CHAPTER FOUR
– ERNESTINO –
“Nario locked him up in the dungeon. He started questioning him when I left to get you,” Leandro states the moment he steps into my office.
I was about to call Lilliana’s father to gather some information and place the phone down to talk to Leandro first. “How the hell can he still make his own decisions when I placed him under Ivano? Please tell me Nario isn’t questioning the prisoner by himself.”
Leandro shrugs. “Ivano had to go home for something, and I had to get you since you were not answering your phone.”
Dammit. I should have answered his call instead of gathering information about the things Lilliana mentioned. I might not be interested in marrying Tony’s daughter, but the fact that she has been married before and killed her previous husbands? Yeah, that kinda snagged my attention.
“Home?” I growl. “This is the first time we’ve managed to capture one of Marshgloom, and our head of security heads home? Not to mention, he leaves our prisoner in the hands of our brother who only cares about his own shit, and wouldn’t think twice about killing someone, and not share crucial details with us.”
“Don’t know, man. It was like he was jolted into awareness, or got some mental memo, and took off after growling ‘home.’ Fucking weird. With Nario questioning the prisoner I thought it was best to get you.”
I rub my temples. “We’re running out of available men. Fuck. I never thought I’d say that. Between keeping our land safe, and working the mine, we don’t have many options left. Well, besides asking the elders to help out. Disrespectful, and not something we should do, no matter what.”
“This war needs to end,” Leandro grimly states.
Fury and regret hit me hard. All of this could have ended two weeks ago with a simple agreement to the contract. Then again, I didn’t expect to find my mate, and who the fuck knows? I could have been dead by now since Naryssa has a track record when it comes to husbands.
“Agreed.” I take my phone in hand again. “Go back to the prisoner and make sure our brother doesn’t kill him or hold back any details he obtained. I need to make a call to check something and then I’ll swing by to kick Ivano’s ass before I head for the dungeon.”
“You got it, boss,” Leandro rumbles and stalks away.
Releasing a deep breath, I hit the call button and wait until I hear Alrigo’s voice.
“Alrigo. I should have contacted you sooner,” I start.
His dark voice cuts me off. “You should have. Especially with the mess you’re wrapped up in. Did you really think I wouldn’t find out?”
I’m instantly on edge and wonder how the fuck he knows what’s going on between two dragon clans. Shit. He might not be talking about clan business. Maybe Lilliana called him and mentioned the lack of attention I’ve given her. Lack of? I’ve basically ignored her since I met her.
Swallowing down the need to snarl, I calmly ask, “What mess are you referring to?”
“You have more fuck ups than being at war with another clan?” Alrigo growls. “It would have been nice to mention this shit before you mated my daughter.”
Anger gets the better of me. “Then what? You would have kept her from me?”
There’s a rustling sound and then a female voice says, “Okay you two hotheads, there’s enough time to fight during Christmas dinner in a few months. Right now, you two have to get along long enough to swap some details.”
I grit my teeth while there’s more rustling.
“Lilliana called and mentioned the Marshgloom clan. There’s a warning within mafia families about Tony Mattia and his daughter Naryssa. She’s had two arranged marriages, each of them ending with a dead husband. Authorities ruled both as an accident, but it raised questions due to the rapid deaths after marriage and the clearing out bank accounts, along with selling off properties. Normally, I couldn’t give two shits about a human don dying or a female killing a husband for personal gain. Except when my daughter calls me to say Naryssa has her eyes set on you, and the fact your clan is at war with theirs.”
My mind is reeling. Not only about Lilliana calling her parents to help my clan, but the fact a dragon clan has fucked up enough to alert mafia families.
I return his honesty with the truth. “If it weren’t for my accidental run-in with your daughter, who is my fated mate, I probably would have gone through with the suggestion for an arranged marriage. We were in the middle of negotiations and setting up the foster project we had in the past. My brother agreed to Tony’s demand for me to wed his daughter, without my knowledge. I obviously refused when I got wind of it, and we’ve been back to using violence over the past two weeks.
“I’ve heard a new clan leader is chosen through a competition of strength and mental capacity if the current one is killed. Though, if you would have accepted the arranged marriage? I’m sure they would have placed–”
Knowing what he’s about to say, I cut him off by gritting, “Their most skilled members to get a shot at taking over the clan.”
“Bingo. They’re desperate, and desperate people are dangerous. It’s why they jumped right back at fighting a bloody war. Rumor is…they are bankrupt.”
“No shit?” I mumble. “It would explain why they suddenly reached out while I’ve been trying to form a truce for a long damn time. They’ve always said no…until now. Damn.”
