Claimed by the Dragons (Alma Venus Shifter Brides 3)

Finally, he was done. He grunted as he slipped out of her. Still attached to him, she was breathing heavily, her face hidden in the crook of his neck. His balls were empty, but his cock was still as hard as rock and ready to go again. He waited for her to regain some of her senses, then placed her down gently.

Delyse opened her eyes and looked up at him. She smiled, but he didn’t smile back. She wanted to ask him if they could go back to the palace now. She felt so sore, that all she could think of was a hot bath and a soft bed. Her dreams were shattered when he grabbed her rather harshly, turned her around, and lifted her dress up over her hips.

“Eric…”

She wasn’t sure if she wanted to stop him. Oh, she should have expected this. He was a shape-shifter who hadn’t had sex in over 7 centuries. She gasped when he tore the front of her dress off and cupped her breasts, then braced herself against the wall as he entered her for the second time.

***

The sun started to set when Eric finally let Delyse rest. He was lying on the floor, his bride on top of him, and he was caressing her long hair as she slept peacefully. She was exhausted. The last two times they had done it, she hadn’t been able to move much. He was afraid he had pushed her too hard, but when she didn’t complain or stop him, he had shoved the thought to the back of his mind and focused on her body instead. She was wonderful. So white, so smooth and beautiful. Her small body fit so perfectly in his arms, and her fair skin was in deep contrast with his natural tan.

Eric moved his eyes away from the ceiling, scanned the room, then looked down at Lily’s pretty head. He could feel her soft breath tickling his left nipple. Her skin glistened with sweat, and he knew it was because his own body was radiating too much heat for her fragile human form. He studied her long lashes, slightly darker than the hair on her head, her small, pointy nose, and her full lips. There he was, making the same mistake. Long ago, he had promised himself he wouldn’t fall in love again. He had broken that promise so many times and gotten burned because of it, that he was eventually forced to take drastic measures and abandon his clan. In this respect, Viggo had always been stronger than him. The Annarr had only had one human bride, and when her death broke his heart, he had only taken dragon-shifter lovers. Eric, on the other hand, had never been attracted to dragon women. They were too strong and independent for his taste. He had always had a thing for beautiful, fragile humans who needed his protection. They were vulnerable, something he could never afford to be, much less show.

Lily moaned in her sleep, her eyes moving rapidly underneath her closed lids. What was she dreaming? Eric tucked a long, blonde strand behind her tiny ear and sighed. Yes, he was making the same mistake again. The eclipse had passed and he was now stuck in reality with this beautiful woman who would end up ruining him, just like the others had. Unless… unless there was, indeed, a cure for this endless torment. Viggo had played his cards right this time. In the past, every time there was a total solar eclipse, either he or his sister would wait for him to wake up so they could tell him how much his clan needed their Alpha and how their name was slowly fading into oblivion. What the two had always failed to understand was that Eric couldn’t care less. He was tired of trying, tired of ruling over a bunch of dragon-shifters who had grown tired of trying themselves. Because the curse of near immortality affected them all just the same. Now, Viggo had changed his tactic and won. Eric Drekinn was awake, he had claimed his human bride, and was ready to return to his people.

Lily’s right hand was resting on his chest. He took it gently and lifted it to his lips. He admired her long fingers, her short, impeccable nails, then his eyes fixed on her thin wrist. He had already filled her womb with his seed, so he might as well seal the mating ritual with a proper dragon kiss. He pressed his parted lips to her wrist and blew hot air onto her skin. Lily stirred in her sleep as the dragon mark took shape around her wrist. Eric knew the process wouldn’t hurt her one bit, but he took his time to mark her gently, anyway. The fire which burned inside a dragon-shifter’s chest was a wonderful, magical thing. They could melt stone with it, but they could also use it to breathe marks onto someone’s body. And there were two types of marks dragons usually left on others: the mark of victory on an enemy’s skin when they defeated him or her, and the mark of devotion on a mate’s skin when they decided to commit until death did them part. When he removed his lips, the mark around Lily’s wrist was burning bright red. An intricate pattern of vines that coiled around each other like a nest of snakes. A mark that would let everyone know Lily Harington belonged to Eric Drekinn.

CHAPTER FOUR

The Disappointed Bride

After bringing her to the palace on his back, Eric tucked Delyse in and watched her sleep for long minutes before he finally decided to grace his clan with his presence, if it could be said that Viggo, Astrid, and Finn constituted a clan. The truth was that Eric felt overwhelmed even though he would have rather died than admitted to anyone other than himself. As he had flown his young bride over the island, he couldn’t help but notice how much things had changed in his absence. The whole world had changed. He had missed a war, the creation of the Council, and he had missed all those things the shape-shifters had gone through only to, eventually, be accepted by humans.

