Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 84237 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 421(@200wpm)___ 337(@250wpm)___ 281(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 84237 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 421(@200wpm)___ 337(@250wpm)___ 281(@300wpm)
Grabbing Dimitri’s head with both hands, Sam growled as he pulled it down to slam their mouths together. The kiss was hard and thorough, helping to make up for the time they were apart. This was what he wanted.
He was going to unlock the secrets of the Sousa, fix his core, and be a mage worthy of this wonderful dragon.
Dimitri should have known it would be nearly impossible to get Sam out of the ruins once they were discovered. The Jaeggi archeologists offered them a nice place to stay when Sam showed his reluctance to leave, but Dimitri wanted to go home. To return to his quarters with his bed.
More importantly, he needed to see Sam among his things in his home.
He needed Sam in his bed, officially making it their bed.
Maybe it was that his dragon was still unsettled by being separated from Sam for too long.
Or maybe it was the lingering fear that Sam still didn’t accept him as a mate.
The only thing he felt could reassure them both was having Sam somewhere completely safe.
In the end, Sam hadn’t needed a lot of cajoling and bargaining to convince him to leave. Dimitri simply needed to promise two things: a long, hot bath, and air conditioning.
His mate knew what he liked, and Dimitri was more than happy to deliver them every chance he got.
Before the sun could set that day, Dimitri’s dragon was wearing the saddle and Sam was safely strapped into place. Other dragons had agreed to fly back for the Jeeps and drive them to the clan compound. He flew back, chased by Sam’s laughter as it was caught up by the wind.
As they set down, the sky was growing dark. They stopped in the kitchens long enough to grab a good meal and then it was off to Dimitri’s private quarters. While he prepared the bath, he was surprised to find Sam slowly wandering around his room, picking up random knickknacks, books, and other things he’d left about. He even caught him lifting a bottle of cologne to his nose and smelling it before he put it down with a little smile on his lips. During Sam’s previous stay with the clan, the mage had never visited his chambers, but now it was the only place that he belonged.
And right now, Sam was learning him. It made Dimitri’s heart swell in his chest until he thought it could burst. Maybe there was hope for them yet.
When he could take no more, Dimitri quickly and gently stripped off the filthy, sweaty clothes that were sticking to his mate’s frame and settled him in the enormous garden tub. But that only led to Dimitri shedding his clothes and joining him.
And that led to slow, bone-melting sex that left them limp and sated while the floor was covered in water that had sloshed over the edge of the tub.
Holding Sam in his arms, his mate’s head on his shoulders, he was content, but there were worries that still plagued him, leaving him feeling incomplete. As much as he hated to admit it, there was still unfinished business between them.
“You have a look on your face,” Sam announced as he pulled on a clean pair of briefs after exiting the tub on somewhat wobbly legs.
“A look?” Dimitri repeated, trying to sound innocent and utterly clueless. He glanced up to see Sam run his fingers through his wet hair before pushing his glasses onto his face.
“Yes, a look. A worried look. You just got laid. I’m standing in your room in the middle of your clan. The Sousa ruins have been found. I’m not quite sure why you’re worried.”
Dimitri frowned at the floor. He wanted to have a serious talk with Sam, but he’d thought maybe he should wait until tomorrow. Allow them to have one quiet, happy night together. Then he could fuck everything to hell.
“Talk to me,” Sam ordered, and that pretty much sealed it for him.
As tempted as he was to drag his mate into bed, this wasn’t a bed conversation. Threading his fingers through Sam’s, he tugged his sexy mage into the living room where they sat side by side on the couch.
“When you went past the ward without me, I nearly had a heart attack,” Dimitri admitted in a low, trembling voice as those pain-filled minutes resurfaced in his mind to clench his heart. “My entire existence is to protect and serve my mate, but I can’t do that if I can’t follow where you go. You have to allow me to stay by your side so I can keep you safe.”
Sam’s lips turned down in a hard frown and he drew in a few deep breaths through his nose, as if trying to calm himself. The fact that he hadn’t immediately jumped to his feet and started shouting was a good sign, but Dimitri wasn’t sure how long that would last.