18. Aries
Aries
P aige looks at me with all the pain and anguish I feel reflected in her eyes. Despite my reassurances, she looks more distraught than ever.
“You say I’m your world now,” she tells me sadly, “But what happens when that’s more than just a phrase?
When I am literally all that you have left in any world?
” I wince, unable to offer an answer that will satisfy her.
But she goes on, “What happens when this is all over and you want to take me home, but there’s no Astronia left to go back to? What about your family, Aries?”
Her words are a knife twisting inside me because I know she’s right. And yet, I can’t leave her. Doing so would likely kill me anyway. “It’s not a choice I want to make.”
“If you’re worried about hurting me, please don’t,” she says, and I open my mouth to argue with her and remind her what she means to me when she adds, “I’ll get over it, someday.
Knowing you’ve chosen your queen... it will suck, I won’t lie, but your world deserves to survive more than I deserve you. ”
“Paige.” The heartbreak in her eyes guts me and only reminds me of the secret I’ve kept from her for too long already. “I already chose a queen.”
Her eyes widen as she understands my meaning, but then she shakes her head.
“I’m all wrong to lead a kingdom. Look what a mess I’ve made of this place.
And it’s only one library. Not an entire world.
Besides, you already told me you turned down those women your mom tried to match you with because you want to find your mate. You deserve to find her—”
“I already have.” The words are out before I can stop them, and Paige’s eyes widen in surprise. I kick myself for telling her the truth this way, but it’s done.
“What?” she whispers, face paling.
“You are my mate, Paige. That is why I can’t leave you. It would literally kill me to be separated from you, which means saving my kingdom instead of you isn’t an option even if I wanted to.”
“But... I’m not even a shifter,” she says, “or … or anything. I’m not anything .”
I grab her hand, squeezing it in hopes she realizes how utterly wrong she is. “You are everything, my love. Absolutely everything. And my dragon has chosen you. I have chosen you.”
“But...”
She trails off, and I can’t help lifting a brow at the way she’s already run out of arguments. Good. Maybe now, she’ll stop fighting her destiny. Stop refusing our destiny.
“You really chose me for your mate?” she asks, hope replacing fear in her gorgeous eyes.
I reach for her, cupping her face in my palm and staring earnestly at the only woman I’ve ever loved. “I won’t settle for anyone else.”
Before she can think of another excuse against our future together, I cover her mouth with my own.
Paige relaxes instantly, giving in to my touch and to the words I’ve spoken.
Maybe not today and maybe not tomorrow, but one day soon, I will return to my kingdom with my mate and take the throne.
When I do, the horde will face my wrath, and I will once again restore peace to my lands.
Until then, I can only put every ounce of my passion and determination into claiming Paige for my own. Over and over until she understands the depth of my devotion.
When my tongue sweeps hers, Paige moans softly, and I deepen the kiss, grabbing her and pulling her onto my lap right here on the floor.
We haven’t been alone together in days, it seems, and now that we are—now that she knows what she is to me—I can’t seem to stop myself long enough to move from this spot.
Needing to feel more of her than just her delicious mouth, I pull away long enough to yank her shirt down and pull her bra aside, closing my mouth over her breast. She hisses as my teeth scrape lightly over her skin, her arms tightening around me as her core presses harder against my stiff erection.
Paige has always been mine, but declaring the words out loud ignites something inside me—something possessive and urgent that drives me to want to bury myself inside her and show her we are truly one.
I’ve never spoken to her of a claiming bite, but it’s all I can think of now. My dragon has waited far too long for it. For her.
“Too many fucking clothes,” I growl, my beast driving me toward a need that already borders on desperation.
At my words, Paige reaches down and peels off her own shirt.
I reach behind her and unclasp her bra, flinging it aside.
Then I suck her nipple into my mouth, teasing it with my tongue until she’s panting and pleading.
With my other hand, I reach beneath the waist of her pants and slide a finger through her already wet folds.
My movements are rough, but I can’t seem to slow down.
The need inside me is a compulsion to claim her.
