Midnight Magic, page 103
He bumps the door to his bedroom open and places me on his bed, my back sinking into the plush softness of goose down. Morland kneels over me, his pants tenting under the pressure of his erection. He pulls his shirt from his waistband and starts unbuttoning. I sit up and run my hands under his shirt, feeling his skin and letting my fingers move over the ridges of his abdomen. Then I unbuckle his belt and open his pants so I can see him in all his glory.
MORLAND
I shrug out of my shirt. Sera pulls down my pants and my shorts and my cock is like a tension rod pointing right at her. She runs her tongue over her full lips and then leans in and licks the head of my penis. The heat is coming off her in waves. My skin responds to her touch wherever she makes the slightest contact. And when she takes me in her mouth, it’s all I can do to stay on my knees.
My hands are in her hair, tugging and caressing, easing. The muscles of her neck tense as she sucks my cock. I watch her take me in, glistening mouth open wide, and eyes closed, her hands moving over my thighs, cupping my balls, and squeezing my ass as my shaft slides in and out, disappearing between her lips.
I pull her away, not wanting to come. She smiles as her eyes meet mine.
“Mmm,” she moans as she pulls her thin pink sweater over her head.
Her bra is a matching soft pink lace. “You’re still overdressed,” I say, bending to undo her bra. I take her breast to my mouth, sucking her soft, wide nipples, waking them to attention with my tongue.
Sera sighs and leans back, slipping her pants over her hips and revealing tiny black panties. “Better?”
I shake my head. “Still wearing too much.”
I slide my hand into the waist band and move my hand around to cup her bare ass as I pull them off her.
SERAPHINE
My body thrums for his touch. Morland runs his hand over my thigh as he kisses my belly, his mouth pulling the tender skin, sucking, and tugging with his mouth. I lean back and spread my legs for him as he inches downward, eager for the sensation of his lips on the rest of me.
He crawls across the bed and ducks between my knees, kissing my inner thighs, moving gently, achingly upward. When he finally reaches my pussy, I imagine that I am so wet I am dripping. His tongue slips inside me, tasting me, moving over my flesh with painstaking slowness. Then the tip of his tongue touches my clit, ever so slightly, sending a zing of pleasure through my body from my toes to my scalp. Every inch of me wants more.
I groan as the agony of the pleasure mounts. I can’t wait any longer. Sensing my need, Morland takes my clit in his mouth and sucks me hard. I call out something unintelligible, not caring about the noise or the neighbors or anything at all.
I spread my legs wide and pull him to me, holding him by the hair as I thrust my pussy against his mouth. My body writhes under him. He’s my master. I am his slave, and I will do anything to please him. When I am almost to the edge I push him away, shaking my head in response to his questioning gaze.
“Together.” My voice is hoarse, and I can barely catch my breath as I roll Morland onto his back. His cock is rigid and ready. I straddle him and guide him inside me, savoring the sensations of fullness and pulsing and panting breaths.
He reaches for my breasts, sitting up to take them between his lips to suck them and nibble on my nipples. A gush of heat throbs inside me and I thrust down onto him, riding him with an abandon I have never felt before in my life. Morland throws himself back onto the bed, his hands on my hips as I take him in. I am the master now. I watch his face and feel powerful knowing that I am bringing him to this place. There is only him and me, and our pleasure.
He sits up again and moans into my ear, clutching my body, holding me to him. “Sera,” he whispers. “My god.”
When we come, it’s like an explosion of mutual power. Our climax is full with thrusting and pumping, throwing us together, making us cling to one another as if our lives depended on our proximity. He is everything. Everything is now. There is only this moment.
Only us.
Morland’s heart beats like a drum in my ear as I rest my head on his chest. It’s no longer racing, but instead a slow, steady pulse. Morland Harris is an attentive lover, and as we lay in his bed, I wonder if I have ever felt this comfortable with a man in my life.
“This is nice.” His voice is a rumble through his chest.
“It is.” I run my hands through the hair on his chest and watch as his skin contracts with the chills.
“You know, the moment we met, I thought you were someone special. Is that weird?” He doesn’t seem at all ashamed to be sharing this.
I shrug, thinking about it before I answer. “I don’t know if it’s weird, but there is definitely something… chemistry, energy… whatever it is, I like it.” I feel a smile spread across my face and wonder where the Sera I woke up with this morning has gone. I don’t ever bare my soul to others. I’m a dragon, we hoard things… even our thoughts.
MORLAND
I wait downstairs for Sera, feeling very aware suddenly of how big a mess this place is. I grab a few of the miscellaneous items that have collected by the door to the archive room in an attempt to clear a path. I never spent much time in the archive, except when people came to borrow something, or the library wanted something on loan. And as things are returned, I just pile them by the door, promising myself that one day I’d catalog everything and organize the space.
I push the back door open and carry the pile into the back room, shoving it on a shelf in the corner, for tending to later.
I don’t know why I hold on to all this stuff. I have no interest in the archaeology of paranormal races in general nor the history of Diablo Falls in particular. I mean, history is great, but I prefer to look ahead.
