Alpha Dragon_Nyve Read online

  Austin whirls around and pulls his arm out of my grasp. “What?”

  “I know you’re angry—”

  “Do you? Do you, Nyve? Do you know just how angry I am?” Austin waves his arms in the air. “My father is in league with these assholes!”

  “We don’t know that he is, only that he has some ties to them from years ago. We need more information—”

  “Which I can get. Give me half an hour with him and I’ll get our information.”

  I have to catch his arm again to keep him from leaving. He whirls on me a second time. “What are you doing?” he growls at me.

  It’s probably not a great time to think he’s cute when he’s angry, but he’s still so young that the growling tone in his voice isn’t very threatening. I hold my hands up. “I really do understand your fury, Austin.” I’m trying to remain rational about this but the anger in his eyes is very clear. “It’s clouding your judgment. If you confront him now, it tips our hand. We don’t have enough information to act.”

  “God!” His voice raises in volume but he catches himself before he starts shouting and lowers it again. “I don’t need you to protect me from anything, Nyve. I can handle this myself.”

  “Austin,” I say in a rational tone. I don’t put my hands on him again, instead holding them up and taking a step back. “All I’m asking is for you to wait a bit longer until we know more. There’s still so much we don’t know and going to him now while you’re angry can possibly inflame things more. But I’m not saying this because I don’t think you can handle this. I’m saying this because it’s rational and you know what I’m saying is true.”

  Austin’s head falls back and he huffs out a breath. “Okay, fine. You’re right.” He scrubs at his face before he collapses on one of our reception chairs. “I just… it pisses me off that he’s involved with people who are targeting his own son. I can’t believe—”

  I drop to my knees in front of him and place my hands on his thighs to rub them in comfort. “We’ll get answers, Austin. I promise you that. All I’m asking is for you to sleep on it for a bit.”

  Austin’s hands land on top of mine. “I’m sorry I got mad.”

  “You have a right to be mad.” I turn my hands to hold his. “Want to get out of here for a while? Get some fresh air or something?”

  “Actually…” Austin watches our hands as they’re clasped together. “I’d like to go home with you and be someplace safe and not so exposed. You know, so out in the open.”

  “We can do that. I don’t have anyone on the books today and since the shop opens in about half an hour, the other guys can handle any foot traffic.” I rise to my feet and pull him with me. “So go tell your friend you’re taking off. I’ll let Taran know and we’ll grab a cab home, alright?”

  “Yeah. Yeah, that sounds good.” Austin grabs my shirt before I twist away. “Thank you.”

  I smile at him. Now that he’s calmer, his eyes look clearer and he’s breathing easier. He’s not worked up into a frenzy. He’s extremely attractive when he’s clear-minded. “Let’s go.”

  I can’t remember the last time I brought someone home with me. I’ve been so focused on helping Taran with the shop and before that, honing my own skills with a tattoo gun and keeping my life as simple as possible, there was never any time.

  So my condo reflects that. I like simplicity and avoiding clutter as much as I can. I don’t live spartan because I have to, but because I want to. And because there was no one in my life to fill the space.

  Austin steps in and waits by the door while I shut and lock it. “Have a seat.” I motion to the sofa. “Can I get you something to drink?”

  “What I want right now is for you to come sit down.” Austin flops on the sofa cushions and bounces. He runs his hand over the leather.

  I set my keys in my change dish on my breakfast nook, then go to sit next to him. He takes my hand, then lifts it over his head to drape my arm over his shoulders. I get the hint and turn so he can snuggle against me.

  This sudden desire to be close surprises me. Austin is very good at keeping me on my toes. He’s affectionate but wants distance. He’s independent and yet desires the protection of my company. It’s hard to anticipate what he really wants.

  “Why are you looking at me like that?”

  I blink in confusion. “Like what?”

  “Like you’re trying to figure me out.” He picks up my other hand and traces along my fingers.

  “Oh, probably because I am trying to figure you out.”

  “Am I that difficult?”

