Firefighter Dragon: BBW Dragon Shifter Paranormal Romance Read online

  Dai let out his breath in relief. "I want you to touch it. I want you to touch everything." He drew her to her feet, clasping her tight in his arms. "You have no idea how much."

  Virginia's hips pressed against his. "Oh, I have some idea." She plucked at his soaking t-shirt. "Shall we get out of these wet things?"

  Dai put his hands on her shoulders, taking a half-step back even though he could hardly bear to tear himself away from her deliciously soft curves. "Before we do, there's something else I need to tell you about dragons."

  "Oh." All flirtation slid from Virginia's expression, replaced by a distinct wariness. "Uh-oh."

  "This one's actually a good thing." I hope you'll think it is, at least. Dai took a deep breath. "You remember I mentioned that dragons sometimes take a mate?"

  From the perplexed crease between Virginia's eyes, she didn't. "A...mate?"

  "Yes. All dragons have one true mate, just one person in all the world who's their perfect partner. The mate bond is unmistakable, and unbreakable. Many dragons never even meet their mate, but those who do recognize them immediately."

  He gestured at his own heart. "It's...just a bone-deep knowledge, as simple and instinctive as breathing. Just suddenly being totally sure that you've found her. The one."

  Virginia had gone very still. Her wide, dark eyes never left his. "You sound like you're speaking from personal experience," she said slowly.

  "I am." Dai took both her hands in his own, holding them as carefully as if cradling a bird. "You're my mate, Virginia. There isn't anyone for me but you, and there never will be. I know this must all sound bizarre to you, and I swear it doesn't bind you in any way—"

  "Just one question," Virginia interrupted. She looked down at their joined hands. "This mate bond. Does the dragon's mate feel it too?"

  "I—" Caught off-guard, Dai hesitated. He couldn't remember his mother ever mentioning how she'd felt when she'd met his father. He sent a mental query to his own inner dragon, but was met with unhelpful silence. "Actually, I don't know."

  "Well." Virginia met his eyes. Slowly, the corners of her mouth curled upward. "I do."

  Dai's heart missed a beat. Does she...can she really mean...?

  Virginia laughed ruefully, shaking her head. "It's kind of a relief to know that I'm not going crazy. I never believed in love at first sight before."

  "And now?" Dai breathed, drawing her close again.

  "Now I believe in dragons. And you." She smiled up at him. "And us."

  "If you really mean that, then there's something I'd like to do." He brushed her hair back from her face, still hardly able to believe that this was really happening. His inner dragon radiated smugness, mixed with both anticipation and a touch of exasperation that it had taken him so long to get to this point. "It's a sort of ritual that seals the mate bond."

  Virginia's eyes brightened with interest at the word "ritual." "So your father raised you to be familiar with his culture? I'd love to—"

  He bent to capture her mouth, cutting her off. He felt Virginia's lips curve under his own, then she kissed him back, abandoning her academic curiosity for now. His hands went to the front of her blouse. His inner dragon wanted to just rip it off, but he made himself take his time, kissing her with luxurious thoroughness as he carefully undid each tiny button. By the time he slid the garment off her lush shoulders, he was shaking with barely-controlled desire. His trembling fingers skimmed Virginia's glorious curves as he unfastened her bra and let it drop to the ground.

  Virginia reached for the hem of his t-shirt, but he intercepted her hands. "Please, let me undress you first," he said, his voice so low it was almost a growl. "I want to do this right, and I won't be able to restrain myself long enough if you touch me."

  Virginia nodded wordlessly. With the lightest of touches, he guided her down to the edge of the bed. He drew off her shoes and socks, his thumbs caressing the elegant arch of her instep as he did so. There was no graceful way to deal with the soaking wet jeans that clung to the ample curves of her legs; Virginia stifled a giggle, wriggling her hips to help him as he carefully worked the tight material down her thighs and calves. With the same slow deliberation, he slid her panties off as well.

  Virginia ran her tongue over her upper lip. Never breaking eye contact, she leaned back on the bed, letting him feast his eyes on every inch of her.

  "And now?" she said, her voice husky.

