It couldn’t even be fully blamed on the crown, either. They had just been around long enough that they didn’t see the need to change in their ways, and while it was possible their sons could make a difference… it was unlikely considering they had also been trained within the military. I frowned, wondering who would take the throne when the queen decided that she no longer wanted to rule. I imagine one of her sons, considering there was no blue phoenix to take her place.
That nervous tug in my chest had me feeling almost dizzy, and not because of the void I was floating through. No. It was because of the obvious concern that I’d been ignoring regarding Maya’s shifted form. Phoenixes didn’t normally look like that. I may not have met any outside of our queen, most of them gone by the time I was in school, but I’d seen pictures. Portraits. They weren’t that stunning blue color normally… except for one type. That concept meant far more trouble than even we knew what to do with. It didn’t change anything about Maya’s place in our life, but it did put her in danger. My dragon snarled aggressively in my head, but it was right as the portal came to a dead stop, my hand tightening around Maya’s as I felt everything surge forward after a slight pause. I groaned as everything spun around us, making me know we were close.
I inhaled sharply as Maya’s magic expanded out and grew, causing my dragon to push forward past my control. I tried to hang onto some level of hold, but I ultimately failed, and right as we hit the border into the Dreki realm, everything spun and my control snapped completely, the bastard inside of me just having waited until I was distracted enough to break free.
As we fell forward, I instantly tugged Maya against me. We landed roughly on the hard ground, her body cushioned by mine as I heard Croy let out a low, pained groan. I squinted my eyes, trying to see past the burst of light surrounding us, distantly hearing Marco and Henry. Why the fuck was it so sunny here? The sound of the voices around us had me rolling us so that Maya was hidden underneath me and protected.
“Ledger?” Maya’s soft voice had my cock hardening as I pulled back, finding her face happy and surprised. Safe. She was safe. My dragon let out a low growl as her eyes flared and her hands gripped me tighter. I watched a flush invade her face as I tracked the way her pulse quickened and her desire filled the air. I swallowed down a low groan right as my dragon pushed forward again, taking me off guard because I’d never tapped down my control again.
Which was the only excuse I had for when I sunk my teeth into the soft skin of her neck, puncturing her pulse so I could finally taste her blood.
6
Maya
I couldn’t lie, I wasn’t completely surprised when Ledger’s teeth sank into my neck. In fact, I was rather excited, a needy whimper breaking from my throat as pleasure coated my entire frame in a heated, almost honey-like texture. It felt like my blood itself thickened and slowed in my veins, causing me to feel needy yet full at the same time. Overstimulated and like I was going to die if I wasn’t touched. It felt absolutely intoxicating and euphoric.
His teeth not only felt sharper and more dangerous than the others’ had, but they seemed to sink deeper and right into my pulse, making my entire body tremble as our connection vibrated until it melded together. I didn’t realize it until he let out a low growl against my neck, but my nails were biting into his scalp as I held his head against my throat, wanting him to drink from me, loving the connection it was forming even if I knew this was potentially extremely dangerous to me.
When a pained sound finally broke through my throat, it was because of the way my skin was pulsing around his teeth and the pull on my blood that I could feel leaving my body. It was heavily mixed with desire, though, the need for him coursing through me. I attempted to press my thighs together, wanting to alleviate the frustration but only finding myself more turned on by his large body between my legs and his hard length rubbing against me. My breathing was a near pant as I felt a near orgasmic wave of pleasure run over my skin, the fluttering in my chest increasing while responding to the deep rolling growl in his throat. I could feel our creatures connecting, something I found myself wanting that more than anything.
In the moment it was literally all that mattered.
“Ledger,” I moaned his name as my entire body jolted with a sensation that felt like being electrocuted, my phoenix surging forward and what I now knew to be my magic running over his skin. My teeth pulsed painfully as I tried to pull away from him, wanting to mark him in the same way, but his teeth wouldn’t let go. They were buried in my neck, lower than Marco’s bite, and I could feel blood leaking down my skin, the scent of it only making him more excited. His dragon was beyond thrilled, and it almost convinced me to wait to mark him.
But I knew we were going to be interrupted soon. I could feel it in my other bonds.
When an angry voice broke through the haze of pleasure, Ledger’s grip tightened on me and his magic jolted through me again, causing a mini-climax to explode through my center like a volcanic eruption. It distracted me enough that my eyes fluttered shut and my thighs opened further to make room for him, my hips rocking shamelessly against him as I tried to find a way to get more of him. Under my fingers or inside of me. I didn’t care. I just needed more of Ledger completely.
How could someone be angry right now? I didn’t understand that.
The concern through my other bonds grew, and while it tugged at my subconscious, it wasn’t enough to pull me from the moment. Neither was the lightheaded sense of pleasure or the way that the world around me seemed to flicker. I think I knew he was taking too much blood, but my hands only tightened on his hair, my body warring with the need to mark him while also wanting him to continue, knowing that the more he took, the more pleasure it would bring me.
A sad whimper left my lips as his teeth finally released my neck, his tongue running over my delicate, tender skin there. I tried to lock my legs around his hips, worried about where he would go now that he was done. Unfortunately, the complicated and heavy dress proved my point on why I should never have had to wear it as it tangled against my leg, making it impossible to hold him to me.
Especially when he was suddenly ripped away from me.
I felt loss hit me as my breathing hitched and my eyes attempted to open. Reality was trying to push its way back in, but I wasn’t ready just yet. Something big had just happened, and while I didn’t fully understand what, I knew I had to mark Ledger before I could feel normal again. He was mine. He marked me, which meant I was his and he was mine. I had to mark him back. I had never felt so driven by an animalistic urge before.
“Shit.” Ledger’s low snarl almost sounded pained, and the sound had my eyes snapping open in search of him. Instead I found Anani leaning over me, his icy arctic eyes filled with concern while he cupped my jaw. I could see that he was talking, but all I could hear was Ledger’s dragon that was creating a low rumble that filled the space. My head began to spin and my neck pulsed, causing a growl to break through Ledger’s mouth from somewhere nearby. It caused my need for him to push forward in a surge once again, and when I tried to sit up and Anani applied gentle pressure to my shoulder, the legitimate growl of frustration that broke through my lips had his eyes widening in surprise. It was something I would have to say sorry for later.