Destined Dragons: BBW Paranormal Romance (Dragons of New York Book 3) (6 page)

“Anyway, what you said about cooking makes sense,” he said. “And even when it doesn’t, I’ll try to be more patient with you. If you’ll try to be more patient with me. If I seem impatient, it’s only that I’m not eager to see Gentry suffer with visions anymore. And
I
don’t want to see the vision come true.”

She nodded. “I know. But it’s my life and I have to make this decision knowing I did it on my own, okay?”

Sterling nodded. There was nothing logical about this, so he would have to tread more carefully. Be more open to the emotion and intuition this bright woman seemed to work with. Talking to her had made him feel better anyway.

“Show me how you made those omelets,” he prompted.

She laughed and gestured for him to join her.

G
entry couldn’t believe
what he was seeing when he walked into the kitchen later that day—Sterling covered in flour, cooking with Roxy, who was currently giggling and smearing a bit of flour on Sterling’s nose.

When Sterling merely wrinkled his nose and shook his head in response rather than having an outburst about cleanliness, Gentry was sure he’d walked into the twilight zone.

It was a little bit lonely that he was seeing a side to Sterling he’d never seen before, all because Roxy was here.

Then again, Roxy was bringing sunlight into the drafty old castle and that was worth it even if it was a little painful at times to sweep out the old cobwebs that had existed there for so long.

“Gentry!” Sterling said, looking pleased with himself as he opened the oven and took out a pan of muffins with his oven mitt. He slid them onto the counter and started trying to remove one, but Roxy batted his hand away.

“Let them cool,” she said, and Sterling reluctantly took off the mitt and went to sit by Gentry on one of the stools.

Gentry was unable to resist reaching up to brush some of the flour off Sterling’s nose, and Sterling’s eyes narrowed as he tried to look at the offending substance.

Gentry laughed as Sterling abruptly stood and walked in the direction of the bathroom, probably to clean up.

“So, you two have been cooking all day?” Gentry asked.

She nodded. Her beautiful short curls had little bits of flour in it them as well, and Gentry could see a little piece of jam at the corner of her mouth, presumably from something they’d put in the muffins.

He couldn’t resist wrapping an arm around her and pulling her in for a kiss, gently licking the stray piece of jam before releasing her. Her face was instantly heated, and she took a deep breath as she looked into his eyes.

He loved the chemistry between them.

She took a step back, trying to remember what he’d asked her. “Oh, yes, we have been cooking. It started with him wanting to learn omelets. He really wants to please you.”

Gentry nodded. “I know. I just don’t know how to make him see he doesn’t need to.”

Roxy looked surprised by that but continued cleaning up the kitchen.

They could hear water running in the bathroom, so Gentry decided to tell her a little more. Sterling would be a little while cleaning up.

“You know, a purple and silver dragon wouldn’t usually be paired,” he said carefully, lightly stroking a small bottle of spices that was still on the counter.

“They wouldn’t?” she asked, wiping down the surfaces they’d used and putting away ingredients in the fridge.

“No,” he said. But should he say more? It would help her understand Sterling, but it would also make him angry. It was something he hated to talk about unless he brought it up himself, and then only to complain.

Gentry slid off the stool and walked around the counter, taking her arm gently.

She turned to him in surprise. “You okay?”

“Yes,” he said, pulling her into his arms. His dragon was already deeply bonded and couldn’t wait another moment to be with her.

He could feel her body responding to his touch, and he mentally called out to Sterling, knowing he’d hear instantly.

Sterling came out holding a wet washcloth and looking semi-clean, though still powdered in some places.

“You called?” he asked, though his silver eyes seemed to quickly be picking up on the situation.

Gentry turned to face him, keeping Roxy tucked against his front. He lazily moved a hand down over her, grazing her breasts, her stomach, her thighs as her breath caught in her throat and she silently begged him for more.

“I was thinking we could help our mate clean up.”

It was a good sign Roxy didn’t even protest at the word mate. It implied she was accepting things. Accepting them. Gentry truly felt, given enough time to come to her own conclusion, she would feel as right about this as they did.

“I’m game for that,” Roxy said, her voice husky, her hand threading through her curls absentmindedly.