  "Now I want to adorn you." Dai opened the cases as he spoke, filling his hands with gold and gems. "I want to adorn you, and adore you."

  He straightened, turning back to offer her the very best of his hoard. "Virginia," he said formally. "I show you my hoard, so that you may judge whether I am worthy of you. Do my treasures please you? Will you accept me as your mate?"

  She didn't hesitate for even a second. "I will."

  Carefully, he fastened the torc around Virginia's neck. The gold gleamed against her dark skin, lovely and precious—but not as precious as her soft sigh of pleasure, or as lovely as the beat of her pulse in the soft hollow of her throat.

  "My Virginia," he said hoarsely, crowning her with diamonds and draping her shoulders with pearls. She held perfectly still for him, allowing him to wind emeralds around her wrists and encircle her fingers with rings of gold and platinum. "My mate." He knelt to slip bangles over her feet, until she glittered from head to toe. He sat back on his heels, breathless at the sight of her, adorned like the goddess she was. "My greatest treasure."

  He spread her thighs apart, bending his head to worship her with his tongue. She wound her fingers into his hair, wrapping her legs around him. He licked her with slow, circling strokes until her heels pressed deliciously into his back, her thighs clenching as she shuddered with pleasure.

  "Dai," Virginia gasped, when she could speak again. "Oh, please." Her fists knotted in his T-shirt, urging him upward. "Please, I need you now."

  He didn't need to be invited twice. Virginia lay back, watching him with desire-filled eyes as he stripped his own clothes off. The sight of her spread-eagled, undone with pleasure and gleaming with gold, drove him out of his mind with desire.

  Virginia threw back her head, welcoming him with a wordless cry of ecstasy as he sheathed himself in her with one deep thrust. Her fingers raked down the dragon marks on his back, setting his blood aflame. He moved urgently in her, fast and hard, driven by her mounting moans and his own deep need. Her inner walls tightened around him.

  "My mate," he gasped as he lost himself utterly. *My mate!*

  And at last, she truly was.

  ***

  "Dai," Virginia said hesitantly some time later, as they lay bonelessly together in the afterglow. "I feel...something strange, in my head."

  *Hello,* he said down the mate-bond, and grinned as she jumped. He propped himself up on his elbows.

  "Sorry," he said out loud. "I forgot to warn you."

  "I didn't imagine that, then? I heard you in my mind?"

  "It's a dragon thing. We can communicate mind-to-mind with other dragons, and some other types of shifters as well." He ran a finger over the torc around her neck. It had warmed to the exact temperature of her skin, as if the gold had become part of her. It was intensely erotic. "Now that you're truly my mate, in a way you're part dragon too. So I can send to you now."

  He'd been concerned Virginia might find all this alarming, but her muscles stayed loose and relaxed underneath him. She hesitantly touched his forehead, a look of wonder in her eyes. "I think...I think I can sense how you're feeling."

  "Well, I hope you don't need psychic powers for that." He turned his head to kiss the inside of her wrist. "But yes, the mate-bond gives us a sense of each other." The warmth of her mind was stronger than a summer sun. He wanted to lie there and bask in it forever. "You should be able to talk to me when you want, too."

  *Why don't you try it?* Dai sent.

  Virginia got a peculiar expression, as if she was attempting complicated mental arithmetic. Dai could feel her fumbling
with the mate-bond, sending waves of random, unformed sensations at him. It was rather like being subjected to a kid trying out an unfamiliar musical instrument for the first time.

  After a moment she gave up, shaking her head. "That's very strange."

  "It'll become second nature before too long." Sensing that she was beginning to find him rather heavy, he reluctantly rolled off her, tucking her close against his side. He buried his face in the curve of her neck, breathing in her delicious scent. "My Virginia. My mate."

  Virginia giggled, impishly shifting her glorious backside against his stiffening cock. "You've got to be kidding me. Again? Already?"

  "I can't help it." He traced the gold and emerald chains looping her arms. "I'm wild for you even when you're fully clothed. You have no idea what seeing you properly adorned does for me."

  "Hmm." To his surprise, Virginia wriggled away from him. He would have been dismayed, but the mate-bond reassured him that nothing was wrong—she'd just made up her mind about something. "Wait here a minute?"

