Page 22 of The Eternal Choice

I shoot him a wink and try to lighten the mood. “Linking cheating to a toxic state for a death sentence does make you think twice to dip outside of the pot.”

“Dip outside of the–” He shakes his head. “It’s not a threat hanging above our heads. Hell, most of the younger generation thought it was a hoax, something written in books to scare younger dragons. For some finding their fated mate is another unrealistic reality. There’s enough pressure from the elders and the stories they tell as we grow up. With the lack of mates and fertility, people have lost faith. Our clan leader being killed that way? Devastating and unbelievable. So many questions, no answers. It started a war and our clan needed a new leader. I’ve always been in charge of our defense system while Nario worked under my father. Nario assumed the title automatically belonged to him, but shit isn’t as simple as claiming the right because you’re the son of the former leader. The clan wanted to honor the system of having the new leader chosen by strength and strategy of his abilities. Especially after what happened to our father.”

Leaning back in his chair, he crosses his arms in front of his chest and stares at a photograph, picturing the three brothers, sitting on a shelf on the wall.

“As brothers we made a pact to always have one another’s backs no matter what. We did, until Nario closed off after our father announced he would accept an arranged marriage to Sienna Mattia. If you think he hates me with the shit he throws at my feet? You should have heard him lash out to our father.” Ernestino’s eyes find mine. “Our father who made excuses for him, telling us Nario never got over his mother’s death, just as he didn’t.”

Basically, what he’s saying is the fact that Nario became an asshole after his mother died giving birth to their little sister. While an immortal can only be killed by beheading…dragons have many fucking options to die.

Wait. Did he say Mattia? “Sienna Mattia, was she another daughter of Tony?”

“No. Sienna Mattia was Tony’s niece. When she killed our father…” He falls silent and I can see the pain in his eyes by the memory flashing through him. “We all heard his death-scream. I’ll never forget the sound and we all went running. The bedroom door was locked and when I kicked it in, we all saw Sienna standing over our father. Her hand was bleeding and the look of shock on her face was fucking scary, as was the imploding of her body.”

I jump out of the chair. “Dude. Could you stop with the information load of exploding and imploding bodies? What the hell is wrong with you dragons? Motherfucker, you’re all ticking timebombs.”

My hand goes over my belly. The little one growing inside me is part dragon. Would my kid also have a detonation button? Crap. I thought I had issues with all the weird-ass abilities I have which I haven’t even discovered most of because my powers grow over time.

“Breathe, Lilliana.” Ernestino’s voice is close, his breath warm on my face.

I open my eyes, not realizing I closed them, and try to control my breathing.

He gives me a hint of a smile and brushes his nose against mine. “I know our history and secrets are a lot to take in. For the past few decades, I’ve been trying to find a solution for our clan, a chance to change the dropping number of clan members.Seeing you, the feelings flowing going through me…I couldn’t believe it. When I knew we succeeded, when I sensed you were pregnant? Nothing in my wildest dreams could come close to what I feel when I look at you. You’re the change. The faith flip. I’m sure every dragon in our clan, in other clans, lost faith…even I did at some point. Until you. Legends may describe you as the winged protector, the blood angel, but to me? You’re the future I want to live, breathe, consume, and treasure. A song I want to possess and enjoy for as long as it plays. You–”

I place my fingertips over his lips to stop the flow of words toppling out. “Enough. These pregnancy hormones are going to make me cry if you keep throwing sweet words at me. And I almost never cry. Which means I’m an ugly crier, seriously not something you want to see in the first few days we’re together. Maybe in a decade or so…not now.”

He chuckles and pulls me into his arms. I release a deep breath and fill my lungs with his scent. Making it feel as if all is right in the world for just a moment in time. To be honest? It’s just what we both need. Tomorrow we’ll face the havoc of a new day by creating the serenity in our hearts today.

CHAPTER EIGHT

– ERNESTINO –

Lilliana’s arms wrap around my waist as she presses herself against my back. “You should rest.”

I keep staring into the night while my thoughts are a rambling mess. She’s right, of course. Except, there’s a restlessness in my bones that needs to be addressed. If I would not have met Lilliana, I would have accepted the arranged marriage and would have been dead. Now, with her asking questions about my past? There’s a nagging feeling Nario might have turned on me.

His behavior is questionable and yet I can’t put my finger on the connection and motivation of it all. It’s frustrating to say the least.

“Okay, if you don’t take a break, I will distract you. It’ll drain some of your energy so you’ll have no other choice but to take a quick nap to energize your brain.” Her voice is husky, and I tear my gaze away from the moonlight when she starts to tug on the fabric of my pants.

My throat runs dry when I turn and watch how she sinks down to her knees. I can only stare at the hungry look on her face while she unbuckles my belt and with her skilled fingers she has my pants down around my ankles within a few heartbeats.

“Lilliana,” my voice is heavily dosed with lust.

Seeing my mate on her knees before me, completely filled with lust as she palms my cock is making me harder than fuck. Pre cum is oozing out of the slit. She leans forward and sneaks her little pink tongue out to lick up my desire.

A moan vibrates through her as her eyes close. I swallow hard and bury my fist into her soft dark hair. Giving her a little tug to make sure the little sting on her scalp grabs her attention, she responds as expected and lets her gaze find mine.

“Stop fucking teasing me and open your mouth to take my cock inside you, Lilliana,” I grunt, balancing on the edge of insanity if I don’t feel her wrapped around me in the next few seconds.

She flashes me her fangs and fucking takes my cock between her teeth. The twinkling challenge in her eyes almost makes me wash her in my cum. I manage to restrain myself and slowly shake my head.

“Darlin, threatening to sink your teeth into the cock you like having inside you isn’t intimidating at all. However, it does make me harder than fuck. Can you feel the blood rushing in and making me throb? I bet you feel every pulse, don’t you?”

I hiss when she nicks my skin and when she sucks me into her mouth. The tug when she hollows her cheeks and takes me deep enough to swallow around the tip? Fuuuuuuck. She moans and the vibration almost sends me over the edge.

Coming within seconds is not what I’m planning to do. I take her face in both of my hands and throw my hips forward to force her to take me deeper. Her nose is pressing against me, breathing in my musky scent while I keep her pinned on my cock.

The sting of her teeth should lessen my hard-on, but the combination of her saliva and the suction she’s creating is a bliss I want to keep feeling. Pulling back, I start to fuck her mouth. The sight of blood trickling down the corner of her mouth would make others shudder with repulsion. Yet, for me, it only fires up the need to fuck her harder, deeper, longer.

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