Page 7

Waking up in a dragon shifter’s arms after being entombed in a cave was not on Rimi’s bucket list—even if she felt incredible.

Who knew mating would be like that? She guessed the mate bond snapping into place had caused the riot of sensations inside her.

Well, other than the pleasure Keres had lavished on her.

She’d always feared sex. Keres had shown her how incredible making love could be.

“You’re concentrating too hard, Snowflake.” His growly, rough morning voice sent shivers through her.

“You can’t hear what I’m thinking, can you?”

“Only if you’re on loud announcement mode or talking to me privately. I can sense that you are feeling well this morning.”

“How do we know if it’s morning?” she asked, waving a hand at the darkened chamber.

“Internal clock,” he answered. “Let’s get cleaned up and then we’ll figure out how to dig out of here.”

“I’ve never found another opening.”

“Baths first. Escape second,” he suggested .

“I guess dying covered in sex juice is not the thing to do,” she scoffed.

“Sex juice? I love it,” he said with a chuckle, diffusing her frustration. Keres lifted his hand and placed a kiss on the now-visible dragon shape decorating it.

A thrill shimmied down her back. Rimi shouldn’t feel that, but she did. Unable to resist, she lifted her hand and licked the symbol now marked on the back. His low groan made her clench her thighs together. She had heard that sound before, when he’d pressed himself deep inside her.

Rimi tried to pull herself together. His soft chuckle told her he knew exactly how much he affected her. “Okay. Baths first.”

“Good idea.” Moving smoothly, Keres rose to his feet. He reached down and easily pulled Rimi to her feet.

She hated to admit how much she loved his strength. Because of her need to hide, Rimi couldn’t glide around the sky, building muscles. She was round and soft, not all hard angles and chiseled physique like Keres. Her gaze dropped to his butt. Damn.

He looked like the movie stars she’d studied in abandoned magazines.

Handsome, powerful, and magnetic. His black hair was tousled and unkept—a sign of his decline in the last months.

Her fingers itched to brush it away from his mesmerizing eyes before tasting every inch of her mate’s delicious form.

“Thank you, Mate. I like everything about you, too.”

“Stop eavesdropping on my thoughts,” she snapped.

“Remember, I’ll hear everything you broadcast. You’ll get used to it. Besides, you can ogle my ass anytime. Or really, any part of me.”

Rimi rolled her eyes so hard she could almost hear them rattle. Like she wanted to check out his assets. She fought with herself to keep her focus on his broad shoulders as he waded into the water until he was waist deep. Breathing a sigh of relief, she stepped into the natural pool as well.

Turning to float on her back, Rimi savored the cool liquid on her skin. The waterhole had quickly become the only positive feature in this cavern. She’d wanted to search for another place but had spotted those dragons a week ago. When they hadn’t moved on, she was stuck.

Thank goodness the swinging blade had discouraged them.

When the bravest had entered the narrow opening first, that booby trap had taken him out.

The remaining two hadn’t dared enter after that, thank goodness.

It had taken days of hauling water to pour over the stones inside to wash away the stench of the slain dragon’s blood after she’d pushed the body out.

Hands wrapped under her, helping Rimi float on the surface. Keres pressed a kiss to her shoulder before straightening. He didn’t say a word, but simply held her.

To her dismay, tears poured from her eyes.

Her entire life, no one had been there to help her.

Her mom had abandoned her and her twin, Oldrik, as soon as he could forage for the two of them.

Oldrik had protected her until he’d matured.

The need for a mate had driven him to leave.

He hadn’t gone willingly and had tried to convince her to come with him.

Her mother had pounded into her brain the need to hide from male dragons.

The idea of having a horde of dragons around her had terrified Rimi, so she’d refused. After he left, she’d felt so alone.

Keres lifted her into his arms. He hugged her tight to his chest as he brushed his fingers over her scalp and through her locks. She curled herself around him, yielding to the need for support. She could be weak for a bit.

“You are the bravest dragon I’ve ever met,” Keres whispered to her. “You will never be alone again.”

“Great luck I have. We’re trapped in here and will die. The last surviving one of us will turn to cannibalism to survive,” she muttered, imagining the worst-case scenario.

“Remember, bath first. Get out second.” His hands splashed water over her gently.

