Page 17 of Destined By Dragonblood (Blood Born #2)

Ashley

I slept better than I had for over a week.

The sun shone bright through the winter sky, and I opened my blinds to allow the light and bit of warmth into my east-facing condo. Within sight of those outside, I stood still. Waiting. Scanning the length of the street out front.

Neither set of eyes made me feel any particular way.

Soothed yet a little saddened, I returned to my bedroom and changed into something comfortable since I needed to get groceries.

I started my small Coop I rarely used by remote, looking through my front window as the engine came to life.

No one but neighbors busied themselves beneath the winter’s sun from what I could see, but a rush of warmth far beyond golden rays slid over me.

Good eyes hovered nearby and watched me, same as last night.

Smiling and core warming, I hit the unlock button on my car with expectation he would accompany me and turned away, excited to step outdoors and gladly yield to his stare.

While sceneing with Master Vanni, I’d felt my stalker’s comforting presence. Got off on knowing he watched, a sense of his appreciation over my submitting to pain a turn-on so great that I’d asked for Vanni’s touch.

His fingertips on my backside hadn’t brought about revulsion or curdled my stomach as it would have done a week prior.

I’d wanted to press into his hand, beg for more.

Ask him to put his hand between my thighs.

It wasn’t fear that had kept me silent but recognition that one step at a time would ensure I healed properly without falling backward into my trauma.

Next Friday , I’d told myself once I had locked myself in for the night.

But I didn’t want to wait a week to meet with Master Vanni and strive forward in the progress I’d been making.

Ten minutes later and considering a request to visit the club sooner than scheduled, I opened my front door.

Sweet heat flooded through me, and I wanted to bask in the double dose of sunlight caressing my upturned face.

I checked the back seat, finding it empty as I’d expected but hopeful my invisible…

friend? awaited me. I climbed into my car, my smile widening over his close presence.

Either he could pass through metal and plastic, or he’d snuck in while I’d still been out of sight putting on my coat and hat.

My body tingled with the desire to see him in the flesh.

Maybe even touch.

But more than anything, assurance of his presence filled me with peace and a sense of rightness, allowing me to move without fear of harm.

“Hi,” I whispered, straining to hear the slightest shift or breath behind me.

Silence met my ears, and I laughed at myself rather than be disappointed.

Incandescent happiness flooded through me with sweet warmth.

A torturous yet delicious tension filled the interior of my vehicle, causing dampness between my thighs.

I rubbed them together, believing I could get myself off if I tried.

But I wanted more than self-care. Needed physical touch like a seed buried underground required sunlight to grow. The yearning inside me strengthened with every passing minute, settling my mind on what I wanted even though logically, such a step toward healing seemed more like a leap off a cliff.

I drove toward the closest grocery store like I did every Saturday morning, wishing for conversation throughout the entire five-mile trip.

His presence disappeared when I entered the store but returned minutes later, solidifying in my mind that he had to open doors instead of passing through them. Otherwise, awareness of his being close wouldn’t have waned.

He followed me through the store, my grocery cart a lame one, the front left wheel squeaking and tugging me to the right.

But I was too amped up with a heightened heartbeat and impatience for the unknown to be annoyed with the faulty cart.

I meandered up and down every aisle even though I didn’t need to, enjoying the eyes on my back and the arousal in my core.

Comfortable with the fact I would never see my stalker if I looked for him, I finished up with my chore, not bothering to glance behind me.

I loaded the groceries into my trunk but hesitated in returning home immediately. If he couldn’t pass through metal in his invisible form, I would be driving to the condo on my own. Perhaps I could open the backdoor and invite him in.

I nibbled on the inside of my lip, wondering if Doctor Hasslet would think I was insane. Without evidence of my stalker’s presence, how would anyone but myself believe I didn’t imagine him?

A Dunkin’ Donuts sat beside the grocery store, and as my gaze landed on the coffee shop, another option presented itself.

Hoping my thought might pay off how I hoped for, I made my way across the parking lot.

