Page 20 of Hex and the Dragon
"Probably," Ivy agreed, though she made no move to put distance between them.
"Then I want you to know," Dorian continued, his hand sliding from hers to cup her cheek with dragon-warmed fingers, "that meeting you, working with you, falling for you—it's been worth every moment of terror and uncertainty."
"Even if it ends badly?" Ivy asked, leaning into his touch despite the voice in her head that warned against deepening their connection.
"Especially if it ends badly," Dorian said firmly. "Because at least we'll have chosen to feel something real instead of accepting the Chronicle's beautiful lies."
The space between them disappeared as if it had never existed, drawn together by need and emotion and the desperate human desire for connection in the face of overwhelming odds. When Dorian's lips met hers, Ivy felt the world narrow to the sensation of warmth and want and the kind of rightness that had nothing to do with magical bonds or supernatural manipulation.
He kissed her with the careful reverence of someone who'd been taught that his touch could destroy, but she could feel the dragon fire beneath his skin responding to her presence, growing warmer and more controlled rather than wild and dangerous. Her own magic flared in response, bibliomantic energy that usually felt cold and analytical becoming warm and protective, weaving around them both like armor made of words and will.
"Are you sure?" Dorian asked against her lips, his voice rough with desire and restraint.
"I'm sure," Ivy whispered, her hands sliding from his shoulders to the buttons of his torn shirt. "I'm sure that this is real, that we're real, that whatever happens with the Chronicle—this matters."
Dorian's answer was wordless but unmistakable, his mouth finding hers again as his hands tangled in her dark hair. The careful control he maintained during their research sessions dissolved, replaced by something primal and desperate and absolutely certain.
They came together with the urgency of people who might not see another dawn, their need for each other overriding every rational thought about timing and circumstances and the supernatural entity that watched their every move. Ivy's back pressed against the ancient bookcases that lined thearchive room walls, centuries of accumulated knowledge bearing witness to their passion.
Dorian's fire magic flared with their emotional intensity, golden light dancing across their skin as he traced reverent paths along her throat and collarbone. But the flames didn't burn—instead, they felt like sunlight on winter skin, warming her from the outside in while her bibliomantic abilities wove their own magic around them both.
"You're incredible," Dorian breathed against her throat, his hands mapping the curves of her body with worshipful attention. "Perfect and brilliant and so much braver than you know."
"Not perfect," Ivy protested, though the words dissolved into a soft moan as his mouth found the sensitive spot where her neck met her shoulder.
"Perfect for me," Dorian corrected, his amber eyes blazing with more than just dragon fire. "Perfect for this moment, for what we're building together."
The air inside the archive room pulsed with charged silence, broken only by the ragged rhythm of their breath and the soft crackle of Dorian’s dragonfire dancing along his skin. Ivy’s back pressed into the old bookcase, the rough grain cool against her spine while the heat radiating from Dorian wrapped around her like a living thing. His hands framed her face, reverent and trembling, his gaze consuming.
“You’re still shaking,” Ivy whispered, voice husky, fingers sliding into his golden hair as his body pressed flush against hers.
“Not from pain,” Dorian rasped, his mouth hovering near hers. “From needing you. From trying to hold back when all I want is to worship you.”
Ivy exhaled shakily, her hands sliding down to his chest—warm, firm, alive with fire. “Then stop holding back.”
That was all it took.
His mouth crashed into hers with heat and hunger, no longer restrained, no longer careful. Ivy moaned into the kiss, parting her lips as his tongue stroked hers, coaxing her into deeper submission with every breath. His hands mapped her body like sacred scripture, trailing down her back, over her hips, anchoring her in place as his thigh wedged between hers.
She gasped as he lifted her effortlessly, her thighs parting around his waist, the hard press of his cock grinding against her through layers of clothing. The feel of him—thick, hard, barely leashed—sent a pulse of molten need straight through her.
“You’re driving me insane,” he growled against her throat, teeth grazing the skin above her pulse. “Every time you touch me, speak to me, even when you glare at me like I’ve misfiled your whole life—I want to fucking devour you.”
“Then do it,” she breathed, her nails raking down his back, tugging at his tattered shirt until it fell in shreds to the floor. “I’m not breakable, Dorian.”
“No,” he murmured, dragging his mouth lower. “But you’re precious.”
His tongue traced the curve of her breast over her blouse before he tore the fabric open with a snap of claws, revealing skin flushed with anticipation. He took her nipple into his mouth through the lace of her bra, sucking until the fabric was wet and transparent, then peeled it down to expose her fully. His mouth was hot, greedy, and reverent all at once, lavishing attention as if learning her by taste.
Ivy writhed in his hold, clutching at his hair, crying out when he sucked harder. “Gods, Dorian—please…”
“Tell me what you want,” he growled, lips dragging across her ribs. “Say it.”
“I want your mouth,” she gasped. “I want you to taste me.”
A shudder rocked through him. He lowered her back to the rug with reverence, spreading her thighs gently before settlingbetween them. Her pants vanished beneath his claws, shredded in moments, panties dragged down with agonizing slowness. She felt the cool air kiss her soaked pussy, her folds glistening with arousal, and his growl deepened at the sight.
“You’re fucking soaked,” he murmured, dragging two fingers through her slit. “Is this all for me?”
