Dragons at Midnight (6 page)

Emotions swirled around inside her like a tornado. She splashed water on her face and looked at her reflection. She could feel herself changing into something she didn’t recognize. She wanted to be around Tor, Brent, and Fletcher.

She was beginning to get use to being around other people without feeling threatened or ostracized or annoyed. It was a curious sensation. She wanted to spend the last few moments of 2011 with Tor and the men and then go home and figure out how she felt. For the first time in her life, she was unsure of how to proceed or where to go. Her instincts weren’t telling her anything that would guide her. She just hoped that by the end of the night she wouldn’t lose the tenuous connections that she’d formed with the men. They had come to mean something to her beyond mere sex partners and crushes. They were now her friends, and she would do anything not to lose that.

Chapter Four

Tor was relieved he hadn’t changed. His dragon had been pushing hard to take Louisa in full form. His body ached. He felt as if he’d been clawed from the inside out. A glance at Brent had shown that his friend hadn’t felt the same thing.

Brent looked exhausted but in high spirits. He tossed a towel to Fletch, who looked put out but eager for more. Tor didn’t blame him—Louisa was something special. Being with her had been incredible, thrilling, but it wasn’t over, not by a long shot. She was responsive and open—not one protest when the nipple and clit camps had been attached. If anything, she seemed more aroused.

Flexing one hand, he tried to ignore the burst of pain with each bend of his fingers. His nails felt as if they had nearly been ripped off. He half expected to see blood when he looked down at them. Nope. Only pink fingertips, bordering on red—the only indication that there had been an attempt at a change.

He wanted to ask Brent or Fletch if they had felt anything while being with Louisa but was unsure of what to say
. Hey, guys, I felt like my dragon wanted to tear out of me and fuck Louisa. Did that happen to any of you?
It was scary just to think about it.

Fletch left them to go check on Louisa. One of them should; it was about taking care of the woman at the center of their fantasies, making sure she was okay and didn’t have regrets. It would hurt like hell if she was starting to have second thoughts about the whole thing.

Tor didn’t feel as if he could fully stand on his own two feet for more than a minute or so. He also felt a bit light headed. He decided it was time for another round of eating and getting to know her. They all needed to regain their strength. He stretched his shoulders and hissed at the pain searing along the blades. She’d scratched him deep, which had triggered the shift.

A growl began deep in his chest as blood pooled in his groin, and his cock thickened and lengthened to become erect. His dragon was still for now but it wasn’t sated, not in the least. The lizard wanted more—more of Louisa and more sex. The musky scent of her arousal mingled with their sweat on the air, making a heady perfume that seemed to seep into every one of his pores. It was as if pheromones had been released into the air, making him harder than a rock and fully ready to go. His shaft now thudded against his stomach, fully awakened. A glance at Brent told him he was in the same state. A blast of heat rocked him onto his heels. He grabbed a chair and sank down into it before he could pass out. A groan from across the room told him that Brent might be feeling the same thing.

A roll of heat ran around his brain, heating his eyes and making his head throb. “What the fuck?” His tongue felt thick, and words were hard to form. Closing his eyes seemed to help but his eyelids felt hot, fever hot. It felt as if he had a volcano inside ready to erupt. Splinters of pain crackled along his arms, legs and throughout his torso.

Gritting his teeth, he tried to order his body to calm down. Stop this, he beseeched his dragon. The giant lizard, Godzilla wannabe, just blinked at him. Ruby red eyes gazed at him as if he were stupid, and a thin tongue slipped out past thin lips. The long, whip-like tail, topped with small spikes, moved back and forth in a lazy motion.

What is this?
he demanded.

Mating heat,
the dragon hissed back
.
Tor didn’t understand. Neither he nor Brent nor Fletch were fully developed dragons. Only those of fifty-years-plus experienced mating heat.

Tor wondered if a shift would help calm the heat down. Desire prickled through his veins like thorns, scratched through his body, tearing and ripping him apart. Droplets of lava-hot blood sizzled and evaporated, threatening to destroy his organs. He doubled over, clutching his stomach as pinpricks of pain exploded all over his abdomen. Tor gasped—his lungs couldn’t take in enough air.

“What the fuck is going on with you? What are you doing?” Brent demanded. He rushed over to Tor and grabbed his arm. Pain lanced through Tor’s shoulder.

Tor hissed and glared at his friend. Brent backed away, hands up in the air in a sign that he was harmless. “I’m not trying to hurt you, man. Calm down. Breathe. I’ll go get Fletch.”

