Dragon Devotion Read online

  Ana’s eyes finally snapped open, fixating on him as the last of her climax filtered away, leaving her basking in the warm afterglow.

  “I don’t have another in me,” she said, her eyelids beginning to droop tiredly. “So don’t go thinking you have to be all macho man and try for the hat trick,” she teased.

  He laughed, picking her up and laying her on her back with ease. “I just want to please you,” he whispered.

  Strong hands pulled his face to hers, where she kissed him vigorously. “If that’s the case,” she said into his ear before gently nibbling on his lobe, “I want you to fuck me like this. Stay close, keep me warm.”

  Her hands kept his face inches apart from hers as she urged him on. His hips rose and fell, plunging him deep within her with every movement. Ferro was so close he could feel her breath wash over him as she gasped with pleasure, her pupils dilating with desire as he stroked in and out.

  “Can you do something for me?” she asked, her eyes still focused intently on him, watching his every reaction.

  “Of course,” he promised.

  “I want you to cum for me,” she told him with firm determination, a spark lit fiercely in her stare. “Now,” she said when he didn’t refuse.

  “Are you sure?” He knew she was, but he just wanted to hear her say it again. It was perhaps the most arousing thing a woman could ever say to a man, and Ferro would never get tired of hearing the words come from her mouth.

  “Cum for me Ferro. Please!” she all but begged.

  It was more than he could handle. It started deep within him, as bit by bit the muscles in his cock tightened, swelling even more with blood. His sac tightened and his growl built, rising to a near roar as he continued to thrust into Ana, the warmth of her walls urging him onward.

  The dam finally broke, and his cock began to pulse wildly as he did as Ana asked, cumming deep within her and shooting jets of his hot cum as his brain fried itself with endorphin overload.

  He didn’t stop moving until his muscles unclenched and he had control over his body again, at which point he draped himself over her prone form, allowing himself to fall into her embrace as she held him tight to her.

  Sleep claimed him quickly, and for the first time in a long time, it was filled with pleasant thoughts.

  ***

  Clouds were rolling in from the west, quickly devouring any light in the sky.

  What an accurate reflection of my mood. He was grumbling to himself, but he didn’t care.

  The night before had been wonderful, and the two of them had slept for close to twelve hours, waking early the next day.

  Or more accurately, he had woken and arisen. Ana had been functional long enough to pinch his butt as he got out from bed, and then promptly gone back to sleep. He didn’t hold that against her though. She deserved sleep. He had gotten plenty and wasn’t interested in sleeping anymore.

  “Hello?”

  A voice on the other end of the phone he held to his ear finally answered.

  “Uriel.”

  “Hello Ferro,” the other voice replied, recognizing him. “Good to hear from you.”

  “Raphael?” he asked.

  Uriel laughed, likely at the bluntness of the question. “He actually arrived safe and sound yesterday with Karlie in tow. They’re both fine,” he added, answering Ferro’s next question.

  Karlie was his granddaughter. When his son Luthor had made plans to invade Ferro’s hometown, he had kidnapped Karlie—who also happened to be his daughter, though he had disowned her—and used her safety as leverage to keep Ferro uninvolved.

  After Luthor’s demise at Ferro’s hands, he had wanted to go looking for her. She wasn’t a dragon shifter, though she was born of his blood, and he knew he doted on her far more than was necessary. She had been the center of his world, making him proud at every turn.

  The unfortunate reality was, that finding the Dragon Council was not only more important to more people in the overall picture, but also a task that only he could do, as no one else knew where they resided. The Council chambers were a highly guarded secret.

  That meant Ferro had had to ask Raphael, a highly trained bear shifter, to go after her. Hearing that they had come back safe and sound lifted a weight from his shoulders he hadn’t known he was carrying. Raphael had set out over a week ago, a few days before Ferro had begun his long journey. This was the first news he had heard, and it made his heart swell.

  “Thank you,” he told Raphael. “We are coming home soon to regroup. I expect to see you shortly.”

  There was a long pause on the other end.

  “We?” Uriel asked slowly.

  “Myself, and another shifter.”

  “Oh,” Uriel said. “Another dragon? What’s his name? I’ll have a place ready for him.”

  “Her name is Ana,” he replied slowly. “And she will be staying with me.”

  Silence rang out from the other end.

  “Right. Of course,” Uriel said hastily. “Is there anything you want me to have ready for you?”

  “No,” he said. “You aren’t my servant, Uriel.”

  “I know, Ferro, just trying to be a nice guy,” he said jovially. “Have a safe trip. See you soon.”

  He grunted and hung up the phone.

  “Who was that?” a voice asked sleepily behind him.

  He turned to see Ana, clad only in a sheet, hanging from the corner of the hallway into the bedroom.

  “Back home,” he said distractedly, trying not to focus on the copious amounts of flesh she still managed to keep exposed—whether by design flaw, accident, or on purpose he wasn’t sure—but it was blood-warming to see.

  “Hey, keep it calm mister,” she said with a wink. “I need breakfast before you bed me today.”

