Kissed By The Dragon (Paranormal Shifter) Read online

  “No, I’m sorry. I just didn’t know that they make hotels this nice.”

  He laughed. “Is this intimidating? I don’t even think about it anymore.”

  “What do you do for a living?” I was curious as to how he could afford a place like this. I knew that I couldn’t in a thousand years.

  “It’s kind of hard to explain and it’s incredibly boring.” He shrugged at me, and I wanted to know. I know that it all was a little strange, that I had no right to push this early, but I couldn’t understand what he was being so defensive about.

  “Are you in town for business?” I asked the question, not knowing what I wanted the answer to be.

  He looked confused. “Not really, no. I’m here to check things out.” It was vague.

  I didn’t know how I felt about his evasion. “What are you checking out?” I pushed, hoping that he was going to explain it to me as soon as he could. I needed to know the answer and this was the first time that I ever felt something insincere from him. It made me feel a little strange and a little nervous. “You know what; I could use some fresh air.”

  He led the way to the balcony without words. Not knowing what to do, or what to say, I sat in silence and stared out into the night sky. Kansas City isn’t as bright as Vegas, but still it was a little too bright to really get a good look at the stars. Still. I stared, trying to find some meaning to everything that was happening around me, to the whirlwind of a date that I had just been through. Alistair was behind me, looking on in concern. ““Are you a drug dealer or something?” I asked, but my voice found a certain desperate quality.

  “No, no, nothing like that. I promise. It’s just hard to explain. My family has some money, and I really don’t have to do a whole lot, but I technically have a job.”

  “Why?”

  “Because it’s what they expect from me. Isn’t that the reason behind so many of our actions?” He didn’t look like he believed it any more than I did, but I was certain that he didn’t have a better way to explain it, so I left it at that.

  CHAPTER THREE

  We spent a long time in silence on the balcony. I had no idea what he was thinking, but there was something about his cologne that was making me heady. It was a deep musky scent that seemed to be nothing, but natural to his personality, with hints of sweetness hidden just beneath the surface. I couldn’t quite make out the floral addition, maybe orchids. Probably orchids. I was still thinking about how to describe the scent of this amazingly handsome man when I noticed that he had moved closer.

  “Excuse me.” I shifted away from him, thinking at first that I had moved over.

  “No, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize that I had shifted over. My mind was somewhere else.”

  “I know how that feels.” I laughed because I had been doing the exact same thing.

  I noticed how his eyes jumped and laughed when he was amused. Something about it made me happy. He seemed perfect and I wondered if he was a little too perfect for reality. There was something strange going on here, I was starting to feel like something was going to happen and that inevitability caused a heady feeling to slip through my bones.

  I looked at him and our eyes locked together. His were vivid and bright, intelligence did not hide in his soul; instead, intelligence presented itself shining out and invading the world around it. The brilliance in his eyes was the type that made people feel more intelligent just being around him. I wondered how that could work, especially when you could see that this man had the soul of someone a thousand years older than he physically was. An old soul, that’s what my mother called it before she died. I felt a small, fluttering noise make its way into my ear. “What was that?”

  “Huh?” He asked the question, looking as confused as I felt. I hoped that I didn’t have a dumbstruck look on my face, but if it was there, nothing I did would matter.

  “What did you say?” I reiterated, hoping that the numbness of the moment hadn’t made me miss something, but still, I had the nagging sensation of not quite catching a bit of the conversation.

  “I didn’t say anything.” He told me, his face screwing up in remembrance. Our eyes broke contact and I lost the feeling that I was under a spell.

  “I swear, I heard you say something.” I shook my head, trying to clear the cobwebs that had started forming in the intensity of the moment.

  “No, I don’t think so.” He reached up to his face and gently ran his finger down to trace his chin. I wondered what that meant, but for some reason, my mind wasn’t working properly. I struggled to catch my breath and wondered how long I had been holding it.

