Page 17 of The Silent Mountain (Under the Werewolf Crown #2)

seventeen

The Dragon King’s Mate

*ALANA*

D espite our short meeting with Cù Sìth, and the worrying news he had for us, the remainder of the evening was beautiful. Both Favian and I decided to keep our new problem to ourselves, only alerting Stefan, and instead focus on our clan.

The atmosphere is loose and full of motivation. Elio, who is usually rather shy, and Cassie mingle with the clan, and to my surprise, I find some of them playfully teasing the young witch. It was a smart move from Stefan and Favian to invite a witch who is somewhat chaotic and helpless, but also funny and kind. They don’t view her as a danger.

When Favian and I go to bed tonight, it feels different, more intimate, like something changed between us. I put my dress away, smiling at it. It was a new experience for me to dress up and play another version of myself. Tomorrow, I will be back to being the old Alana, in her practical outdoor gear, but no one says I can’t occasionally pull out a fancy dress to make my mate’s head spin.

I pretend as though I don’t notice Favian’s searing gaze, and the way his eyes follow each of my steps. Goddess Aine, help me. What am I doing?

Just do it! Ros says. You cannot hide it from me. Why not do what you want?

She is right, just as Aza was right. In my nightgown, I step outside on the balcony, well aware that Favian will follow me, either because he is curious or because he wants me to stay warm in the ice-cold night. The cold doesn’t do anything to cool me down though. My cheeks are burning, and when I feel Favian stepping outside, there is no holding it back anymore.

“Alana, are you cold?” he asks, offering me a blanket.

There is no holding it back.

I approach him, stretching to take his face between my hands and stare him right in the eyes. A guttural sound can be heard in his throat, and his eyes turn into slits as his dragon comes forward. I love the dominance he emits. It’s all the invitation I need. With newfound resolve, I pull his head down, smashing our lips together.

Favian doesn’t need a second to act. He grabs me by my waist and turns us around so I am pressed against the wall. His breath is so hot, his touch burning my skin in the best way. I don’t feel cold in the arms of my dragon beast. Favian’s lips claim what’s his, starting with my lips, before moving to my neck and sucking at the spot that’s one day going to carry his mark. It sends tingles down my spine and directly to my core. He must have noticed my reaction because his lips curl into a smirk.

There isn’t much fabric between us, and his hands make it easily under my nightgown. I didn’t expect to react to his touch the way I do. Tingles erupt through my body, a moan leaving my lips when Favian’s hand moves between my legs. With his teeth, he moves my gown down to reveal my breasts, sucking at one of them.

“I cannot lose you,” I say. “Please, Favian, whatever you do, stay with me or take me with you.”

“There is no way I am going anywhere,” he snarls, his eyes flashing once more into reptile eyes. “We aren’t going anywhere.”

He grabs me tighter, kicking the balcony door open and carrying me to our bed. Once there, I finally get rid of my nightgown, not ashamed to reveal my body to him. His eyes linger on me for longer than a moment. “You are so beautiful, I don’t have words for it,” he says, his voice darker and more intimidating than usual. But fuck, it’s hot!

“It’s your turn,” I demand.

Favian obliges, pulling his pants off and revealing his full nakedness to me. He is like a sculpture. Everything about him is utter perfection. When I first saw him, he was emaciated due to the years of imprisonment and coma, but he has filled out his muscles again and is obviously back to his old glory. My eye wanders down his chiseled chest to his hard erection. Yes, his full glory!

Ros uses the moment to push forward. “We want you,” she snarls.

“Is that true?” Favian asks.

I push my wolf back to look him directly in the eye. “We want you,” I repeat. “Ros and I both do. What about you? Do you want me?”

“I have wanted you ever since I first met you,” he says. “I just couldn’t admit it at first and didn’t want to push.”

“Thank you for giving me the time I needed,” I say, getting up on my knees and slipping closer to him again. He is standing at the edge of the bed, his eyes glinting when my hands move over his chest. I can feel the muscles under my fingertips, his breath becoming more rapid when I kiss his chest. Once more, he grabs me by my waist and pushes me back, this time kneeling above me.

“I can only sleep with you if I can mark you,” he tells me. “I don’t think I could control my beast, and I don’t want to hurt you by marking you against your will.”

I am about to tell him he can mark me, but he shuts me up by kissing me. “I know what you are about to say, but we are doing it the way you want and need it,” he says. “This here already means the world to me. And I know that when you are truly ready to let me mark you, it will be the most wonderful gift I will ever receive.”

Fuck, I am really falling in love with this man. When did that happen? I was mourning Ita and reluctant to meet my mate, and now I am here, just one step away from giving myself to him completely. But he is right; I want to do this in a way I won’t regret, and most importantly, that he won’t. I softly bite into his collarbone. “So, no sex tonight,” I say. “But how about this?”

I sit up, pushing him back until he is kneeling in front of me before I straddle his hips. “That’s…“ he starts, but his voice gets lost in another of these guttural sounds. I can feel his hand on my ass, gripping onto it tightly, his other hand moving between our bodies to touch my clit while I rub myself against his erection. His lips are back to exploring and teasing my nipples.

It’s been forever since I was intimate with someone, and I can’t believe how hungry my body is to be touched. Maybe it’s not a simple longing for intimacy but rather a longing for him. Whenever he touches me, it makes me want more. Almost desperately, I rub myself against him, noticing how he groans, his fingernails elongating while he presses me close to his body. There is a battle in his eyes with his beast constantly coming forward and being suppressed again.