  I cup his chin and force him to look at me. “Not difficult, Austin. Cautious. A little hotheaded.”

  He laughs at that. “Frustrating?”

  I concede that with a nod. “Very.”

  He exhales suddenly and his head falls back to rest on my arm. “I don’t mean to be.”

  “I know.” Austin rolls his head and it puts us close enough for a kiss. Considering his displays of affection I don’t think he’d object to a kiss, and he doesn’t. It deepens immediately, mouths and tongues exploring each other.

  With a gasp, Austin pulls back, his eyes wide and dark, breath coming quickly in shallow pants. He pulls his lower lip between his teeth as if he’s considering something. The subtle move reminds me of just how young he is.

  His age doesn’t stop me from feeling the pull of our fate as it stretches and snaps between us.

  Whatever conclusion he came to, he releases his lip and shifts on the sofa to sit on my lap. His knees fall to either side of my hips as he leans into me, resting against my chest. Another kiss, and in this one he takes control, his hands smoothing down my chest to hook beneath my t-shirt. He pulls away only long enough to strip it over my head, diving back in as soon as the cotton is tossed to the side.

  My hands are all over him, sliding beneath his shirt to palm against warm skin and shifting muscle. His erection presses firmly against my stomach and he rocks a few times before pulling away suddenly a second time.

  He climbs down from my lap, pressing my thighs apart as he lands on his knees.

  I catch his fingers as they nimbly work my jeans open. “Austin, you don’t have to—”

  “I know that,” he says with certainty and confidence. He pulls at his hands to get me to release him so he can continue.

  The air is cool when he pulls my cock out, and as he wraps his warm palm around my shaft, I hiss from the sudden change in temperature. My eyes roll back in my head when his mouth slides over me. During our talks, Austin said he wasn’t completely inexperienced, and the talent he brings to the table as he starts to bob over my cock gives testament to that. He’s not an expert but he’s skilled enough that I decide not to fight this.

  I slide down a little in my seat to give him room and he picks up the pace almost immediately. I don’t know if it’s instinct or his lack of experience that has him going at me like it’s a race, but that is not a problem in my book. My hand rests easily on the back of his head, not to force or hurry him but to enjoy the multiple levels of sensation that are thrumming through my body.

  This was the last thing I expected to happen because I was serious when I told Austin that I wouldn’t rush him. He’s my mate. My mate. For me. So this has special meaning.

  Letting my eyes drift shut, I focus on how good his mouth feels sliding over me and allow myself to float on the endorphins until I’m riding high. My orgasm is quick to organize and it gathers in a rush along my spine until I’m arching and bucking. I withdraw my hand so I don’t push down on his head in my enthusiasm, both hands clawing at the sofa seat cushion until it’s useless to fight it any longer and I come. It hits me like a wave and rolls over me. I shout his name, my voice hoarse and choked as I empty into his mouth.

  He chokes and pushes at my hips to keep me still but tries to take all of me like a champ. When I’m finally spent, I relax against my seat, chest heaving with exertion. Austin takes a moment to wipe at his mouth. He climbs back on my lap
and leans in for a sloppy kiss. I can taste myself on his tongue and suck at it greedily.

  His erection is still insistent and firm against my stomach. I skim my hand down to grasp it through his jeans. He sucks in a breath. “Nnmm, Nyve, you don’t have to.”

  “Neither did you.”

  Austin shakes his head and slides off my lap. “I want to wait.”

  He wants to wait. The guy is turning my head around in circles and I can’t keep up. “Austin—”

  “No, Nyve, it’s okay. I really want to wait. I didn’t do that so you’d reciprocate. I just… felt like I wanted to do that for you. It felt right.”

  I am unsure if this is something I need to fight him on or not. My gut instinct says to leave it. “Alright. Did you want to order lunch in and watch movies all day?”

  “Hawaiian pizza. And no sappy romance movies.”

  I tuck myself back in my jeans and reach for my phone. “Do I look like a sappy romance movie kind of guy?”

