Finding His Dragon(15)

Jace tilted his head to the side and watched her take another bite. “Why are you eating that banana?” he asked her as he took it from her hand and proceeded to have a big bite of it.

“You gave it to me.”

He took another bite, finishing it off. “I did, but it’s clear that you don’t care for it. As cute as it is when you wrinkle your nose before taking a bite, I don’t want you eating things you don’t like to please me.” He grabbed an apple and held it out for her.

She took one look at it, then shook her head. “No, thank you.”

“Because you don’t like it?” he asked.

“No. I love apples and strawberries too. But my dragon needs protein, and I’m almost full.” She had eaten a few pieces of cheese and bread while they’d been talking, but the steak is what had her mouth watering. In human form, there was no way she’d ever eat a raw steak, but the dragon would gobble it up and enjoy every bite.

Without saying a word, he took the tray and the glasses off to the side. “Go ahead and shift. Then you can have the steaks.”

Steaks? As in both? As enticing as it sounded, she wouldn’t make a glutton of herself in front of her new mate. “One is more than enough,” she said as she pushed the blanket aside.

Jace tried hard, he did. He kept his gaze riveted on her face for at least five seconds, but in the end, he took a long look all the way down to her feet and back up again. A low, sexy moan escaped him when he spotted her navel ring. She brought her hand to her belly, flicking the cute little jewel, keeping his attention on her body.

“I think you need to shift now,” he said, his voice husky.

“And if I don’t?”

“I’ll be forced to ask Maddie or Stella to chaperone us to make sure I keep my hands to myself until you’re done healing.”

She laughed for the first time in months. “We wouldn’t want that.”

“No, we wouldn’t. Fair warning, though, all bets are off once you’re better.”

She flicked her navel ring again, grinning when he sucked in his breath. “I’m looking forward to it.” Bringing the dragon to the forefront, she allowed the shift. Thankfully the room was huge, and there was more than enough space.





EIGHT


“So fucking gorgeous.” He hadn’t realized he’d said it aloud until the beautiful she-dragon turned her head to look at him. Rich, translucent green scales shimmered in the dim light. He’d bet she would be even more stunning in the sunlight. He reached out, stroking her neck as she settled on the cushions. She wasn’t a huge dragon, even by female standards, but she was perfect. Two curved horns, a darker shade of green gave her head a long, sleek look.

She tucked her wings close to her body and lay her head down on the cushions. He could have stayed there, staring at her for hours, but when she moved her leg and growled a little with the pain, he went back for the steaks. “I know it’s not the same as fresh game, but we can’t go hunting tonight. I want you to have them,” he told her. She had said she only wanted one, but the dragon needed more, and as full as she had been in human form, the dragon had plenty of room for both. He set the plate down in front of her.

She took one but left the other.

“We’ve both had a long day. You can give me hell for being bossy tomorrow. For right now, eat up,” he told her. “You need the extra energy to heal.”

She brought her snout to his injured hand and nudged it, before pulling back and looking at the blisters he had hoped she wouldn’t notice.

“Your injuries are worse than mine. Besides,” he said as he stepped back. “I was going to use the time while you finished eating to get ready to shift.” He didn’t miss the spark of interest in her onyx eyes or the quick breath the she-dragon took.

She waited until he had his hands down at the waistband of his jeans before she took the steak. He smiled as she finished, then licked her lips. All the while, she kept her eyes trained on him. He pulled the jeans down over his hips, and off, then stood there, letting her look her fill.

Blood rushed to his groin, and he groaned. It was going to be a hell of a long night. He let the shift take him, changing into his dragon. The instant the transformation was complete, he went to her. He nudged her gently, stroking her head and neck before circling her and lying so that his longer body curled around her. With a contented sigh, she settled in and closed her eyes.



***



Charlotte woke alone. The room was still dark, but she could see the sunlight shining behind heavy drapes that covered huge windows. She stretched her neck, then tested her leg. Her neck was good as new, as was her jaw, but her leg ached enough to keep her from stepping on it. Yeah, she had broken it.