Rancher Dragon Page 14

  Beck met his eyes. “Appreciate it, Clancy.”

  Clancy’s expression shuttered, as it always did with talk of his dragon, but he nodded back.

  Sierra finally pulled back from Beck to face Clancy. “How did you make a shot from all the way over there… in the dark?”

  Clancy just grinned, looking like some Hollywood cowboy, his usual cockiness back. “Not even close to the best shot I’ve made.”

  “Well, I’m glad you were here,” she said.

  Clancy just tipped his hat to Sierra, then walked over to TJ and picked him up in his arms. “I’ll put this where no one can find it. Don’t worry, Beck. I’ll treat his body with respect. He doesn’t deserve it, but I know you’d see it done.”

  Beck nodded.

  Clancy paused. “For what it’s worth, I know you’re not a killer, Beck. That’s why I did it. Goodness like yours, it deserves to be preserved.”

  Beck felt warmth filling him. Clancy was one of his true friends.

  TJ might be gone, but now Beck was free to bond with his real friends. The people who truly wanted the best for him. And most importantly, his mate.

  Clancy grinned. “Now you take that sweet lady of yours back inside and show her how wrong you were to ever leave her side, you fool.”

  And then Clancy was gone, cloaked, presumably with his burden in hand. Whether he left as a dragon or a human, Beck didn’t know.

  Clancy never showed his dragon.

  But Beck was grateful to Clancy. Grateful to Harrison for sending him.

  And more than anything, grateful that he and his mate were safe.

  And could now face their new future together.

  He scooped up Sierra in his arms and headed for the house, feeling stronger than ever despite the fight he’d just had.

  Mate. Mate. Mate, his heart said.

  “Mine,” he accidentally said aloud with a growl.

  Sierra just smiled up at him. “My big, impressive, growly dragon. What was Clancy talking about, you showing me something?”

  Beck smiled back. “I’m guessing he meant I should go make things official with you, shifter style.”

  “Shifter style?”

  “Mating,” he says. “If we’re together, with nothing between us, after you’ve seen and accepted my dragon, then we’re mated.”

  “Meaning?”

  “Meaning we will always be together. We’ll share lifespans. You’ll be bonded to me always.” He took a deep breath. “So think carefully, because once you’re my mate, it’ll kill me if you ever make me go.”

  She swallowed. “Of course I want you, Beck.” She threw her arms around his neck, nuzzling in close. “I can’t wait to be one with you. Mated. I want you here forever. I want to be with you always. I don’t care that you’re a shifter, or a dragon. You’re just you. You always have been. So take me, Beck. I want to be yours.”

  He growled and quickened his pace, taking the porch steps in one leap. “All right.” He took her through the front door and then turned for the kitchen, laughing at her sigh of disappointment.

  “I promise you, mate, when you’re fed and safe and I’ve checked every inch of you, I’ll give you what we both want.”

  “Stubborn, overprotective dragon,” she muttered playfully.

  “You know it,” Beck said. Then he set his mate gently down in a chair so he could get her something to eat.

  The sooner he took care of her and assured his dragon she was okay, the sooner he could take care of making sure that he and his mate were bonded together.

  Forever.

  25

  After a quick, delicious meal prepared by her favorite man in the whole world, and a chance to shower and change, the anticipation in Sierra was starting to reach a fever pitch.

  Ever since Beck had told her about mating, about joining him forever and continuing their wonderful adventures together, she’d been unable to shake her excitement at the idea.

  Beck was her everything. The only person she wanted or would ever want.

  And knowing he wanted her the same way filled her heart to practically overflowing.

  Beck was putting the dirty dishes in the sink, looking devastating in just a white shirt and clean jeans, when she got up from her chair and wrapped her hands around his midsection from behind. He was so warm, so big she couldn’t even get her arms all away around him.

  He just looked down and grinned over his shoulder at her, the kindness of his smile not hiding the dominant, almost feral gleam in his eye.

  “You get enough to eat?” he asked, rubbing his hand along her arm and making her shiver.

  “Yes. But I’m still hungry… if you know what I mean.”

  He turned around to face Sierra, the silver of his irises getting a little brighter whenever he looked at her in that certain way that seemed to say, “You’re mine.” And when his big, burly arms tugged her closer, pressing her into his hard muscles, she almost sighed in both relief and quickly budding arousal.

  “Oh, I know what you mean.” Then, in a swift motion, his hands were on her ass, squeezing and lifting her up as Sierra wrapped her legs around his midsection. “I’m hungrier than a horse at feedin’ time.” He growled, nuzzling into her ear, his beard ticklish and stimulating on her neck and cheek. “Hungry for my mate.”

  She leaned a little more into his beard, loving the soft scratchiness there. “Mate. It has a nice ring to it.”

  Beck took them in the direction of her bedroom, heavy feet moving slow, making the old floor creak beneath him. In her book, that was just one more of a million things she’d come to love about Beck, even in the short time he’d been here.

  She looked forward to finding even more things to love about him as they shared their future together.

  “You still sure about this, Sierra?” Beck asked as he reached the bedroom and nudged the door closed behind him, carrying her with such ease she could just relax in his strength as he held her.

