A Throne of Ruin (Deliciously Dark Fairytales 2)

Butterflies filled my stomach, and hope simmered low. “What are you saying?”

“I can’t go with you and physically protect you. The only protection I can offer is as a mate. If you carry a powerful alpha dragon’s scent, Jedrek won’t want to touch you. Even if you’re vulnerable—sick or sleeping—his primal senses will recoil from my scent on you. Other creatures, all but the most powerful, will also be repelled. It’ll thin out your adversaries. Not to mention Dolion won’t want to put you in that gilded cage, even if he could use me or your family as a means to get you in it. No one—not even other kings—will want to get intimate with that smell lingering around you. It’ll make you unattractive to them. I am sitting on a throne of ruin now, but I am still a powerful alpha. If we mate now, today, it’ll give you a little space, intimately. Other creatures might pick on you physically, but they won’t want to…” His jaw clenched, and he gripped my arms hard. He clearly had to force the words out. “They won’t want to force you intimately. Not even Dolion.”

That’s a yes from me, my animal said immediately.

He held up a finger. “But that protection comes at a very steep cost. To you. When you inevitably get free, which you will, it’ll be damn hard to—” He cut off and turned his face away for a moment. He took a deep breath. “It’ll be hard for you to find a new mate. You’d likely have to find a dragon more alpha than me who sees my claim as a challenge. Or a faerie. Maybe a bear, though they are not much better than dogs.”

I lifted my eyebrows and cracked a smile, mostly because he was entirely serious, and his arrogance in this time and place was at once hilarious and endearing.

He shook his head. “Much of my power is still suppressed, but that won’t show in my scent. I am a very powerful alpha, Finley. Or was. It won’t be easy to find someone who’s more so. And it might make it more difficult for you to find a new place to live. People could hesitate to take you in, not wanting the smell of another alpha around even if the physical alpha wasn’t there in person. It will be like shackling a weight to your leg and going for a swim. The cost of that short-term protection might be too high.”

I think you should slap him, my animal said. She didn’t give an explanation.

She didn’t have to. What sort of absolute fool would think I could find someone else like him in this lifetime? That I would want to? I didn’t care about securing his protection. I wanted his mark. I wanted to carry him with me into the next phase of my life so I’d have just a little bit of comfort when walking through hell.

I smacked my palm against his cheek then grabbed him by the back of the neck desperately, needing his body on me.

Like a dam bursting, suddenly he was all action—crushing a bruising kiss to my lips, pushing me back toward the bed, ripping at my clothes as I worked to shed his. With desperate, hurried movements, we stripped each other bare and fell onto the mattress. He ran his hand up the side of my thigh, over my hip, and palmed my breast, gliding his thumb across the hard peak.

I moaned into his mouth, pulling at his shoulders to get him closer. He settled his body on mine, his cock against my swollen, wet pussy, aching with need. His tongue swept through my mouth and then tangled with mine, his taste driving me wild.

I hooked my legs around his hips, groaning as his weight pushed against me. He dragged the tip of his cock down my wet folds, bracing himself at my opening. His kiss was deep and powerful, emotional.

He thrust into me, sheathing himself fully, and paused there for a moment, pushing his forehead against mine, breathing heavily, before pressing his hips onto mine. He pushed my hands above my head and entwined our fingers.

“I’ve wanted to do this since you stood up to me in the Royal Wood.”

He kissed me dominantly, dragged out his cock, and thrust it back in. I whimpered as he did it again, ramming into me. My eyes fluttered as I took in the sensations, gave myself to him body and soul.

The bed shook with his strong, powerful movements, stealing my focus until all I knew was his contact, his cock sliding in deep.

Magic rose around us. Power. It slithered across my skin and dragged a moan from my lips. Strummed my body.

Goosebumps covered my heated flesh, and my pussy clenched around him, pleasure building.