Page 12 of Anaki (Iron Fang #5)

Chapter Nine

Elena

T he sun was bright and shining through the curtains by the time I woke up. Yesterday was a whirlwind, and I had wished, to the greater part of the universe, it was all just a dream. When I opened my eyes and saw the cedar planks above me, I knew that was all hopeful thinking.

I sat up, waiting for the aches in my bones to hit. Mornings were the worst. I think that was why I dreaded getting out of bed. I felt like my muscles were worn and heavy. I tried to move them just enough to lessen the pain.

My face already twinged in anticipation as I sat up, but the inevitable pain didn’t come, at least not as strongly. I sat up and turned my body, still waiting, but the pain wasn’t as great.

I frowned, and my eyes went from side to side in confusion. It was a dull ache, but nothing that would warrant me to use a cane today.

With the events that happened yesterday, I knew I would be in pain because of the stress. I took my regular dosage of medicine, took some pain relievers, but I knew full well today would be a bedridden day.

I stood up, still waiting for the inevitable pain to hit. When my feet hit the ground, I let out the breath that I’d held in my lungs and let go. Nothing.

Perhaps there was some magic to this place. I mean, we flew on a magical airplane. Could this cabin could have some properties that could help?

Or just dumb luck.

I flipped open my suitcase, which I had haphazardly tossed on the bench at the end of the bed. I grabbed only what I needed last night and quickly got into bed. Yesterday, I was ready for sleep and to forget about the blue-eyed dragon and the mess Emm had gotten us into.

When I flipped through all the clothes I had, which were mostly shorts and dresses for the tropical climate where we lived, I gasped loudly, mortified that Abuela had packed all my electric boyfriends.

And extra stuff.

She packed the lube. Mierda , what was wrong with this woman?

It had been a long time since I’ve been with a man. She often joked that I didn’t need to go find one, that she would take care of finding me a soul mate later on. Did she think my coochie was so dried up now I needed lube?

The door rattled under a sudden, forceful knock, the sound reverberating through the room.

With an ear-splitting crack, it swung open violently.

The door collided with the wall with a resounding thud.

My heart raced, and I instinctively raised my hands in front of me, bracing for the imminent impact of Luis barreling into my body.

To my surprise, it wasn’t Luis, but Anaki. He panted, his hair and eyes wild as he took in my form. While I wasn’t naked, I felt utterly exposed in my short knit shorts and camisole. I folded my arms to cover what little dignity I had left.

That embarrassment completely went away once I realized what he was wearing. Gray sweatpants and no shirt. Every girl’s wet dream. And he was standing in my bedroom.

He looked way better than that Viking-looking guy on social media, who likes to come out in his pajama pants holding a cup of coffee, does his morning stretches and tells us all to have a glorious morning.

Anaki was ripped. Every single ab was carved out of stone. Even his sides had abs. How was that possible?

He was a dragon shifter, and could have different muscles, right?

Oh, he’s got nipple rings. Does he play with those when he gets himself off? Does he let people lick them? Suck them? My tongue slipped out of my mouth at the thought and I sucked it back in quickly.

My mind was whirling with excitement, as I uncovered my breasts to ogle him more, because Dios Mio, we were both getting something out of this.

I could see that sweet looking V-line traveling lower, lower, until it disappeared right down into the soft texture of his pants. The bulge in his pants was growing. There was no denying he liked what he saw of me.

Why? I didn’t know, because I had a soft belly, stretch marks on my stomach, hips, thighs and boobs from having Luis.

Anaki was just… perfection.

“Mama, come see what food Anaki made! He gave me a food baby!”

I blinked several times and took my eyes off his crotch. That was when I saw that sweet smile, not a cocky one that would fill me with embarrassment. He looked so excited, so proud that I was looking at him. Like a proud little puppy. I swore if he had a tail, it would have been wagging behind him.

“You can still look.” Anaki came forward. “I don’t mind.” Again, it wasn’t cocky, it was more of a validation he was looking for as he cautiously came forward.

Jesus, Mary and Joseph, he was cute! He looked so innocent, and cautious.

And I wanted to do terrible things to him.

Dirty, depraved, naughty things to him.

I quickly pulled my frayed camisole down over my hips, covering myself as best as I could. My heart was pounding in my chest, and I knew there was no way I could pretend nothing was happening. He had seen me in a state of undress, and I had seen him aroused.