  She pulled back, looking at him eye to eye. “Of course I am. I’ve never been surer about anything in my entire life. I feel like there was a reason—call it destiny or whatever you want—that I found you out there on the range. Just like there was a reason my family’s spread just happened to border a certain ranch where a certain stubborn dragon just needed a little help to finally trust himself again. We were meant to find each other, I think.” She had felt it in her heart from the first time they’d kissed. From the first time she’d even laid eyes on him.

  “I feel it too, with every breath in my lungs and every beat of my heart. I couldn’t possibly love anything else more than I love you, darlin’.”

  He knelt onto the bed and laid her back onto it. Just the way their bodies melded together, with her thighs around his trim waist, his big chest pressed against hers, his arms surrounding her with love and devotion and safety, it was more than she could have ever dreamed she’d have.

  And as much as she knew Beck lived to make her happy, Sierra was going to do the same for him as well.

  He deserved to be treated like the wonderful, thoughtful man he’d always been.

  Of course there would be bumps along the road, though. Every relationship had them. But what really mattered was how people responded to troubles in their lives. How they handled hard times as a team.

  And after what they’d just been through, Sierra couldn’t imagine a problem in the world they couldn’t handle together.

  Beck just looked into her eyes a moment, as if studying the planes of her face. And when he reached up his hand to cup her cheek, stroking his thumb over it lovingly, she found herself nuzzling against the warmth there, just the proximity of their bodies enough to already have her thoughts wandering with thoughts of them naked, joined, and breathless.

  She really was the luckiest girl alive, she supposed.

  “I’ve seen gemstones the size of oranges, deserts the colors of the rainbow, and snowcapped mountains at sunset so pretty an artist could never possibly put it to canvas.” He l
et out a long breath, watching her tenderly. “You put all of it to shame.”

  And at that, his lips crashed over hers, and waves of emotion crested through her with radiant, steadying clarity. She parted her lips, and Beck’s tongue slid over hers, twisting and flicking until she was groaning against his mouth for more. More of him, everywhere.

  There would never be enough Beck in her life. Not now. Not ever.

  For several moments, he just worked across the inside of her mouth with utter precision. And when he pulled away to place rough, eager kisses along her neck, Sierra’s whole body started to heat with want.

  After tonight, she’d be Beck’s mate.

  Nothing could ever sound more wonderful than that.

  Beck, who’d started slow and romantic, emanated a low growl as his hands found her sides, kneading the sensitive skin on her hips, and hiked her shirt up so he could tease her exposed breasts.

  Sierra was grateful she hadn’t put on a bra after showering because his hands were everything as they squeezed her with just the right amount of pressure, his thumbs pressing into the centers. Arousal like tiny bolts of lightning went up and down her back as he traced little circles with the rough pads of his fingers before lightly tweaking the aching peaks hard enough to make Sierra moan loudly with arousal.

  Beck was probably the fiercest protector in the whole state. But when it came to the bedroom, he was an even fiercer lover.

  He put a hand on the small of her back, pulling her off the bed slightly and bringing her chest directly toward his mouth, where he licked and sucked until she was begging for more. Then he laid her down, slipped her sleep shirt over her head, and hooked a finger on both sides of the waistband of her yoga pants and pulled them down past her legs, along with her underwear.

  She tugged at his shirt, and he obliged by taking it off before he spread her legs and looked down at her already wet center. He grinned, then licked his lips as he lowered himself to her sex.

  Sierra almost came the moment his tongue slid over her clit, hips bucking against him the arousal was so strong. But he just placed soft kisses on the insides of her thighs, giving her a moment to relax before he went all out with his dominant, possessive pleasuring.

  “So hot,” she said, looking down to see Beck’s face between her legs as the tension in her skyrocketed.

  “So fucking hot,” he said between licks, and the sight of his silver eyes looking up at her as he stimulated her relentlessly was too much to bear.

  With a scream, she came, every nerve in her body exploding with release. Her hands gripped the sheets at her sides, tugging and pulling like she was holding on to a life raft, not her bed, as pleasure crashed through her.

  Beck let her ease back onto the bed as she relaxed before going at her wet slit again with ravenous intensity.

  In even less time than before, she was coming again, harder and faster as even the sound of his tongue covering her center was starting to become erotic to her eardrums.

  By the time Beck seemed satisfied with what he’d done, Sierra was gasping for breath, writhing against the bed in a haze, someplace between having just orgasmed and already on her way to the next one.

  But as much as being pleasured senseless by her Beck was a ride she never wanted to get off of, she ached to see him lose control as well. See him caught up in the throes of release as he filled and overwhelmed her everywhere.

  Beck sent her a wicked smile that she felt all the way in the tips of her fingers, and he stepped off the bed and pulled off the rest of his clothes.

  Every time she’d seen him like this the past week, naked and strong and rippling with muscle from end to end, she wanted to take a mental picture just for herself so she could keep it with her forever.

  But now, knowing that they’d have forever together, she supposed that wouldn’t be necessary anymore.

  He knelt on the bed, positioning himself between her legs, which were still buzzing from the last release.

