Their Runaway Mate (18 page)

"Not yet, babe," he said.

Kylan reached around her and massaged her clit. Her eyes rolled back and fluttered closed. Kylan locked eyes with Dillon. This was the moment. Dillon nodded.

"Do you want it?" Kylan asked.

"Yes, oh, yes," she said.

They both knew she had no idea what Kylan was asking, but it was an overture to ease their conscience. He leaned forward, covering her back. His mouth was at her shoulder. He breathed in deeply. His eyes glowed so brightly now that there was nothing left of his human iris. On his exhale, his pale blue fire poured out of him and lapped at her skin. The talons on his hands extended slightly, piercing both their skin at the same time. Their blood blended. A small dribble of red rolled down her leg.

She shuddered in pleasure and dug her fingers into the bedding. Another orgasm shattered over her, and carried Kylan with her. He jerked into her until his dragon fire faded. When he pulled free, he fell to the mattress beside her.

Dillon climbed behind her and drove into her welcoming body in the next breath.

Her body was still convulsing and her sex rippled over him. He nearly lost it. He growled. Not yet. Fuck. She felt so good. He gripped her hips and plunged into her again. His dragon side undulated under his skin. So close to the surface. His thoughts narrowed down to one thought:
Claim her.

She tightened against him. God, she was going to have another orgasm. He leaned over her. Her hot sweaty flesh was slick against his chest. Their bodies rubbed together. When he'd first been told about how a mating happened, he remembered worrying about it. How could he release his fire on a woman he was meant to love? But now that the moment was upon him, instinct was taking over. The fear of hurting her faded and a rightness took its place.

My mate. Claim her.

"Are you sure you want it?" He tightened his grip. His dragon surged forward. It was part of the mating ritual. It was beyond his control, but he didn't feel like he was losing control. Without a full transformation, his talons protruded through the ends of his fingers, just enough to break the skin. Both his and hers. She gasped, but it wasn't from pain. Her scent blossomed around him, heady and beautiful, as their blood mixed. The small punctures healed almost instantly.

"Yes." Her agreement was nearly lost on the harsh rush of her panting breath, but it was there. She'd agreed.

He placed his mouth on her other shoulder. He drew in a deep breath, absorbing the very essence of her into his body. When he breathed out on a shudder, his green dragon fire flowed over her as he marked her as his. Another wave of bliss rippled through her and pulled Dillon along too.

They collapsed onto the bed a moment later.

"Wow," Jasmine said. Her voice was hoarse from her screams of pleasure.

Dillon grinned. He wanted her to have reason to say that every day. She was their mate, and they would give that to her. Even under the moonlight, the distinctive patterns of their mating marks were visible on her pale skin. So beautiful.

She smiled, then drifted off to sleep again.

Kylan traced the markings with his finger, then looked up at Dillon. He looked as satisfied as Dillon felt. They had done it. They'd taken a mate. They could only hope she forgave them.

Chapter 19

J
asmine stretched as she woke. She felt absolutely amazing, which was the last thing she expected considering everything that had happened last night.

She sighed. Aunt Trixy would want to talk about things in more detail today. The likelihood of avoiding said conversation was zilch. Gah. She wasn't ready for that. Not yet. Maybe not ever.

Kylan and Dillon were still sleeping. Kylan's face was softer than it was while he was awake. It always seemed he had a furrow in his brow or a seriousness about his look that was absent in his sleep. She drew back before she trailed her hand along his cheek. She didn't want to wake him.

Dillon, ferocious in bed but always quick to lighten the mood out of it, looked relaxed too. Much more so than when they'd first brought Kylan back from the attack. He didn't like to show it, but he was a bit of a worrier. She shouldn't have tried to leave. She knew that now. They would have been worried sick about her. She hadn't even thought to write a note. She shook her head. Next time, she would go to them first. Even if the situation could put them at risk. They deserved that much from her.

She wiggled out from between them without waking them. She was going to sneak downstairs and make some pancakes for them. And, who knows, if they ate breakfast in bed, there might even be some interesting things that they could do with some syrup. She grinned as she ducked into the bathroom.

