Gavin's Curse (Brotherhood of Bandits (Mating Fever) Book 3) Read online

Suddenly nervous, she pushed the last of her eggs around her plate. “I mean, I want to go to Rivenell, too. I just thought that maybe I should try this first. To see if I’m a real dragon, you know?”

  He took her right hand in his gently, cradling it between both of his palms. The heat calmed her, centering her cartwheeling emotions on the connection between them. It was her one constant in this strange new world.

  “Kia, you are a dragon even if you can’t shift. You’re one of us and nothing can take that away from you. But I would be honored to help you try. It’s the most freeing feeling in the world. I want you to have that.”

  He stood and collected their plates, waving away her offer to help. After loading the plates in the dishwasher, he held out a hand. She took it after a moment of hesitation and followed him outside to a wide open area. Kia closed her eyes and tilted her face up to the sun. Cool, crisp air kissed her cheeks and brought a surge of gratitude. The idea of shifting was frightening but she couldn’t ask for a better guide. He would celebrate with her if she succeeded and comfort her if she failed. There was no downside to trying.

  No matter what happened, she had Gavin.

  He pulled out his phone and typed something. At her curious look, he smiled. “Just warning my brothers and their mates not to come outside so you can have privacy.”

  Touched at his consideration, Kia let out the breath she’d been holding.

  “I’m nervous.”

  “So am I.” At her shocked look, he clarified. “What if I can’t explain it properly and I let you down? I want this for you, too.”

  “You won’t let me down.”

  He helped her lift her t-shirt and then turned his back so she could remove the rest of her clothes.

  “Close your eyes. Then imagine yourself changing into a dragon.”

  Kia waited a few beats, taking deep breaths. After about sixty seconds of that, she started to get cold. Frustrated, she ignored the goosebumps dotting her skin. She pictured the way Gavin looked when he shifted. But he had gold scales and hers were blue. Should she imagine that instead? After a few more minutes imagining a large blue dragon, she opened her eyes.

  “Nothing is happening.”

  Gavin turned, the skin at the edges of his eyes crinkling when he took in her grumpy expression. He was laughing at her, damn it.

  “You’re not relaxed. Calm your mind. Just breathe.”

  She breathed and nothing happened. This turned out to be the beginning of a pattern of failure. They tried again the next day and then the next evening. Nothing. Finally on the third day, Kia decided it was time to give up. It wasn’t as if the previous two days had been a waste of time.

  Gavin had gone with her to the hotel to pick up her things and they’d spent a wonderful two days reconnecting. They’d talked about everything under the sun from places they wanted to visit to their hobbies to their fears. Dragons spent a lot of time in the nude she’d discovered and while Gavin was respectful of her discomfort, he didn’t hide it from her either. With each day that passed, she lost a bit more of her inhibitions.

  But he still wouldn’t make love to her.

  It frustrated Kia to no end but also made her teenage crush on him bloom into something that she had no ability to define. She wanted him. He made her feel things she’d been unaware existed but he insisted on treating her like a sister. It was confusing and made her want to bite him. Hard. Every time she thought about it her gums itched uncontrollably and her fangs got sore.

  As they walked out into the field on the third day, Kia stripped immediately. It was crazy to think that a few days ago she’d been uncomfortable naked alone in the shower and now she was walking around in the nude like it was nothing.

  “Okay, let’s try breathing again.”

  “It’s not going to happen, Gavin. I’m okay with that.”

  Gavin gave her the fondly exasperated look she was becoming very familiar with. “Just try it. Over the last few days you’ve become way more comfortable. With me. With your body. That’s what you need to shift.”

  Dutifully, she closed her eyes. Moments passed where Kia heard nothing but the rush of the wind and the distant chatter of birds. The sounds were pretty relaxing and she felt the tension in her shoulders drain out.

  When Gavin spoke again, he kept his voice soft. “Now imagine the most fierce version of yourself. Let your most primal instincts rise to the surface. Your aggression, your desire, your fear. Imagine it coming out of you.”