Sterling nodded. “I’ll run the bath.” He started for the bedroom door, seemingly unaffected by this turn of events. But when he stopped and turned back to face them, there was a familiar gleam in his eyes.

“Bubbles or no?” he asked.

“Bubbles,” Roxy said.

“No bubbles,” Gentry said at the same time. “I want to see your body.”

Roxy was embarrassed, biting her lip, and Sterling looked between the two of them.

“I’ll run bubbles, then,” he said, giving them a cryptic look over his shoulder. Then he grinned. “Bubbles pop.”

Gentry grinned. It was on. Another chance to bond and win her over. Another chance to let her happy, aroused face remove all the visions of pain and agony.

And maybe, just maybe he could avoid the nightmares tonight if they played it right.

R
oxy was more
than a little excited to see the master bathroom. She imagined it would be unbelievable given the size and architecture of the massive house.

She wasn’t disappointed.

When Gentry led her into the master bedroom and then out a side door into the bathroom, she let out a gasp of shock. Beautiful, sparkling gray tile streaked through with silver. Graceful granite countertops with gold fixtures. A large tub that was more the size of a hot tub in a back yard than a normal bathtub.

It too was made of marble and carved into a deep, rectangular bowl shape that looked soft and inviting.

Sterling started the water running, pulling on two gold knobs and then pouring in something from a glass bottle, starting bubbles.

“Who’s first?” she asked.

“You have to be kidding,” Gentry said, whipping his shirt over his head. “We’re all going in of course.”

She heated immediately, tingling with anticipation. Cooking with Sterling had been amazing. She’d actually been bonding with the complicated dragon, and she’d been unable to deny how she felt around him, how her body responded when he reached around her for an ingredient or she put her hand on his to stir things.

It was excellent foreplay, though she wondered if Sterling had felt at all the same way.

“Of course,” Sterling said, pulling off his shirt to reveal a perfect line of defined abs. “It’s natural when one is around one’s mate.”

She nodded, her breath catching in her throat as she studied his long body. Then she looked to Gentry, who was removing his pants.

He was tall and powerful, with tanned skin that looked great with his rich-brown hair and purple eyes. His muscled torso was wide and thick and his legs matched, tall and corded and strong. At the center were his slim hips and perfect ass. And then his—

“Enough,” Sterling said. “You should change too.”

Blood rushed into her face, and other places, as she realized Sterling was fully naked too. Her eyes didn’t know where to look first. She wanted to take in everything at once. Her body was hungry for her dragons.

Her
dragons. When had she come to consider them such? When had this all started to feel so right?

Maybe when Sterling cooked with her. Maybe when Gentry had been inside her. She couldn’t say.

She just knew, as she pulled her shirt over her head and saw fire light in a pair of purple eyes and a pair of silver, she felt at home here.

She struggled with the back of her bra, and Sterling raised a hand, causing it to come undone. It fell off, and Sterling flashed a slight grin as she caught her breasts in her hands, shocked by what had happened.

“One never gets used to Sterling’s telekinesis,” Gentry said, reaching around her to hook his thumbs in her panties. He slid them slowly down over her hips, grazing her butt as he went.

He placed a kiss to one cheek as he knelt and slipped them off her feet. She held Sterling’s hand as she stepped out, completely naked.

With all three of them bared, there was a special feeling in the room. No one felt vulnerable and there was pure trust in the circle.

Then Sterling swept her up in his arms and carried her to the tub, which had been filling the entire time and was now covered in a thick white foam and emitting steam. He lifted her over it and let her test it with her toe.

“The right temperature?” he asked.

She nodded, and he lowered her in. The tub was deep, and she let out a squeak of surprise and then looked up to see her two dragons watching her.

Gentry scowled at the foam. “I can’t even see.”

He started scooping away the foam, but Sterling put a hand on Gentry’s shoulder. “All in good time,” he said.

“I wish I had your patience,” Gentry said, stepping toward the tub. He lowered himself in, his purple eyes hungry as he reached for her. She took his hands and eased onto his lap. She could feel his hard length in front of her, pressed into her belly, but he didn’t seem in a rush to do anything with it.

She ached to have him inside her.

Instead, he began kissing her neck, her ear, her cheek, setting kisses as light as butterflies all over her skin, lighting her up from the inside out. It was incredibly gentle and arousing, the opposite of the previous night.