When I arrive back at the main archive room, I’m covered in dust. Sera comes over to me and brushes the larger patches off my chest.
“This was nice,” she says, smiling as she pats me down.
I take her chin in my hand and bend to kiss her. I know she has to leave, but I don’t want this afternoon to end.
When the kiss ends she pulls away and stands there with her eyes closed as if savoring the moment. “What’s happening here?” she whispers, her eyes still closed.
“I don’t know, but I’d like to find out if you would,” I say.
She opens her eyes and bites her lip. “I’d like that.” She tugs on my tee shirt and pulls me in for another kiss.
Her smartwatch buzzes, breaking the moment. She glances at the alarm. “I should go.”
“Oh! Let me grab the maps I have for your grandfather. One sec.” I turn and head for the shelf with all the tubes of paper rolled up and stacked. At least this part of the archive is organized and labeled.
I leaf through the rolls, pulling out the ones that mark the territories surrounding Diablo Falls and walk to the end of the aisle.
Sera’s attention is on one of the shelves across the room. She turns around when she hears me, a dark curved object in her hand.
“Where did this come from?” she asks, cradling the shriveled thing.
I shrug. “I don’t know. Everything in here belonged to my dad and grandfather.”
“So, you don’t know what it is?”
I shake my head. Uncertainty washing over me because I can’t read her tone.
She steps over to me, showing me the object. “It’s an egg claw. A dragon egg claw.”
“Dragon? Really?”
“Dragon shifter, actually.” Her voice is quiet, serious. “All dragon shifters are born with an egg claw. Like birds with egg teeth, it’s how we break out of our shells. The claws fall off when we’re newborns. It’s rare to find one. I mean, they are precious to us—to the clan. We don’t leave them behind. They contain primal energy.”
I had no idea. “Oh, then you should take it. Keep it. Bring it back to your clan.”
“Are you sure? I mean, I think the elders will be interested in it. If it isn’t from our clan, then they would want to return it to the rightful one.”
“Of course. Please, take it. It doesn’t belong here.”
She smiles. “Thank you. Truly.”
We pack the maps and the claw into a box, and I walk her out to the sidewalk. As we step outside, a black car pulls up, her grandfather’s driver at the wheel.
“That was fast,” I say, indicating the car.
“We did a mind meld.” She winks at me and smiles then leans in and kisses me goodbye. “Can I call you?” she asks.
“Please.” I watch her climb into the car and roll away, curious to know what her grandfather thinks of that kiss.
SERAPHINE
“And you say this was just sitting on the shelf in a storage closet?” Grandfather cradles the egg claw in his hands, turning it gently to inspect it. “In the open?”
“It’s more of a storage room, actually. All kinds of things were shoved in there. It’s a complete mess.”
“And you went there because he has some Atlantean artifacts?”
I shrug, feeling foolish. “Yes, sir. He said his grandfather did research on their magic.”
“Well, at least you were able to bring this back. The energy is almost undetectable, but still living. I think we may be able to trace it.”
I blow out my breath, relieved. “Do you really think so?”
“We can try.” He removes his monocle and places it in his vest pocket, then takes his jacket off, folding it over the back of his chair. “Let’s take in the night air before we begin, yes?”
“But we’re within the territory.” Dragons have been banned for so long that it’s almost second nature that we don’t dare shift while we are here.
The great Romeo Valfensys waves a hand, dismissing my concern. “We’ve signed the agreement. The rest is just formalities now. Don’t you worry about it. Now, let us fly—we’ve got a long night ahead of us.”
Valfensys is magnificent in his dragon form. He’s descended from the northern clans, and as such, he bears the forked tail and double rows of spiked ridges over the top of his head and down to the tips of his wings. He is dark blue and green, with golden yellow eyes and a pair of long coiled horns protruding from his head, arching back into the air.
Like my grandfather, I am also blue green, but my eyes are dark and where he has two horns, I take after my mother’s line of eastern dragons, and have a crown of spiked horns that splay out from my face like blue flames. As a female, I am naturally larger than Valfensys, which means nothing to a dragon, as he has been victorious in more battles than I shall ever see.
We soar through the night, weaving through the tops of the trees. I follow Valfensys, content to enjoy his wake until he bursts through the canopy into the clear moon-bright sky and heads toward the twin peaks of the Devil’s Crown, and the famous Diablo Falls.
He dips down and skims over the surface of the lake, with me behind him. It’s been so long since we’ve been able to fly over these lands. Neither of us speaks, we just take it all in.
We land at the mouth of one of the old caves, located high in the mountains above Diablo Falls. The cave is only accessible to someone with wings. The cave is abandoned. Birds might have landed here from time to time, but our scent will never leave this mountain. No creature would dare take shelter in a dragon cave.
It is time. Valfensys’ voice rings through my dragon mind. Come Seraphine.
I bow to my grandfather. Yes, Elder.
He opens his talons and places the stolen egg claw on the cross, gently nudging it into place.
We position ourselves over the energy lines that run through the center of this mountain and through the earth. Ley lines are powerful conduits for magic and power, and here, two of those lines intersect. They are what draws the paranormal beings to Diablo Falls; it’s what makes this place so special to us all.