  “You totally do,” Austin says.

  The moment I’m settled on the sofa again, Austin backs up to me, pulls his sock feet up on the sofa, and leans back against me with the remote.

  He appears to have made himself at home.

  My dragon is very pleased.

  7

  Austin

  It isn’t the sun streaking across my face as it peeks in through the curtains in Nyve’s room that wakes me. Once I roll into Nyve’s warm, sleeping body and tuck myself into the crook of his arm, the light in my eyes is gone.

  The buzz of the damn drone hovering just outside the window is a bit of an annoyance.

  Maybe Ronnie is right. I need to have another talk with my aunt about the damn thing. It was easy to dismiss it as a necessary evil to keep her placated at first. Now it’s becoming an inconvenience that I’m ready to be rid of.

  Now that I’m awake, my brain goes into overdrive, thoughts coming at me from every direction.

  Anger bubbles up at my father. That letter on his desk is the most damning thing. Has he been ‘contributing’ to these people who are targeting mythical shifters? Does he know more than he’s letting on about their true motives?

  I squeeze my eyes shut and try to force those negative thoughts away. I don’t want to think about it. Our relationship is already busted up and hanging on by a thread. The only reason I try is because of my aunt. She’s his sister and I owe it to her to keep trying.

  Nyve turns over and faces me. His arms and legs flop over my body to keep me pulled close to him. My face ends up buried against his throat. I can still smell his scent, a subtle mix of wood and spice.

  I can’t believe I blew him yesterday. It was a spur of the moment thing. I wasn’t thinking about it. Not really. It was an instinct to do it. Oddly enough, I learned a lot about him while his cock filled my mouth. And after.

  He treated me with tenderness. He didn’t press for more. He indulged me when I was a bit of a brat by making myself at home and forcing him to watch bad action-adventure movies and eating pizza with pineapple.

  Everything I wanted, every whim I threw at him, he indulged with quiet and reserve.

  He made me feel desired. Cherished. Spending the time with him was the most comfortable I’ve ever felt with anyone before.

  It’s a bit scary when I’m with him. This overwhelming sense of peace and calm and belonging that I rarely experience engulfs me. Being a half dragon-half wolf offspring of two shifter races means I never really feel like I belong in either world.

  Nyve knows about it and acts like it doesn’t matter. He still claims we’re fated mates. I feel the same impulsive tug toward him as well.

  It’s still overwhelming but after yesterday, it’s a feeling I think I can get used to.

  It’s a feeling I want to explore deeper. To take it a little further.

  “You’re thinking way too hard for it to be this early in the morning.” Nyve’s throaty voice vibrates beneath my nose and I chuckle.

  “Did my thinking wake you? Was I too loud with my thinking?”

  I shift with Nyve when he rolls to his back and drags me with him until I’m splayed on top. His morning wood catches on my hip.

  “I can feel the tension in your body. You’re like a piece of plywood.” Nyve pries his eyes open and looks down at me. “Is everything okay?”

  “Yeah.” I rest my chin on his chest. My arms slide beneath his shoulders to hook around the top. “I’m trying to work everything out in my head. Solve everything.”

  “It’s too early to solve all the issues. Especially on an empty stomach. Breakfast?”

  “Only if it’s pancakes.”

  “Good gods you’re a brat.” Nyve rolls his eyes. He acts like he’s about to shift me off but I will myself to get heavier. “How about waffles.”

  “Mmm. Compromise. I don’t know about that. I am a brat after all.”

  “And cheeky, too.” When I get even heavier, he starts to laugh. “Get off, brat, so I can get it started.”

  “Not yet.” I wiggle up his body so I can brace over him on my elbows. “I want to have sex.”

  Nyve grows still, blinking up at me. The range of emotions over his face is almost funny. “Sex. Now?”

  “That was kind of the point. Before you get out of bed.” I purse my lips. “Unless you don’t want to now.”

  “No, that’s not it,” Nyve says in a hurry. “I thought you wanted to take things slow. That’s all. So I’m a little confused.”

