But then he kept snarling. Kept coming. Rian's body locked up against mine, his cock kicking inside me, and cum spurting into my channel over and over. Instead of feeling full, I felt comfortable. More than comfortable. A shimmering rush spread through me. Suddenly, my calm vanished. Rapture took over, running up my spine and straight out of my mouth. I screamed with the power of my release, my whole body—my wholebeing—shrieking in delight.
Wonder unfurled within me. I felt Rian. Not just his body. I felt him. His soul. The glory of the man. I had misjudged him. His dragon was a beast. A dominating, territorial, alphaanimal. That was the part of him that shoved me into a type of submission I didn't want. The part of him that demanded I be his. But there was also the man. Rian. Honorable and true. He craved my happiness, wanted to give me joy. I felt the tenderness he felt toward me. I shuddered under the instant knowledge of him. Not that it got too specific. Most of it was just sensations. I sensed him.
And then Rian was pulling out of me on a roar, “Galin!”
Hot streams streaked my back. I rose onto my forearms and looked over my shoulder to watch Rian arch into his release, his expression one of utter ecstasy. Profound bliss. As he met my stare, a tear slipped out of his eye. “I told you, Mate. You're mine. I've known all along.”
Mate. The word slammed through me. Then I felt his cum sink into me. No, not cum. It was his mating essence. A part of himself given into my keeping. He coated my back in it, growling and grunting through the endless pleasure, and my body absorbed it, right through my skin.
“You're mine!” Rian grabbed me, lifted me off the counter, and spun me as he brought me to the floor.
After laying me carefully upon the wood planks, he rose to his feet and gripped his cock. A look of pride and possession came over him as his hips jerked forward again and again, the thick, flushed head of his dick emerging from his grip with each ejaculation. Glittering ribbons lashed me, coating my chest, then belly, then thighs.
“Rub it in,” Rian growled. “Rub in my mating essence, Galin.”
I rubbed in the essence, that feeling of knowing him rushing through me with each drop that my body absorbed. “Rian,” I moaned under the onslaught of pleasure. “Rian, I love you.”
“I love you too, Mate.” Rian dropped to his knees and bent forward, releasing his cock to kiss me, even though he kept ejaculating. He fed at my lips, savoring every second. “I love you so much.”
I clutched at his back with every tense release.
But then he jerked back. “I need to cover you. Inside and out.” Panting, he rose to his knees. “Open your mouth, Mate.”
I opened my mouth, and Rian angled the next stream into it. The taste was almost sweet, and it tingled on my tongue. I swallowed, the effervescence traveling downward, spreading through me. Then more ribbons hit my face, and, moaning in unbelievable bliss, I rubbed them in.
“Yes,” Rian growled. “Absorb all I give you, Mate. I'm sinking into your soul. We will never be parted again.”
A flash of fear ran through me.
No. This was good. Miraculous. This was what I wanted. I'd been wrong about his domination. Rian didn't want me to be his slave. He wouldn't force me back into that role. Rian would free me. He'd uplift me. I finally had a true love who would never abandon me. I should rejoice.
But when Rian finally stopped claiming me, I shuddered under the weight of a new doubt. There I was, in the middle of all I'd ever wanted, and now, I didn't know if I wanted it anymore.
Rian picked me up and carried me upstairs to bed, pressing kisses all over my face as he went. It was romantic and blissful, but underneath the love that filled me, fear festered.
Chapter Forty-Three
I had just enough time to reassure Vashana before Rian's urges overtook him again. He fucked me throughout the night, allowing me only a few minutes of rest at a time. But I wasn't tired. He invigorated me and every revival of his cock brought a response from mine. The sunrise found me astride my mate, riding him eagerly, our bodies painted in warm yellow and pink.
“Oh, fuck!” I cried and came again. I didn't come as often as Rian, but it was more than I ever had in one session. And it did feel like one continuous session even though it had lasted hours.
“Give me all you've got, Mate,” Rian growled as he grabbed my hips and ground himself up into me. “Galin!” He locked up and gave me all he had too.
And he wasn't slowing down. As I writhed through the aftermath of my latest climax, Rian rolled me onto my back and pulled out to cover me yet again in his essence. I rubbed it in, my hands moving by instinct now, and gloried in the feeling of his tingling magic. Rian jerked forward, his stare locked on my fingers. I was rubbing his essence into my nipples, circling the hard nubs.
“You are the sexiest, most beautiful thing on the planet,” Rian declared. “And you're mine. I fucking knew it!” He roared, and another stream came forth. Arching back under its power, Rian let it stream over me then fell forward onto his hands, head hanging over mine. “I love you, Mate. My mate.”
“I love you too.” I eased him to the side so he could lie down. “But I've got to feed Vashana. And my employees will be here soon.”
“You can't leave me,” Rian said, still panting. “My dragon won't allow it. You can't even speak to someone else right now. I may tear them apart.”
“What?” I whispered.
“This is the mating I warned you of, my jewel.” He stroked my cheek. “It will be over in a few days, but until then, you must allow me to relay any messages you have for your employees.”
“Oh.” That feeling of submission returned. “All right.”
“Hey.” He rolled into a lean. “It's only for a few days. I'll be extra possessive of you after that, maybe for a few months, but you only need to be sequestered with me for these first days. Just until our bond solidifies. Then things will start to calm down. I will calm down. I promise.”