  The swell of energy started in her toes. Warm and liquid, Kia shuddered as every cell in her body responded. Then it drowned her, like an ocean wave crashing over her head. Her thoughts blurred and when she opened her eyes again she was momentarily disoriented. Gavin stood next to her, much smaller now.

  “You’re breathtaking.”

  He backed up a few feet and then shifted himself. Once in his dragon form, he was larger than she was, especially when he flexed his wings. He did it again and Kia realized that he wanted her to copy him. She lifted her arms and looked at the wings extending on either side of her. An explosion of blue, green and gold threaded through her scales forming a unique pattern. Excited, she tried to tell him how amazing it was but all that came out was a puff of fire. Startled, Kia curled her wings against her body.

  He moved closer and nudged her in the belly. She looked up. His dragon eyes were huge gold slits. He pumped his wings and then pushed off from the ground with his powerful legs. Kia watched in wonder as he circled the sky above her.

  Take a chance.

  With a cry, she leaped into the air and extended her wings. The wind surged beneath her and she glided before coming to a rough landing a few feet away. Emboldened, she did it again, this time leaping higher and pumping her wings. Gavin appeared next to her and then dipped to fly lower. She darted after him, accidentally bumping him in the air. He let out a call that she somehow knew meant it was okay. Back and forth, they dipped and rolled, Gavin getting under her every time she dropped too low or overcorrected on a turn.

  Finally Gavin landed in the middle of the field where they’d started. Kia tried to emulate the smooth way he set down but instead sort of crashed and rolled. Gavin shifted and she watched as he shrunk down and then his scales retracted. Fascinated, she looked down at her own body. Nothing happened and the earlier trepidation she’d felt returned. What if she couldn’t turn back?

  “Just breathe, baby. Imagine yourself in your human skin.”

  Gavin’s gentle instructions calmed her and then she was immersed in the same ocean of sensation as before. She blinked and then raised her hand. Her human hand.

  “I did it.”

  “Yes, you did.” Gavin knelt next to her, a proud smile on his face. “How was your first flight?”

  “Amazing.”

  Emotions overwhelmed her. Being in her dragon skin had broken down the barriers that had kept her hormones in check for years. Suddenly she could feel everything and it was all so intense. Her blood rushed through her veins, her heart beat with purpose and her core clenched as Gavin’s scent flowed over her. Her mate had protected her so well, putting himself physically between her and harm. Even if she’d fallen from the sky she knew without a doubt that he would have put his body beneath her and carried her to safety.

  Her instincts had been awakened now and they wouldn’t be denied. They wanted their mate.

  Now.

  Gavin fell back when Kia launched herself in his arms. In the moments before his logical mind kicked in, all he registered was warm, willing woman in his lap. She rubbed her hips against him, squirming until she got her hot little core directly over his cock.

  “Wait, Kia.”

  Her arms tightened around his neck. “No more waiting. You can’t possibly think that I’ll regret it now. Not after this. I want you, Gavin.”

  “You want your mate,” he growled. His body reacted to his own question, his muscles tightening and blood rushing from his head to his lap. It had to be a new record, zero to hard a
s granite in two point five seconds.

  “Mmm, hmm. Are you going to deny your mate what she needs?” Her eyes dropped to his mouth and she licked her lips.

  She’d clearly been reading the How to Seduce a Dragon manual because no male could resist those words. He would give her what she needed and everything she wanted. It was his life’s goal to see her moaning beneath him, completely open to take him. He wanted her wet, willing and satisfied and there was no end to what he’d do to get her there.

  He rolled them, cradling her under his arm as their tongues dueling. She tasted like the wind and some unique flavor that was all Kia. He couldn’t get enough of it, wanted to hold her still for hours just so he could eat up her sweet tempting mouth. She moaned as he bit her lip softly. The sound only revved him up higher, pushing him to get inside her, bite her, bind her to him so she’d never leave. It was crazy and he knew she wasn’t ready for that but he couldn’t help his instincts. So he contented himself with torturing her nipple with his teeth.

