Page 29 of The Forbidden Dragon King (Shadow Kings #1)

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Aurelius’ Study, Shadow Court

F reya

By the time that Aurelius sweeps through his study doors with his beautiful golden wings still wrapped around me, he is as hot as the sun.

Sparks spray from his horns. Ash disintegrates from the flaming tips of his wings.

The study doors slam shut behind us.

Aurelius staggers and slumps, resting his chin on the top of my head.

His hair is damp with sweat. His breath is like steam .

He’s burning up.

What’s happening to him?

He never lets go of me, bringing me to safety.

When did I start to think of this suite of rooms, his royal dragon nest, as safety ?

A sanctuary in this enemy court?

Because I’ve just been shown that as the Golden Dragon, Aurelius could well be the most dangerous creature in the entire realms.

I always was addicted to the thrill of danger.

Being held in Aurelius’ wings, I could either be burned or saved.

Now, wrapped in his scent, feeling his hard chest and the harder press of his giant cock through his breeches, I find that it’s worth the risk.

Aurelius’ study is simple and elegant. The walls are painted white, the floors are plain marble, and it’s bare apart from a large oak work desk in the center with a range of wooden benches along the outside that I’ve seen him pull in front of the desk to use in meetings.

The desk is ranked with neat piles of official papers and two, small amber pitchers.

It’s completely different to Maximinus’ study.

It’s a soldier’s room.

The large, columned windows at the back look out over a manicured rose garden, which is in full bloom. The heady smell of the red roses is intoxicating.

When Aurelius staggers, my concern spikes.

Has Maximinus injured him? Or is this transformation dangerous for him?

“What’s wrong?” I demand. “Should I fetch Lucius? ”

“I’m fine.” Aurelius’ breathing is labored.

“Huh, convincing. We’re calling a healer.”

“No need. Wraith will already have heard the whispers about what has happened. Within minutes, War will be stationed outside that door with the members of her loyal guard. Nobody will get through them, and my uncle won’t start such a public civil war.

I just need to rest. I can control it once I’m in my room… b-bed…n-n-nest…”

I shout in shock, as Aurelius’ legs buckle, and his wings slide away from me. His arms lose their grip around my waist. I twirl, trying to hold onto him, but he’s too large for me to hold up.

He collapses to the marble floor, cracking his head.

I stare in horror at Aurelius laid out cold at my feet.

When the sparks die on his horns, my breath catches. What if he’s died as well?

I feel sick.

Terrified, I’m panting. I drop to my knees, frantically holding my cupped palm in front of Aurelius’ mouth. I let out a sob of relief, when I feel the warm puff of air and know that he’s still breathing.

Why the fuck do I care this much?

“Dickless fool of a dragon.” I wipe my hand over my eyes. “Your friends warned you that you would collapse. What’s wrong? Is it overwork? Not eating? This primal transformation? Your raven starver uncle’s magic?”

I run my finger over the livid red marks that encircle Aurelius’ neck. Then I lean down to lick them, as poor Omegas are taught to do with wounds in the Moon Court to help injuries to heal .

It’s all I know to do to help.

Instantly, Aurelius’ eyes flutter open.

He looks at me with glassy eyes. Then his wings flap weakly.

“Thank the Shadow Gods.” I push a strand of his hair behind his ear, distractedly. “I was worried.”

“You were worried…?” He says, dazed.

I’m still leaning close to him, and he takes a deep breath in and then another.

At each breath, Aurelius shudders, appearing to rise out of his hazy state, until he is able to focus more clearly.

He raises his hand, as if he’s desperate to run it down my scent gland but is holding himself back.

My eyes widen.

It’s my pheromones that pulled him back to consciousness.

His own pheromones lie thickly in a fog over the room.

Missing Aurelius’ ruts has truly been damaging him. Is this why he’s always collapsing?

No matter how self-controlled he is, repressing his dragon’s needs will kill him one day.

Maybe soon.

Maybe that’s what Maximinus wants…?

My throat is thick at the thought. I can’t speak.

Should it be what I want?

Aurelius is the oppressor of the Fang Kingdom. Destroyer of the Unseelie. The King who took Daire’s crown and paraded him through the streets as a trophy.

Except, now that I know Aurelius, he is so much more than that both to Daire and to me .

He’s also the man who built me my first ever nest, gave me one of his own scale bracelets because I was uncomfortable with the broken bond scar, and carved a shrine for my parents.

He hasn’t executed Daire, no matter how hard my fool fae has pushed him. He has held to his deal to treat the featherglass well.