Valfensys stands with his head over the cross carved into the granite floor. I take my place opposite him, and we bow together, leaning in until our heads touch. Once joined, we lower our faces to the floor, touching the ancient cross and the claw with the tips of our snouts.
The energy ripples through me on contact.
Valfensys speaks the ancient words through our minds. He channels the energy up into our huge bodies and asks for assistance waking the essence of the egg claw.
A cloud of twinkling white mist rises in the air, surrounding us, bouncing off the stone walls and swirling slowly over our bodies. It’s the magic of the past. The essence of deep knowing that lingers in the air. The mist is cold and the pull of it is powerful, spinning around and around until it finds the center of the cross and turns into a vortex.
The funnel of mist seeks out the cross, looking for an escape. But as it leaves, it must channel through us. The flashes come unbidden. The essence of the claw wakes and grabs hold.
Fear clutches my heart. I shriek into the cave, aware that my voice pierces the night and echoes through the canyon. Valfensys urges me to hold steady. I close my eyes and focus all my energy on the claw.
The youngling wakes from its gestational slumber and tears at the egg.
Flash.
He—it is a he—breaks through the leathery shell and punches the opening wider.
Flash.
Human hands reach in and tear the rest of the egg away. The youngling cries out in fear.
Flash.
Harsh light blazes into the shell, blinding the youngling as those same human hands reach in for the youngling.
Flash.
The feel of rough, icy hands on hot dragon flesh.
Flash.
The shriek of the youngling as he is torn from the safety of his shelter.
Flash.
The whip of a black-scaled forked tail swinging into view as the youngling is forced into a metal cage and the door slammed shut.
The vortex of mist is gone, sucked through the cross-line in the stone. I look up at Valfensys, whose tears fill his eyes and run down his snout. He blinks and looks at me and nuzzles his nose against mine, joining my tears with his. Acknowledging my pain.
The youngling is of our clan. My thought leaves my mind before I have time to doubt. I feel it. How?
Valfensys closes his eyes. Our souls belong to each other. We are one, at our core.
I can’t bear it. The pain he experienced. I carry it now. Will I carry it forever?
My grandfather’s voice is soft. Yes. We owe it to him at the very least. It is a harsh truth. The good news is he lives.
Alive? His words surprise me. Can you be certain?
I am certain.
I shift into my human form and stand naked before my elder. I am too excited for dragon form. My mind is moving too fast for formality. “What happens next?”
Valfensys bows his head to me, inviting me to touch the tiny smooth place between his eyes. It’s a gesture of family and honor and bond. I lay my hand on his scales as his words echo through my mind.
We investigate. We make a plan. We bring him home.
MORLAND
I wake the following morning feeling like a teenager. Sera fills my head as I hop out of bed and spend extra time in the shower. My sister calls it manscaping, but after the adventures I had yesterday with Sera, I want to show her that for whatever reason, I feel connected to her in a deep and unexplainable way. Sure, the sex was fantastic, but I think that’s doubly true because of whatever link there is between us.
While I am in the shower, I remember a time long ago when my father and grandfather had two of those dragon claws. I’ve decided to take the day and clean out the storage room so I can find the other one and give it to Sera. I am not into history, but I could feel the importance of the claw Sera found yesterday.
When I step into the archive room, the first thing I see is our dusty footprints on the floor. I follow them down the aisle and discover the imprint of Sera’s ass in the dust on the shelf. The sight of it makes my insides tighten and I feel my cock press against my jeans.
I close my eyes—remembering the smell of her. The feel of her skin under my hands. If I am not careful, I am going to have to get back in the shower and take care of business.
My cell phone dings in my pocket. I pull it out and see a text from Sera.
* * *
You have time tomorrow after the meeting?
She punctuates the text with an eggplant emoji and a winky face.
I can’t help but laugh as I type my reply.
I am yours. All day.
Some exciting news about the claw. I’ll explain when I see you.
My cheeks hurt I’m grinning so wide.
Can’t wait.
I type the words and feel the truth of them in my bones. I can’t wait to see her. I can’t wait to talk to her. I can’t wait to hear her news.
I can’t wait to bring her the second dragon claw. I know it’s here somewhere; I just have to find it.
SERAPHINE
I stare at the eggplant emoji, unable to believe I actually sent it to him. What the fuck, Sera? He’s going to think you’re a whore.
Something tells me that isn’t true, but still, I am shocked at my own behavior. I got caught up in the moment. In the memory. In the anticipation of what’s to come.
He’s all I have thought about since I got home this morning. Grandfather and I spent hours flying after we connected with the essence of the dragon who shed the egg claw. I am not as powerful as my grandfather—as an elder, he’s got power stronger than mine by an order of magnitude. I marvel at his ability to channel the claw’s owner.
We don’t know yet who he is, but we can use the details we have learned to start tracking him down. His scales were black. His tail forked. He’s definitely born of a northern line. We connected with him and got visions of his birth—that means he’s from our clan.