They had already explored so much of her body, it was about time to do a bit of her own recognizance. The one taste she'd had of Dillon hadn't been enough. She curled her tongue. Yep, she could lick some syrup out of Kylan's belly button… and maybe from the hollow of Dillon's—

She eyed her reflection. Something was wrong with the mirror. Her skin looked warped somehow. She glanced down.

Her scream ricocheted through the tiled room.

She wiped her hand over her skin. Like a tattoo, the strange green and blue pattern seemed embedded in her skin. Oh, God, what was the matter with her? Was she allergic to dragons?

The men crashed into the room, with rumpled hair and creases from their pillows still pressed into their cheeks.

"What's happened? What's wrong?"

Jasmine's eyes filled with tears as she revealed the marking. Dillon bit his lip and glanced away, but not before she saw a possessive glint in his eyes. There was satisfaction in that look. Kylan didn't look away. His face was full of male pride.

"This was you two, wasn't it?"

"We had to protect you," Kylan said.

"This was the only way," Dillon said at the same time.

Jasmine swallowed. Anger jumped through her veins, quick and fast. "This means we're mated, doesn't it? What were you thinking? You told me you'd ask my permission first." She crossed her arms and stared at them.

"We did."

"You said yes."

Jasmine shook her head. "No, no, no. You tricked me. Oh, God. How could you?"

She pushed through them, and they didn't try to stop her or touch her. That was good because she would have kicked them in the nuts. Shit. Her bag was still outside. She grabbed her dress and underwear from the floor. They watched as she tugged on her clothes, pushed her feet into her sandals, and then ran for the door.

"Where are you going?"

"Out. I can't—" She put her palm up to them to make them stay where they were. She couldn't be with them right now. Tears welled in her eyes. "How could you betray me like this?"

She plunged into the hallway and raced down the stairs. She wiped the tears from her cheeks. She knew they could catch her, but they didn't run after her. No, they had what they wanted from her now.

***

"Son of a bitch," Dillon muttered. "We need to follow her."

He'd planned to be awake before she was. He'd wanted to talk to her, then reveal her markings. He'd fucked up royally. They both had.

Kylan shook his head. "She needs to cool off a bit."

"But she won't understand. We need to—"

"I know. But let's give her a minute first, okay?"

Dillon grabbed for the clothes he'd worn the day before. Kylan was an idiot if he thought Jasmine would be okay
in a minute
. She was probably in the kitchen right now grabbing one of the butcher knives.

This wasn't anything like how he'd thought it would be with his mate on the first morning after their joining. He'd imagined exploring the markings on her skin under the sunlight. Tracing them with his tongue. Damn it. Envisioning her naked wasn't helping anything.

Jasmine was even more beautiful now that she wore their markings than she had been before. Even now, in the predicament they were in, he couldn't wipe the smile off his face. Man, he was messed up, because if they didn't make this right with her, there was a chance she'd leave them. They couldn't make her stay.

When he started for the door, Kylan was dressed and at his side.

As soon as they opened the door, they were bombarded with the haunting acidic notes of her anger mixed with the salty tinge of fresh tears. Kylan cursed. Together they followed her trail down the stairs and into the foyer where they were stopped by Garryck, Ryder and Laughlin.

"We have a problem," Laughlin said.

"Fires are burning in the northeast," Garryck said, "just on the outskirts of town."

Icy dread rippled up Dillon's spine. The last thing they needed was a forest fire. It hadn't rained in weeks. The countryside was a tinder box.

Kylan looked at him. He knew what his chief was thinking.

He nodded. "We have to go. She'll be okay."

Thank God they'd mated with her. That was the best protection she could have. She was still pissed at them, but at least she'd be safe from dragon attacks. Now, they had to make sure she and the clan were safe from the wrath of Mother Nature.

***

Jasmine hurried through the mountain village. Memories of her childhood sprint through the same narrow streets flashed through her mind. As a child, she'd been scared. As an adult, she was pissed.