“I can get cleaned up,” she protested, shifting away slightly.

“You can,” he acknowledged as he continued to stroke wet hands over her.

“That means you can stop.”

His hands froze on her hips. “Do you not like my touch, Mate?”

She opened her mouth to tell him no, but as she met his gaze, she noticed his eyes had turned completely black. He seemed to see inside her soul. Rimi nodded. “I love the way you touch me.”

“Then letting me take care of you makes us both happy.” He returned his attention back to his task.

Two could play at that game. Rimi splashed water onto his chest and smoothed the liquid over his skin.

How could anyone be in that incredible shape?

His muscles felt like they had muscles. When she reached below the waterline, her fingers brushed his rigid shaft.

Her gaze jolted upward to meet his as her fingers wrapped around him. That had fit inside her?

“If we are close, Snowflake, my cock is going to celebrate,” he told her with a smirk that she wanted to not like, but it was so darn cute.

He wrapped his hand around hers and guided her grip up and down his cock. “We will have a lifetime to share what excites us.”

“You like this,” Rimi whispered before she could stop herself.

“Yes,” he growled, easily revealing how much the caress meant .

She was disappointed when he drew her hand away, “But…”

“We need to figure out how to get out of here, Snowflake. Then we can play all we wish.”

Rimi nodded. He was right. “What happens if we get out and those two are still outside?”

“They die if they attack my mate. I don’t know if they’ll detect that we’re mated—or if they’ll care. This is unfamiliar territory for me as well. You will be safe, and we’ll head home.”

That term home seemed so alien. She’d never had a home. Only temporary shelter.

“You have a home, Mate, with me.”

“Stop reading my mind,” she snapped. It was disconcerting to have him pick up on her feelings so easily.

“I didn’t need to snoop in on your thoughts, Rimi. Your expression and the small bit of your history that I know clued me in on that one.”

“Do you really want to battle other dragons who want to mate with me?” She gasped when his hands tightened painfully on her hips.

“No one will mate with you. You are mine. No one else’s.” Keres claimed her with such a fierce look and tone that she shivered in reaction.

Rimi definitely didn’t want to tangle with him. Unfortunately, he had to understand her reality. “Keres, listen to me. Female dragons are rare. I don’t think nature is going to let you keep me.”

“It is. Nature doesn’t get a choice here. You are mine,” he repeated.

Shaking her head, Rimi stopped arguing with him. He seemed so sure. Could their mating have changed her allure for others? That little voice in the back of her mind asked if it would make her more appealing to steal away or less since she belonged to Keres?

“Save yourself if there is a conflict. A male dragon won’t hurt me. Well, not to the point I couldn’t try to produce an heir.”

She forced herself to stop talking when Keres’s intensive glower brought his brows almost together in the middle of his forehead. “I get it. I’m yours.”

“Good girl.”

She didn’t understand the thrill that went through her at the small bit of praise. Keres stepped forward to pull her through the darkly shadowed water. He hugged her tight against his hard muscles and dipped his head to capture her lips.

The kiss seared through her, staking his claim.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and held on for dear life as he dominated her so deliciously.

Her brain went on overload, unable to focus on anything else but him.

Rimi panted when he lifted his head, as she struggled to pull her thoughts back together.

“Now. We’ll figure a way out of here and start our way home.”

“Can we stop and get more cows?” she blurted.

“Of course. Let’s go see what those two disasters did to the entrance.” Holding her hand, he helped her out of the pool.

Rimi treasured those small gestures. He didn’t know he was her first for so many things. She squeezed his hand before letting go. Did his fingers linger against hers?

After checking out the amount of rubble filling the entrance, Rimi figured she needed to scout for another exit.

Between Keres sealing the opening behind them and those two raging dragons, the passage appeared permanently sealed.

She’d already checked for a secondary way out when she’d settled here. After two months, she’d given up.

“Scoot back, Snowflake. I’m going to change and see if I can push some of these stones out.”

Keres shifted effortlessly into his striking black dragon form.

If anything could create an opening for them, it would be this massively muscled beast. Keres lowered his head to press against the rubble.

Nothing moved. His talons dug into the stone floor of the cavern, and his muscles shook with the strain. Rimi didn’t detect any movement at all.