  “Gavin, that feels amazing.” Her head tossed back and forth and she clutched at his hair, holding him against her breast.

  His tongue traveled down her belly and then he buried his face between her thighs. She keened, arching her back as he attacked her pussy. His hands clamped on her legs holding her still for the oral assault, forcing her to hold still as he thrust his tongue gently into her soft pussy. Her scent drifted around him and he reveled in it. He wanted to be covered in her scent by the time he was done. Wanted to carry it in on his skin like a brand.

  Slow. Slow down.

  Gavin surfaced from his erotic feast with a vague sense that he needed to slow down. His mate was untouched and wasn’t used to this. He looked up, momentarily distracted by the entrancing sight of her fingers toying with the tips of her bare breasts.

  “You are so beautiful, my love. Truly gorgeous.”

  Kia glowed beneath his attention, her hands stilling on her breasts. “So are you. I still can’t believe you’re mine.”

  “Believe it. I’m completely, totally yours.”

  He slid over her, brushing their bodies together until his cock nestled right in the cradle of her thighs. She tightened her legs around him trapping him in place.

  “I don’t want to hurt you.”

  “You won’t. I trust you.”

  Gavin shivered as he pressed inside, slowly to give her time to adjust. Her pussy clamped down on him like a tight little fist and Kia let out a soft cry. Gavin bit his cheek to keep his fangs from descending. She was still trying to adjust to the sensation of having him inside her, so she definitely wouldn’t appreciate being bitten right now.

  Her hands tightened on his shoulders and then she urged him on with her heels behind his ass.

  “More. I want more of you, Gavin. I want everything.”

  He thrust a little deeper, loving the look on her face as the pleasure washed over her. It was almost too much for him to handle, watching her shiver beneath him, her legs spread wide so he could get deep. Primal instincts made the visual very appealing. He could keep her like this for days, taking her again and again, filling her with his seed and his scent. The thought of Kia pregnant with his child was so potent, he thrust harder than he’d intended.

  Kia’s head fell back. “Gavin, yes. That’s what I need.”

  Her choked words triggered a throb of pleasure so intense it was borderline pain. He pushed her leg higher, hooking it over his shoulder. Then he pounded deeper, harder than he would have if he’d been thinking straight. But all he could see was his mate begging for more of what only he could give her.

  “I’m so grateful I found you. My mate. Mi tesarik.”

  He hit something that made her convulse, the tight contractions throwing him head first into orgasm as well. He came so hard that he knew she’d smell like him for days. Good.

  Any males foolish enough to approach her would get an advance warning of who would be coming for them if they so much as looked at her wrong.

  “I love you, Kia.”

  Her arms tightened around his back. “I love you, too. I’m so glad we found each other again. Everything I wanted has come true. I can shift into a dragon. I know where I come from and I’m going to see it for myself. You’ve given me so much.”

  Gavin flexed his hips. “I’ll give it to you any time you need it.”

  Her lips curled up into a dirty smile. “I think I need it again. Right now.”

  chapter seven

  Fueled by her newfound ability to fly, Kia was eager to tackle the next thing on her wish list, visiting her childhood home. It hadn’t taken long to assemble a party to accompany them to Rivenell. His brothers usually insisted on coming with him whenever he visited to access the royal archives. Nathan, in particular, didn’t trust Avan’s open invitation to last any longer than the King’s delicate state of mind. Considering that his cousin was over two hundred earth cycles old already and still unmated, Gavin agreed that it was entirely possible that he might one day forget the promises he’d made.

  Jonas always came because he’d decided that it was his duty as an apprentice to assist him with all of his research. The young boy had confided not long after they’d met that he and his brother actually had some dragon heritage. While Gavin searched the archives for scientific information, Jonas searched for clues about his parents.

