“You can’t break me,” she whispered.
He’d been mated to a human. How many times had he had to hold himself back to keep from hurting her? Daphne wasn’t made of the same stuff. She was tougher, more durable than most. Just because she dressed like a girl didn’t mean she wanted to be coddled in the bedroom.
Or forest.
Ford paused. He blinked down at her.
Daphne prayed he hadn’t gotten lost in memories and that he hadn’t mistaken her for his wife. The fear gripped her and tore away her desire until she was left awkwardly staring up at him. She had a feeling that the next thing he would say would break her heart. She would be able to hear the lie if he tried to cover up what he’d been thinking.
“Do you think I’m going too easy on you?” His fingers slithered through her hair until he had her in his grasp. “I thought I was just starting.”
Her heart slowly picked up pace until it raced behind her ribs. Ford gently tugged on her hair and the sensation rippling across her scalp reignited the fires in her core. Still, she couldn’t shake the worry that had broken into her thoughts.
Ford’s hips moved away from hers. He put a hand between them, readying himself to enter her. When he looked into her eyes, she found herself telling him:
“Say my name.”
She caught the flash of his sharp canines. The head of his cock found her entrance and sent a jolt of pleasure through her. She wanted him inside her but forced herself to steady her breathing and wait for him to say it.
He lowered himself over her, every inch forward pushing him deeper inside her. When his lips found her ear, he whispered, “Are you ready, Daphne?”
Her relief released her from the hold she had over herself. The throb in her core multiplied until it echoed through her entire body, leaving waves in its wake.
Then, Ford did the unexpected. He buried his head in her shoulder. She felt his teeth rake across her skin as he pumped inside her. She thought nothing of it until he bit harder. And harder. Her skin broke and his groan sparked an orgasm in her.
She didn’t hide her scream. His name left her lips as she came undone beneath him. She dug her nails into his skin and held on. He didn’t stop his thrusting. Each stroke sharpened the sensation coursing through her until she knew nothing but the feel of his body and her own pleasure.
He brought her again right before he slipped out of her. Warmth covered her stomach. It dripped down her sides, leaving his scent across her skin. She tried to catch her breath, but her body refused to calm down. More aftershocks made her fingers and toes curl.
She’d never had an experience with a man leave her unraveled like this. There was no way she could go back to the cabin tonight. Her control had vanished. The persona she tried to maintain all the time wouldn’t be there to help her hold her tongue or leash her beast.
She rubbed the bite on her shoulder and wondered what meaning it could hold. Had he done it while in the heat of the moment? Or did he have intentions of keeping her?
Sitting up, she reached for the clothing she’d brought into the valley with her. Sleeping with Ford should have ridden her of the wild need for him that’d been driving her crazy. Yet, as she cleaned herself and his scent filled the air around her, she knew these feelings weren’t going anywhere any time soon. They had her in their grip. She could do nothing to fight them off. Not anymore, not after an experience like that.
“Follow me,” Ford said from behind her. “I can give you a ride home.”
She snorted. “You just gave me the ride of my life.”
His groan echoed in the night and made her grin despite her unspoken concerns. She followed him up a trail that led back to the cliff hanging over the valley. Ford took a moment to put on the clothes he’d left behind. Then he took her hand and walked her back into town.
Neither said anything, but her heart fluttered when he took her hand in his. Daphne wanted to ask—no, she wanted to beg him to take her back to his place. Instead, she kept her mouth shut. Tonight had been only to get this out of their system. Though she still swam in a puddle of confusing emotions, and Ford held her hand, that didn’t mean he hadn’t moved on.
“I have an early morning shift,” Ford said as he got into the driver’s side of his SUV.
“Ah,” was all she could manage to say.
Daphne didn’t know what that meant, though. Ford could have told her that for any number of reasons, from not wanting her around at all to wanting to make sure she had someone to protect her at all times. She wished she knew which was the case, because then she’d be able to argue. Instead, she sank into her seat and let her head fall against the window.
Chapter Ten
Daphne fell asleep in the passenger seat. Ford couldn’t help but smile. Their romp in the valley must have finally exhausted her. It seemed as though the weight she usually carried had been lifted just long enough for her to relax. Knowing that he could do that for her warmed him, though he wasn’t completely sure why.
Being around Daphne confused him. Everything he thought he knew was brought into question. Had his wife actually been his mate? If so, then why were his feelings for Daphne so intense? Could he blame it solely on his loneliness?
She’d been so quiet once they finished that he couldn’t read what she’d been thinking. They’d made an agreement before sex that it was only to satiate their intense chemistry, but Ford felt like nothing had changed. He still wanted her more than anything.
The fact that he couldn’t take her home pained him. He didn’t want her alone at any point in time. When he said he had an early morning shift, that meant he had to leave in the dark hours of the morning. If she spent the night at his place, she would be alone for hours.
At least Gavin’s cabin would be under constant surveillance. Ford would rest easy knowing that her brother and the others were looking over her while she slept. He cast a sidelong glance at Daphne as he put the SUV into park. He didn’t dare wake her, so he got out and went around to her side to unbuckle her and lift her into his arms.
The cabin daunted him, not because of its size or the obvious money put into it, but because of what it stood for and what it held. This had become the new clan’s home base. At any given moment, there were two to four dragons under its roof. And, if Ford wasn’t mistaken, their numbers had grown.
He swore to himself that he would never become part of another clan again, not even this one that had formed around him. They would hate him once they found out about his past. No clan would ever accept him again. Daphne deserved the love and support of family, not to be torn away from all that she knew, so she could protect him.
He clutched her tighter and pushed forward toward the cabin.
Conversation came to a halt the moment he stepped inside. All eyes turned on Ford. He said nothing, just nodded toward the sleeping woman in his arms so he could find her the right bed. Casey stood, his jaw tight.
Fire flared hot in Ford’s chest. Her brother’s disapproval pissed off Ford’s dragon. No one could tell him who he could love and cherish. If the beast had laid claim to her, and she had laid claim to him, Casey couldn’t fight it.
Ford swallowed his fire and shoved back those thoughts. Daphne deserved better. He would never give her everything the world owed her.