Chapter 6 The Man and the Monster
The Man and the Monster
Leo
Curled up into a ball against the headboard, I stared at him.
Davison Sullivan. He sprawled on the bed, nearly seven feet of solid muscle, salt-and-pepper beard, mature, angular face—all my dreams and nightmares wrapped in pinstriped silk pajama pants.
I thought I’d dreamed the fucking, but my crease and belly were crusty with cum smears, plus I stank of my orgasms and sweat.
My nipples felt weird, my pecs swollen after he’d sucked them.
He’d worked me over something fierce. Considering the size of his dick, I should be cramping up on the bathroom floor, but my hole wasn’t sore at all, just soft and slick. Maybe it had been a dream after all?
I brushed my fingers over my opening just to check I was intact down there.
My rim was puffy and oily, but nothing hurt.
Some liquid smeared my fingers, and I brought it to my face.
It looked like cum, but when I sniffed, it smelled different.
Like cream. I couldn’t detect any hint of the salty alpha musk.
How much of it was still inside me? Wiping my hand into the ruined sheets, I glanced back at Davidson.
The bulge in his pajama pants drew my eyes.
The memories that played in my head were way too sharp.
At the same time, some details seemed blurry, like I’d been under the influence even though I had barely been drinking enough to provide a light buzz.
What I remembered best was the glorious, fantastic, five-star sex.
Furious, fabulous fucking. The kind of fucking people wrote poems about.
Every touch, every filthy word, the stretch of his grand dick in me, how the fat crown pressed against my womb, the way he smelled, how he called me a sloppy fuckhole in that low, growly voice, and the sound his hand made on impact when he spanked me—everything seemed to be tailored to make me lose my mind.
I’d had hundreds of alphas trying to impress me with their sexual prowess, but Davidson was the best lover I’d ever had, no contest.
He couldn’t be—what had he said?—a dragon shifter.
Such things didn’t happen in real life. I hadn’t flown here wrapped in grisly claws.
Did I even remember the creature? I wouldn’t be able to describe it to save my life.
But the memory of his skin against mine as he cradled me to his enormous torso was clear.
Like snakeskin, smooth, the smell delicious.
How come I wasn’t freaking out and running away from him? I should have run. Instead, I’d woken up in the middle of the night, so horny I’d begged him to fuck me. That wasn’t normal. It felt like heat. Like I’d die if didn’t get his cum inside me.
It was almost like that one time when Fabio had given me the stuff, and I’d lost control…
Had Davidson drugged me so he could rape me? But it felt so good, and I wasn’t hungover at all. I perfectly remembered the lust I felt toward him. I still felt it now, staring at his sleeping form.
Maybe the drug was still in my system? My senses worked. I could think clearly. Somewhat.
Did dragons exist?
He blinked awake, immediately meeting my eyes. “Leo.”
“I need help,” I blurted. Which was stupid because he was the last one who’d help me, right?
He sat up, rubbing his face, and caught my gaze again.
“What is it? Why are you huddling over there?”
“I need help,” I repeated. “Something’s wrong with me.”
“Come here.”
He offered me his hand, and without thinking, I took it, letting him pull me sideways into his lap. He smoothed his fingers up my back, over my shoulder, and cradled my face in his palm.
“See? That’s better.”
Against my better judgment, his touch comforted me. I knew I should be afraid, but I just…wasn’t.
“What’s wrong with me?”
He kissed my forehead. “Nothing’s wrong with you.”
“I see things and feel things that aren’t real.”
His chest lifted with a deep sigh. “What if I told you everything you’ve seen is real?”
I shook my head. Not possible. “Then why am I not afraid of you? I felt those claws. Hell, we flew above the city, and I thought I was going to die. I should be terrified of you.”
“You’re not afraid of me because you know I’d never hurt you.”
I scoffed. “Believe me, I am not equipped to know that about anyone.”
He tilted my chin up, frowning at me. “What do you mean?”
His thick, black eyebrows had a few silver strands in them, and when he glowered, two deep creases appeared between them.
How old was he? He had deep lines in his face and some gray in his beard and hair, but his body seemed full of youthful strength, his torso chiseled.
On one of my many lonely nights since I’d come to Ardaine, I’d watched a documentary about Greece, and Davidson looked like one of those statues.
The god Zeus himself. His eyes glowed orange, like embers.
I simultaneously marveled at how gorgeous he was and dreaded how delusional I must be, resting all cozy in his embrace.
“Am I finally losing my mind for real?”
