Raising her hand, she cupped his cheek, loving the feel of his beard under her palm. “Not with me you don’t. I promise you that.”
“I’m not sure I believe that, but I’ll try to stop apologizing to you.”
“You do that.”
They stood there, pressed against each other, their eyes locked, for a long moment. The blood in her veins felt like it was buzzing with awareness, and her eyes dipped to his lips, taking in their firmness. They still looked soft, though, and she wanted to know how they felt pressed against hers.
Glancing back up, she found him looking at her lips, too, and she slid her tongue along them without thought, wetting them. He groaned, the sound low and deep, and locked eyes with her again before he began slowly lowering his head.
Lifting up on her tiptoes, she wrapped her arms around his neck, trying to meet him halfway. When he was close enough that his beard was brushing her chin, he paused, searching her eyes. She smiled, giving him the encouragement he seemed to need, and he finally finished closing the distance between them.
The first brush of his lips against hers was electric. He did that a few more times, just brushing back and forth, as his big hand cupped her cheek. The fingers on her waist flexed, like he was trying to keep his control, but she couldn’t help wishing he’d lose some of it.
Finally pressing his mouth firmly to hers, he drew her in closer as his arm slid behind her. His lips were as soft as she’d thought they were, and his beard was tickling her face. That, combined with the feel of him held tightly against her as he kissed her, made sensations streak through her that stole the breath from her lungs.
They kissed like that for long moments before he opened his mouth slightly. She followed suit, the kiss deepening, the blood in her veins heating to a boiling point. He bit down gently on her lower lip and she moaned, squirming against his body—and the impressive erection forming against her middle.
He groaned in response, the sound ragged and deep, as he slid his tongue into her mouth. She met him with hers, the kiss feeling like it was turning into a race to see who could devour who first. She was happy with either outcome, her thoughts turning hazy, desire burning through her body.
By the time he gentled the kiss and slowly eased back, nipping at her bottom lip one last time, they were both heaving for breath. She dropped back onto her heels, pressing her forehead into his hard chest as she tried to find her wits again.
She was half afraid she never would. That kiss stole every bit of them, along with her breath. Noah rested his head on top of hers, his hands slowly sweeping up and down her back, as they both calmed down.
Finally lifting her head, she looked up at him, sure her expression must still show how shell-shocked she felt. “Wow.”
That was it. That was all she could say. And hell, she was proud of herself for managing that much.
His lips lifted in a smile as his glowing green eyes roamed over her face. “Wow sounds about right. I think I need to cool down, so I’m going to go get a shower, if you don’t want the bathroom. But you should eat. You never finished your dinner.”
Glancing down at her barely touched meal still on the bed, she nodded as she exhaled lightly. “Yeah, I probably should. And that’s fine. I’ll watch TV, eat, and try to relax.”
She stepped out of his arms but he grabbed her hand and reeled her back in, leaning down to give her another quick kiss. Pulling back, he winked as he shrugged. “Guess I wasn’t done yet.”
Knees weak, she sank onto the bed as she watched him get clean clothes out of his suitcase and go into the bathroom. She touched her fingers to her lips, sighing dreamily, and then glanced at her food, wrinkling her nose. Looking around, she spotted a microwave, and she stood to warm up her food.
She worked on autopilot, her mind going back to her discovery earlier. Or what she thought was her discovery. The microwave dinged just as she heard the shower turn on, and as she pulled her food out, her eyes turned toward the bathroom door.
That kiss left her feeling like she was closer to Noah than ever before—but there was still so much she didn’t know about him. And what he was, whether he could turn into an animal or was something else, was something she needed to know.
One way or the other, that night she was determined to get the truth.
Noah pulled his boxers on and wiped the condensation from the mirror. He’d been in the bathroom for a while, but he’d been standing under a cold spray for most of it, trying to get his body under control.
He hadn’t been sure it was possible after that truly spectacular kiss he and Lily shared. Fuck, he’d never had a kiss like that. He knew everything was more intense between mates, but shit. That had been off the charts hot, and he didn’t think he’d ever get his dick to calm down again when he first got in the shower.
But it finally had, and he’d turned more hot water on and quickly soaped up, finishing his shower. He stared at himself in the mirror, thankful his eyes weren’t glowing as brightly as they had when he first went into the bathroom. He was still curious to know how much Lily had figured out, but at the same time, he wasn’t sure it was a conversation he was ready to have yet.
Their fledging relationship, along with their future happiness, rested on whether she could accept his true nature or not.
His phone buzzed on the counter and he picked it up, seeing a text from Damara, confirming that they were on their way. They’d managed to somehow get a room for the night, since they’d be getting there in the early morning hours, and booked it for a few days stay.
Frowning as the depth of the situation with Fernandez hit him again, he quickly texted his reply. All they knew going into the mission was that Fernandez was a male dragon who was looking for females, and he intended to take them when he found them.
They’d had no idea he’d already found some, let alone that he was selling them in a fucked up black market auction.
Seven female dragons. The number might seem low to average humans and shifters, but because of how rare dragons were, and how completely the females hid, it was a very high number.
And even one woman being sold off to the highest bidder was too many—seven was a fucking travesty.