  “I promise to always treasure you, Sierra. Protect you. Love you,” Beck said, leaning over her, surrounding her everywhere with his bulk.

  “As long as I have you, I’ll be the happiest woman alive.” The heat from his body, the anticipation of his thickness teasing her entrance, was almost too much to handle.

  Then, with one smooth motion, he thrust inside her, the wet friction of their bodies colliding like this more pleasurable than anything else she’d experienced before. It was even better with nothing between them, his velvety skin gliding easily even as his hardness filled her to nearly overflowing.

  Sierra moaned as Beck began to move, going into the perfect rhythm to cause sparks of pleasure shooting all down her legs and up her back with each movement. And as she dug her nails into his skin, Beck just grinned down at her while Sierra’s whole body rocked against the bed as he pushed their hips together.

  From the way Beck’s expression tightened each time they met, and from the way she could see the muscles in his arms bulge, she wasn’t the only one looking lost in this haze of want and pleasure and unity.

  And as she got closer, she could feel something almost magical in the air around her. Like a thick, imaginary blanket settling over her senses, comforting and reassuring, even as a wildfire of near-release licked at her insides like a bonfire.

  Then Beck was going quicker, pushing inside her and taking them both toward their climax. Sierra’s whole body seemed to coil around him like a spring, legs wrapped around his back, hands gripping his big shoulders while they skirted the edge of oblivion.

  And for a split second, when she looked up, she could swear she saw Beck’s eyes turn to bright silver and gray slits, like his dragon’s had looked. But it was gone before she could even get a second look, and the feel of his thick cock as it stroked past her G-spot again and again was more than enough distraction to permit her even a moment longer to think about it.

  With one last pump, Sierra finally came, body tightening all the pent-up arousal as if into a white-hot ball of energy deep in her core before exploding outward.

  Beck came with her immediately afterward, his thick length pulsing inside as he grunted and pulled himself tight to Sierra, holding her like she was the most precious thing in the world, as he always did in these hot, unforgettable moments of sweat and love.

  Pounding, powerful waves of pleasure continued to sweep over her for long, drawn-out seconds as her release slowly abated. And when her vision finally cleared, she saw only Beck looking down at her with such love it could make her cry with happiness.

  Instead, she leaned up a little to kiss his cheek, and Beck answered by claiming her mouth in a kiss sweeter than candy and more devoted than the earth’s movement through the cosmos.

  And when he finally pulled away from the kiss, she knew deep in her heart that they were one. Mated. Her heart joined to his and his to hers.

  They enjoyed the moment together, happy and relaxed even as the events from what felt like the longest day in her entire life slowly unwound in the back of her mind, leaving her exhausted but satisfied that it all worked out.

  Beck placed a little kiss on her cheek, then went to the bathroom to clean up before lying on the bed next to her. His huge bulk made the bed bend beneath him, trapping her in the pull of him as he wrapped his arms around her and held her close.

  “Mine. Mine. I’ll never get tired of sayin’ it,” he growled playfully into her ear, making Sierra giggle.

  “You’re mine too. Don’t you forget it.”

  “Not in a thousand years, sweetheart. You’re my everything now. Wherever you go, I go with you.”

  She nestled against him, loving the way they seemed perfectly shaped for each other.

  “Funny to think that when we first met, I believed you were just some wandering rancher who’d been hurt. I never imagined I’d come face to face with one of the legends from Dragonclaw Ranch.”

  “The only legend I’m interested in is the one we forge together from here on out. But yeah, funny
how my dragon seemed to know all along there was something special about this place.”

  “Just like I felt something special when I saw you. I guess that’s just how fate works sometimes. You never know if the person you’re meeting might just be the rancher dragon you were destined to be with.”

  Beck growled, apparently not liking the name she’d made up for him on the spot when the words “rancher” and “dragon” had been thrown in the same sentence.

  “Sweetheart, I may be a dragon, and I may be a rancher to earn my keep, but I ain’t no rancher dragon.”

  “So… a dragon rancher, then?”

  “C’mere, you,” he growled, tickling her and placing sensual kisses on her neck and shoulders as she squeaked in delight, writhing against him as he kept her trapped. “I’m a mountain dragon. But I guess I’ll be a rancher dragon for you, if it means staying here on this ranch with the woman I love.”

  She nodded, and he kissed her again, and in mere moments, she was breathless, the air heating between them quickly. They then shared a knowing look, a look that meant there was a lot more in store for Sierra than just kisses and cuddles in the coming minutes and hours.

  So she just relaxed into Beck’s arms as he took her to new heights in her tiny bedroom in the old house on her family’s land, mind full of ideas and hope for the future that she couldn’t wait to share with her rancher dragon.

  Epilogue

  Beck took a deep breath as he shifted Clive’s reins from one hand to the other. He and Sierra were only a few miles out from Dragonclaw. They were coming back from an afternoon ride, and everything was perfect.

  He sat up a little straighter, feeling her lean in against his back. At the same time, the small velvet box in his shirt pocket shifted, sending a wave of nervousness through him.

  It had been a few weeks since they had officially mated. In that time, they’d been back and forth between Dragonclaw and her family homestead, working at the ranch when needed, then fixing up her place even nicer.