"How could they?"

Her breath hung in the crisp autumn air. A chill swept over her and she shuddered. She should have grabbed a jacket, but she'd been too furious to think about things like that. She rubbed her hands together.

She ducked around a corner and found a park. The neglected play equipment leaned to one side. It'd probably been years since children had laughed here. A twinge of sadness twisted in her chest. When was the last time there was a little baby dragon shifter born to the Mannix clan? None of the women here would be able to become pregnant because of the effect of the Dragon's Tears drug.

God, it must have been years. Decades. Maybe even since before the Dragon Announcement.

She frowned and made her way to the swing set. One seat was dangling from a twisted cable, but the other was okay. She sat in it and leaned her head against the chain.

She didn't have a lot of options. How had it come to this? Had the scene with the councillor and the investigation been staged for her benefit?

No. That didn't seem right.

She sighed as she pushed against the ground and set the swing in motion. Her rage was already subsiding. Damn it. Those dragons had gotten under her skin. Ha! That was a bad joke, considering that for the mating to take place they would have mixed their blood with hers. She hadn't even noticed.

She'd been so wrapped up in the incredible sex, she'd missed out on her own mating.

And it really had been incredible.

A little breeze swirled around her as she pumped her legs. She peered up at the sky as the swing took her higher. Dragons flew through those heavens. Dragons. Just like the one from her nightmare.

But even he hadn't been trying to hurt her. She remembered that now.

All those years of therapy and sleeping drugs had been wasted. Everything had been solved in one conversation with a dragon. Dragons had always seemed like a problem to her. A scourge. But now that she knew a few…

Actually Kylan and Dillon were pretty awesome to her both in and out of bed. They'd risked their lives to keep her safe. They'd rallied behind her when she'd accused Laughlin, Kylan's own father. They'd been ready to exile him.

She took a deep breath.

And what had she done to deserve any of this?

Nothing.

The whole relationship balance was out of whack. She baked for them and she fell into bed with them. Other than that she'd been nothing but a pain in the butt.

She bit her lip.

Would it be so wrong to stay? Could she be a woman worthy of two warriors like Kylan and Dillon?

The life she'd led before meeting them seemed so far away, but she couldn't forget the sense of emptiness, which had disappeared since she’d met her two dragons. And it wasn't as if she had anything to go back to. Her house and bakery had both been destroyed. Her friends had abandoned her to the election. And her aunt was now here, not necessarily for long, but it showed that humans could cross into dragon territory with relative ease. She could visit.

Wow.

She put down her feet and they dragged against the ground, slowing her. She was really considering accepting this. She wanted to stay mated to them—as a choice, not just because they jumped the gun and tricked her into it. Warmth spread through her.

This was what she wanted. She wanted them. She wanted to prove to them she could be a good mate. She wanted to help them rebuild their clan. Maybe with her here, other women would come willingly. And then maybe the playground wouldn't be empty anymore.

She jumped off the swing. She had to go back. She had to tell them. She couldn't wait to see the looks on their faces.

Of course that didn't mean they were completely off the hook. They shouldn't have tricked her. They should have trusted her to come to her own decision about the mating.

She smiled up at the sky as she walked through the park, back to the street. Something rustled behind her. She spun around. Something came at her. Before she could react, hot pain exploded from her temple and everything faded away.

Chapter 20

J
asmine moaned and reached for her throbbing head. The moist air smelled of sulphur. A faint dripping noise broke the silence in erratic beats.

"It's about time you woke up."

It was Gabby. Oh, this wasn't good.

"What's going on?" Jasmine blinked into the darkness. Was it already nightfall?

"I thought I'd killed you, and that would never do."

When someone said shit like that in the movies, they always cackled, but not Gabby. Her laughter was light and airy, like a frigging babbling brook.

Jasmine caught a slight movement and then a cell phone screen glowed through the dark, casting menacing shadows over her captor's face. Jasmine searched the space in the few minutes it took for Gabby to text. As far as she could tell they were in a cave. Then Gabby turned the phone off and plunged them into darkness again.