Eric sighed, looked at his Lily one more time, then went to take a shower and change his clothes. He had so many questions for his Annarr, and the fact that he kept stalling didn’t help anyone. He was out of the bathroom in less than 20 minutes, and in his old office near the library in three. Viggo, Astrid, and Finn had been waiting for him. When he entered the room, none of them made any comment on him being late. They were glad he was there, with them.

Eric nodded in their general direction and made his way behind his old desk, which was so empty and clean that it gave him an odd feeling of apprehension. He threw a quick glance around the office, and his stomach twisted in knots when he realized why this place made him feel so uncomfortable: it was too clean, empty, and impersonal. It felt like all the things in this room had once belonged to someone who had been dead for a very, very long time. Astrid’s cheerful voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

“Welcome back! We are so thrilled to finally have you home!”

Eric didn’t say anything. He studied her for a moment, trying to decide if she was being sarcastic, or she really meant it. The three of them were sitting in front of him, each in a leather chair. Finn seemed bored, Astrid was fairly excited, but Viggo was downright gloomy. It was clear to him that his Annarr had yet to forgive him for having bailed on them like that. “Doesn’t matter,” he thought. “He’ll get over it.” Eric fixed Viggo with his golden eyes, and the Annarr held his gaze with silent determination. The Alpha dragon had the strong feeling that his Beta had many things to say to him, but wouldn’t. Eric knew that look in his Annarr’s eyes. It

was the same look Viggo gave him when he felt his Alpha was about to make a mistake, but didn’t necessarily thought it would be useful to anyone to try and stop him. Except… it was weird this time. Now, Eric was here, just like Viggo had always wanted, so why would his second-in-command give him that look of disapproval? He had to remind himself that many things had changed in his absence, and he had to catch up.

“Before we start on clan business, I need to know one thing,” Eric addressed Viggo. “What’s this story about my bride’s father and the cure for shifter venom?”

Viggo had known that would be the first question Eric would ask, so he had come prepared, but Astrid and Finn had really hoped it wouldn’t be. It was a long, long story, and they certainly didn’t feel like hearing it again. Astrid sighed and leaned back into her chair. Finn did the same and gave her on encouraging smile.

“Everything she told you is true,” started Viggo.

Eric cocked a dark, perfectly straight eyebrow. “That’s the thing,” he said. “She didn’t tell me much. Care to enlighten me?”

Viggo took a deep breath and launched himself in the shortest and quickest explanation he had been able to come up with after hours and hours of thinking the whole thing through.

“Arthur Harington is Delyse’s father and the representative of the human faction within the Council. He also owns Harington Pharmaceuticals and has his own labs and research facilities. Some years ago, Harington became more and more interested in shifter venom and how it works. Supposedly, he started studying it in the idea that one day he would be able to find cures for each type of shifter venom, so that the humans who were turned unwillingly before and during the war could be given a chance to go back to their normal lives. His first breakthrough was with werewolf venom, and when he realized he was really close to discovering an antidote for it, Harington decided to try and bring his research into the attention of the other councilors and their advisors. His intention was to convince them of the great advantages of creating and using antidotes for shape-shifter venom and getting their support, maybe even some donations.”

Eric folded his strong, bulky arms over his chest and shook his head in amazement. “The guy had some balls, I must admit. What did the other councilors say?”

Viggo chuckled darkly. “I think it’s easy to guess. They were outraged by the idea.”

“Of course they were! A bunch of rich and influential shape-shifters had just been told there might be an antidote to their venom! There was no way they could have reacted differently!”

“Would you have reacted differently?” intervened Astrid. Her voice was low and serious.

Eric looked at her and smiled indulgently. Astrid had always been the one who liked to challenge him most, and he didn’t particularly not enjoy it.

“I don’t know, Astrid. The world has changed. We have changed. If the humans and the five shifter factions were able to sign a peace treaty and find some sort of middle ground, why wouldn’t they take things a step further and tried to work together for everyone’s benefit?”

“I think they were right to react the way they did,” said Finn. It was the first time he spoke since Eric had entered the office. “Arthur Harington told them about the advantages, which couldn’t be denied then and can’t be denied now, but there are also disadvantages, and most of them were… Let’s just say they were quite uncomfortable for the five shifter factions.”