“If you don’t mind me asking, why would you want a truce with a clan who fucked up the foster project by killing a clan leader in the past? I mean, that right there is a huge red flag.” His voice doesn’t hold judgement or even curiosity. Alrigo is all business.
“Fertility issues,” I state. “There hasn’t been a birth or pregnancy in decades. No mates found, and meetings with other clans were also futile.”
“Was this also the reason why you accepted the invitation to our gathering?” Alrigo questions.
I release a deep breath. “Change was needed. Arranged marriages have worked in the past, but I was also interested in meeting new business acquaintances.”
“Ah, gemstones.” Alrigo chuckles. “Your clan has a high reputation when it comes to quality. No wonder others are interested in taking over your clan.”
“No one is taking over my clan,” I grit.
Alrigo clicks his tongue. “No need to bite my head off. You’re my daughter’s mate and therefore family. If you need any help, just let me know and we’ll be by your side.”
I’m stunned for a heartbeat or two due to the offer I’m sure this vampire doesn’t give to just anyone.
“Thank you. For now, we’re handling it,” I tell him with a grateful tone.
The man chuckles again. “I’m sure you are with my daughter involved. She’s a force to be reckoned with, especially when it comes to strategy and combat. Though, I’m sure I don’t have to tell you.”
“Right.” Now I’m the one chuckling, though it comes out a bit awkward seeing as I’ve been ignoring Lilliana for the whole duration of her stay here.
Besides knowing every inch of her body, I know almost nothing about my fated mate. She has been wearing combat gear every time I’ve seen her, no wonder her father mentioned she’s a force to be reckoned with when it comes to strategy and combat.
“Okay, I’ll leave you to it. Like I mentioned, don’t hesitate to reach out if you need help.”
“Appreciate the offer,” I tell my father-in-law to-be in gratitude and end the call.
I shove my phone into my jeans and debate checking on Nario or my mate. Grabbing my jacket, I pull it on as I leave. Once outside I throw my nose into the air and slowly inhale to filter the air.
The crisp scent of lemon with a hint of vanilla, along with a dash of spice is a mixture linked to Lilliana. I could bring her along and do both at the same time. My feet move automatically in her direction. Being eternal mates who have the bond in place allows us to sense where the other is at all times.
A few minutes later I’m walking into the library and find her reading one of the century old books which contains legends and folklore.
“Thank you for reaching out to your father,” I tell her.
She lowers the book a little to glance over it. “You’re welcome.”
“Want to join me to check on Nario who is torturing a Marshgloom member?”
The book she was reading is shut with a hard smack and lands on the table in front of her as she jolts to her feet. “Are you trying to make up for ignoring me for the past two weeks?”
“Is it working?” I fire back.
She shrugs. “It depends.”
“On what?” The corner of my mouth twitches.
Some of the tension leaves my body and I wonder why I didn’t take a break the past two weeks and took a moment to interact. Fuck. Maybe in some subconscious way I blamed her for the bad timing of finding my fated mate. Screwed up for sure, but if I hadn’t run into her, I would probably have accepted the offered deal…and could have been dead by now with them only wanting the clan over my dead body.
In retrospect, this woman saved me in more than one way and kickstarted the prospect of new blood for the clan.
She tilts her head and says, “If you let me in on the torturing.”
“I’ll think about it on our way there.” I glance around the space filled with old books. “How did you know where to find the library?”
Shrugging she states, “Probably the same way you found me; I put my nose in the air and sniffed it out. The information I’ve read over the years about dragons mostly came from the outside of your world, while the books you have stored here are more inside and personal details.”
Dragon secrets and history are not to be shared with outsiders. The woman before me is not an outsider. She’s not only a mafia princess whose blood reeks of loyalty, but she’s the true mate of a clan leader.
It’s why I find myself saying, “I have more books in the vault in my office. My sister is a big reader as well, she’s devoured more books than food ever since she could read.”
“She mentioned something about that,” Lilliana murmurs and frowns. “I was craving sweet shit earlier and she mentioned something about it being too soon in the pregnancy. She said she read something a few decades ago and wanted to check the library. It was why I went here and read all the books but couldn’t find anything related to my situation. Maybe it’s in one of the books in the vault you just mentioned, or didn’t she read those?”
Our child is already making demands and growing, he will be a strong leader. The voice of my inner dragon makes me pause and ask inside my head, “How do you know our child will be a boy?”
My dragon stays silent, unlike Lilliana who smacks my upper arm. “It’s rude to have a discussion inside your head while you were talking to me. And don’t give me bullshit that you weren’t because your pupils keep flashing to slits and back, kinda states the obvious. You know something about what I just said, don’t you?”
