Page 24 of Her Scot of the Morrow
He rumbled with pleasure and cracked open his eyes when my mouth followed in the wake of my hands, and I tasted every inch of him from his neck downward, using a bit of everything from my lips to my tongue to the gentle nibble of my teeth. When I got to the best part, eager to consume him, his groan of approval mixed with mine as he wrapped his hand in my hair and thoroughly enjoyed how I made him feel, grumbling about not lasting long, before he gave me what I had come for.
“Ye’re as good at that as ye are at everything else, lass,” he rasped, his voice not quite right, before I found myself flipped beneath him, groaning in pleasure as he set to returning the favor.
“So bloody perfect,” he murmured against my ear, brushing his lips against mine, giving me the first of many good morning kisses, from top to bottom, enjoying my body as much as I had his.
And nothing had ever felt so good save having him inside me.
From the heat of his breath against my sensitive skin to the feel of his strong hands and talented mouth, I was gone, lost in sensation, touching and stroking and admiring because even the way he watched me turned me on. How his pupils flared when I arched into his touch, purring with pleasure as he did all the right things in all the right ways.
“And I always will,” he murmured, before pulling a taut nipple into his mouth and delving his fingers into the throbbing flesh between my thighs. “Again and again until yer belly swells with our bairn.”
Though children were off my radar at the moment, given the circumstances, I liked the idea of it someday. And I especially liked the idea of how we would accomplish it, arousing me even more, so it was no surprise that within moments of his mouth being where his hand had been, I clenched the furs beside me, released a long, ragged groan of pleasure, and let go.
Seemingly mesmerized, he watched me with so much intensity and lust flaring in his eyes, I knew it would be difficult to stop without going all the way. Without feeling that intimate, crucial connection.
“And there’s no reason not to because I willnae hand ye over to him,” he rumbled in my ear, his brogue as thick as his renewed erection. His hand kept exploring me, keeping me aroused and ready for him as he gazed into my eyes. “I thought we established that last night?” He shook his head. “My dragon will never give up yers any more than my human half will. We are fated mates.”
“We can only hope,” I managed, my voice breathy as he took advantage of my endless need for him and kept stroking me, revving up my need for him.Allof him. “What if I shift again?” He was so good at what he did, distracting me with clever, sensual touches, that he managed to smoothly reposition himself between my thighs before I could stop him. “I can’t imagine what might happen if—”
That’s all I got out before his mouth closed over mine, and he gave me the sort of kiss I already knew could get me in trouble, and it did. One moment, it was slow and passionate, full of crazy, deep love, before turning hungry with need.
And that’s all it took for him to make me his again, because when he pressed inside me, I willingly took him, and my concerns about shifting again had no choice but to take a backseat to how incredible he felt filling me. Owning me. Marking his territory because that’s what he was doing as hisdragon eyes flared and he thrust deep inside me over and over again, until his features twisted in pleasure, as desperate as I was to find what was taken from us yesterday. To reach that incredible peak together.
Ithadbeen taken, too, because though I released, I only had a brief moment to enjoy it before it became terrifying. He, in turn, never had a chance to even get that far, and I could tell he meant to reclaim his moment now. Claim me in a primal way, covering me with his scent and filling me with his liquid heat.
And I liked it. Wanted it.
So I let him take it.
Take me.
Clearly pleased by that, he thrust even harder, until he buried himself especially deep, locked up with a long, deep rumble of pleasure, and I was right there with him, belting out a hoarse cry at the intense sensation that didn’t just wash over me but outright crashed into me.
Though my vision hazed red, telling me my inner beast hovered close to the surface like last time, there was no rage or need to break free. Only pure pleasure. Bringing not just it butusto an intense, near-euphoric climax. I could only pray we truly were fated mates as we trembled against each other and basked in the afterglow of everything we’d made each other feel because I wanted a lifetime of this.
“How could you even doubt we are?” Sloan murmured, dropping several soft kisses on my lips before meeting my eyes. “’Tis clear we’re meant for each other.Madefor each other.”
“Maybe to us.” I frowned at my tattoo when I realized it had changed again. “But not to this, yet.”
He scowled when he saw the gem was whole once again, as if it were toying with us, because the way it was last night would have made it easier to convince the king that I wasn’t meant for Dugal, given it matched the half gem over my dragon heart. Ifthat weren’t unfortunate enough, a terrible thought occurred to me.
“What if the gem over my dragon heart has changed, too?”
Clearly unsettled by the possibility, Sloan rolled off me and pulled me into his arms, trying to comfort me despite his own fears. “I think ‘tis better to focus on why it transformed again at such a time because I cannae accept bonding so intensely like that means anything but that we're destined for each other. ‘Tis far too impactful, and our inner beasts more than agree.”
He was right. They did.
But that didn’t change the fact that they might not have a say in the end.
“Not only that,” he went on, thinking logically, “but there are other arguments to be made to the king, tattoo or not. Namely, the pact clearly states that the gem will appear over the dragon heart of the sorcerer’s descendant during her first shift. And yours was not precisely as the pact claims.”
“Right,” I murmured, catching his point. “So when I shift a second time, if the whole gem’s there, we’ve still got a leg to stand on, though I’d say it’s a damn wobbly one, given I can't see the Sutherlands being honest about it.”
“Wobbly or not,” he returned, “when combined with the Sutherlands imprisoning me in their dungeon and Lorna’s deception, ‘tis something.”
“And then there’s the willow tree,” I reminded. “Whatever happens in all this, these trees play a vital role, and the Sutherlands know it. Heck, they adorn their dining room and see them every time they eat, so it’s a constant reminder of how important they are, not to mention somehow my father’s literally at the root of them.”
“Mayhap,” he conceded, “but are they clearly not meant to lead you back to your fated mate? Because Morrow or not, the tree first led you back to me. Not just that, but was I not the firstperson you communicated with when it led you to Sutherland Castle? The only person who could see you?”
