Page 12 of Libra Dragon

The kiss deepened, and before he knew it he could feel his resolve giving way. The tip of his cock slid against the slickness of her folds, and from the heat of her and the throaty whimper that escaped her, he knew she was every bit as impatient for this as he had been. The knowledge that pleasuring him turned her on almost made him dizzy, and he slid himself deeply into her with a groan, feeling her shift her hips to afford him the best possible angle, to draw as much of him into her body as she could. Her arms curled around him, tightening with every minute movement of his hips or hers, and he deepened the kiss as he drew back and then thrust again, every muscle in his body straining with the effort of the slow, dragging pace he was imposing on himself. It wasn’t long before she was whimpering against his lips, rocking her hips with the same desperation she’d exhibited before, when he was holding her down and refusing to give her what she wanted… it seemed it was even more agonizing to be given exactly what you wanted, but not at the pace you preferred.

Well, they had all night together, and Callan wasn’t interested in rushing. Not when he had the most beautiful woman who’d ever lived in his arms, pinned to the bed beneath him and whimpering with raw desperation at the pleasure he was giving her. He’d find the strength to do this all night, if he needed to. She felt unbelievable, her muscles clenching and tightening around his cock as he dragged it slowly from the grip of her body and then, just as slowly, drove himself in again… she was growling his name in his ear now, thumping her fists uselessly against his back with frustration. Grinning against her lips, he sped up, just for a second, driving himself quickly into her and then pulling back—she arched her back and uttered a guttural, desperate moan that sent shivers of arousal splintering through him.

He’d made his point, he thought faintly, his whole body roaring at him that he wasn’t going to be able to survive much more of this torture. He’d shown her he was capable of controlling himself. And when he finally relented and increased his pace, the delighted way she gasped his name was all the reward he could have imagined. The arousal he’d been holding at bay so successfully was crashing through him unchecked now, though, and from the way Kaya was whimpering against his lips he had a feeling the same thing was happening for her… their pace rapidly grew frantic, and he was distantly aware that the bed frame was thumping against the wall with the force of their passion. Soon, he felt her nails dig into his back, knew from the white-hot ball of arousal that had been expanding in his midsection that they were both very, very close.

“Don’t you dare stop,” Kaya ground out against his ear, and he held back a laugh. How had she known he was considering it? No… no, he wasn’t that cruel. He had just enough time to claim her lips in an urgent, frantic kiss before the peak crashed over him at last, whiting out his vision as it blasted through him in wave after wave of fierce, overwhelming relief. Kaya was moaning into his mouth, her hips rocking up to meet him again and again as her own climax moved through her. It seemed to stretch out for longer than he’d thought possible, and he wondered dizzily if it had something to do with the way they’d teased each other, holding themselves back from the edge like that. Something that merited further exploration, perhaps…

But not now. Right now, all he could think about was settling under the blankets with the delicious warmth of Kaya’s exquisite body curled trustingly in his arms… and before he could think any more about what a lucky man he was, he felt sleep rise up to claim him.

Chapter 12 - Inota

Inota kept drifting in and out of what felt like the deepest and most restful sleep of her life. She couldn’t remember ever feeling this good… this warm, this relaxed, this absolutelysafe. Inota had never been safe in her life. Not since long before the attack… she stiffened a little, shocked to find her mind straying so comfortably to a topic she’d long since banned herself from thinking about. Too relaxed, she thought, worry stirring her from the deep blanket of sleep once and for all. Far too relaxed. Hadn’t she spent her whole life staying watchful? What was wrong with her?

He was, that was the truth of it. Callan was everything that was wrong with her. Even now, she could feel the warmth of his arms around her, the temptation to slip back into sleep with him almost too powerful to resist. What would it hurt, really, to let herself go? Sure, it wouldn’t be long before the whole world came crashing down around her ears, but wouldn’t life be so sweet until then…?

That kind of thinking was all the evidence she needed that it was time to get out of the bed. She wrenched herself out of the doze and slid out of bed, letting the comparatively cold night air chase away some of the dreamy bliss that had claimed her in the aftermath of their lovemaking. It really had been good, that was the frustrating thing. She’d been trying to convince herself that the spark between them in the library had been a fluke, but that was pretty clearly not the case now, wasn’t it? If anything, this last encounter had been even more explosive than the first.

“Kaya?”