A hot chocolate and donut would be a nice weekend treat and also a good excuse for me to keep him around a little longer.

I entered the shop, the door closing behind me, hiding me from the view of good eyes. Breath held, I moved forward, joining the line waiting to place their order.

The door opened behind me, letting in a blast of cold air.

Warmth flooded my veins with more intensity than usual.

He was here—but the strength of his presence suggested he would be visible if I looked over my shoulder.

My heart rate spiked, a rush of adrenaline weakening my limbs in the best way possible.

The person in front of me moved forward to order, and I attempted to do the same but stumbled.

A firm hand grasped my elbow.

Even through the coat prohibiting skin contact, I felt a sense of connection with him as I had with Elijah two years earlier.

A strange recognition of a similar soul, or perhaps we had known one another in a previous life.

That awareness of my stalker’s invisible presence heightened and solidified into knowledge he stood behind me in the flesh.

I lifted my head, turning slightly.

The blond god I’d seen outside the cafe in Manhattan peered down at me, his grip on my arm holding me upright.

A rush of saliva flooded my mouth, and I swallowed hard as a shudder quaked me in my boots.

Amber eyes seeming to flicker with golden fire roamed over my face as though drinking me in as thoroughly as I did him.

High cheekbones flushed from either the cold or nervousness.

Nostrils flared at the base of his Grecian nose.

His deep inhale, as though scenting me like a shifter in the romance novels I read, sent shivers down my spine.

My good eyes, my desire-inducing stalker, was beauty personified. Perfection unknown on Paris runways and across magazine covers. Tall and heavily muscled, he loomed over me but didn’t feel threatening in any way. If he asked me to sink to my knees, I wouldn’t hesitate to gift him my submission.

The truth of how he physically and mentally affected me caused my mouth to water rather than raise the hairs on my nape with alarm. I bit the inside of my lip to keep from whimpering from the overwhelming need.

“Are you all right?” His low voice was husky yet smooth as silk and as tantalizing as a lover’s caress I hoped to enjoy one day soon.

“F-Fine,” I sputtered, my face hot and insides fluttering.

His hand slid down my coat-covered arm, and instinct didn’t allow me to flinch away from the stranger’s touch.

Warm fingertips ghosted over mine?—

An onslaught of energy whipped through my body, ripping a gasp from my lungs as his hand fell to his side. His flesh coming into contact with mine triggered some sort of reaction throughout my nervous system.

Was that how true attraction affected a person?

A sense of comfort flooded me, and I relaxed into the tingling vines wrapping around my body like a cradling hug. The scent of campfires on cool nights and cedar filled my lungs on my deep inhale, and I whimpered as a rush of wetness soaked the cotton of my panties.

I stared, smitten by the sight of him, aroused beyond what I’d ever experienced before. Surely, a gentle caress over my clit would send me careening into a flood of sensations only Master Vanni had led me toward.

A slow smile curved my stalker’s generous mouth as though he knew exactly how his touch affected me.

“Can I help you?” A muffled voice barely reached through my concentration.

Good eyes stood close to a foot taller than me, and every cell inside my body yearned to move into his embrace. Grab hold with all my might and never let go. Lift my face for his kisses. Allow him to push against all of my limits and take what belonged?—

“ Excuse me ?” An annoyed tone yanked me from my fantasy.

Blinking, I became aware of the scent of coffee and donuts. I glanced behind me to find the cashier’s one eyebrow raised as she glanced between me and…

Mine .

Awfully presumptuous of my mind to whisper such a word, but I couldn’t help the sureness of who this man was to me.

But I’d thought that once upon a long time ago when I’d first experienced arousal, and initiating contact with that man had ruined me for life.

Swallowing hard, I turned my focus on the blond god, more than anything wanting to trust more the sense of safety I felt from his proximity.

I’d never believed my pastor would hurt me either though.

“Two hot chocolates and…” He glanced down at me, waiting for me to complete our order.

“Boston cream donut,” I whispered, my insides no longer completely at rest.

His golden gaze twinkled down at me, his grin causing my belly to flip upside down.