"I... I'll come see what you made for food in a minute," I stammered, trying to regain some semblance of composure. "Just give me a minute."

Anaki's eyes were still wide with anticipation, and he nodded slowly, giving me a small, reassuring smile. "Of course. I understand. It’s still early.”

Anaki turned and walked out the door, and gave me one more glance before he shut it.

What. Was. That.

You cannot be having feelings like that, not with what’s going on around you.

I hurriedly grabbed new clothes to wear and smoothed out the wrinkles as best as I could, hoping to appear more presentable, and then washed up in the attached bathroom. As I emerged from the bedroom, I noticed that Anaki had prepared breakfast on the little table near the window.

There were plates piled high with fresh fruit, sweet pastries, and steaming cups of coffee. The sight filled me with hunger, but also a sense of dread, as I wondered if we could pretend nothing had happened just minutes ago.

"Wow," I said as I approached the table. "This looks amazing." I’ve never seen so much food in one sitting. It was like a massive buffet.

Anaki beamed with pride. "Elena!" He jumped up enthusiastically and offered his chair. Abuela smiled into her coffee.

That crone was holding back her laughter. I didn’t shy away from Anaki, not when he was still shirtless, in those sinful gray sweatpants, and being such a gentleman.

Are the sweatpants part of being a dragon uniform or something ?

“Thanks.” I sat down in my seat, and before I could make my plate, Anaki already was. He didn’t ask what I wanted. He piled on the plate with all my favorites. I watched in shock at how he added fruit, sausages, and waffles, then covered it all in maple syrup.

He didn’t stop there. Once he set it down in front of me, he began to cut my food! I stared in shock, while Abuela took another sip of her coffee and did not bat an eye.

“Anaki made me dragon pancakes!” Luis picked up one of his pancakes and showed me it. Sure enough, it was in the shape of a dragon, and it was even dyed blue.

“Wow,” I remarked and watched him take a large bite out of the head.

Anaki cleared his throat. “Open.” I opened my mouth automatically, and an explosion of flavor erupted into my mouth.

Damn, these waffles were amazing.

Once I swallowed, he fed me another forkful. I wasn’t even protesting. These waffles were the shit!

All the while, Anaki was grinning like I made him the happiest person in the world. Is this part of a care team promotion thing? He has to feed everyone here? Literally with his hands?

“Did you feed Luis and Abuela, too?” I asked with my mouth half full.

He shook his head. “Nope, just you.” He grinned wildly and shoved another piece of waffle into my mouth.

Once I swallowed, I grabbed his wrist before he could shove another piece of food into my mouth. “I can feed myself, thanks. Why don’t you eat? You already fed everyone else.”

Anaki’s brows furrowed. “I already ate. I want to make sure you get enough.” He pushed the fork closer to my lips. I noticed Abuela scowling at me.

What the hell was going on ?

I opened my mouth reluctantly and Anaki’s eyes brightened as he continued to feed me, until I was on the verge of being overly stuffed.

“I see you aren’t using your cane today,” Abuela said when she stood up from the table. “How do you feel?”

I cleared my throat and reached for a napkin, but Anaki was already there, dabbing the corners of my mouth. I giggled and pushed his hand away. While I wasn’t used to someone taking care of me so closely because I liked my independence, he was doing it in such a heartwarming way.

“I’m feeling really good today,” I admitted. “Just dull aches. Maybe it was the bed. The mattress was top notch.”

Anaki stood and grabbed the empty plates. “I’m glad you liked them. The club will be happy to hear. Most of us have particular tastes with sleeping quarters, so money was no object when buying good mattresses.”

The dishes clattered in the sink. I grabbed the plates filled with fruit and brought them to the kitchen.

I opened up several drawers to find storage, so we could eat it later.

“Do shifters get cold or something? I saw so many blankets in the closets. And pillows, so many pillows.” I opened the cabinet and saw the plastic containers far too high for me to reach.

I stood up on my tiptoes, trying my best to use my fingers to flip the contents toward me.

Anaki stood behind me, his body flush with mine. I was very aware of his body brushing up against my ass. He leaned in and whispered in my ear, "Elena, you don't have to reach that high. I can help you." His breath was warm on my skin, sending shivers down my spine.

I blushed at the feel of his breath on my skin and his closeness, but I managed to keep my wits about me.

With a small smile, Anaki reached up, his hand on my hip, and grabbed the containers to hand to me.