Page 16 of Jhon

He pictured his hands and then his limbs and then the rest of himself, exactly as it was.

Bit by bit, the dragon ebbed away. It did not leave him entirely. It couldn’t, nor should he want it to. But its influence leached away with every set of breaths, like the tide going out.

When he finally felt fully in control of himself, he turned the knob to the refresher door, ready to face the woman who absolutely could not be his mate.

He pushed the door open and ready to fight off the dragon, the girl, and his own pent-up passion, only to find that she was already in bed, fast asleep.

He sighed, uncertain whether it was from relief or disappointment, and stepped closer.

She lay on her side, her tiny form curled like a tundra-fox.

He allowed his eyes to caress the curve of her hip, the way her dark hair flowed over her shoulder and the pillow, and her plush lips, slightly parted as she slept.

Then he tore his gaze away and crawled into the bed beside her, sliding his thumb along the light sensor on the way.

There was plenty of space - more than enough for him to lie comfortably without touching her, especially with her curled up like that.

But even as his eyes adjusted to the light, her scent wafted toward him, beckoning him and calling to the dragon, who could sense her heat beside him.

No, he told the dragon. Sleep.

But it was no use. The dragon snarled and threw itself against the bars that held it inside.

Even the man felt an unfamiliar ache.

Sleep would not come this night to man or beast. From now until morning both would only find exquisite torture.

7

ELLA

Ella awoke to the softest, sweetest sound.

She opened her eyes, letting everything come back to her at once.

Pale morning light drifted through the window, allowing her to see that the sound she’d heard was Bo, reaching for his own feet and chattering contentedly to himself in his cradle.

She had slept through the whole night, which she hoped meant Bo had as well. Not one of her baby brothers or sisters would have done the same at his age. Yet he appeared to be content.

It was nice and warm in the room, unlike their place at home. But surely that wasn’t enough to explain such an extreme difference.

He’s not Terran, she reminded herself. Maybe Imberian babies sleep more and go longer between feedings.

She would have to ask Jhon. He’d been caring for Bo for a while now, and probably had a good handle on the little guy’s schedule.

The thought of the big alien warrior had her rolling over carefully to check on him.

She was shocked to find his sword lay on the bed between them, shimmering in the morning light.

Was he afraid she would roll over and try to… No. She wasn’t going to think about that. Besides, he had told her himself that he was ever-vigilant or whatever. He was probably just afraid they would be attacked in the night. The sword in the bed was the absolute symbol of his high-strung nature.

But the man himself slept with total abandon.

One beefy arm was thrown behind his head, the other hand was spread on the sheet, near his sword. His face was even more beautiful in this gentle slumber than when he was awake and scowling at her.

What felt like miles of pale purple muscle and sinew stretched the full length of the bed, so that his feet were practically hanging off the end.

Checking his face again first to be sure he was asleep, she let her eyes slide down to the huge mountains that were his pecs, down the intriguing ridges of his abs, and further still, to where something pressed against the breeches, which were the only thing he was wearing.

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