Gold (Date-A-Dragon Book 1) Read online

  And at the same time, the gold dragon had been wanting to pleasure his mate ever since he’d laid eyes on her. And now that she’d agreed to at least one night, Dante was going to make sure he made it a night so good she’d want to experience a thousand times more.

  No more playing. No more agonized waiting. No more awkward glances and sexual tension.

  Just pleasure.

  Dante undid the buttons of Ella’s soft sleep shirt quickly, revealing a white camisole beneath it. In the fabric, he could make out her nipples, and he eagerly kissed them over the soft cotton, making Ella moan with desire.

  He’d never been so hungry for a woman in his entire life. For Ella, he was insatiable.

  For a moment, he kissed along the edge of the fabric along her collarbone, teasing it with his teeth as she watched eagerly. Then he pulled it up and held both her breasts in his hands, squeezing the silky flesh gently.

  He could see the slight flush of her cheeks despite her tanned skin, which satisfied Dante, since any sign of her arousal was perfection to him. And as he pressed his thumbs lightly over her nipples, she writhed beneath him, twisting slightly into the thick bedsheets. Her scent, floral and spicy, filled the air around them. And even though Dante had previously never much been one to obsess over olfactory experiences, Ella’s scent was as unique as it was arousing and only further confirmed what he’d already known all along.

  Mate, the dragon beneath his conscious mind growled possessively.

  But as much as he wanted to jump all the way and take the first step into fully claiming Ella, Dante knew he was getting way ahead of himself thinking that.

  No, he would pleasure Ella fully, satiate her present desires, but leave her wanting more. Give her a taste, so to speak, of the pleasure he could offer. And in the meantime, it would give them time to deepen their emotional connection so when the time was right, he would reveal his true self to her and then make her his forever.

  He lowered himself to one nipple, kissing it and then suckling it while he squeezed the creamy flesh with one hand. Beneath him her curvaceous perfection tantalized him, the feel of her hips on his thighs making him even harder than he already was.

  On many occasions, he’d imagined what her curves looked like beneath the unflattering clothes she wore. He wished she knew how beautiful she was and that there was no need to hide anything.

  Well, except this. This gorgeous, soft nakedness was only for him. He’d kill anyone else for looking.

  While his left hand continued to caress her breasts, taking in the feel of her skin and committing it to memory, his right hand teased at the hem of her pajama pants, and he caught a glimpse of the white lace underwear she wore beneath.

  But he didn’t jump into it, instead gauging her reaction, watching for any fear or hesitation on her part before he did more for her. But she didn’t pull back, didn’t shrink away from his invitation as he feared she might.

  And without even needing to ask, he heard her thoughts, piercing the heated silence between them like a bell sounding in the distance.

  Don’t stop.

  Without hesitating, his hand delved beneath her pants, finding her center and stroking along it. Her pleasure immediately intensified, and her hips bucked against him in arousal.

  So hot.

  He went slowly, but didn’t stop, working into metered rhythm as his fingers played over the soft fabric between her folds and across her clit. At her sides, her hands clenched the bedsheets, holding tightly.

  In the room, the single light of the lamp on Dante’s nightstand cast long shadows over everything, illuminating the silhouette of Ella’s gorgeous body beneath him in stark relief.

  Then Dante flicked his finger against her clit, and she came for the first time with him.

  It was subtle at first, her body warming and tensing as she closed her eyes, shutting out the world around them. And then in an instant, it escalated into a fevered intensity, everything going off inside her as she struggled to stifle her moans and cries of release.

  Wanting to keep everything to himself, Dante covered her mouth with his, stroking inside with his tongue and deepening her orgasm even further as her hands dug into his shoulders, a welcome sensation and evidence of the pleasure Dante knew he alone could give Ella.

  For what seemed like forever, she came until finally relaxing in his arms and onto the bed once more.

  “That was…” Ella said, trailing off.

  “Only a taste.”

  Before she could respond through the haze of post-release satisfaction, Dante grabbed the edge of her pants and panties in both hands, then slowly pulled them off, revealing her lower half to him and leaving her mostly naked on the bed.

  “So embarrassing,” she said, covering her eyes and flushing.

  “So perfect,” Dante responded.

  With care, he spread her legs, then lowered himself to her, committed to showing her just how deeply his desire for her ran, just how precious her pleasure was to him, how badly he wanted her.

  He licked her center, a single stroke, and she gasped with delight, a harsh rush of air that made him want to do it a thousand more times before the night was over.

  Like before, he went slowly, using his warm breath to accentuate the feel of his tongue on her clit. After the first few touches, where her body seem to jolt slightly from the power of it, she began to relax into it. Instead of gasps, she let out long, pleasured moans as he licked, then made small, languorous circles around the tiny nub, then alternated direction.

  When Ella came the second time, Dante came over her, letting her hold him so she knew he would be there. Like he would always be there for her from here on out. And then the third time, as orgasm crashed through her from the heat and the wetness and the arousal, he didn’t move, instead watching with marvel as the powerful sensation coursed through his mate like an earthquake.

  For Dante, all the physical emblems of wealth and status this world had to offer paled in comparison to having his mate with him, here and now.

