Page 57 of The Dragon With A Girl Tattoo
ELEVEN
YRIAN
Becket looked likeshe might explode.Yrian, who had entered her room first to make sure there were no threats—not that he expected any, since the Dark One Christian now had an adequate amount of protection set into place—glanced back at her as she stood just inside the room.
Her face expressed an interesting series of emotions: confusion, surprise, disbelief, ending up on thoughtfulness.Yrian was intrigued by that, fine-tuning his estimation of her.That she continued to rise in his appreciation was a moot point—his role was to protect her, nothing more.The fact his body had distinctly other ideas was not important.“You want me to go to the Egyptian underworld with you?I assume to confront your evil brother?”
“I need to see what plans he has put into place there,” Yrian told her, checking the windows.“And I won’t be able to do that without a powerful glamour.I wish to shower.Do you mind if I do so now?The room appears to be secure.”
“No, go ahead.I need to call my bandmates anyway and find out when we’re on tomorrow.”
He locked the bedroom door, then entered the attached bathroom, quickly completing his ablutions.When he emerged eight minutes later, Becket was sitting on the end of the massive bed, typing on her phone device.“Good news for your Duat plan—which I’m still a bit confused about, to be honest—we’re the last of the three finalists, so we won’t have to hang around all day waiting for the results.”
She looked up at him as she spoke, and for a moment, he was overwhelmed with two needs: the first was to protect her against all the evils of the world, and the second to bury himself in her heat.
“I must ascertain how much power Kashi has amassed, and the only way I can do that is to go into the Duat and see for myself,” he told her, mindful of his first need.“I will not allow him to harm you, if you are concerned about your safety.”
She waved away that idea, patting the bed in an obvious invitation.He wondered for a moment if she was interested in bedsport despite refusing earlier, and regretted getting into the clean clothing that Allie had provided him.
“Oddly enough, I’m not worried.So long as you’re around, that is.You can clearly take care of the worst of Bael’s minions, even the wrath demons, and you said he can’t do much while he’s in the Duat.”She scooted a little to the right when he sat down on her left.“I’m just not sure what you think I can do in the underworld.It’s likely that they have a prohibition about the sort of magic I use to create glamours.”
“You won’t be able to create a glamour once you are there, no,” Yrian told her, wanting to touch her, but reminded himself she needed to be wooed.He wondered what form wooing took amongst modern beings.All he could think of was what he had used to sway Amice.He quelled the bitterness at the memory of that betrayal, saying instead, “Do you like tales?I’m not very good at them, but if it would amuse you for me to tell you one, I will try.”
“I kind of figured I wouldn’t be able to make them there, which is the only reason I’m not running screaming from you right now.It leads me to believe that I’m more valuable to him—and thus Candy and Andy—out here in the mortal realm....What?Tales?What sort of tales?You mean stories?Like books?I’m a big fan of audiobooks.I like to listen to them while I’m cleaning and taking my neighbor’s dog for a walk.”
“I enjoy audiobooks, as well,” he said, brightening at yet another sign of compatibility.He had been too hasty earlier in deciding he didn’t need another mate.Becket was not Amice, after all.Just because one mate betrayed him and the dragonkin so viciously didn’t mean this one would do the same.Not with her obvious appreciation of dancing-cat videos.“I listened to many on my first phone device.I particularly enjoy a woman named Christie.I learned much about the mortal world from her tales.”
“I’m a huge classic-age-of-mystery fan, too!”Becket said, her face expressing her pleasure.“And I love Agatha Christie, as well, although I don’t know how helpful she would be to learning about life as it is today.Maybe we can swap favorite authors later.I’m pretty tired right now, though.”
“Very well.You sleep.I will watch over you.”He moved to the chair opposite the big bed, refusing to allow himself disappointment at the lack of bedsport.
Wooing took time.
She glanced at the chair, then at him, then back to the bed.“Oh, hell.I’m too exhausted for this.Get in bed, Yrian.There’s no reason for you to sit up all night being uncomfortable when you could rest, as well.I’m going to take a shower.”
She was gone into the bathroom before he could protest that he couldn’t watch over her safety if he was asleep, but after reflecting on the security measures Christian had assured him were in place, he decided that if Becket wished to bedsport, then who was he to refuse?
He was in bed, naked, his rod as hard as marble at the thought of her delectable curves, and his mind full of a number of lascivious things, when she returned wearing a long T-shirt that reached almost to her knees.
“So, I was thinking about it, and I’m OK going into the Duat with you, but I think we ought to take some protection against Bael realizing I’m me,” she said as she climbed into the bed, her eyes filled with contemplation.He rolled over onto his side, propping his head on his hand while she spoke, her gaze focused apparently on her feet.“I was thinking of who I could resemble, glamour-wise.I mean, I could just create a random appearance, but sometimes, it’s better to pick an identity the person knows.That way, half the work is done, because they already know the person I’m being.The key is to not get someone too close to the other person, which could lead to exposure.Oh man, that got really grammatically confusing.Did I just make things more convoluted?”
She looked over at him when she finished, her eyes widening as she did so.
“Whom did you have in mind?”he asked, wanting to pounce on her, but telling himself that he was no longer a volatile youngling dragon.He was now sophisticated.Learned.Urbane, even, he thought as he eyed Becket’s shapeless T-shirt.And sophisticated, learned, and urbane males did not jump their bedsporting partners without first receiving an indication that such actions were welcome.
“Er ...”She gave a little cough.“You appear to be naked from the waist up.”
“Yes.Also, from the waist down.Although the act of removing clothing can be enjoyable, in general, I find it a hindrance in bedsport.What sorts of things do you like?Amice always insisted that bedsport wasn’t enjoyable for females, but one of my brothers told me that his mate did not find anything lacking in that regard.I did not have complaints by the females I bedded before Amice, but perhaps there is something special you would like me to do?”