Brent left the room, and things became somewhat cooler. Tor felt trapped. The walls were closing in on him. Sweat beaded on his brow and upper lip. He was having trouble breathing. His heart was trying to break through his ribcage. His organs felt as if they were being torn apart. This wasn’t like any shift he’d ever experienced.

The pounding of feet heralded his friends’ return. Instead of relief, it only made him angry. He lifted his head and snapped at them, growling low in his throat in warning.

“Whoa, whoa, Tor, calm down. We’re not here to take your mate or challenge you.” Fletch’s voice was slow and soothing. The dragon seemed to accept the words but was still wary.

“Dude, his eyes are red. What the hell is going on?” Brent demanded.

Fletch adjusted his glasses and licked his lips. “Looks like a case of pre-mating heat. I’ve read about these things. Mating heat will normally hit us when we’re between fifty to a hundred years old but sometimes when we’ve found our mate the heat will rise before we’ve fully matured. It’s normally not so serious, but this—I’d have to consult an expert on it. Look, you’ll have to sit this next round out and rest. If no males are near you, and the woman who triggered the heat isn’t near you, you should be fine. You need to regain control. I’m sorry, man.”

Tor licked his dry lips and tried to find the words to express how he felt. Anger and disappointment as well as confusion swirled around him, winding around his stomach as he tried to understand. “But—” Words failed him. He punched his leg. Pain burst through his thigh, making him howl. That only wound the dragon up more. Fire pumped through him as pain seared through his body, demanding he shift and fuck. His balls ached for release; his cock throbbed hot and hard, pulsing with every beat of his heart.

“Dammit,” he growled in disappointment.

“I know, dude, I know. I’m sorry about this.” Brent looked at him with a combination of pity and helplessness that only angered him even more. Tor didn’t want to be pitied. He wanted to continue with the plan and give Louisa a night she’d never forget, to kiss her at midnight. Now it didn’t seem he could do any of that until he’d calmed down, and he wasn’t sure when that would be.

“Look, we didn’t plan this. We’ll eat the rest of the food and finish with Louisa, give her the night she deserves. Don’t worry about it. She’s the priority, and once it’s done I’ll go find someone to talk to, even if you’ve recovered. Okay?” Fletch stood before him, trying to reassure him with words. But words meant nothing. They were just wind and ash.

“Fine,” he growled out. It was the only thing he could say.

“Lie here and rest. We’ll be back.” Brent gave him a thumbs up and left with Fletcher.

Yeah, rest, since I’m so fucking useless.
Tor closed his eyes and rested against the back of the chair.

* * *

Louisa was rummaging around one of the bags they’d brought when she heard footsteps. A glance up showed Brent and Fletcher returning with serious looks on their faces. Worry fluttered in her stomach.
Tor
, was her first thought. “What’s wrong with Tor? Where is he?”

Shock appeared on Brent’s and Fletch’s faces. “How…how did you know it was him?” Fletch blinked, his green eyes serious and curious behind his glasses.

Louisa shrugged. “It was my first thought when I saw your faces. Now what’s wrong?”

Brent ran a hand though his hair. The spikes had sagged and now ink black hair edged in green framed his angular face, curling under his chin, making him look so young. “He’s going through dragon mating heat. We think sex with you triggered it. He’s acting territorial and angry. Tor needs to calm down and rest, let the heat run its course until he’s normal again.”

Louisa toyed with a stray curl. She wracked her brain for an answer or a possible cure for him. In her travels she’d heard of various mating heats. All the cures involved sex, either one intense action or a serious of several interactions until the heat had burned itself out. She told them all this and watched their faces to see what they thought. They were dragons, after all.

“He’ll need room just in case he tries a partial shift. We’ll only do this if you want to. One of us should be involved always to make sure he doesn’t hurt you.” Fletch’s tone was serious and the look on his face full of concern.

“We can do that. I think it’s time for sex on the Ducati, what do you think? The parking lot will be big enough, and we’re in the back of the bar so no one should see us. And there are the vibrations.” Her pussy fluttered.

She looked over at Brent. Smooth, golden skin coved sinew and muscle. She’d always imagined him with tattoos given his wild choice in hairstyle. His cock was long with a thick, flared, plum-colored head. His balls hung long and large. Her pussy clenched, moisture dripping onto her thighs.