  “You’re attractive when you’re confused.”

  “And you’re changing the subject.” Nyve rolls and takes me to the mattress. My head misses the pillow and he drags one over to put under it so I’m more comfortable. “I’m not mad that you’ve changed your mind. I’m curious why.”

  “Because of this.” I punch at the pillow under my head.

  His head cocks to the side in confusion. I think I like keeping him off balance like this. He’s so together most of the time that seeing him struggle is a change. It humanizes him, closes the gap between us that is so apparent if you consider our ages. It proves that there are still things he’s unsure about.

  “I trust you, Nyve.” No sense in keeping him in the dark. “You’re showing you’re interested and invested in this whole thing with me. Fated mates, wanting it to work, to be right. You take me and my demands seriously.”

  Nyve smiles and his body relaxes as he bears down on me. “I’m glad.”

  “I’m not ready for any serious claiming or anything.” I honestly don’t even know what that entails. I have some research ahead of me before I take that next step. “But I’m ready for… you know. More.”

  “More.” Nyve rocks his hips against my stomach. He’s still hard and I can feel the precome as it slides across my abdomen. “Like that more?”

  “Exactly like that more.” My body responds and I feel my own slick ramping up in anticipation to feel him fill me.

  Nyve kicks the covers off and the chill of the morning air raises goosebumps along my skin. He pushes down, nudging my legs apart until he’s settled between them. His soft, warm breath ghosts along my half hard cock before his tongue swipes up my shaft, coaxing it to get harder. My fingers bury in his dark hair as he takes me in his mouth with one slide of lips over my cockhead. Stars burst behind my eyes at how good it feels.

  The few guys I actually had any serious experience with were so bitchy about going down on me, allowing me to be satisfied with reach arounds once they’d gotten off.

  Now Nyve is focused all on me and it’s a bit mind-blowing.

  I guess what they say about being young and enthusiastic is true, because it’s not long before I’m emptying in Nyve’s mouth. He hums greedily as he continues to milk me, until I have to push him off before I hit the point of over stimulation.

  I tug on him to come back up and kiss me. I want to taste myself on his tongue now, like he allowed last night. It’s sexy as hell and he’s really into it, since he pins me to the bed to cover me co
mpletely.

  “Will you allow me to penetrate you, Austin?” He seeks the confirmation face to face. It’s not a question popped off before he flips me and goes to town.

  I’m not completely out of my realm of experience but here’s where the difference is going to show. Yet Nyve treats me like an equal in bed. “If you don’t, I’ll make you eat more Hawaiian pizza.”

  “Once was enough for me.” He ducks to claim my mouth in another kiss and I give over to him completely. “Where would you be more comfortable?”

  All these choices. It’s dizzying. I suck in a breath and close my eyes to envision us together, moving and groaning. “Facing you.”

  That’s all that needs to be said as Nyve takes over. He pulls at one of my legs to bend it at the knee. He pins it between us with his shoulder to hold me in place. Fingers delicately probe me and I hiss in anticipation. He needs to hurry or I’ll do something drastic.

  When his fingers finally enter me, it’s followed by a low moan. “My gods, Austin, you’re so wet already.”

  “I need to feel you in me. Now. If you make me wait any longer—”

  I’m cut off with another kiss. His fingers are gone and I make a pathetically mournful sound but Nyve doesn’t release my mouth. He lifts and presses down on me until I feel his cock at the muscle.

  Using gravity, he eases in slowly, his cock popping past my resisting muscle. The rest is an easy slide until our hips meet. He groans against my mouth before he shifts for a breath. “You’re so tight,” he says with a laugh. “This may not take long. It’s been a while for me.”

  “We’ll be even,” I pant out against his mouth. I want a kiss. Another kiss. And another and another. The desire to feel him morphs into a need to feel him. I want to feel him surround me and fill me.

  I’m lost in the blur of motion as Nyve thrusts into me. What starts out slow quickly builds with speed until I’m chanting his name again and again.