Chapter 40
Holding his sleeping mate, Hunter shifted his body under the weight of the gold coins surrounding them, trying to find a more comfortable position.
It had been a long day. His brother was right; Fionn woke up with?which, according to him?was the mother of all headaches.
When the first burst of flames from his mate’s nose shot out, Hunter told him it would be happening for the next eight hours or so.
His mate’s reaction wasn’t what he expected; in a split second, Fionn was gone, hiding from Hunter in the vast cavern, so embarrassed he didn’t want anyone to see him.
After two hours of searching, Hunter gave up.
Sitting down in a chair made of gold bricks, he began reciting love poetry to his mate.
All he got for his efforts were a few sobs that bounced off the stone walls.
Changing tactics, he growled, “Pet, just thinking about the cock ring you got for me, has made me so fucking hard. Tonight, you’re going to get to put it on me and, when I’m finally wearing it, I’m going to fuck you until you come three times…
not once…not twice…but three fucking times so you know who you belong to.
And before I fill you up, I’ll mark you with my scent so even the goddess of the moon will know you’ve been claimed totally.
“Then, I’ll carry you to the bathroom, where we’ll climb into a bubble bath and I’ll ravish you all over again, this time, sucking and biting your skin, marking you so all who see you will know that you, my pet, belong to me.
And you’ll come again, shooting your cum on me while riding me, marking me with your scent because I belong to you, pet, completely and forever…
to do with what you want to, whenever you want to, wherever you want to. Now, come to me, my pet, I need you. ”
At first, Hunter heard nothing, but then a rattle of chains and something scraping the floor was followed by the soft voice of his mate.
“Mate?”
“Pet, come here, I need to hold you.” Within seconds, Hunter’s arms were holding a sobbing mate, apologizing for getting drunk. Rubbing Fionn’s back, Hunter whispered words of love until his mate’s tears finally stopped. “Better?” he asked, gently.
“Yeah, but I swear I’m never going to drink that vile shit again,” Fionn mumbled before a round of flames burst forth. “Oh fuck!” Quickly slapping at Hunter’s shirt, now burning, he cried, “Sorry, sorry!”
Chuckling, Hunter calmly watched his mate extinguish the flames—something he was used to when his mate got overly agitated.
“Pet,” he said softly, “Mac told me it might speed the process if you were surrounded by gold, so why don’t you lie down on that pile of coins over there so I can bury you in it. ”
“My dragon will love it.”
“I’m counting on it. Now, c’mon.” Hunter took care of his mate for the rest of the day, holding bottled water to Fionn’s lips so he could drink, feeding him small bits of food, singing softly, telling him stories about the mischief his brothers got into—anything to distract him from his embarrassment.
When the flames began to diminish and occur further apart, Fionn asked his mate to join him under the gold and Hunter happily complied.
Finally, the young dragon fell asleep, the pain gone, his hangover ended.
Breathing a sigh of relief, Hunter lay there quietly, waiting for his mate to wake up so they could return to France.
~/~/~/~/ ~
Once out of the portal, Fionn led Hunter over to the living room sofa, pushing him down before climbing into his mate’s lap.
Cupping Hunter’s face, he said, “Thank you mate, for taking care of me. I love you so much!” Leaning forward, he brushed his lips against the ones he’d craved all day, hungering to kiss them, but afraid he’d scorch them, instead.
Grasping his mate’s hips, Hunter held Fionn in place while his teeth bit his mate’s lower lip. Then, letting it go, he growled, “I’ll always take care of you, pet, because you mean more to me than anything else in the world.”
Grinning, Fionn wiggled his ass over Hunter’s hard cock. “Mate, are you ready for me to use the cock ring?”
Before Hunter could answer, they were interrupted by a knock on the front door. “Fuck!”
“Let’s ignore it, mate,” Fionn giggled. “They can come back later after you make me come three times.”
“Hunter, I know you’re back!” shouted Carson. “Open up, we have to talk! It’s about Fionn!”
“Me?” squeaked Fionn. “What about me?”
“I don’t know pet, but let’s find out,” Hunter replied, lifting his mate off his lap. “Stay here till I see what it’s all about.”
Curling up in the corner of the sofa, Fionn watched his mate stride over to the front door, knowing whatever Carson had to say probably wouldn’t be good.
Quaking in fear—the same fear he felt whenever his uncle was nearby—Fionn extended his claws, digging them into his palms in an effort to stop the trembling that had suddenly overtaken his body.