And now, he has been willing to burn his own world down for the sake of my life.

No one apart from Daire has acted like my life is worth anything before, let alone an entire kingdom.

Aurelius has seen himself as my Alpha from the start.

I can’t deny it any longer.

I shift around to help Aurelius to sit up with his back against the desk, before cradling him against my neck.

Baring my neck to a predator, especially while that predator is close to turning feral, is breaking every Omega survival rule.

Fuck it.

I’ve been wrong about a lot in the last month. What if I’m also wrong about surviving being the most important thing?

“Breathe,” I say, softly. “Nuzzle. Lick. Take in my pheromones.”

Aurelius makes a questioning sound, looking up at me with confused but hopeful eyes.

“It’s scary to see a mighty king like you fainting.” I smirk. “You need my pheromones. It seems the Omega is the one with the power here. So, this is me giving you permission. ”

Aurelius’ lips quirk in response, before he turns and buries his nose on my neck, breathing in eagerly.

He loops his arms around me, while wrapping his wings to cocoon us both.

He’s like a black cat who has finally dropped their cool act and is desperate for strokes.

Aurelius clings to me, nuzzling up and down my neck. I shiver at the brush of his nose and then the graze of his lips and fangs.

My scent gland is sensitive. I push my thighs together, whining.

“You smell amazing,” Aurelius murmurs. “I could live forever in your scent alone. Roses and sunshine and nothing else for the rest of eternity.”

His wings tremble, before closing tightly around me, as if I will pull away at the confession.

I don’t.

“Are you feeling stronger?” I ask.

Aurelius’ breathing has steadied out. He’s sitting straighter again.

He rubs his wings down my back, then his cheek against my cheek.

I realize that he’s scenting me possessively.

“Enough that you should reevaluate whether you’re the one with the power,” he replies. “I apologize, however, for my weakness.”

“It’s not weakness. You’re an Alpha dragon. You should know better than me that you can’t suffer ruts alone without consequence. This is serious.”

He doesn’t answer for a long moment. “I don’t have a choice. I won’t take up the offers of the court Omegas to be rut mates.”

I bet the offers were from that pretty, silver winged flirt, Liviana, who is always waltzing into his bedroom.

I grin in vicious triumph that he’s turned her down.

So much for my view that Aurelius has been merrily rutting half the court Omegas.

“You’re the fucking king. You could have anyone you want.

What if you’d been out of it on the floor like this and someone else had found you?

Do you know how vulnerable that would make you?

” Bile rushes up my throat at the thought.

“How about this? Take this as my open offer. Come to me when you feel unable to hold on. We can just lie side by side in your nest, and you can breathe my pheromones and scent me. Would that help?”

Aurelius looks agonized but nods.

When he clasps the front of my tunic, holding me in place even more firmly, I notice that his extended claws are sparkling gold.

They’re deadly but gorgeous .

When Aurelius’ claws rip my tunic’s fabric accidentally, he hisses and tries to pull back. “Sorry. I’m still not in control.”

“Who wants to always be in control? Anyway, those claws are incredible.”

I could have done with them when I was escaping during the Mate Hunt.

Aurelius hesitates, still gripping my tunic. “You like them? They’re ugly. ”

Whoever has called them ugly had better watch their fucking balls because I’m going to bite them fucking off.

“They’re beautiful,” I insist.

When Aurelius’ gaze raises to meet mine, it holds a desperate question, and mine answers: yes, yes, yes .

Aurelius kisses me then, deep and hard.

So, this is what kissing feels like.

It feels better, so much fucking better , than it looks.

I melt against Aurelius, as his claws tear my tunic apart and his wings tighten around my back.

The dragon king’s lips burn like flames. When they part, and his tongue licks into my open mouth, I moan.

I understand now.

Finally.

An enemy can still be my Alpha. Pack. Mate.

Despite being an Omega, I can still rescue my damsel Alpha.

And even if we’re both villains, I can still indulge in this moment, the sensual press of the King’s cruel mouth, soft in his moment of need, and the sharp graze of his claws around my bare breasts.

I purr, and the sound vibrates through the kiss.

Aurelius groans, kissing me harder. He bites my lower lip, and I retaliate eagerly, drawing blood.

Our sparking gazes meet.

Aurelius is panting as he draws back. “You’d bite your King, pet?”

“I did warn you. I’m a wild wolf. I’m always going to bite you. Didn’t you believe me, Your Majesty?”

I bite his lower lip again, harder. Then I lick over the beading blood to soothe it, as he rumbles in his throat with pleasure.