“Here we are,” Jade said, pushing open the door to his office.
It was familiar at this point, thanks to my various visits, but now a lingering unease hung in the air. I stepped inside, vaguely comforted by the scent of books, but that comfort vanished as Jade shut the door behind me—and locked it.
The hairs rose on the back of my neck. I cleared my throat.
“So, um... Is everything all right?” I asked.
Jade gave me another knife-sharp smile. “Of course. Why, is something on your mind?”
I shuffled on the balls of my feet. “You seem upset.”
“Not at all.” Jade’s tone was genuine. “There’s nothing to be upset about. I simply promised you a private tour of my office, did I not?”
I huffed nervously, crossing my arms. “All right, let’s not beat around the bush. You’re annoyed at my... illicit behavior during dinner, aren’t you?”
He exhaled an airy laugh. “Not at all, dear Alaric.”
I squinted at him suspiciously. His tone of voice and body language were perfectly normal, yet his poison aura was thicker than fog. This dragon was a master manipulator. And for some fucking reason, that only intensified my attraction to him. Maybe I was weak to his particular flavor of poison. Or maybe I was just messed up in the head, too.
Jade circled me like a predator assessing his prey. His eyes were emerald shards pinning me in place. I couldn’t have run even if I wanted to. But I didn’t want to. I wanted to know the depths of Jade’s depravity. Some unfathomable part of my soul craved the experience.
They don’t say ‘curiosity killed the cat’ for nothing.
I stood motionless, giving Jade the floor. I only breathed in and out, filling my nose with the scent of old books and rich alpha musk. Jade’s scent was tantalizing. Every whiff further ignited my desperation for him.
Finally, Jade stopped and examined me for a long moment. Then he chuckled warmly. “You’re adorable, Alaric.”
I blinked in surprise, then scoffed. “Come on. Don’t waste my time with all that build-up just to call me cute. If you’re going to do something, then do it.”
Another slow laugh escaped him. “Patience is a virtue.”
“Somehow I don’t think you’re the virtuous type.”
His long legs carried him closer to me in a single stride. “I’m not,” he agreed. “But a little foreplay is fun.”
My heart skittered like a pebble tumbling down a cliff. His nose was inches away from mine, his lips dangerously within range. Jade’s every motion was sinuous and calculated. For a moment, I imagined him shifting into his dragon form and swallowing me whole like a snake. I shuddered at the strangely sensual fantasy.
Jade did not swallow me whole. Instead he cupped my cheek with his pale hand, caressing me like a priceless piece of china. In spite of their jagged edges, his green eyes flickered with real warmth. It reminded me that—whatever was about to happen—Jade truly cared about me.
I gasped as my collar suddenly tightened. While Jade’s gaze hypnotized me, his other hand sneaked up to my neck. Two fingers slipped beneath the leather band and tugged it sharply, constricting the air from my lungs.
A hot jolt of arousal coursed through me. My pulse quickened. The slight lack of breath made me dizzy with pleasure. I could still breathe, but it was at Jade’s whim, and that was perplexingly erotic.
Jade beamed with adoration. “You’re going to be a good kitty and do as I say,” he stated. There was no room for argument.
I swallowed, then nodded. In a few brief seconds he’d rendered me too aroused to speak. But that response wasn’t good enough for Jade.
“Say it,” he insisted.
I forced words past the sudden dryness in my throat. “I’ll do as you say,” I promised.
“Good kitty.” His praise filled me with velvety heat. “If you wish to stop at any time, please say ‘swans.’”
I snorted, remembering the swan towels I’d tossed off the bed in a fit of rage. That felt like so long ago now.
“All right,” I agreed.
“If for whatever reason you cannot speak, tap your hand twice like this.” Jade demonstrated, tapping his index and middle finger firmly against his opposite hand. “I’ll never put you in a position where you can’t do that. Are we clear?”