Lilliana might have called her father to spill information linking back to our clan, but she did it out of safety. Not to mention, she could have left, and I wouldn’t even have blamed her after the way I treated her. How did she react? She damn well dove straight in to find information about dragons, and I get the feeling she’s more devoted than some of our clan members.
I know I fucked up from the start and it’s why I go for honesty. “My dragon mentioned our son was already making demands and is growing. He said he will be a strong leader.”
Her eyes go wide. “He? How the hell does your dragon know it’s going to be a boy when you guys knocked me up merely two weeks ago? What, did he mentally pick the Y-chromosome sperm cell and order it to merge? Seriously, that shit is not creepy at all.”
The corner of my mouth twitches again. “Not exactly. It’s more in the lines of dragons having premonitions, knowing about legends and other unexplained events.”
“Huh, imagine that,” she murmurs. “My brother has the ability to see future events as well. He draws them and even sketched his true mate multiple times before he even met her.”
Intrigued by the shared information, I ask, “Is this something he inherited from your mother? Part of being offspring from the one with the angelic touch?”
“Uh huh.” She rubs her hands. “Are we heading for Nario before he finishes torturing?”
It feels as if she’s a little too eager to change the subject and it’s why I ask my question anyway. “Do you have any special abilities beside your vampire ones?”
She shrugs. “I can’t draw for shit if that’s what you’re asking.”
Evasive answer, interesting.
Even if it bothers me, I don’t let it show. I might have given her honesty, but we’re still basically strangers. True mates with a bond in place or not, we don’t know shit about one another on a personal level.
“Good to know your torture skills are better than your sketching ones,” I joke.
The grin she gives me in return shoots straight to my cock. Our eyes stay locked as I step closer. Her breath hitches when I reach out and cup the back of her neck to pull her flush against me. Taking her mouth is a craving that’s as natural as taking a breath to fill your lungs with much needed air.
Her tongue fights with mine and everything in life is put on hold. My other hand slides to her ass to keep her close while I grind my cock against her belly.
I remove my lips from hers only long enough to grunt, “Pants. Off.”
“Right back at ya, dude,” she murmurs as she quickly shoves her pants down to her ankles.
Grabbing her hips, I whirl her around and place a hand between her shoulder blades to bend her over the chair. The sight of her slick, bare pussy almost pushes my dragon over the edge. Fuck her. Take her. We must coat her with our scent, even if she’s already pregnant. Remind her how she’s ours.
He’s chanting inside my head and the only way to shut him up is to bury myself inside her to the hilt. We want the same thing and by the feel of how she clenches around me? I’d say she’s craving it too.
I slowly pull out and keep a firm grip on her hips to fuck her hard. Flesh slapping against flesh, harsh grunts, her moans, it’s all adding to the need to brand her from the inside out. Damn what an intense feeling.
Leaning forward, I let my tongue slide along her neckline and relish in the way her pulse spikes with each thrust. Pulling my head back, I bring one hand forward and feel my dragon pushing right under my skin. Scales burst out and cover my hand, shifting partly to let a talon break free. I gently nick her skin and watch how a drop of crimson slides down her shoulder.
My cock thickens, her pussy spasms. There is no holding back as I lean forward and let her taste hit my tongue. Vampires might take blood, and I never felt the need to, but there’s something about feeding on my mate that intimately binds us. It’s for this reason I let my hand shift back and offer my wrist to my woman.
Her teeth sink inside me the way I ram my cock into her over and over until we both combust in pleasure. My hard length is being strangled in waves, ripping every drop of cum out of me. If there was a level to implicate our intensity? I’d rate it sky-fucking-high, and yet I want more.
“Again,” I growl in sync with my dragon and pull out.
I’m about to turn her when she grabs me and in one move I don’t anticipate, my ass is suddenly in the chair with her straddling my lap. Her hand is wrapped around my hard cock as she guides me back inside her.
A moan falls from her lips and I watch enthralled as her head falls back when she starts to roughly ride my hard length as if she needs it to survive. Never in my life have I seen something as sexy as the vision before me.
Well, maybe it’s a close tie with what I’m looking at when I glance down and see myself slick with her juices thrusting in and out of her tight body. I could orgasm just by the sight and knowledge of it. Fuck it. I take her hips and force her harder down and up while I shove my pelvis out of the chair to roughly take her.
“Yes, harder,” she demands, earning a lustful growl from me.
Her fingers run through my short hair and she tightens them into a fist to yank on my hair and with it force my head to the side. She bites my neck and when I feel the pull of my blood as she takes a mouthful, I explode inside her again.
My semen causes a chain reaction, and I feel her orgasm around me, prolonging my own pleasure. Bliss. Pure and utter bliss. No problems, no thoughts, no shit from anyone, just us and a moment in time where everything feels right and fucking perfect.