  “I’m sure I heard something. I just didn’t catch it.” I used my statement as a reason to look away, to gather and center myself because for some reason it felt like my mind was reeling out of control. There was something strange going on and I just couldn’t put my finger on it. Goosebumps started to form on my arms and neck and I shuddered involuntarily.

  “Do you have a chill?” He looked concerned, his eyes widening as he looked at me.

  “No, someone just walked over my grave, probably.” I shrugged it off. “But let’s go back inside anyway.” I wondered if I should leave, but decided against it. In truth, I wanted to know where this day was going to end. I was curious because of the awkward moments and wasn’t sure if I wanted him to get closer. The thought of it made me a little nervous, but still I wondered how soft his skin was and how sweet his kisses were. I couldn’t keep it out of my mind, no matter how many times I tried to force it. I struggled to keep my mind where it needed to be. I tried to remind myself that I had only known this man for a few days, but still I wanted to know what his kisses felt like. To say the least, I was confused.

  I had spent too much time wondering, I guess. I pulled myself out of the reverie and looked at him when he had said something that I did not quite catch. He must have seen the confused look because he repeated his question. “Do you want something to drink?””

  “Oh, yeah, that sounds great.”

  “What would you like?” He started to list off possibilities.

  “I’ll take a ginger ale.” It was an offhanded choice, but it was something that worked well for me. Ginger Ale has always been a noncommittal drink, belonging somewhere in the middle of the decision making process, and that’s exactly where I was at the moment. I didn’t know if I wanted to stay or not, but he brought my drink without speaking, and I popped it open, relishing the hissing sound that the release of carbonation made. It made me smile as the flying bubbles landed on my lip like a thousand little kisses.

  “Is there something wrong?”

  “No.” I sipped directly from the can, ignoring the cup that he had placed in front of me. “This is perfect.”

  Alistair looked down at his own cup, flushing a little at the sight of the liquid poured into it. “I hope you had a good time.”

  “I had a blast!” I told the truth. It was awkward to be in that room with a thousand naughty little thoughts beginning to run through my mind, but still I had enjoyed myself. Alistair had proven himself to be a perfect gentleman, but I wondered what he would be like if he loosened up a bit. “Do you always sit so straight?”

  He looked down. “Do I?”

  “I just noticed that you keep your back incredibly straight. I just wondered if there was a reason for that.”

  “I was raised with good posture.” He shrugged slightly, but seemed to make an effort to loosen up the muscles in his back.

  I laughed. “I’m sorry, you’re not used to this, are you?”

  “Not any more than you are, obviously.” He smiled at me and I was honestly sure that it was the first honest smile that I had seen him give all day. There wasn’t a single trace of his normal nervousness in it. I guess that was the moment that I realized that he was just as worried about this date as I had been. I can’t really explain it, but in that moment there was a strange emotional clicking. Things just started to fall together.

  I have to admit that I star
ed at him for a long time after that. He was staring at me too, so I suppose that it was alright for us to be doing. It was a strange kind of moment; not exactly the kind that you hear about in fairy tales, rather the kind of strange disconnected moment shared between two people. There was respect exchanged and I was afraid that we had both just friend-zoned ourselves, but it didn’t turn out that way.

  We were standing a few steps away with nothing between us. It was a strange sensation and everything began to move in slow motion as we moved in unison toward each other. One step, then another, then another, and as soon as it was formed, the gap between us was closed.

  I had to tilt my head up to continue looking at him. I noticed that his jaw was heavily chiseled. He looked like a light tan statue and I was starting to feel a little giddy. It wasn’t because of anything that I had ate or drank, but rather his scent, the delicious fragrance of musky spices, vanilla and coconut. I loved that scent. It was strange and I couldn’t place the cologne. I would have to admit, however, that I don’t have much experience in naming men’s colognes, so it might not have been as exotic as it seemed to me. The truth was, however, that I didn’t care, the scent was invigorating; it invaded my nose and made my sinuses start to dance. I’m sorry, that was completely cheesy, but I really don’t know if there is a way to explain it all in any better way.