Paige’s hips thrust to meet my fingers, and I slide two inside her, relishing the way she’s already ready for me. Recapturing her mouth with mine, I fuck her with both my fingers and my tongue until her walls tighten around me and she comes apart in my hands with a soft cry.
A moment later, her hands reach for my shirt, yanking it up and over my head. The moment her palms close over my bared back, I shudder, my body sensitive along my shoulder blades where my wings are tucked just beneath my skin.
“That feels so damned good,” I murmur, kissing a trail across her jaw while I continue to tease her clit with my hand.
“Aries,” Paige pleads on a whisper, and my cock aches with need at the sound of my name on her lips.
My dragon stirs more strongly than before, and I snarl, grabbing her hair and guiding her mouth back to mine so I can taste her again.
Still, the barriers between us are too much.
Pulling back, I lift her and stand quickly.
She makes a sound of surprise, but I don’t stop there, setting her on her feet so I can peel her pants off her legs.
Then, I drop my own to the floor, letting my massive erection spring free, and watch as Paige’s eyes darken with desire.
My heart thuds, my pulse quickening at the sight of her bared body—all mine.
Claim her , my dragon roars.
“You’re so fucking beautiful,” I tell her, watching as her cheeks flush at my words.
She looks away, but I reach for her wrist, pulling her against me so that her nipples press against my skin. I slip a finger beneath her chin, angling her face up until she meets my eyes.
“I want to make you mine.” My voice is a rasp now, thanks to the need coiling inside me.
“I’m already yours, Aries.”
“No.” I shake my head. “Not yet. But you will be tonight.”
I lift her in my arms, and she wraps her legs around my waist. Instead of carrying her to the bedroom, I remain where I am in the middle of the living room, feet planted and palms pressed to her ass cheeks as I align our bodies.
When I push inside her, she gasps, her arms tightening around my shoulders.
I move slowly at first, my dragon roaring for more as I struggle to remain in control. Paige has always felt like heaven, but tonight, all my senses are heightened. I need her more than I need breath in my lungs. What I feel for Paige is bigger than any kingdom or realm. With her, I am complete.
Paige pants in my ear, and I brush my lips against the soft flesh of her throat. With my tongue, I lick a trail from her collarbone to her ear, and she tightens her grip on me, meeting my strokes with her hips.
My need roars in my ears, and I concentrate on the rhythm of my cock stroking in and out of her wet heat, but it’s not enough. Not this time. In this moment, I am compelled to mark her—to make her truly mine.
“Paige,” I rasp. “Let me claim you.”
My mouth closes over the sensitive skin of her shoulder next to her collarbone. I suck at her skin, kneading it with my tongue. She tenses and then relaxes against me, rocking herself harder against me. Her walls clench around my cock, and I know she’s close to losing herself.
“Do it,” she tells me.
I tangle a hand in her hair, pulling her head back so our eyes meet. Still, I don’t stop or slow as I continue to fuck her. “Tell me I can mark you.”
“Mark me, Aries.” Her breathless words are music to my ears.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
I pull her against me once more, slamming into her over and over as my own orgasm builds.
Then my mouth is on her neck, seeking the sensitive flesh I so desperately want to taste.
My teeth scrape her skin, and my body shudders.
My knees threaten to buckle, thanks to the overwhelming pleasure ripping through me, and my dragon responds instantly.
Enormous wings shoot from my back, my dark scales tingling then shuddering as their sensitive nerves are stroked by the brush of Paige’s fingers. My wings fold open, filling the room and brushing the walls as they expand fully, using the air beneath and around them to keep us both upright.
Scales coat my shoulders and arms. The feel of Paige’s skin against them only adds to my pleasure, and I thrust harder and faster against her tight walls.
Inside my mouth, my teeth elongate, becoming more dragon than man.
My sharpened teeth press against Paige’s throat, finally breaking the skin so that her blood hits my tongue.
The bite is another kind of pleasure—a relief from longing for her all these weeks.
Mine.
At last.
My orgasm slams into me, and I hear Paige cry out at the same moment as we’re both flung over the edge into ecstasy. With her blood on my tongue, a growl rips from my lips as my dragon surges inside me, both he and I finally satisfied in the claiming of our one true mate. Our queen. Our destiny.