16. Paige
Paige
W ith the gnomes distracted by the pile of Sour Patch I left near the stairs and the shadow creature likely looting my apartment, I stroll through the shelves of the reference section.
So far, our search has turned up nothing.
No way of opening a book and sending him home.
Likely because opening the books is strictly forbidden.
Given that’s literally rule number one, of course there wouldn’t be a how-to recipe for breaking it.
Not without a keeper to open a portal instead.
And instructions for how to wield keeper magic aren’t something recorded in any book.
The library’s language of magic is a mystery to anyone but the keepers themselves.
So, with that, we’re literally back at square one.
Perfect.
I shut the cover of the tome in my hands and re-shelve it. Then, I glance over to where Aries looms between the stacks, his back to me. He’s so large that he nearly blocks the entire gap, which is where he’s remained since the moment we got here.
He’d been pissed about coming to this section at all. Had wanted to go straight to where I’d be safe.
But we have a mission. A job to do.
And as badly as I wish he could stay and we could keep playing house, the king of dragons belongs on his throne.
“Would you come with me to Astronia?” His offer lingers in my mind, and even as I know it’s impossible, that doing so would put everything I’ve worked for in jeopardy, I’d be lying to myself if I didn’t admit that there’s a part of me intrigued at seeing the world that shaped such a man.
To witness him in his own natural territory. But remaining there isn’t an option for me, and I have a feeling that once I ventured into his domain, I’d never want to leave.
Never want to abandon the man who has become my very reason for getting out of bed in the morning. As pathetic as that sounds given that we’ve only known each other less than a handful of days. But something about the way he looks at me suggests he feels the same.
That’s what scares me most of all.
As if he can read my thoughts, Aries turns to me, blue gaze locking with mine and stealing my breath. The man standing before me is everything I would have wanted in a partner. In a man to spend my life with during those moments when I allowed myself to dream of such impossibilities.
And I can’t have him.
“Anything?” he whispers.
I shake my head. “We’d better get going. The gnomes will likely be polishing off that bag soon.”
He nods and reaches for my hand. I thread my fingers through his and ignore the strength his touch gives me.
“We can try to go back to my apartment—”
“No. I will go tomorrow when I know you’re safe.”
“Aries—”
“Don’t ask me to put you at risk, Paige,” he growls, eyes flashing. “It won’t end well.”
I swallow hard…but nod. Something in his tone has shifted since we left my apartment. I tell myself it’s his dragon. That he doesn’t like to be caged, but I also wonder if that’s only part of it.
Does he want to return home more than he wants to be with me? Has he grown tired of me already?
“This way.” I pull him toward the right where we can skirt the edges of the sections on our way to the basement access door. As we walk, I scan for the gnomes.
Thankfully, I still haven’t seen any sign that my distraction didn’t work. Little adorable bastards are predictable as can be with their candy addiction.
Finally, we arrive at a steel door labeled Staff Only . I press my palm to the door and listen for the soft click of the wards disengaging.
As soon as they do, I turn back to Aries. “I need you close to me. So close we might as well be the same person. So the magic only reads one source of body heat.”
With glittering eyes, Aries moves in and snakes an arm around my waist to yank me back against him. The breath leaves my lungs in a whoosh, and even though I know it’s the last thing I should be at the moment, I’m turned the hell on.
“Like this?” he asks, breath against my cheek.
Ugh, the asshole knows exactly what he’s doing right now.
“Yup. This should work.” I shove the door open and start to walk, but our progress is clumsy thanks to our closeness. A problem that is immediately remedied when Aries lifts me into his arms instead.
I gasp and look up at him then immediately wish I hadn’t. The air between us crackles with tension, and I forget why he’s holding me in the first place.
Danger.
Yes, that’s it.
Not sex.
Focus, Paige.
“Um. We should keep moving,” I manage to say. Aries nods, but the look he gives me says he knows exactly what I’m thinking now.
We make it through the door, which closes and seals behind us, then down the first set of stairs. At the landing, I stop and give the password that will allow us passage. “Custos.”
I motion for Aries to continue down the next flight of stairs. My skin prickles with awareness as the magical alarm system fades behind us. “You can put me down now,” I say.
He grunts and does.
Together, we descend the rest of the stairs. At the bottom, I reach up and click on the light, illuminating the empty space next to the furnace that’s just large enough to hold roughly two school buses side-by-side.
It’s empty now, though usually, it’s used as a time-out for trouble-making books.
Which, given Aries, seems a perfect fit.
My nose wrinkles as the mildewy smell hits me. When I look over at Aries, I can tell he’s less than impressed.
“This is where you wish to spend the night?” he asks.
“No. I want to be in my bed, but you said we couldn’t go check my apartment.”
“I will go check, just say the word.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
“You are welcome to alert the others and have them search upstairs instead.”
“You already know why I can’t do that.”
“And you already know how I feel about letting you back upstairs tonight.” Aries narrows his gaze on me. “I will not put you at risk.”
“It’s my life, though. My choice,” I argue. “Just because we slept together—”
Aries closes the distance and yanks me against him, his lips brushing against my cheek. “You and I having sex absolutely changed things, Paige. There’s no use denying it. And I will protect you with my last breath.”
I swallow hard. What the hell am I supposed to say to that?
“Aries.” I tilt my face up to look at him, trying my best to hide my anguish at what I’m about to say. “We can’t ever be anything else.”
His gaze darkens. “I know that.”
“Then maybe we should—” He cuts me off by covering my mouth with his. His lips move against me, his tongue sliding over the seam of mine so I’ll open for him.