  Dai crossed his arms behind his head, all the breath sighing out of him at the enticing sway of her breasts as she got up. "Any longer and I'm coming looking for you."

  True to her word, she was back in moments, slipping into the room with a shy expression and something concealed in one palm.

  "You showed me yours." A mixture of pride tinged with a hint of nervousness radiated down the mate-bond as she held out her hand, opening her fingers. "It seems only fair that I show you mine."

  Dai bolted upright. "Fuck me!"

  Virginia burst out laughing. "That was my general intention, yes."

  "No—I mean yes, but—" Dai clutched at his own head, nearly deafened by the roars of his inner dragon. The beast was a storm of flame and goldlust, wings beating frantically.

  The jewel, the lost jewel, the Dragon's Eye! Jewel of kings!

  A torrent of mental images flooded his mind's eye. Warriors in crimson cloaks, dragon-headed ships plunging across a storm-lashed sea, swords and shields and a dragon-eyed man crowned with gold and rubies...

  "Dai?" Virginia touched his bare shoulder. "What is it?"

  Dai became aware that he'd hunched over as if hurricane winds were howling around his ears. He made himself uncurl, clamping down on his inner dragon's agitation. He stared at the massive star ruby in Virginia's hand in disbelief. "That’s the artifact you found? It's called the Dragon's Eye, and it's important. It belonged to...a king?"

  Virginia's eyebrows shot up. "I'm pretty certain it's from the helmet of King Brithelm. He was a Saxon warrior who founded the first settlement here, which eventually became Brighton."

  "He was also a dragon shifter." Dai rubbed his forehead, trying to sort through the sudden influx of racial memories. "Maybe the first white dragon in the British Isles. Red dragons are native here, but the white dragons came over from Europe along with the Saxon invaders. No wonder Bertram's desperate to get it. Any dragon who claimed that gem would gain incredible dominance."

  Virginia's fingers closed reflexively over the artifact. "Dai, if I could give it to you I would, but—"

  "No, no." Dai shook his head emphatically. "It's yours. I won't let my dragon try to steal it from you."

  His dragon lashed an indignant tail. Our mate's hoard is a wondrous as she is. We would never seek to diminish it. It paused for a moment, looking wistfully through his eyes at the ruby. Unless she wished to trade...?

  Despite his headache, Dai chuckled under his breath. I don't think so, he told it. "Actually, my dragon is very impressed with you. That piece is a spectacular hoard all on its own. You'd have a lot of power and status, if you were a shifter."

  Virginia sat down cross-legged on the bed opposite him, turning the artifact over in her hands thoughtfully. "You talk like your dragon half is a separate being to yourself."

  "Well, it is and it isn't." Dai hesitated. "If you really want to have a serious discussion about the metaphysical nature of shifters right now, do you mind if we put on some clothes?" He gestured sheepishly at his groin. "It's really hard for me to think straight when most of my blood isn't making it as far as my brain."

  Virginia's expression clouded with dismay. "I'm sorry, I killed the moment." She held up the Dragon's Eye. "I intended to ask if you'd like it if I adorned you."

  "Oh," Dai breathed, as his inner dragon surged up. "Oh, yes. I would like that." From Virginia's brief downward glance and sudden smug smile, she could see exactly how much he would like it. Nonetheless, he got up. "But later."

  "Why later?" Virginia asked, pouting a little.

  He kissed her as he started removing his hoard from her gorgeous body, piece by piece. "Because our bond tells me that you're hungry."

  "I am?" Virginia's eyebrows drew down, then she let out a surprised laugh. "I am. And so are you."

  "So we'll eat, and talk about dragons, and then..." He kissed her again, more lingeringly.

  Despite the temptation to decide that neither of them was that hungry, they got dressed, though it took rather longer than strictly necessary. Virginia's clothes were still soaking; she rummaged through his wardrobe, finally settling on one of his dress shirts, which drowned her from neck to knees.

  "I feel like a reverse Cinderella," she said ruefully, rolling up the sleeves. "From princess to rags."

