Page 44 of Twilight of Embers
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CILLIAN
The second her scent teased my nose, I was gone. That mix of jasmine and fresh dew. So innocent. So pure. So mine.
My canines pressed against my gums, wanting to lengthen, wanting to bite. I needed to mark her so that the whole world knew she was mine.
Mine.
The single word was such a dangerous thought. Especially for someone as twisted as me. I knew that whomever my mate was wouldn’t exactly be getting the best end of the deal.
They’d have to deal with my overbearing possessiveness. My obsessive protectiveness. My need to claim over and over again.
But it wasn’t without reason. I had a list of enemies a mile long. And any of them would give their right arm to get their hands on someone important to me.
The fact that I’d spent the past few weeks dispatching one of the worst of my enemies, my father, didn’t ease the feral panic coursing through me. There were too many others who would do anything to get to this woman.
Hayden.
My mouth curved silently around her name as I took her in.
Maddox had laid out the circumstances to me when he’d called. He’d been skeptical at first. An unprotected female dragon was beyond rare. The females of our kind had been slowly dying out, and many of them didn’t have the ability to shift. But when Knox had called with the certainty that she was our mate, I’d been on the first plane out of Rhode Island and back to California.
Our mate.
And gods, was she beautiful. As she stood there, frozen in place, taking in my massive form, my beast roared in pleasure. He craved her submission. But my human half craved her trust.
She was tiny, almost fragile looking, at least compared to my own size. Her blonde hair curled around her shoulders in long waves. The sweater she wore hugged her curves in a way that had my dick straining against my zipper. But those eyes. Those violet eyes grabbed me by the throat and wouldn’t let go.
“Hayden.” My voice held an edge of a growl, but it couldn’t be helped. My beast was battling for dominance, and I was doing everything I could to hold him back.
“Hi?”
She squeaked the word as if it were a question.
Cáel pulled her tighter into his side, sensing her uncertainty.
My eyes narrowed on him. No one would keep me from my mate, not even one of my brothers, one of my bond. I let my eyes flash in warning, telling Cáel exactly what would happen to him if he tried to intervene.
His eyes bled to silver in challenge.
I strode forward, extending a hand to Hayden. “I’m Cillian. Welcome to our home.”
Hayden stared down at my palm as if it were a snake but finally extended her own hand to take mine.
The moment our skin touched, fire coursed through me. The burn was exquisite. Pleasure and pain in equal measure.
Mine, my beast roared.
The knowledge was so deep it was as if it were at the very core of my being, burned into my bones.
Hayden wavered on her feet, her pupils dilating. I moved in to steady her as Cáel held her up, glaring at me.
“Are you all right?” I did everything I could to gentle my voice. The last thing I wanted to do was terrify the poor girl.
She blinked up at me, her focus returning. “S-sorry. I keep doing that. I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”
Of course, she didn’t. Because Hayden had no idea what she was. Not a single clue.