  It was a heartbreaking reality that half-bloods hadn’t always been treated fairly in Rivenell in the past. Gavin knew the pain of losing your family at a young age so he wanted to help his young apprentice in any way he could. If allowing him to tag along on these trips helped him, it was a minor inconvenience.

  Jonas and his younger brother had started the trip in the morning since they preferred to walk or ride their bicycles. Nathan, Ian and Gavin left around lunch time since they planned to fly, each carrying their mate on their back. Even though Kia could shift now, he didn’t want her flying for an extended period of time and he knew she wouldn’t be comfortable shifting in front of other people.

  Luckily his brothers’ mates, Evie and Morgan, immediately made her feel at ease and showed her how to use the safety harness. He adored them already, simply because they made Nathan and Ian so happy but he had a new appreciation for his sisters-in-law seeing how they treated Kia like family.

  Now as they touched down in the courtyard before Rivenell Castle, Gavin wondered how she’d react when he showed her the places they used to play as children. He was trying so hard not to push her too far too fast but his heart wanted it all. She’d made love to him but wouldn’t promise to stay. He had to make her see what he already knew. They belonged together. He wouldn’t hold her back from finding her place in the world. He’d do anything he could to help her figure out her path. They were so much stronger together than apart.

  “I remember this!” Kia scrambled off his back and approached the castle proper, open-mouthed. “There was a guard, he used to give me candy!”

  Gavin shifted and pulled his clothes from the bag he’d carried with them. “His name was Braanthis. He was a guard here for years, even after the war. Old Braanthis used to give all the draaklings candy. My mother asked him to stop but he still did it. She didn’t have the heart to reprimand him. He and his mate were never able to have young of their own.”

  Ian and Morgan had landed on the other end of the courtyard. He waved. They wouldn’t be back for a while. Morgan was an herbalist and loved talking to the older dragons who lived in the village to exchange recipes for herbal medicines. Some of the villagers had been there for hundreds of years so he knew she was gaining fantastic information.

  Nathan and Evie approached. “Are you going to the library again?”

  Gavin nodded. “I want to show Kia her father’s old notes.”

  “We’ll come with you.”

  Gavin didn’t argue. His brother didn’t like him being in the main castle alone and while it was usually annoying to travel with a guard, now that Kia was here he was glad to have the b
ackup.

  “Wait until you see this library, Kia. It’s like something out of Beauty and the Beast. Just unreal.” The women hooked arms and walked ahead, chatting away as if they’d always been friends.

  Gavin sighed. “Your mate keeps stealing mine.”

  Nathan grinned. “She’s a pushy little thing. But I love it.”

  For the first time, Gavin was able to listen to his brother talk about his mate without a stab of envy. Over the years he’d isolated himself from everyone including his brothers because it was just too painful to watch them fall in love, something he knew he’d never get to do. When your mate died young, you were doomed to mourn them for the rest of your life. He’d resigned himself to that being his fate.

  Now he’d been granted a second chance. He made a silent wish for help not to screw it up.

  The guards at the doors of the castle nodded respectfully as they passed. Evie knew the way having been there several times over the past few months as Gavin had scoured the royal archives for information. He still felt guilty at how cavalier he’d been when developing his serum. All he’d wanted was to end his torment and he’d been willing to take the chance that he’d end his life while doing it. Now that he was on the other side of it, he couldn’t ignore how completely his family would have suffered if he’d died.

  As soon as they walked through the double doors leading into the library, Kia stopped. “Whoa.” Her whisper carried through the wide open space.

  “I know. It’s the largest collection of dragon texts in the world. Not even the clans in Europe have such extensive records.”

  Evie clapped her hands. “I’m going back to the royal family albums. Nathan has been showing me the pictures and drawings of your ancestors.”

  While his brother and Evie settled at a table in the corner, Gavin went to the middle row of books. All of the medical research and texts were in that area. He pulled out a familiar volume and handed it to Kia. She looked at the cover, which was blank, and then at him.

  “What is this?”