  "You look adorable," Dai told her, holding out his bathrobe for her. She shot him a dry, disbelieving look as she shrugged into it. He spread his hands, smiling. "Just check the mate-bond if you don't bel—"

  DANGER!

  His inner dragon's shriek came barely in time. Dai flung himself on top of Virginia as the skylight above them blazed with incandescent flame. The glass barely withstood a second before exploding in a hail of shards, but it was enough time for Dai to make the fastest shift of his life, basic self-preservation instinct overriding Bertram's restriction. Dragonfire washed over his back, scorched his armored scales.

  The space was much too small for his dragon form. His sides and tail squeezed agonizingly against the walls for a moment before the brickwork crumbled. The floor gave way, unable to support his sudden weight. All Dai could do was curl in a tight ball of wings and scales around Virginia, desperately trying to shield her as they plummeted.

  The impact of hitting the ground made him black out for a moment. When he came to, the first thing he was aware of was Virginia writhing in his grip, her hands shoving futilely at his scaled chest. The second was the crushing weight of the collapsed house. With tremendous effort, Dai forced his wings open, bricks and beams sliding off his back.

  He twisted his neck, rain running over his spines and into his eyes as he scanned the sky. Since there was no sign of another imminent attack from above, he painfully uncurled, his tail sweeping through burning debris. He managed to roll to one side just far enough to allow Virginia to wriggle free from his grasp.

  Heedless of the wreckage all around, Virginia stumbled back, her huge eyes fixed on him. Her terror and panic beat at him down the mate-bond.

  "Dai!" she screamed, looking around wildly. "Dai!"

  His heart froze in his chest. Impossible. She knew, she told me she knew! Yet there was no trace of recognition in Virginia's expression.

  *I'm here,* he sent urgently to her. He tried to get to his own feet, but fallen beams still pinned his hindquarters to the ground. *Virginia, it's me!*

  Virginia shook her head in mute denial, still backing away from him—and then Dai saw what was lurking, invisible to non-shifter eyes, right behind her.

  *VIRGINIA!* he roared, both physically and psychically. He made a desperate lunge, but couldn't reach her. *NO!*

  Virginia broke and fled—running straight into Bertram's waiting, outstretched claws.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Virginia struggled back to consciousness in a cold, muddy field. Her first thought was: He's a dragon. Dai's a dragon shifter.

  Her second thought was: I really wish he were here now.

  The white dragon crouche
d opposite her, legs and wings folded neatly. With an involuntary whimper, Virginia scrabbled away from it, her back hitting a wall before she'd gone more than a foot. The great burning eyes stayed fixed on her with unblinking fascination, like a cat watching a trapped mouse. The tip of the dragon's tail twitched slightly.

  Virginia swallowed hard. "I know that's you, Bertram," she said, her voice trembling despite her best efforts. Her legs had turned to rubber. "And you aren't impressing anyone, so you might as well knock it off. I know you aren't actually going to eat me."

  The white dragon yawned expansively, giving her a fine view of teeth as long as her forearm. *What makes you so sure?*

  Virginia skin crawled at the oily, slick feel of Bertram's voice in her head. She made herself sit up straighter at least, trying to pull together what dignity she could while barefoot and in a bathrobe. "Because you'd be in a hell of a lot of trouble with the other shifters."

  *The Parliament of Shifters?* Bertram's black, forked tongue lolled out in amusement. *My dear delectable Virginia, shifter politicians are much like politicians anywhere—concerned only with keeping their supporters happy. And my family have been extremely generous supporters.*

  "I didn't mean the shifter government," Virginia said, hoping she sounded a lot more courageous than she actually felt. "If you don't let me go right now, you aren't going to last long enough to face any formal court of justice. Dai will tear you apart."

  Bertram rustled one wing in an unconcerned shrug. *The last time I checked, the little red was occupied with more pressing matters. Such as the house on top of him.*

  Virginia's blood ran cold as she remembered her last sight of Dai—his sinuous dragon's body pinned under bricks and beams, battered and broken. Even now, he could be bleeding to death, trapped in the rubble...but the mate-bond was a steadfast, warm presence in the center of her chest. Even though she was too far away from Dai to tell what he was thinking or where he was, she knew that he wasn't badly hurt.