Opening the door, Hunter growled, “This had better be important. ”
“It is,” Carson replied, leading Remy into the cottage. “Where’s Fionn?”
“Follow me,” Hunter said. Turning, he walked back into the living room, upset when he saw the state his mate was in.
Rushing to Fionn, he lifted him up, cuddling him close to his chest, giving him several kisses on the top of his head before sitting down with him.
“Pet, what is it?” Hunter asked, taking one of Fionn’s hands in his, alarmed when he saw the blood dripping from the punctures dotting his palm.
“My uncle is dead, right? I saw him…you killed him, right?” asked Fionn, his voice quivering.
“Yes, he is,” murmured Hunter, soothingly. “He can’t hurt you anymore.” Flooding his mate with his Alpha pheromones, he waited until Fionn calmed down. Looking up at his cousin, he asked, “What’s this about my mate?”
“Someone’s been committing acts of sabotage at the winery and the other companies. It started after Fionn’s father died,” explained Carson.
“So, you think these are somehow tied to my mate?” asked Hunter.
“Not think… know they are. Eideard MacDùghlas hired two witches to do it. The most recent one occurred the morning we arrived in Paris,” Carson said.
“Can’t be…MacDùghlas was dead,” Hunter growled, feeling a shiver go through his mate.
“But his son isn’t,” Carson said. “After his father died, his son, Niall, took over and ordered the witches to continue.”
Hearing his cousin’s name, Fionn looked up at Carson. “Why the fuck is my cousin doing it? ”
“I don’t know…we were hoping you could tell us,” Carson replied.
Shrugging, Fionn said, “I have no idea…I never met him or even saw a picture of him. When I was very young and sick, my mother told me my father was going to name my cousin his heir but, for some reason, he never did.”
“Your uncle Eideard was here quite a bit,” said Remy, “always trying to order me around. I usually ignored him and he’d tell me to make sure I had my bags packed, because he was the boss’s heir and when Artur died and he became owner, he was going to fire me.”
“He was never my father’s heir,” said Fionn, emphatically. “If he had been, my uncle would have had to file my father’s will with probate court and Penn would have found it.”
“You’re right,” said Hunter, “but maybe he was trying to force you to sell to him at a cheap price.”
“And you think that’s the reason my cousin is doing this?” asked Fionn.
“Could be…your guess is as good as anyone’s,” Carson said.
“Okay, let’s assume my mate is right,” said Hunter. “Where does that leave us? Do you think the witches will ultimately go after Fionn?”
“No,” Carson assured him. “We took care of the witches. They won’t bother anyone again. That only leaves Niall MacDùghlas. And my gut tells me…”
“That he won’t stop and that puts Fionn in danger,” growled Hunter.
“That’s what we think, too,” Cason said.
“Do you know where he is?” asked Hunter .
“Nope. We were hoping Fionn did,” Remy said.
“Can’t help you. I never met him and have no idea where my uncle lived. The last time I saw him…other than in the courtroom…it was as a child. When my father started spending more time in France than at home, my uncle stopped visiting us in Scotland.”
“Maybe Penn would know,” Hunter said, “since Eideard did file for custody of Fionn.”
“Can you contact him right away?” asked Carson.
“Sure,” Hunter said, fishing his phone from his pocket. Scrolling through his contact list, he found Penn’s information and shot a text to him. “Done. Tell me…do you know if Fionn’s cousin has made a specific threat against him?”
“No…but my wolf is telling me Remy is in danger. The witches have been neutralized so the only one left is Niall MacDùghlas. Once we know where he is, we intend to pay him a visit,” Carson said.
“Mate, we need to go with them.”
“No, I’m not having you go anywhere near your crazy-ass cousin,” Hunter growled.
Frowning at his mate, Fionn said angrily, “So, am I supposed to sit by while Carson and Remy fight my battles? I don’t think so!
Besides, my cousin is a dragon…I’m a fucking dragon…
and no one else here is. How do you think I’d feel if something happened to Carson when I could’ve helped…
he’s your family and that makes him my family.
His brothers stepped up and helped me. For fuck’s sake, Logan and Kieran rescued me when I was dying…
Ki gave me back my will to live. At every turn, Carson and his brothers have been there for me.
Do you think I could turn my back on them now?
That bec ause my cousin has turned out to be as nuts as his father, I should let Carson face him on his own? Really? Is that what you think of me?”
“Oh fuck, no, pet, not at all,” Hunter assured him, smoothing the furrows in Fionn’s forehead. “I wasn’t thinking that at all…you are the bravest person I ever met…but pet, if something happened to you…”