his men on a mission before. Are fertile females that scary? He paused for a moment, reconsidering his decision.

  Raven turned her head to look at him out of one glistening eye. She gurgled at him.

  Confirming his choice, Noah stepped away from his boss and climbed onto the back of the dragon. He had flown with dragons many times, but they usually carried him in their claws. This was the first time he had ridden on the back of one. Supposedly, it was a great honor to be allowed on a dragon’s back
. What did that say about the woman taking him or the choice he had made? He wasn’t sure, but the moment she spread her wings and kicked into the air, he wished that she had clutched him in her claws. He held on to her neck for dear life as she beat the air into submission. It was the most harrowing experience he had ever had. If this is just the start of the week, what is the rest of it going to be like?

  2

  The soft rustle of material pulled Noah from the depths of his dream. His mind worked on the noise while his body clung to sleep. The material moved again, but this time, the edge of the bed he was on dipped down under someone’s weight.

  “Wake up, lover,” Raven’s soft voice called to him. Her hand pushed into his hair before stroking down his cheek to his exposed shoulder.

  He moaned and shifted under her soft caress. Opening his eyes, he found his beautiful, dark-eyed captor staring at him.

  “Good morning,” she said before leaning over and claiming his lips for a soft kiss.

  Reaching up, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her more deeply into the embrace. For the last three days, from the time he woke until he passed out from sheer exhaustion, he had worshipped at this goddess’s body. His only waking rest had been the few minutes around noon when he was allowed to call and reassure Daniel that he was still alive. Even mealtimes had been laced with lust and desire.

  Pulling from his kiss, Raven nipped at his lip before putting some space between their bodies. “Enough of this for now, my lover,” she said, reaching down and fondling his morning arousal. “I hate to leave you wanting, but I have other pressing matters this day.” Letting out a forlorn sigh, she squeezed him firmly before releasing him and sitting up. “We will get back to this later.”

  Noah chuckled as he sat up. “As you like.”

  An angry growl echoed from her chest as she reached over and shoved him back down. Her long, flowing dress pulled painfully tight over his waist as she straddled him, pinning him to the mattress. Grabbing his wrists, she stretched his hands up above his head and crushed his mouth with hers. After a moment, she relented and pulled back but held him pinned to the bed.

  “What I would like is to take you to the skies and teach you things that would blow your mind.” Her dark eyes shifted back and forth between his. “If only you were dragon.” She let out a heavy breath and climbed off him. “But Daniel would have my hide if he lost another man to my guiles.”

  Standing up, she turned towards the door leading out of her bedchambers. “I’ve left clothing in the bathroom. Wash and dress. My guests will be here shortly.” She paused in the door and looked back at him. “But have no doubt, lover. As soon as they are gone, you are mine once more.” With that, she slipped from the room, closing the door behind her.

  Dropping his head back to the bed, Noah lay where Raven had left him for several long moments, processing what had just happened. Her words played in his head. This whole thing was supposed to be about satisfying her needs during her fertile period. Nothing more. She had made it very clear that sex was all she wanted from him—even to the point that she refused to call him by his name. But, here she was, wishing he were dragon so she could take him for aerial sex. That statement confused the hell out of him.

  Having worked with a bunch of macho guys, the topic of sex and kinks often came up, usually while they were waiting for something to happen or to take the edge off a serious situation. On one occasion, the dragons had gotten into a heated conversation about intercourse in dragon form. There had been lots of opinions, but they all agreed on one thing. You only took to the skies with someone you trusted completely. The few who had tried it admitted it was a thrill like nothing else, but it was insane to do. Losing one’s self in passion as you plummeted at thirty-two feet per second was sure to get your blood pumping, but doing it with someone that didn’t personally care about your safety was insane. More than one dragon had met a very messy end that way. Most refused to even attempt the feat with anyone less than a bonded mate. It made Noah think two things—either Raven was an insane thrill seeker, or her feelings for him ran much deeper than he cared to think about.

  Shaking his thoughts away, Noah pulled himself from the bed and went to wash. Now he knew why Daniel had been concerned with letting him go with Raven. The intensity of their time together was enough to entice anyone away from their normal life. A brooding dragon wouldn’t stand a chance. He wasn’t a dragon, but if she started showing him even the slightest bit of emotional attachment, he would be lost to her charms as well. At least he wasn’t being driven insane by instincts that he couldn’t control. Well, not completely insane.

  ***

  Noah stood at the sink and stared at the outfit Raven had left for him. The pants, if you could call them that, were two pieces of dark material sewn together at the crotch. The top of the garment was hemmed with two drawstrings that would wrap around the waist to hold it in place. It would allow him to be decent in front of guests, but a simple tug on either of the ties would have him exposed in a heartbeat. That he could handle. It was what else she had left for him that gave him a moment of pause. Cuffs.

