Something primal in him snapped. “Too late.”
“What—?”
He bit her.
His fangs pierced the soft skin where her neck met her shoulder, and she yelped. His arm tightened around her as thetang of her blood flooded his mouth, hot and primal, stoking the mating fever he was already wrestling.
A growl rumbled from deep in his chest, desire flooding him as he counted to three before he withdrew his fangs and soothed the punctures with his tongue. His beast quieted, sated—for now.
Breathing like she’d run miles, Ash shoved free. Her eyes wide, she clapped a hand to her neck. “Youbit me.”
“How did you imagine a dragon’s claim-marking happened?” he drawled, his own insides shaky. “Licked like a kitten?”
Her tempting mouth tightened. If her daggered glare could kill, he’d be on the floor bleeding.
“Don’t run. Need to see the mark has taken—my dragon might not like you,” he drawled.
Kaelthar growled in his head, and Race bit back a wince at the lie.
“Oh really?” she bit out. “Then why did it let me snuggle up to it at night?”
His damn dragon chuffed and settled in.
With a deep breath, Race peeled her hand away from her neck. His heart pounded at the sight of the twin punctures, already darkening into a crescent bruise. Visible proof of his claim.
He allowed only a trace of venom to seep into her—enough to mark and protect, not endanger her. The coppery tang of her plasma lingered on his tongue, causing his need for her to spiral. “You’ll be fine?—”
“Fine?Fine?” Her cheeks flushed, her eyes flashing. “I chose Koal, but youmate-marked me deliberately!” She pounded her small fists on his chest, her powers prickling his skin. “Now I’m bound toyou!”
The rage on her face sparked his own ire. “Be thankful it wasme. And it’s not fucking permanent, so calm the hell down. If Itruly mate-marked you, you’d be climbing me like a damn cat in heat.”
Her chest heaved, her hands clenched. She looked like she wanted to stab him until there was nothing left of him.
“And I would already be fucking you so hard against this wall, you wouldn’t be able to walk for days afterward.”
Her mouth opened, then shut. With a growl that rivaled his dragon’s, she stomped off, slipping through the narrow cave mouth.
Fuck!He thumped his brow against the wall. The air hung thick with the mingled scents of her anger, arousal, and his desire. Hell, the metallic tang of her blood had his entire body strung tight with lust.
With other shifters, a full dose of venom would be painful for her—but not deadly.
From him, it would be fatal. His primordial bloodline ensured it. A true claiming bite would kill anyone who wasn’t a noble-blooded she-dragon.
The gods had made certain of that.
Too bad, he didn’t give a shit about preserving some ancient lineage. This was about protecting Ash.
Her soft laughter pulled him out of his frustration. The drain on his powers weighed heavily on him, and the urge to hunt and feed to regain his strength gnawed at his psyche. He stalked outside and stopped dead.
The thread of calm he fought for threatened to snap.
Ash sat there on the log, the same one the whelp had been on, her knees drawn up with her arms wrapped around them. Koal crouched near her, stoking the fire, roasting something. She showed no signs of the fury he’d witnessed moments earlier—all too cozy with fucking Koal. Whom she chose.
Oursss, his dragon grumbled, scales pushing to escape his skin.
Calm down,Race snapped, despite his own ire.She doesn’t know draconic ways. She’s claim-marked now.
Silence, while Race battled for control.
