“What?”
“Looking after me.”
He took her hand into his and kissed her marked palm. “You are my dragonswan. My Strah Draga. It is my honor to care for you.”
“Is that the only reason?”
Shaking his head, he nuzzled her neck. “No.” His hot breath scorched her skin and sent chills over her entire body. “You are my heart, Seraphina. And leaving you was the hardest thing I’ve ever done.”
She sank her hand in his hair and cradled his head against her as love for him flooded her. “I’m so sorry, Max.”
He kissed her lips and pulled back to offer her a sad smile. “It’s all right. I was born cursed. Even now, I know I won’t be able to keep you with me.”
“You’ve said that before, but you never explained it. How were you cursed?”
He ran his fingers through her hair as sadness darkened his eyes. “My mother conceived me to steal from my father. When I refused to allow her to use me, she cursed me for it. It’s why Illarion was captured as a young dragon and had his throat cut. It was done to punish me. I’m not allowed to have happiness, as others.”
“Oh, akribos… it wasn’t your mother’s curse that separated us. It was my stupidity. My selfishness. But I promise, I won’t let anything else come between us again.”
Max wanted to believe that. He really did. Yet even as she said those words, he knew that some things were much easier said than done.
And no matter the intent or heartfelt emotion, not all promises could be kept. The gods were bitter bitches who often made liars of man and beast. And mercy had never been shown to him or his species.
He’d been so hurt that he couldn’t allow himself to believe in anything anymore. He knew better.
But at least he had her for a little while. And he vowed to savor what little time they were granted.
Closing his eyes, he dipped his lips to hers and breathed her in. Her body was so incredibly soft and warm. So sweet. He’d forgotten how good it felt to be held. How much he loved the sensation of her limbs sliding against his as she nipped his lips and chin. She’d always been a woman of incredible appetites. Most men would have been terrified of the way she didn’t hold herself back.
He’d always loved that most about her. It was nothing for her to come home and playfully flip him to the ground so that she could straddle him. Sometimes she’d stalked him through the woods whenever he went to bathe. As soon as he’d stripped his clothes, she’d pounced like a predator, raining kisses and caresses all over his body.
Even now, she rolled him to his back so that she could lave and taste his chest and abdomen. She lived to be the more aggressive one in bed. It was as if she had something to prove to them both. And he was man enough to give her the lead and lay back and enjoy her play. To let her have her way with his body.
He hissed as she bit his ribs, then went lower to lick and tease his hip bone while her hand cupped his sac and gently massaged him to the point he could barely restrain himself.
“Sera?” He pulled her hand away as he panted with pleasure. “It’s been far too long for you to do that. I fear my control isn’t what it used to be.”
A small pout tempted him even more. “Then I shall have to get you back into fighting shape.” Her wicked little grin enchanted him until she leaned down to take him into her mouth.
“Oh dear gods,” he gasped as everything spun. For a full minute, he was sure he’d explode as her mouth worked its magic on his body. But then just as he was about to lose all control, she gave one long lick to him and crawled up his body until she could smile down at him.
Max sank his hands into the wealth of red curls as they cascaded over her pale shoulders and concealed her plump, full breasts. “My Seramia.”
Seraphina cherished the endearment that she’d missed more than she’d realized. “My precious dragon.” Leaning forward, she kissed those incredible lips before she slid herself onto him.
They moaned in unison. Biting her lip, she took a moment to savor the large, thick fullness of him inside her. No one had ever felt the way he did. Not because he was a dragon, but because she loved him. And as he slowly lifted his hips to thrust against her, she trembled. “I want you to know that I never broke faith with you, Maxis. Since the day we were mated, I’ve never taken another lover.”
“Why?”
“I just couldn’t. No matter how bad it was during my cycle, I didn’t want anyone else. I’d look at other men and they weren’t you.”
The smile on his face warmed her thoroughly. “Thank you.”
Taking his hands, she led them to her breasts as she leaned back and rode him the way she’d dreamed of doing every night since he’d been gone. He filled her completely. And there for a minute, she forgot about everything else. About all the years that had divided them.
Max surrendered himself to her completely. But then he’d always done that. She had a way of reaching past any and all defenses he put up. It was why he’d been forced to leave her. Because she was the one thing he couldn’t say no to.
Ever.