Perhaps every time would be a different experience with these men.

“I hope so,” Gentry said. “I hope we always get better at pleasing you. I hope we keep getting to know you. I hope every time is better than the last.”

She let out a small hum as she bit her lip. His capable hands were at her waist, softly kneading her flesh as if he enjoyed the feel of her curves.

His lips brushed her ear again, sending tremors through her. The smallest touch could feel so sensitive.

“I love your short hair. Makes this—” He nipped the base of her earlobe. “So easy to do.”

She groaned and arched as his hands found her buttocks and kneaded there. He was so close to the place she wanted him to touch, and she ground slightly against him, letting him know what she wanted.

“All in good time,” he said softly. “I’m still savoring you.”

Then his hand dipped between her legs and she let out a gasp. She turned to see Sterling watching them, his eyes hot, like molten silver, his muscles tensed.

“Aren’t you getting in?” Gentry asked.

“I’m sorry. I was mesmerized by the sight.” Sterling blinked and composed himself. “You’re beautiful, Roxy. I too am resenting the bubbles.”

She giggled and brushed a few of them out of the way. “Well, come in and help us pop some, then.”

He nodded.

She let out a little moan as she felt him slip in behind her. This was going to be amazing.

S
terling was going
to pop
all
the bubbles. He was surprised by the strength of the hunger within him, his dragon’s need to take his mate.

All his life, he’d felt unworthy of where he was, cognizant of the fact that without Gentry, he’d be in a lab somewhere, isolated from humanity and probably wasting away in the name of research.

He’d tried not to take too much for himself. Tried to make himself worthy of the mercy he’d gotten when Gentry picked him over the gold dragon for a partner.

The gold dragon was the perfect protector. The one the purple dragon always chose with first pick.

Everyone had been shocked when Gentry picked Sterling. But none of them had known what Sterling knew. That Gentry must have been aware the leaders over their region were planning to take Sterling away for research. They just couldn’t break dragon tradition by removing him before the purple dragon had first pick.

Sterling had always been grateful to Gentry for a move that was surely motivated by pity. The gold dragon would have been a better protector, with his perfect shielding abilities. Instead, Sterling had to work hard and be creative to avoid those who wanted to take out the dragon leader.

And he’d developed a reputation for being a fierce adversary, enough that the attempts on Gentry’s life had significantly lessened. But he was still aware he owed Gentry everything. And he’d always tried to be unselfish to pay him back for that.

But now, with Roxy in front of him, the beautiful little woman who’d been so patient with him earlier, who’d touched him and talked to him and cooked with him as if he were equal to everyone else, he felt greedy.

Selfishly, he wanted her for his own. Wanted to be the one taking her, pounding into her, pleasuring her, and hearing her call his name.

But he couldn’t take that from Gentry.

“Damn, Sterling,” Gentry said, interrupting his thoughts. “Your thoughts are so loud even I can hear them.”

Sterling blinked. His hands were around Roxy, caressing her breasts, though he didn’t remember doing that, and Gentry looked up at him with a puzzled but amused expression. Roxy was breathing hard from the combination of his hands on her breasts and Gentry’s hand between her legs.

Damn, he loved this woman.

And wanted her.

He should have known he could accidentally project in their minds if he was distracted enough. He was filled with embarrassment for stepping out of line.

“Take her,” Gentry said. “Watching will be hot.”

“But, I…”

“Take her,” Gentry said, eyeing his partner with heat. “I want to see it.”

Sterling nodded. Gentry had always been generous with him, despite being so much higher in dragon rank. He knew Gentry would never want him treating himself as less than. But it was just habit at this point, habit that had risen from desperation and then life-saving gratitude.

“Sterling, I never chose you out of pity,” Gentry said, kissing Roxy’s shoulders and making her moan. “I chose you because I admired you. Because you were strong. Because even in the face of terrifying odds and isolation because of your powers, you were brave and stoic. And I knew I would need that. Far more than I would need a golden shield.”

Something in Sterling was cracking. A wall he’d been hiding behind for a long time.

He was wanted. He’d been chosen. His hands tightened around Roxy, holding her close, as he needed comfort at that moment.

Suddenly, he was a young dragon again, shaking with fear as he waited for the choices to be made. Wondering what they’d do to him when they took him.