Not wanting to ignore Fletch, she looked at him as well. He was more lean than muscular. His tanned skin was a bit darker than Brent’s, showing how much time he spent outdoors. The muscles of his abdomen were well defined in tight ridges. A narrow, brown strip of hair pointed the way to the thick nest of curls around the base of his thick cock. The cockhead was already an angry red and glistening with a drop of pre-cum at the slit.

She licked her lips. Not all of them could fit on the bike. “So who will be with me with Tor?”

Louisa stifled a laugh as Fletch and Brent did rock, paper, scissors for the honor. Brent whooped at having won.

“Next time we should just fuck in the flatbed of a truck,” she teased.

Brent waggled his eyebrows. “Not sure there will be a next time if Tor has any say in it.”

Despite his light tone, his words packed a punch. “What—what do you mean by that?” She had an idea but wasn’t sure she wanted to hear it.

“Well, beautiful, if he’s serious and this mating heat is for real and not just a flash of things to come in later life, he may have claimed you as his mate. But you have a say, so don’t worry.” The last few words were said in a rush but she didn’t miss the central point. Tor had started the claim as his mate. She belonged to him.

A shiver raced down her spine. It wasn’t a chill of apprehension but a sense of something starting. She couldn’t ignore that her tiger had wanted to claim Tor during sex. Louisa wasn’t sure if she should say anything, but wondered if perhaps her tiger’s attempt to claim Tor had triggered his mating heat. She bit her lip, mulling over how to tell them that maybe she’d started it all. This was all new to her.

Louisa licked her lips and ventured to tell them. “I think I may have started all of this. My tiger wanted to claim Tor, so—”

Fletch waved away her words. “No, that wouldn’t have started it. That may have added to his mating heat but this would have started on its own if the conditions were right. Dragons are different than felines or any other shifter. We’re not under the moon’s sway, and we can shift at will. Our maturation period is also longer. Mating heat normally can take place when we turn fifty or even a hundred years old. Your mating need wouldn’t have added to his unless you’re part dragon.”

She shook her head. “Nope, pure tiger shifter.”

“Then you didn’t cause this. Don’t worry.” Fletch walked over to her and gave her a reassuring hug. “He’ll be fine. I promise.”

She didn’t feel relieved in the least. “Let me go talk to him, okay?” Before they could protest, she left the room and headed to the male employees’ changing room. Pushing open the door, she was hit by the scent of male musk, fire, ash, and sunshine with an undercurrent of dark spices and night air. She swallowed hard as the urge to change shimmered through her. Arousal spiked in her blood as body heat increased. Her honey dripped on her thighs as her cunt clenched in anticipation. Her stomach muscles contracted as she struggled to take in enough air to fill her lungs.

“Louisa?” Tor’s voice was low and husky, and a full growl lurked in his tone. Another shiver quaked through her. Licking her lips, she called on the strength of her tiger and entered the space.

Tor rose from his chair. She sucked in a breath as the bright, florescent lights shone on his wide shoulders. Everything about him seemed large and muscular. His dark brown nipples were already tightened into small peaks, his narrow waist showing off a well-defined abdomen. Neatly trimmed golden curls surrounded the base of his cock. The shaft was long and thick, thicker than she remembered. The wide crown was a purplish red, a drop of pre-cum at the tip. His heavy balls hung low. He was a statue come to life, a temptation made flesh.

All the men had something unique and appealing about them, but Tor was the one who captivated her the most. From his quiet confidence to the strength that emanated from his being, he was power personified. Gold and black shimmered on his skin, and she remembered when he’d partially shifted and his scales had come to the forefront. She wondered if his skin would be soft or rough.

Unable to resist, she went to him, her fingers tingling to touch. She ran her fingertips up one arm and across his chest, watching goose bumps rise and his muscles tighten and relax.

“You’re so beautiful.” Her tone was filled with awe. Now that she saw him fully, and only him, she could truly see his masculine attractiveness.

“So are you,” he murmured back. Tor threaded his fingers through her hair and wrapped one arm around her waist. She tilted her head up at him and took in the harsh beauty of his face. From his sculpted cheekbones to his hooded, dark eyes and lush lips, he was appealing on every level.
How could I have resisted him for so long?
Now that she’d had him, it made her resistance seem so silly. He lowered his head and brushed his lips against hers in a gentle touch that seared her mouth and made it tingle when he pulled away.

“They told you?” he asked, worry in his onyx gaze.

She nodded. “I think what you need is more sex, but in a place that can give you room to shift if you need to. We’re thinking sex on the motorcycle.” Louisa smiled as she remembered Brent’s statement about sex on the bike.