Which I do, without hesitation.
I sink into the kiss, my hands sliding up his arms and into his hair. I hold onto the thick strands, pulling him closer as my entire body turns liquid in his hands.
Aries reaches down and lifts me then steps up toward the wall and presses me against it, his lips never leaving mine. I wrap both legs around his waist and hold him against me, his hard length pressing directly between my legs.
I moan against him, the pressure damn near too much.
I’m still sore from last night, but the idea of asking him to stop doesn’t even cross my mind. We may not be able to be anything more than what we are right now, but what we are is pretty damned great, and I’d be a fool to waste even a moment of it.
So, I let my hands trail down and grip the bottom of his shirt. I rip it over his head and toss it to the ground then pull myself closer to him, his flesh hot against me.
Around us, the dingy basement fades away, taking every single one of our problems with it.
All that matters is him and me.
And the fiery passion between us.
I unhook my legs, and Aries sets me down. He pulls away, releasing my mouth to rest his forehead against mine. Then he lets out a hot breath that fans my face and slides down my body, kneeling at my feet.
His capable fingers toy with the button of my pants.
He opens them and slides them down my legs, the tips of his fingers grazing every inch of my flesh as he does. Within seconds, I’m standing before him in my shirt and lace underwear.
“You are perfection, Paige.” Gripping my hips, he leans in and presses his lips to the tender flesh just above my underwear.
“You’re not too bad yourself,” I whisper, damn near breathless.
Aries grins up at me then lifts one of my legs and sets my foot on his shoulder to open me up. He leans in and runs his tongue over the barrier of my panties.
I gasp, my leg nearly buckling.
Then, he torments me further by looping a finger beneath the lace and pulling it to the side so he can run his tongue over my bare flesh.
“Yes,” I whisper.
He draws my clit into his mouth and sucks tenderly, sending pleasure surging through my veins like a tsunami. I ache for him.
Burn for him.
“You taste so fucking good,” he growls against me.
“I want you,” I whisper. “Please.”
Aries runs his tongue over me again then drives it into me.
“Oh!” I cry out as my release overtakes every single one of my senses. Fingers threading through his hair, I hold him against me as he continues sucking on the sensitive bud. He nips, reaching up to fill me with his finger.
The pressure is all-consuming.
The feel of him damn near too much for me to handle.
And then he’s gone.
He sets my foot back down and stands then shoves his pants down. I do the same with my panties then rip my shirt over my head just in time for Aries to snake a hand around the back of my neck to pull me against him. He takes my mouth in a passionate frenzy of tongue and teeth.
With one hand on my ass, he lifts me, pinning me back against the wall and stepping between my legs. Then, he drives up into me.
“Yes!” I cry out as he begins to move.
In and out.
Thrusting as he fills me completely.
Last night was tender.
But tonight? Tonight, Aries fucks me with a furious passion.
He slams into me over and over again until my entire body comes apart. I clench around him and cry out, “Aries!” He doesn’t let up.
Even when my orgasm sends me soaring straight up and out of this basement, Aries continues driving into me.
Then, he sets me down and pulls out, only to pump his dick until his release breaks through. He sucks in breath after breath, chest rising and falling in rapid succession so that it’s nearly a direct match for my own.
“Did I hurt you?” he questions then reaches down and lifts his shirt to clean first me and then himself.
“No,” I reply. “Are you okay?”
Aries smiles at me. “More than.”
I return the gesture and then lean back against the cool wall. Without his body on mine, the cold seeps in, and I shiver. “I didn’t really think this through,” I say, laughing nervously. “It’s pretty damn cold.”
A muscle in his jaw flexes, and he eyes the stairs. “We will not be disturbed down here?”
I shake my head. “No one ever comes down here anymore.”
He nods then tosses his shirt to the side. “Stand back.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Shift.”
“Into your dragon form?” I nearly choke out.
“Yes. My dragon runs hot. He can keep you warm.”
“But—he’s a dragon.”
Aries grins. “Who is just as fascinated by you as I am. He will not hurt you.”
I swallow hard. The chance to see a real dragon? Why the hell am I hesitating? “Go for it.”
Aries closes his eyes and holds both arms out. Less than a heartbeat later, his flesh begins to transform, skin morphing to scales. Then, his entire body begins to change.
The cracking of bones fills the basement as his limbs and torso bend and break. My stomach churns, and I watch him, worried for what must be pain on his part, but the shift only lasts seconds.
And soon, he’s filling the entire basement, a massive winged creature with obsidian scales that glimmer beneath the faint overhead light.
Holy shit . If the man steals my breath…this is life-changing. Soul-morphing. I’m standing before a dragon. No, not just any dragon. A king.
The massive animal drops his head and snorts.
I reach out with my hand, and he presses his large snout against it. His scales are rough and warm to the touch.
“Hi,” I whisper. “You are magnificent.” I let my hand trail up over his large head, down his muscled shoulder, until I reach leathery wings. They’re smooth beneath my fingers, and I swear I hear the dragon groan when I caress them.
Seeing him this way, knowing this beast has been trapped inside of Aries, makes me feel even worse.
How much pain must he be in to only exist as half of himself?
“We’ll get you home,” I promise him. “Soon.”
He glances back at me, huge blue eyes—the same shade as human Aries—unblinking. Then he lies on the concrete and extends his wing up. I cross over and settle on top of his leg as he curls his wing around me, tucking my body against his own.
In seconds, the chill is gone, leaving me feeling warm and safe.
So here, in the basement of the Athenaeum, in the arms of a dragon, I drift to sleep.