“Two Boston cream donuts,” he told the woman behind the counter while pulling a wad of cash from his pocket.

His profile etched into my memory as he paid and dropped the change in a tip jar.

Our gazes clashed, and I lost my breath over the vulnerability he showed rather than arrogance I expected from a man with his beauty.

He grasped my coat-covered elbow, but I wished for skin contact to experience that electrical connection again.

“Who are you?” I whispered as we stepped to the side to wait for our drinks.

Still holding my arm, he turned and faced me fully, moving into my personal space so I had to tip my head back to hold his gaze. “My name is Dolyn Kemmerly.”

“You’ve been following me.” I didn’t ask a question, but he nodded without hesitation. I appreciated his truthfulness. “Why?”

A slow exhale from his parted lips tickled sweetness over my tongue, and he opened his mouth further to reply.

“Your drinks, sir.”

I glared at the cashier who’d dared to interrupt us but swallowed my annoyance rather than sounding like a deranged animal by hissing like a cat.

Dolyn released his hold on my arm and accepted the two cups, a bag already tucked between two of his fingers.

I hadn’t even seen the exchange of donuts at the counter.

Dolyn’s arresting eyes searched my face, inducing a deep ache in my core that my instinct suggested only he could ease. “Would you sit with me?”

I nodded, earning another slow smile. I bit my tongue to stop myself from begging Dolyn to flood me with so much of his cum that my DNA was forever changed because of it being inside my body.

A shudder ripped through me, mostly pleasant, but traumatic memories attempted to leak through the consuming, unexpected want, demanding I remain on alert.

Dolyn led the way toward a table tucked in the corner, far from any other patrons, and I followed on his heels as though his nearness could protect me, that he could assist me in what I attempted to heal from.

He set our drinks and the bag down before pulling out one of the corner table’s two chairs for me. Heat rushed to my cheeks, and I slipped out of my coat before sitting, laying it across my lap.

Dolyn settled on the other side, gently pushing one of the hot chocolates toward me, the scratch of the cardboard cup over the laminate surface loud between us.

His soft smile and unguarded gaze suggested he meant no harm.

Trust .

Why did instinct demand such a thing when I ought to be wary considering my past experience? Suspicion weaseled its way through the comfort Dolyn’s presence attempted to offer. The sure sense of good eyes following my every move lately couldn’t stop hesitancy from invading my thoughts.

Dolyn’s smile faded. “I won’t ever hurt you,” he murmured as though reading my mind.

“I’ve heard that one before,” I said, my voice only slightly shaky from the adrenaline’s slow decrease through my blood.

His full lips pressed into a thin line, another flash of that fire flaring to life in his eyes before blinking out. “Who was it, Ashley?”

He knew my name without my having to speak it, proof he’d been the one stalking me. Why didn’t that truth make me skittish and send me rushing out the door?

My butt remained planted in place as that awakened instinct and my usual better sense warred inside me. This intense energy, the potent desire between Dolyn and I wasn’t…normal. Something pinged in my brain as though off , but I couldn’t make sense of what it was I felt.

“My past is none of your business,” I answered, deciding to stay put for now. Curiosity demanded it alongside desire to learn more about this man who befuddled my senses. Walking away without answers was not an option.

Dolyn nodded and turned his attention to the bag, taking care to remove both donuts, place them onto napkins, and slid one my way. A slow exhale loosened the tension from his shoulders. “I am sorry for causing you discomfort,” he murmured, his tone soothing as honey.

I nodded my acceptance of his apology. “Tell me about yourself, Dolyn. Who you are and why you’ve been following me for over a week.

” My voice didn’t shake, nor did I leave space for him to brush me off.

I would know this man who’d been stalking me, who’d gifted me the ability to experience arousal without the bite of pain.

Regardless of the safe sense of having his attention, awareness of something strange going on shivered in my belly.

Was he both the heat and cold I’d been feeling? Did some sort of bipolar or psychological issue cause him to have two distinctive sides that affected me in this way?

It was time for answers.