Page 18 of Tempting Her Dragons

I don’t like people. I don’t understand humans, and I definitely don’t understand men like the one Saphira is currently torturing. I was taught to treasure women and children. Mates are to be respected and loved above all others. Our mom instilled in us values and respect. She has been pushing us to get out, to go somewhere other than just to work. She wants grandchildren and a woman she can spoil and love.

Roxanne is our found mom. She is beautiful and dedicated to her sons, but she is sick of everything male. She wants a female in the family.

I can’t wait to introduce Saphira to her.

“He’s done,” King says softly. Maxwell’s heart has stopped.

“Yes, he is,” Saphira says. “My vampire friend showed me how to get rid of a body, and it works great.” She wipes her knives on the dead man’s shirt and slips them away. “But I found a better way. I was afraid it would smell. Thankfully, the heat is at a temperature that somehow eliminates the scent.” She lays out a garbage bag under his feet.

She’s fucking amazing.

“Show us, mate,” I encourage, and she sends a blinding smile my way. I want to see that smile as we fuck her.

We watch as she uses her fire to burn the body, and it begins to turn to ash. Truly mesmerizing. The particles float into the plastic, and Saphira controls the direction. I’ve never seen anything like it. She breathes on her hands, and the blood disappears. No body left behind. No blood. Nothing for anyone to track.

“Remarkable,” I say and get another smile.

“It saves on clean-up,” she says casually. I wonder if the work she does takes a toll on her.

“Where are you going to put the ashes?” King asks.

“Out the window,” she says, zipping up her bag and grabbing the sack.

“Out the window?” I ask with a startled laugh.

“Yep.” She looks around the room. “It’s so sad.” I see the strain on her face.

“Yes, it is,” I say.

She takes one more look around and moves to the stairs. Kingston takes her tool bag from her as she passes by.

We take the same path back to the car, Saphira between us. Her shoulder bumps mine, and I glance over.

“Sorry, that took too much energy,” she says weakly, and I wrap my arm around her waist.

“I got you,” I say, and she leans heavily against me.

“I’ll drive,” Kingston decides, and she willingly hands over the keys.

I help her into the back seat and follow behind her. The power she wielded would deplete any dragon.

“Tell me where we are going,” King says as he starts the car.

Instead of answering, Saphira pushes between the seats and enters something in the dash. I hold in the groan at the up-close look at her delicious ass. She drops back, and I buckle her seatbelt. The bag is on the floor between her feet. It’s odd to think that it used to be a human.

I share a loaded look with King in the mirror. Our bond has been building for years; we don’t need words to communicate. We don’t have any reservations about our mate and the work she does. What concerns us is the consequences it takes on her body and mind. Knowing she does it alone most of the time raises our protective instincts. If we weren’t here, she would have driven home alone, exhausted. She needs two mates to take care of the aftermath of her missions.

After we travel away from houses and cars, she rolls down the window slightly and hangs the bag out, allowing the dust to blow across the earth. When it’s empty, she uses her fire to burn the bag, and it joins the mysterious dirt floating out of the car.

Once the window is up, she curls into my side and closes her eyes. She takes only a minute to fall asleep.

I allow her warmth and scent to surround me and soak into my skin.

The bond is consuming. I knew the stories of how it worked, and we have met other bonded mates, but it can’t be accurately described unless it happens to you. It’s been hours since I met her, and I would do anything to keep her. I would kill anyone who tried to take her from us. The emotions swirling inside me are powerful; I can’t imagine their strength when we mark her and complete the bond.

Dragons mark their mate with fire. Much like a tattoo, a design appears through the fire to mark the skin, except the universe, not the shifter, picks the design. We will forever be connected to Saphira, mind, body, and soul. We will be able to feel her emotions and location. In our other form, we will be able to speak into her mind. That kind of connection is hard for anyone other than shifters to understand. Having two mates is normal within the shifter community. Affection is needed for our animals. Humans wouldn’t accept the way we live. Our world needs to be protected.

King stops the car in front of a cabin surrounded by woods. We passed another house, and I wonder who lived there. They are far enough away that we can’t see it from her place.

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