He smiled, shaking his head as if I was being silly. Cupping my cheek, he caressed the corner of my mouth with the pad of his thumb. Inhaling deeply, he nuzzled my cheek.
“We’ve found each other,” he whispered, still smiling. “We are true mates. Dragons mate for life, and you’re my omega. That’s why you feel safe with me. Deep inside, you know me.”
I blinked. Blinked again. His scowly, stern face looked kind now, lit up with excitement. He brushed my lips with his fingertips and leaned in, clearly about to kiss me.
Maybe I wasn’t the delusional one.
Spluttering, I pushed his hand away and averted my face. “Are you fucking kidding me?” I cried. “Do you really think I’m this dumb?”
His expression transformed into the dark glower I remembered from last night.
“Leo.” His tone held a warning, like I was a misbehaving child he was about to scold, which wound me up further.
“Let go of me.”
“Leo…”
“Let go!”
He loosened his grip around my torso, and I scrambled away from him.
“Is this like your thing? Do you do this on a regular basis?”
Oh, the outrage in his features. Glorious. “What?”
“Is this what you tell the hookups after you fly them to your Dracula castle?” I could hear my voice shaking, but I plowed on.
“Because you need to change your spiel. No self-respecting omega will ever fuck you again after you tell them they’re your ‘true’ mate.
” I painted quotation marks in the air for good measure.
“Whether you like it or not, you are my mate, Leo. From now on, you’ll be with me.”
The firm certainty in his tone made me red-hot mad. Who did he think he was?
“Last night you thought I was a prostitute! But now I’m your mate?”
His mouth opened and closed, but for once, nothing came out.
Whenever I was afraid or unsure, I went straight for the jugular.
It was a reflex, a defense mechanism I’d perfected over the years.
I used it to chase people off before they could come close enough to hurt me.
And Davidson had come so close in a single night I needed to cut deep.
“You know what, your dick is not big enough to compensate for this level of crazy. Besides, I don’t do relationships, definitely not with someone who could be my father. You’ll have to kidnap someone else.”
I swung my legs over the edge of the bed, facing away from him. I got vaguely nauseous, my pulse thundering in my ears. Was I hungover after all? Fuck, I needed to go home. But what if Fabio’s goons were waiting there?
“Where do you think you’re going?” Davidson growled, sounding ominous.
Don’t puke. “Anywhere. Whatever you drugged me with last night is fading. Thanks for the fuck, old man, but the fun’s over.”
Where was I going?
My chin trembled. Good thing he was behind me and couldn’t see my face because I was completely lost.
What was I going to do? Where would I go?
A single reasonable idea popped up in my head, and I clung to it. I needed to call Devon Hassel. My security guy would no doubt be mad at me, but he’d protect me. I looked around on the floor for clothes, but there was nothing. Not even a cum-stained towel. Where did I leave my phone?
Fucking shit.
This lunatic claimed I was his mate. What a pile of nonsense.
But I saw him with my own eyes. I felt it. He’s the dragon from my dreams.
Dragons didn’t exist. Fated mates didn’t exist. He must have drugged me. There was no other rational explanation. Yet again, I’d ended up screwed over by an abusive, manipulative bastard. My own fault.
I stood, taking a step away from him, and my stomach heaved. Don’t puke. Don’t you even think about it.
Another step. My coat and pants must be downstairs. My phone might still be in that pocket. I just needed to move.
Except my arms and legs got heavy, and I couldn’t pull in a breath.
I heard him rise from the bed behind me. His footsteps neared until I felt his exhale on my neck.
Why was it so hard to just walk? Pure terror gripped me by my throat. Something was seriously wrong with me. At that moment, liquid leaked from my hole, an abundance of his cum. Oh Lord. All the sex. All the cum. And I still want him. Does it mean he’s right?
“See? You can’t leave me, Leo,” Davidson said behind me, sending chills down my spine. “Not ever.”
With the last of my courage, I spun around to face him.
Pointing my finger at his chest, I let my fear and confusion fuel my rage.
“You don’t get to order me around! Just because you’ve fucked me, you don’t get to own me.
Newsflash, I am a whore. I’ve had countless of men like you cream my hole, but none of them is here making claims. You can go all alpha and throw furniture around.
I don’t give a shit. You’d have to fucking break my legs to make me stay here! ”
He was fuming, his eyes blazing, muscles in his jaw ticking.
“Then go.” He pointed at the door. “Get out.”
That wasn’t what I’d expected.
“OUT!” he roared.