  Once her body had reset, he went back to pleasuring her, going faster as he listened to her body’s wants. And as he did, his hands found her breasts, her stomach, her sides, as eager to touch her as she was eager to be touched. Her hair had long come free of the band that held it back in its ponytail, and it splayed over the pillow beneath her in its beautiful glory.

  Dante knew she was exhausted. Knew she was at the end of her rope, at least for tonight. Tomorrow would be a new day with new possibilities. And even though they wouldn’t go all the way, he would be making his mark, staking his claim in her heart so that hopefully, someday soon, she could belong to him and he could protect her and keep her forever.

  He stroked faster and faster, his tongue an instrument of Ella’s pleasure as her hands found his and grasped them tightly, so small in comparison to his own. Dante could tell she was holding off, trying to make it last, and it only made him more eager to make her come as hard and as fast as possible.

  And to his surprise, his little minx was doing an impressive job of it. But as he felt her reach the very limit, he licked one last time over her, finishing with a long kiss directly over her center, and that tipped her over the edge.

  This time she called out his name to the room, holding back her breath as the words left her lips between forceful moans that Ella tried her best to suppress by burying herself into his shoulder.

  Next time, Dante would have to make sure they did this someplace where she could be as loud as she wanted without her family around.

  She came harder than ever before, her writhing as erotic as it was gratifying for Dante. And when she was finally done, he helped her put her clothes back on, then pulled the sheets around them and turned the light off.

  And he pulled Ella close to him, encircling himself around her and holding her tight. At first, she seemed a little tense, but then she slowly relaxed in his arms, her breathing returning to normal.

  “That was wonderful,” she murmured. �
��I didn’t know it would make me so sleepy.”

  He grinned. “That means I did it right.”

  “You weren’t lying,” she said with a yawn, stretching slightly, showing off her curvy little body in his arms in the slight glow of moonlight through the slats of the closed blinds on the window.

  She was so gorgeous.

  After a moment, she pulled the sheet in around her again and looked behind her nervously.

  He gathered her close again, enclosing her in his warmth. He pressed a kiss to the side of her forehead. “You’re safe with me, love. Nothing can ever happen when I’m around. And if you ever call me, I’ll rush to your side.”

  She squirmed happily against him, and he wondered at it, at how amazing it was that somehow he could please this gorgeous, smart, powerful woman who had no idea how beautiful she really was.

  By the time he won her, hopefully she would know.

  He kissed her head again and waited for her to fall asleep in his arms.

  Nine

  The next morning, Ella woke up feeling odd. She turned over and saw Dante, perfect body sprawled beside her, his face slack in repose.

  He looked so peaceful when asleep, so innocent.

  But what he’d done to her last night had been anything but. He’d kept her body coming like a storm that wouldn’t abate, filled with thunder and lightning.

  It had shaken her to her core.

  And she’d been surprised how fine she’d been afterward, even if maybe it was just the afterglow, the endorphins. Whatever happened when people did things like that.

  But she wasn’t exactly a person.

  She crept carefully out of bed, trying not to wake Dante, and changed to put on a bra, a fresh shirt and pajama pants, and a robe. She needed to go for a quick walk to clear her head.

  She took one last look at Dante’s face, so handsome it pulled at her heart when she looked at him, and then walked out, pulling the door quietly shut behind him.

  She was halfway down the stairs, still messing with the belt of her robe, when she realized someone was in the kitchen.

  Cliff.

  She stopped, wondering if she should run back up into the bedroom.

  But no, this was her home. It was morning, and if she called, anyone could come running.

  And last night, she’d showed he couldn’t control her. Not anymore. She’d taken that part of her past back. At least for now.

  She didn’t know what it meant, and yes, she still felt nervous. But she was going to stop acting like she was afraid when she wasn’t some innocent, starry-eyed teen and there was nothing this sad excuse for a man could do to her.

  She kept her head high and walked down the rest of the stairs. She passed him to open the fridge and tried to ignore the prickles on her neck that said he was coming closer. Dammit, why did she have to be so aware of him?

  She flipped around to see him standing over her, and he reached out to shut the fridge loudly.

  She jumped and made a move to go around him, but he blocked her on the side with a hand on the fridge. She went the other way, and he put up a hand.

  She ducked under his arm, and he caught her around the waist. Without thinking, she lashed out, catching him in the groin.

  He groaned and let go, and she stumbled back, shocked by her own courage.

  He glared up at her, blue eyes frightening and hard. “So you decided it’s worth fighting back now?”

  She scowled, folding her arms and trying to look braver than she felt. Even now, the past was trying to encroach on her. “Don’t touch me again, asshole.”

  “Oh yeah?” Cliff asked, moving closer. “What are you going to do about it? Tell that stupid pretty boy boyfriend of yours? You think he’ll believe you?”

  She blinked, remembering that day. Pulling the remnants of her shirt up around her, trying to cover the scratches on her breasts. Feeling tear-stained cheeks but eyes that were too dry to cry. And his words.

  No one will believe you. You’d be lucky to have someone like me. Tell anyone and they’re going to laugh at you. And I’ll come for you again. Punish you, you ugly bitch.