  Ferro laughed, rising from his feet and sweeping her from hers as he flexed his arms, lifting Ana clear from the floor. “Okay then, young lady. But first, a shower.”

  “Oooooh,” she said with mock anger. “Do not call me that,” she impotently threatened, held securely within his arms.

  “What, a lady, or stinky?” he teased.

  Ana merely looked at him as he set her down in the bathroom, fiddling with the dials on the water until they were warm.

  “You’re washing my back,” she said firmly as she pulled the door open, letting him climb in first.

  “That can be arranged,” he said, turning into the water and letting it run over his head.

  Behind him the door closed.

  “Ana?” he said, noticing she hadn’t entered behind him.

  Ice cold water suddenly poured forth from the overhead waterfall showerhead, bursting across his body with numbing force.

  “Oh my God!” he yelped, throwing himself into the corner and away from the torrent of frigid water. Ana fell to the floor with laughter outside of the shower, howling with delight at his misfortune.

  She had made one miscalculation, he noticed with a grin, still trying to get his mind back on track.

  With a careful reach of his foot, Ferro slid the door open.

  It was Ana’s turn to scream as the cold water poured out of the shower and onto her, propelled by a swish of his foot. The sheet became drenched, clinging to her form. He saw her nipples harden and press through the material, immediately summoning another reaction from him.

  With a grin, he plunged through the cold water and grabbed her in his arms, pulling her inside with him.

  If they were going to suffer, they were going to do it together!

  ***

  “Mean,” she said as they exited the shower an unknown amount of time later.

  Ferro kissed her cheek. “I think I made it up to you,” he said with an evil wink.

  “This time,” she agreed with fake sullenness, toweling herself off.

  Steam filled the room, keeping them warm as they dried off. Although the cold didn’t truly affect them in an adverse way, that didn’t mean they couldn’t feel it. Cold was still cold, and still shocking w
hen applied liberally after being warm.

  “What’s the plan now?” she asked, opening the door to the bedroom. A billow of steam followed them out.

  He flicked on the fan inside before joining her. They had each picked up a new outfit the day before, knowing they were desperately in need of a change. Now they put them on, prepared at last to face the day.

  “Home,” he said without thinking. “Regroup, come up with a plan of attack.”

  Ana went stiff, turning to look at him.

  “Home?” she asked, her voice carefully modulated to appear neutral.

  “My home,” he corrected, wondering if that’s what she had meant. “We have friends there; it will be safe. Then we can think this through to formulate strategies and decide how best to act.”

  Ana was shaking her head. “Sounds like you’ve already decided how we should act.

  Ferro sat up straight as he recognized the dangerous tone in her voice.

  “What? No,” he protested. “I just figured that we needed a safe spot, somewhere we could go without having to look over our shoulders.”

  “It’s not a bad idea,” she agreed, and for a moment, he thought he was out of the woods. “But you decided it completely without me,” she finished.

  “Ana, please,” he said, moving to her side. “That is not the way I meant it,” he promised.

  She looked up at him. “I know it’s not, Ferro, but if we’re going to make this work, I have to remind you when you’re making a decision for us without actually consulting me. I need to remain my own person on this.”

  He nodded. “I understand. I hope you know I am trying.” He shrugged. “A few thousand years of ingrained habits are going to take longer than a few days to break,” he told her. “I wish I was stronger than that, but—”

  “Ferro, it’s okay,” she promised, reaching up on her tiptoes and giving him a kiss firmly on the lips. Her voice was back to normal, the swelling having subsided overnight. “Part of it was my own response to such things kicking in.”

  He frowned when she didn’t continue right away. “And the other part?” he asked nervously, not sure he wanted the answer now.

  “The other part is that you’re wrong.”

  He swayed backward on his feet. That was not the answer he was expecting.

  “I…am?” he asked, confused.

  “Yes,” she confirmed, then tossed him a wink. “You’ve had eight thousand years to learn your habits. The least I can do is give you a full week to come around before I really start to get angry at you.” Ana shrugged. “Besides, I have my own quirks that we’re going to have to work with or around,” she told him.

  “Oh,” he said meekly, to which Ana laughed heartily.

  “I don’t think I’m crazy,” she promised. “But as you know, after this long, certain things become habit.”

  Ferro nodded. “Okay, but that still doesn’t explain why I am wrong,” he said.

  “Right,” Ana agreed, her tone becoming businesslike. “The problem with your plan is it involves sitting around and reacting to what the Council does.”

  He frowned. “As opposed to?”

  “Acting,” she said firmly. “We need to go on the attack. Find them, hunt them down, and eliminate them. Attack from the shadows. We don’t have the numbers for a full-on attack. So we turn the tables. Between the two of us, we’re pretty strong,” she said, which was a mild understatement. “We can take on anyone we come across if we are doing it on our terms, not theirs,” she finished.

  “I see,” he said slowly. “It sounds like you have already decided the plan,” he said, unable to resist throwing the barb at her, though he gave her a smile to let her know he wasn’t actually mad.