“No,” she heard herself snap, before she could remind herself to stay under control, and her voice was a foreign thing entirely. A quick glimpse of the mirror across the room was enough to remind her, enough to ground her a mask that had been trying to slip. One steadying breath… then she hoisted an apologetic expression onto her face and turned.

Callan, propped up on one elbow in the bed, his dark hair as much of a mess as hers must be. She let the burst of real warmth she felt for him show on her face. If her feelings for him were ruining her whole blasted plan, she might as well get some use out of them, too.

“What’s wrong?” he said softly, his eyes not leaving her. “Talk to me.”

“I wish it were that simple,” she said faintly, meaning it. But she was ready for this, wasn’t she? She’d prepared her lies well. This was where most of the guilt had come from over the last few weeks—how good a liar she was, how easy Callan had been to convince. He trusted her, she remembered, feeling that same icy hand tighten around her heart again. Of course he trusted her. Somehow, he thought she was his soulmate. You’ve really done it now, Inota. Not only have you fooled a dragon, you’ve even fooled his magic. Haspar would have been proud.

The concern in his eyes was growing. Understandable—she was making no effort to control her expression, and when she moved back over towards the bed, he sat up so he could put a comforting arm around her shoulders.

“There’s a lot I haven’t told you,” she said again, dropping her head against his shoulder and sneaking another quick glimpse of him in the mirror opposite them. Good to be able to gauge his reactions. This part of the plan was risky. There was a lot of truth in what she was about to tell him. That had been part of it—her awareness that to get closer to him, she was going to need to mix more truth into the overarching lie. “And I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I’ve… misled you.”

He didn’t say anything, but he did press a kiss to the side of her head. So she took a deep breath, and she started to talk.

It had always been nearly impossible to talk about the time she’d spent at the Mage’s Guild in Hammerfall. Fictionalizing those experiences, though, using them as material to further her goals here—somehow, that made it possible to at least approach the subject. She wove a few threads to explain how a dragon got as close as she had to a traditionally secretive human organization, implying as she did that she might have been part of the reason mages were so hostile to shifters. And somehow, the layer of deception made it more comfortable to tell the true parts. She even used Devere’s real name, which felt strange on her tongue and plunged her into silence for a few moments.

“What happened to him, after you left? Your teacher?” Callan asked softly. He’d been still and quiet for the majority of her story, but she could sense how intently he’d been listening. “Did you ever find out?”

“Oh, he’d have been exiled, I’d imagine. Or imprisoned. The experiments he carried out with me… they were all unsanctioned by the Guild. Not that he told me that, of course, and I didn’t think to ask. I was so young.” She felt tears prickle at the backs of her eyelids, knew that they were real. “And what I was learning in exchange was so interesting… by the time I realized that he was going against Guild law, I was implicated, too. He’d shared secrets with me that the Guild couldn’t afford to let me keep.”

“But they’re magic users. I’m no expert, obviously, but couldn’t they have removed the information from your memory?”

“Not without killing me. Memory magic is a difficult field even when you know exactly what you’re trying to remove.”

“But you weren’t to blame. You didn’t know he was teaching you things he shouldn’t have been.” She could hear Callan’s passion for justice in his voice, knew she’d played this just right to elicit his sympathy and his rage. It made her feel monstrous for the buzz of pleasure it gave her. “They have no right to be hunting you still.”

“Not according to their rules.” She sighed. “There’s not much room for redemption in the Mage Guild’s charter, as you’ll find out tomorrow. And they haven’t forgiven or forgotten me, either. If they find me, they’ll use every power at their disposal to bring me in.”

“That’s why you were so nervous, at the restaurant.”

“We’re a whole insula away from Hammerfall, but there’s still a chance of being recognized by the mages from the chapter here.”

“You took a huge risk, coming here with me.” Callan looked down at her, those beautiful eyes full of feeling, and she had to look away.

“I wanted to come with you,” she said softly. “I’m tired of running, Callan. Tired of living my life like a fugitive because of something I didn’t choose. I want a new life.”

“You deserve it,” Callan said firmly, and suddenly he was holding her tightly in his arms, the reassuring thud of his heartbeat palpable against her. She closed her eyes, letting herself enjoy the embrace. “You deserve to be happy, Kaya. You deserve to be free. And I’m going to do everything I can to make that happen. Not just because you’re my soulmate—because it’s what you deserve.”

She whispered her thanks against his neck, not trusting herself to look at him. The warmth in his eyes, the love he bore for her… what would happen to that, when he learned the real truth, not these teasing little fragments? He didn’t even know her real name.

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