Page 15 of Siren Sins
I straightened at that. “Ifhe wanted me?”
He regarded me with a flat stare, but I spotted the smug grin hinting at his lips. “You're too young. He nearly called the whole thing off when he found out you’re only twenty-two.”
I bristled. “What's the problem? I'm a full-grown woman.” I pushed my breasts together with my elbows. “Not woman enough?”
Jet’s gaze lingered on my naked chest, clearly indulging in the view before replying. “I didn't say thatIfound you too young.” He matched my gaze with marked effort. “I'm only a hundred, myself.”
Blinking, I tried to process that number while I took in the ageless perfection of Jet’s angular face. I’d never really considered age when it came to supernaturals. Derek was technically eons old, but to me, I only saw a man in his mid-thirties. The same could be said of Jet, but I hadn't been prepared for his real age. When I unfroze from my shock, I snickered and covered my laughter with delicate fingers. “Holy shit. You’re an old fart.”
He glowered at me, clearly not amused. “In the world of dragons, I’m a derelict teenager.” He cupped my breast and squeezed. “No matter what I see when I look at you, my brother would only see an infant.”
With pouted lips, I leaned into his touch. “Does that mean the alliance with Derek is off?”
He stiffened. “What do you know of the alliance?”
I snickered and leaned onto my elbow, sinking into the plush mattress. Jet’s fingers automatically ran down my curves and slipped over the blazing rune he’d activated. He didn’t know what he was doing, but his fingers circled around it anyway, recognizing our connection on some innate level.
“I may have been kidnapped and traded around like property, but I have eyes,” I said. “Derek thinks he can get along with dragons by using me.” I shrugged. “Not sure what he gets out of it. Was hoping you'd tell me what I’m being pawned off for.” I grinned as his fingers ran under the sheets and caressed my ass. “It’s the least you could do.”
His gaze had dipped again, but his brows drew together as he frowned. “The dragons haven’t formed an alliance in a long time. But they’re getting restless.” He matched my gaze and I felt the tension inside of him itching to get out. He had secrets and worries about his people, and he only needed a nudge to share it.
Leaning into his chest and tracing the bold lines of his tattoo, I tried to sound bored when I asked, “There’s a good reason that I’ve never met a dragon before, I suppose? Must be hard, never getting to leave Shanghai.”
It was a complete guess that dragons would be trapped in Shanghai by some ancient rule, but it was a guess that was rewarded by a growl of frustration. “You have no idea what it’s like,” he said as he melted into my trap. “I’ve been stuck in this city for a hundred years, and many others in my clan have been here far longer. Rules dictate we must stay safe in numbers, but that’s only because we have so many enemies and few to no allies. My clan has been greedy with territory, women, and gold.” He released a breath, the soft heat of his frustration a wet kiss against my skin. “Derek is offering a chance to change that. He’s an ancient and powerful incubus. He's offering gold, numbers…” his fingers cupped my face, “and you.”
I frowned. “What good am I if I’m so ‘young’ to a dragon?”
His gaze dipped to my necklace. “You hold power over an ancient relic.” His eyes flashed to that eerie reptilian slit before returning to a golden-rimmed rounded stare. “The only thing dragons love more than gold is ancient power.”
My fingers instinctively went to my necklace, cupping it for warmth and strength. I couldn’t imagine living without it now. “All my necklace does is keep me from having to feed.” I shrugged, hoping Jet would believe the Blood Stone an irrelevant relic to the dragons. “It’s like a supernatural battery. I can draw power from it, instead of feeding off sexual energy.” That was an understatement, but accurate. I would need an orgy of a hundred men to duplicate the kind of power that I’d used last night. My lips formed a thin line, realizing that before Jet, my Blood Stone had been empowered by Luke. Even if our sex had been awkward and forced, it meant that he was more powerful than I’d realized.
Not wanting to think of the half-blooded angel that I also happened to be soul-bound to, I leaned closer into Jet’s embrace. “Even if your brother found a way to use the Blood Stone, it wouldn’t be much use to him.”
He tucked his face under mine, but continued to caress the skin around my necklace, delicately tracing until goosebumps spread across my chest. “I believe that you and the necklace to be a pair. The necklace alone may not provide strength, but with you to tap into it…” His fingers drifted across my lips which parted at his touch. “Derek knows you’re special. I refuse to believe that he’d give you up, even for what my brother is offering.” His lips pressed against my throat and I released a soft moan. “He couldn’t be that stupid.”
“Or your brother, if he refuses me,” I forced myself to whisper.
Jet growled and tested my neck with his teeth.
As his fingers roamed across my skin, his touch hungry with fresh need, I closed my eyes and shivered. I didn’t know how much longer I could maintain this portrayed interest in his brother, not when I was becoming addicted to Jet.
Elevator Down…
Luke
When Derek asked for my help, I’d expected the request to have something to do with my healing ability. Detective Anderson had wanted to study me as a means to replicate my power, and I had no doubt that even an incubus as powerful as Derek had his limits. Infinite regeneration could come in handy, and if Derek was going to piss off a bunch of dragons, I had no doubt he sought a means to recover from dragonfire.
But the dragons I saw in this new layer of hell didn’t even attempt to burn Derek with their ancient gifts. We hadn’t taken the elevator, and I suspected that these tunnels weren’t manmade—or incubus-made or dragon-made. These were natural spirals into the earth.
Derek took me deeper into the tunnels and left his henchmen behind to guard the only exit. I swallowed as I echoed Derek’s footsteps past dragons and their women trapped in painful ecstasy. It was hard not to feel claustrophobic once we got past those that littered the furniture and delved into a new, tighter pit of the tunnels. New victims appeared as we rounded a corner and I sucked in a breath.
The golden glow took on a red hue and dragons, some half-transformed into hissing, dangerous reptiles, bled against its walls.
There were too many to count. My jaw hung open as I stared at the long row of men pierced upon jagged shards. They weren’t fully transformed into dragon-form, but their tattoos swirled across their skin, tripping over half-formed scales and while they didn’t scream, they hissed through fresh fangs as they endured their pain. The tunnel itself was their entrapment, the jagged teeth lined the walls and skewered the dragons who rested on it.
When Derek’s hand clapped on my shoulder, I jerked with a yelp. “The fuck, Derek?” I hissed, whispering as if I’d rouse an unseen monster if I spoke too loudly.
Derek scowled. “It’s ‘Incubus King’ to you.” His disapproval turned to delight when he surveyed the dying dragons. “Isn’t it incredible?”
