Page 72 of Devoted to the Dragon

“It looks like I’ve caught you again, little dragon.” Knox grins as he shucks his long-sleeved black shirt, his body looming over me.

He’s got sleeves of tattoos I’ve never had the chance to notice before.His wide shoulders taper down to a cut waist. Everything about him is beautiful, from his inky hair falling messily into his face to his pouty mouth. It’s unfair.

“If you want to take it out on me, go ahead. Do your worst.” Knox brushes the hair from my face. “Whatever part of you I’m allowed to have, I’ll take. But when I’m on top, it’s my rules.”

The kiss that follows isn’t angry or biting. His mouth crashes into mine, but where I sting, he soothes. It’s an apology. I huff, shoving him off me as I yank my dress over my head and wiggle out of my panties.I climb onto his lap, holding his chin too tightly as I take his mouth.

“Fight back,” I snarl.

Knox laughs, stealing another kiss. This one is dizzying. It’s a kiss full of promises I don’t want to hear. I turn away, but he isn’t deterred. His soft lips slip from mine to feather the side of my mouth and neck and down the slope of my chest.

“This is how I’m fighting,” he says right before his tongue swirls around my nipple. “I’m not going to fuck you like I hate you, baby. I’m going to fuck you like you’re mine.”

He nips and licks, nuzzling between my breasts. My fingers thread through his hair when he applies perfect pressure, sucking my nipple into his mouth with a moan. I’m wet, dripping onto his jeans.

It isn’t supposed to be like this. Knox isn’t supposed to touch me like I’m the center of his world.

A picture of him staring into the forest, full of longing, comes unbidden. I push it away, ignoring the tightness in my chest.

Firm hands sink into the soft bedding beneath me. It’s laced with Knox’s comforting smoke-sweet scent. He smatters kisses over my belly and plants himself between my legs. My heart drums in my ears the closer he gets to my center, but he’s in no hurry. He rubs my thighs, the ghost of his breath whispering over where I’m hot and aching.

I should get up and push him away. I didn’t come here for this. We haven’t talked. And if there isn’t talking, I expect there to be a game of primal revenge. Not this beautiful nest bobbing on the lake or soft eyes full of determination. Where is the taunting man from the forest?

“What are you doing?” I ask.

A tremble ripples through my body when he sits up, gaze not landing on my face but on the place between my legs.He’s eyeing me as though I’m the treasure he’s spent a lifetime searching for, as though he’s the dragon come to collect and hoard. His heated look causes the tent to fill with smoke-infused mint. The scent is a diffuser, permeating my defenses and making me shiver inanticipation. He licks his lips as the rough pads of his fingers part me.

“I know you’re angry. That you want to hurt me like I hurt you. You can. I won’t stop you.” His eyes flick to my face, and he gives me a roughish smile. “I’ll probably even like it.”

The way he leans over, bracketing me with his arms, should feel claustrophobic. He isn’t safe. I’m not in control. The soft look in his eyes and the gentle way he cups my face make me forget that.

“But at some point, you’ll stop fighting and let me in. Until then, I will spend my life worshipping you on my knees.” He caresses my cheek with the backs of his fingers, softly kissing my forehead.

He sits back on his heels, eyes raking over me. Knox sees every part of me as if I’m exposed to my marrow. An unexpected twist is that I see him too. The angles of his face are familiar, and I’ve seen that smug smile in his memories.

He’s a stranger, butI know him. His rune burns brightly against his pale skin, taunting and reminding me that whatever I’m trying to hide is pointless because he can feel me. The connection between us is already stronger just being near him.

“This is where I’m meant to be,” he says. The words are confident. Unyielding.

I wanted it to hurt but not like this. I can feel the honesty and remorse in Knox's words traveling through the bond like an apology letter. It makes my insides crack open.

He gives me a rakish smile then rubs the pad of his thumb through my slick, a low moan escaping. “Now, are you gonna let me lick this gorgeous pussy? Fill you until you scream as you come on my cock? Or do we need to go another round?”

My body begs for him to touch me, every part of me an exposed live wire. Yet I can’t make myself say the words. He’ssupposed to be my enemy. His people betrayed mine. He tried to capture me. The awful, ugly truth is that I want him too.

He nods in understanding. “I’ve got you, baby.”

Without pause, he lowers himself between my legs. His knuckle rubs down my center, his warm breath following the path. He scrapes his teeth down my thighs and plants kisses everywhere but where I want. That knuckle nudges every once in a while, or his fingers spread me wide, then he backs away, his gaze focused on my wet pussy.

His mouth. His hands. They never give me what I’m after. It’s maddening, making my body thrum in anticipation. The buildup goes to my head, along with a heavy dose of his scent. It makes me wild and desperate.

I buck against him, frustrated. My hands ball in the quilt beneath me. “What are you doing?” I grit the words between clenched teeth.

His chuckle is his answer.

My fingers latch onto his hair, and I yank his head, forcing his eyes on me. That’s a mistake because those violet eyes are burning, lighting me up everywhere they land.“Stop teasing. Make me come.”

“All you had to do was ask.” He snakes his arms around my hips, his long fingers splayed on my stomach, and drags me closer. With strong arms, he cups my ass and lifts me in the air. “Grab your ankles.”

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