  “You’re mine,” he said. “You know you were meant for me.”

  “I’m not anything,” she said, pulling her robe tight and taking another step back from him. “Just a businesswoman who controls her own life now and doesn’t have to take crap from you.”

  “You want me to tell him what a slut you are?” he hissed viciously. “Tell him how you spread your legs for me?”

  She’d been stupid back when she was flattered by attention from the football team captain, even if it was in secret. No one had ever paid attention to her. So yes, she’d been stupid about trusting him. Allowing him to do things that no one else had ever done. But she had never spread her legs for him.

  Never.

  She knew that for sure.

  But what would Dante think of her? Part of her knew it wouldn’t matter, but the other part, the hurt teenager inside her, didn’t want to be seen differently. She didn’t want the deep shame inside her to be reflected in his eyes.

  “Stop it,” she said. “Just leave me alone.”

  He was standing tall now, looking more and more confident as he made her feel more and more ashamed.

  Remember, she told herself. You’re Ella Stanton. Top business consultant, currently dating a hot guy who seems crazy about you, even if he is hired.

  That’s right. What was this between her and Dante?

  “Ella,” a voice called from the top of the stairs. She stepped back from Cliff, sure the shame was still evident in her eyes, and avoided Dante’s gaze as he came down the stairs.

  Dante jogged forward, making the floor shake slightly as he reached Cliff and pushed him back with a hand. “Stay away from my woman.”

  She put a hand over her face, stifling a grin. Sometimes he sounded like such a caveman. But she couldn’t deny her relief that he was here. “Dante, let him go.”

  Dante turned to her, and she could see that despite her grin, his face was dead serious. “You said you would be careful. That you wouldn’t be alone with him.”

  She frowned. “You don’t control me, Dante.”

  “Can we talk about this upstairs?” he asked, his voice tight.

  She sighed and followed him, her heart still hammering from her confrontation with Cliff. When they were inside the room, he sat her on the bed and then paced, glaring, in front of her.

  “What were you thinking?” he asked. “That man scares you, and—”

  “No, he doesn’t anymore. It’s—”

  Dante’s expression darkened, his eyes like molten gold. He folded his hefty arms. “If it isn’t fear, then what is it? You want him? You have history?” He ran both hands through his hair in exasperation. “Perhaps I read this all wrong.”

  “For Pete’s sake, no,” she said, standing and pulling his hands down, making him face her. “But we have to talk about the fact that you don’t own me just because we got physical last night.”

  He raised a dark-gold eyebrow. “That’s all last night was to you? Physical?”

  She nodded. “For now, that’s all I have to offer.”

  He huffed. “I didn’t do it right, then.”

  “No, you did everything right, but this is fast for me. Let me tell you; that’s more progress than I’ve made in my life. I just gave you my body. But I need more time than that to give you my mind.”

  “And your heart?” he asked bluntly, staring at her.

  She sighed. “I don’t know, Dante. This is too much for me.”

  “But he isn’t?” Dante asked angrily. “You ditch me in the morning, but then I find you hanging with him?”

  She realized with a dawning sense of wonder that this gorgeous man was jealous. Over her. “Oh my gosh, you’re jealous.”

  He whipped around. “Of course I am. I want you to be mine. I don’t want anyone else to touch you.”

  “How was I supposed to know that?”

&nb
sp; “I told you I wanted to win you,” he said. “Woo you. Who wins a prize to share it with someone else?”

  He had a good point, and as she looked at his big, tensed body, she realized there was a dark side to Dante. Behind the pleasantry, the jokes, the cockiness.

  Deep down, he was just as insecure as any other male.

  She’d never known men that looked like him could feel that way.

  “I get it,” she said. “But I’m sorry. I haven’t agreed to be yours yet. And most people don’t agree to be exclusive when they start dating.”

  “Even when they do things sexually?” he asked, looking totally baffled.

  “Yes, even then.”

  He ruffled his hair again and then sat on the bed next to her, his shoulders slumping.

  She wished she could tell him about Cliff. But the trauma, the shame, was too deep still.

  So she just placed a hand on Dante’s arm reassuringly. “We still have time, though. For things to progress.”

  “Who is that guy to you?” Dante asked. “How can I protect you if I don’t know? How can I know you even want to be protected?”

  She sighed. “You’ll have to trust me when I say I can’t talk about it and it’s going to be fine.” She gave his arm a squeeze. “If I need you, I’ll let you know.”

  He grunted. “I don’t like it, but I don’t have a choice, do I?”

  “No,” she said reluctantly.

  “Fine,” he said. “Then at least I’m getting breakfast.”

  “Don’t start anything, please,” she said, pulling on his tee shirt as he moved to go.”

  “Douche better stay out of my way, then. I’m not looking for a fight, but if he starts one, I’ll damn well finish it.”

  She had to admit that was fair enough.

  Dante made it to lunch without anything happening.

  He was pretty proud of himself for that. He was crunching carrot sticks, thinking about what a great dragon he was, when Cliff came into the room.

  Dante bit back a snarl, remembering his promise to Ella that he wouldn’t do anything violent without provocation.