Page 47 of The Dragon's Mate Proposal

The sound of a proper bed did sound rather appealing. “A hotel,” I said slowly, raising both eyebrows.

“Don’t look at me like that,” he grumped. “I asked for two beds.”

I laughed. “It’s not that. My point was more that, uhm, the last hotel you had was, well—”

“A dump?” he finished. “I know. You can trust me. This one is better.”

In my alcohol buzz, I couldn’t find a reason to argue. “All right. I’ll trust you. So far, you haven’t given me any reason not to.”

A twitch ran through his arm at the serious tone of my voice.

We wandered the streets for a time, Cade pointing out various stores and buildings, including some he thought I would enjoy shopping at. They were all closed, however, darkened and locked up.

“Not many businesses stay open late,” he said. “There’s not much of a need. Family is more important.”

I wondered if he realized he had paused ever so slightly before saying the last sentence.

A yawn snuck up on me. I tried to stifle it, but it was too late. Cade noticed and chuckled softly before guiding us to the hotel, a boutique little building that couldn’t have more than a dozen rooms at most.

However, true to his word, it was much nicer. We took the stairs to the third floor of four. Cade opened the door and gestured with a flourish for me to precede him inside.

“Such a gentleman,” I said, walking inside, taking in the open room. “Cade …”

He followed me in. “Oh, come on,” he growled, immediately seeing what I was. “I’ll be right back.”

I walked over to the only bed in the room and plopped down on it while he went downstairs to talk to the proprietor.

“Oh, this is going to be nice,” I said to nobody in particular as I sank delightfully into the comfortable mattress, a more than welcome change after nights spent in a sleeping bag.

“Bad news,” Cade said when he reappeared a few minutes later. “They’re booked up.”

“Uh-huh,” I said, shaking my head.

“I swear, I said two beds,” he protested. “I’ll sleep on the floor. It’s fine. Just give me a pillow and a blanket. I’ll be fine. It’s not a big deal.”

“You should be able to enjoy sleeping on a bed, too,” I said, though I’d already grabbed one of the pillows and the top blanket and was dragging them over to him.

“I’m fine,” he said, shaking his head. “I often will sleep outside in my dragon form under the stars. A floor isn’t that different.”

“I don’t think your dragon will fit in here,” I joked, handing him the pillow.

He grabbed it and pulled faster than I could let go. Overbalanced, I stumbled forward, tripping over the blanket, the floor coming up fast.

Cade was there in a heartbeat, casually gathering me up with his other arm, wrapping it tight around my lower back and pulling me up against him firmly until I recovered my breath.

Which was extremely hard when I was inches away from his face, buzzing warmly after dinner and drinks and feeling every muscle of his upper body as it pressed against mine.

Fire blazed in his eyes. Before anyone could say anything, the pillow and blanket hit the floor, and his lips touched mine. A searing light exploded in my mind. Cade growled through the kiss, the rumble washing over me as the dam we’d built up between us collapsed before the force of our desire.

Fingers tugged at my shirt, and I obediently raised them over my head. Cade’s fingers moved deftly, removing my bra just as quickly, leaving me topless and exposed, to which he took the fullest advantage.

I moaned, grasping his mane and threading my fingers through it as he sucked and licked my nipples, turning them from soft and tender to stiff and needy. The heat from his mouth spread to the rest of my body, erupting like lava as my pants slid down my legs and he dropped to his knees.

Grabbing his head for support as his tongue teased my inner thighs and worked its way higher, I wondered just what his plan was.

“I’m going to fall on my ass if you keep that up,” I gasped when he flicked his tongue over my clit.

In response, Cade casually reached both hands between my legs and picked me up. I yelped, lifting my hands to stop my head from plunging through the ceiling—only to find I didn’t need to. There was more than enough room.

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