  “Yeah, I saw that one coming,” she admitted. “But I know, and deep down I think you know as well, that this is the best plan of action. Face it,” she said, crossing her arms, “they know you Ferro. They know how you are, how you act, and what you’re likely to do. I guarantee you, if we strike for your home, we’re going to be hounded the entire way there. They’ve got teams waiting for us, ready to pounce.”

  “So how do we find those teams first?” he asked.

  Ana grinned. “It’s simple. We give them exactly what they want.”

  He felt his stomach sinking. “Which is?”

  Her grin widened. “Me.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Ana

  For the first time in a long time, Ana felt right.

  She had a purpose again, a meaning for being around. On top of that, she had someone that made life worth living, and that she knew wasn’t going to die of old age in a few years.

  That knowledge alone was enough to make her giddy the instant she woke up next to him every morning. Even on the days when he snored through the night—which were thankfully few, she was discovering—she still was happy to get up.

  He made her that way. They clicked so well for two beings of such advanced years.

  She coughed, covering her laugh at that thought, knowing they both felt no older than someone in their mid-twenties, despite how long they had managed to live. But it was true; after that long, they had both developed traits that made the odds highly against them being able to mesh so thoroughly with another.

  “What are you laughing about?”

  “Just at the two of us,” she said quietly. They were waiting outside a train station, hoping to ambush the Order team that was following them.

  “Anything in particular?” he replied equally softly.

  “We’re old,” she replied, leaning gently into him.

  Ferro snorted. “Is this a new bit of information that has just come to light with you?” he asked.

  “More like I’m just coming to terms with it and realizing that despite our advanced age,” she snickered again, “we still manage to be rather adaptable.”

  “I seem to recall you telling me at least once over the past two weeks that I need to be more adaptable,” Ferro said slowly.

  She elbowed him none too gently. “Yes, but you’re still here, charging headlong into a fight without having six different plans ready first. I’m very impressed with you,” she told him seriously.

  Ferro didn’t reply right away. “I blame much of it on you,” he said lightly. “Forcing me to branch out, and try new things. Only two broken arms and unknown lacerations of varying degrees of severity later, and I think I might be coming to like it.”

  She eyed him skeptically. “Who are you, and what have you done with my Ferro?”

  He returned the look, mimicking her perfectly. “Your Ferro?”

  Ana blushed. “If that’s okay with you?”

  “Under one condition,” he said with such seriousness that she worried about where it might be going.

  “What’s that?”

  “That you are my Ana.” His words were light and joking, but none of that was reflected in the look he shared with her just then.

  “Nothing would make me happier,” she whispered, kissing him swiftly.

  The speaker chimed, announcing that the next train would be arriving in five minutes.

  “That’s our cue,” she said, giving him one last peck as they stood up.

  With practiced ease, they moved to the front of the station. Over the past two weeks, the pair had hunted down three separate Order teams as they made their way toward Ferro’s home in Genesis Valley. The pair had arrived at a compromise.

  Ana wanted to hunt down the Order, while Ferro wanted to regroup. When they began to hash out what to do, it became clear that if they struck for home, they would be chased by the Order. Ferro had convincingly pointed out to her, however, that they really had nowhere to start when it came to tracking down the Order, besides where the leaders were based.

  Attacking the Red Devil’s castle was not something either of them had considered, knowing they would need more numbers than what they currently had. By eliminating some of the Order while Merlin continued to rally support for the Council in exile, they wo
uld be working to achieve their goals.

  Much to Ferro’s dismay, she had exposed herself for the Order to find, luring them in until she and Ferro could hit them by surprise. Their last strike had been against three basically juvenile dragon shifters. They were barely four hundred years old. One of them had broken down and talked after the ease with which Ana and Ferro scythed through them.

  “Do you think he was telling the truth?” she asked, moving behind a pillar to obscure herself from the entrance.

  “Unsure,” Ferro answered as he took up a similar position to her left, on the other side of the entrance.

  The doors opened, and a few people started to emerge.

  “I guess we’ll find out,” she said softly, flattening her back to the brick column, feeling the rough surface catch on her clothes.

  They had taken a gamble on their young captive. He had been so terrified after seeing his friends killed that he practically renounced the Order before they even started interrogating them. They had promised him adventure and wealth, but hadn’t let him on what he was truly in for until it was too late. By then, he couldn’t back out without bringing the Order down on his head.

  After finding out the location of the next team, they had actually let him go. Their nerves were on edge in case he had betrayed them and ran back to the Order. If that was the case, they were about to be in a world of trouble.

  She frowned as the trickle of people emerging from the station died down. They weren’t in an overly populated region, so the numbers weren’t that unusual. It was the lack of anyone remotely resembling a dragon shifter that had her worried. A quick glance at Ferro showed a similar look on his face.

  Something had gone wrong.

  “Let’s go,” she mouthed, pushing away from the pillar that had been hiding her from view of anyone inside.

  Her impatience likely saved her life.

  As she moved away from the pillar, a man swung around the far side, his fist aimed for where her face had just been.

  “Trap!” she yelped, ducking from the next blow as best she could. It threw her off balance and she fell to the ground, lashing out with her foot even as she went down. The boot she was wearing connected with the other man’s shin. The pair went down together and she rolled to try and gain the upper hand.