Favian moves his hands slightly, suddenly pushing two of his fingers inside me. It makes me gasp and moan. This feels unlike anything I have ever experienced. A shiver goes down my spine, and then another one, until I find myself shaking with my orgasm. Favian follows suit, hot semen landing on my thighs and stomach.

Aine, I don’t want to know how intense it will be once I will have his dick inside me and make him mark me.

“You know,” Favian drops onto his back next to me. “You can never leave again. I won’t let you anymore. That ship sailed across the ocean.”

I chuckle. “What makes you think I would leave?”

He turns to look at me, his blue eyes staring right into my soul. “Will you stay?” he asks. “Here, with me. Forever.”

His expression doesn’t show it, but his eyes do. He is scared. He has lost so much, and I will certainly not become another person who betrays or hurts him. Reaching out my hand, I touch his cheek before leaning in to kiss. “I will stay with you.”

“I have really fallen for you, Alana,” he says, much to my surprise. “You are intelligent, strong, have a mind of your own, you are kind and so motivated in what you do. Whatever you do, you always give your all, whether it be introducing horse riding to the clan, getting us a senior witch or mingling with the clan members–you do it all.”

“I love doing it,” I admit. “I like it here, Favian. The dragons have been very nice, and I have made friends.”

“But what about your home?” he asks. “Don’t you miss it?”

It’s his anxiety speaking again, I can tell. He is scared that my homesickness will win over me and that I will pack my bags and leave. Something about this makes me sad. Not because he is questioning me like that, but because he has so little trust in good things happening to him and staying with him.

“Sometimes I miss my home,” I say. “My friends and my family, but it doesn’t mean that I will want to return. Of course, I might want to visit them occasionally, but Favian, things have been changing ever since Azadeh arrived. Now, my brother is king, and she is queen. My brothers had the curse on them broken and have set out on their own adventures. There is no saying that Flinn will want to return from the human realm. And he is not the only brother who left for his own journey. All my siblings are searching for their path. The Silent Mountain and the dragon shifters happen to be my path.” I take his hand to place it on my chest. “I feel warm when I think of these lands and feel like I belong. I love having a task. I didn’t know how much I missed having one until I came here and helped you with rebuilding the kingdom. It fulfills me, it is me, and the shifters here accept me the way I am.”

He brushes his fingers through my hair, gently tugging a strand of it behind my ear. “The Warrior Princess with the fiery hair,” he says softly. “The most unusual queen to ever reign our lands.”

“You want me to reign with you?” I ask.

“Of course. Once I mark you, I will officially make you my queen. You will have as much a say as I have.”

“I thought the dragons were ruled by their kings only. Their wives have been queen consorts only.”

“You did your homework,” he says.

“Of course I did.”

Favian shrugs. “I have changed everything about this kingdom already and will certainly not stop here. I don’t know how many children we will have, but I will definitely change the rules of succession to the throne. If our firstborn is a daughter, the throne will be her birthright. My queen will reign alongside me, and she will be fantastic in doing so. I think we will complement each other well, don’t you?”

“If I hadn’t already jumped your bones, I would do so now,” I say bluntly.

Favian laughs. It’s rare that he does so, and it makes my heart melt. “You saved us,” he says once he has calmed down again. “You came here with your fiery personality and your kindness, and your eagerness to work and help, and you pulled everyone with you. Your work ethic and your optimism are contagious. Even Stefan likes you.”

“He doesn’t like many people, does he?” I ask, amused.

Favian scrunches his nose. “He is a weird one.”

“I think he sees you as his main task,” I say. “His loyalty is with you first and with the dragons second.”

Favian tilts his head. “Maybe.”

“I am not going anywhere,” I repeat when I snuggle into his arms. “I am an honorary dragon shifter now.”

“You are definitely more than an honorary member of the clan,” he says. “You are one of us. With you, I feel like we can do anything. No problem is too big to solve, even if it’s an ugly mare, which was sent here from Aengus knows where.”

“We will not rest until we have solved this riddle and gotten rid of the threat,” I promise.

“See.” He smiles. “With you, everything seems to be solvable.”

“That’s because it is,” I reassure him. “History won’t repeat itself. I won’t let it.”

Favian just smiles. Neither of us talks anymore. It was a long day and a long night, and I am exhausted, slowly finding myself drifting to sleep.

The next morning comes soon enough. There is not much time to rest and sleep in with all the work at hand. Maybe once we have solved everything that’s haunting us, Favian and I can take a couple of days off, but for now, that’s not an option.

We both rise with the first rays of the sun coming through the window, albeit slowly. The room is oddly illuminated in an orange light. I wash myself and dress quickly before inspecting the stunning view. “What magnificent scenery,” I mutter, walking to the huge windowed door that leads to the balcony to pull the curtains aside. “I have never seen anything like this.”

Snow is falling, and the sky is clouded, yet there are rays of sunshine coming through, illuminating the snowflakes and making it look like drops of blood are falling onto the land. That’s when I notice Favian has gone completely quiet. He walks to me, a frown on his face.

“Someone is dying,” he says into the silence.

“What?” I turn to look at him.

“When a clan member dies or is about to die, the sky lets blood rain or snow fall. During the war, we had this type of weather for months. It’s a sign of death for us,” he says.