  Four heavy leather cuffs sat on the counter, waiting for his wrists and ankles. Picking up one of the cuffs, Noah considered it. The stiff leather was textured with hand-stamped dragon scales and waxed to a high shine. Two small silver buckles held the cuff in place, while a single D-ring would allow it to be secured to something else. He inspected the straps and found there was no wear on the leather at all. Brand new.

  A smile turned the corner of Noah’s mouth as he slipped the first band in place. It was cut to his size, but he buckled it as loose as he could so he could slip free if he wanted to. Raven would probably fix it later, but there was no harm in trying. Lashing the rest of the cuffs into place, he picked up the pants to complete the ensemble. A loud clunk echoed through the bathroom. Looking down, Noah found something he hadn’t seen. A collar. It was made of the same black leather as the cuffs, but it was different. There was no heavy ring attached to it. Picking it up, Noah looked at the design tooled into its surface—a dragon with its wings spread. His heart jumped as he studied the piece.

  Setting the collar on the counter, Noah put the pants on as he thought. There was only one hole in the leather, and there was no wear around the mark at all. Plus, it looked to be perfectly sized for him. Could Raven have had this made just for him? And if so, what was she saying with the gift? This wasn’t a collar used to control like often used in bondage. This was something used to claim. Lifting the collar, he ran his finger over the dragon as he left the bathroom. His heart pulsed as he considered his options.

  The placement of the collar gave the item’s meaning more weight. Had Raven put it on top of the pile—the obvious place to put such a thing—he would have assumed it was just part of the ensemble and put it on without thinking about it. But she had placed it on the bottom, where he would find it after he had already gotten dressed. That action spoke volumes to the significance of the collar. It meant he had a choice if he wanted to wear it or not. Or, he could just be reading too much into a simple act. Taking a deep breath, he slipped the collar around his neck and buckled it in place.

  Magic tingled over his skin, answering his question. There is significance to the collar. Reaching up, he pulled the collar off. The tingle stopped as the leather slipped from his skin. Looking down at the piece, he probed the leather softly to see what magic she had wrought. A binding spell. Noah swallowed hard as he stared at the collar. He had seen spells like this used to join a human and dragon without the need to share a scale. There was an elegance to the work that awed him. It was so simple that a child could break it, yet strong enough to allow them to share their essence. Interesting. Then there was the way she had left it for him.

  The fact that she had practically kidnapped him when they first met colored everything they did together. She had both physically and mentally coerced him into going with her. By leaving him wanting and sending him to shower, she had
given him time for whatever chemicals that may have been in his system to dissipate. His head was clear of any effect she had on him physically. By leaving the collar among his things, she’d taken away any mental pressure he may have perceived in anything she may have said while giving it. There hadn’t been words of love between them, but the act of leaving the collar spoke of her position on the subject. He knew exactly what she was doing.

  If he left the collar, she would say nothing of the gift and they would go their separate ways once their time together was up. Accepting the gift would show he was willing to accept her. But there was another side to the coin. The fact that the spell was fragile showed this wasn’t a choice he would have to live with forever. Refusing her was permanent. Accepting her gave him options—a chance to discuss what the future could hold.

  A smile slipped across Noah’s face as he wrapped the leather back around his neck and secured it into place. In his short time with her, he had learned a lot about Raven. Not only was she creative and caring, she was highly intelligent. He would be a fool to pass up the opportunity to really get to know her. She had opened that door with the collar, and he was going to take it.

  Pulling himself to his full height, he considered his reflection in the full-length mirror in the corner. The black of the outfit made his toned chest look paler than usual. Frowning, he ran his fingers through his auburn and silver hair. If he were going to stay with Raven, he probably should risk the freckles and see if he could get a little more color into his skin. A quick shake of his head drove those thoughts out of Noah’s head. Raven didn’t care that he was pale. She had already accepted him as he was, so there was no reason to worry about that part of his appearance. Now, he just had to go and play whatever part she wanted him to for the company she had mentioned. They could talk about the collar and its meaning later.

  Stepping out of the bedroom, Noah felt the tingle of magic ghost across his skin. “Raven?” he called as he headed down the hall. Something wasn’t sitting right in the pit of his stomach. The magic was vaguely familiar, but he couldn’t place it. Following the pull of it, Noah made his way through the winding halls of Raven’s home to a downstairs sitting room. “Raven?” He pushed the door open to find her resting in one of the armchairs, staring off into space. “Raven?” he called as he rushed to her, concerned. She didn’t move as he reached out and touched her face.