  So, where was I? Oh yeah, my sinuses were dancing as I took in the man-tastic scent that he carried around. I wasn’t sure if the scent was just for me or if it was one that he wore every day, but that didn’t really matter. I found myself wanting to kiss him, no, the temptation was something more than that. I wanted to taste his lips, devour their softness. It wasn’t very ladylike, but I had never been accused of being traditional in any way shape or form. Boring, yes, traditional, not really. That’s the way I’ve always lived my life and it was going to continue. I couldn’t help but notice that I wanted to kiss him. I mean, really, really wanted that, right then. The impulse was so strong that I couldn’t stop myself from slipping onto my toes, increasing my height by the few inches it would take to plant a sweet little peck on his cheek. It would have to do, it wasn’t what I really wanted, but it would have to do.

  I must have startled him with my somewhat sudden movement because he turned toward me with wide eyes. What started out as a peck on the cheek with a small, muttered “thank you for the wonderful time,” had turned into a full-blown kiss. We both froze, looking back. I can tell how embarrassing it would have been had there been any other witnesses. I pulled away, suddenly feeling the weight of my previous self-consciousness.

  Stepping back, I couldn’t help but notice that my head was spinning. “I didn’t mean to.” I was gasping for air, trying to reel my mind back into control.

  He just looked at me, and I couldn’t identify his expression. I was deathly afraid that he was going to call me a tramp, a slut or a whore. I don’t know why, but for some reason, he just struck me as some kind of perfect knight on a perfect horse that would never besmirch his honor by doing something as inexcusable as kissing on the first date. I don’t know why I thought that this man was that old fashioned; it must have just been the way he carried himself and my own misconceptions about the way old time gentlemen actually behaved. Whatever it was, it didn’t really matter because he slowly moved toward me with a confident swagger.

  There was magic in his steps and I felt myself wanting to use the word swoon, even if I really didn’t know what it meant. (I looked it up later by the way; it means to faint. You probably already knew that.) Anyway, he was moving closer and my heart started beating faster. His hand slowly moved up to my cheek, lying along the line of my jaw as his thumb pushed his hair back. “I’m going to kiss you now.” The statement was a harsh, rugged whisper and all I could do was nod. When he saw my blessing, his lips descended on mine. It wasn’t an awkward kiss that hadn’t been planned, instead it flared up with an intensity that I still can’t find the words for.

  I looked at him for a moment before my eyes drifted shut. His eyes were closed and I wondered if he had given himself over to the moment just as I was starting to do. He wrapped his arms around me, pulling me into him and I could feel his hard chest against my breasts. My breath started to quicken, as his mouth seemed to devour me. My body was reacting to his touch in the most intimate ways and the scent that clung to his skin was starting to make my head swim. I wondered how I could ever stay in my right mind when being kissed like he was kissing me.

  We were both breathing heavily when he pulled away. I felt like I had just ran a marathon, my body was struggling for breath from the intensity and I had no idea what he was going to do. Frankly, I didn’t care, I was tingling all over and had no idea how long the kiss had actually lasted. You could have told me a second or an hour and I would believe it.

  “That was…” He trailed off, unable to finish what he was trying to say.

  “Intense.” I finished his sentence.

  “I hope I didn’t…” Again, he couldn’t find the right words.

  “I enjoyed it.” I think my smile was shy, because I was definitely feeling a little self-conscious in that moment.

  “That’s good.” He let out a long exhalation and ran his fingers through his hair. “I’m glad.”

  “I’m glad too.” I looked at him. “Damn, that sounded cheesy, didn’t it?”

  “A little.” He shrugged at me and shifted closer once again. “But I don’t really care.”

  “Oh, you don’t, do you?” I grinned; it wasn’t something that I could control. The shy, slightly overwhelmed look on his face made me want to poke fun at him. “Let’s see what other cheesy things that I can think of.”

  The shyness was starting to fade and for the first time, I got a glimpse of the mischievous side of this man. “How about this?” He paused, giving me a moment to get prepared. “Milady, I would absolutely adore it if you would save a dance for me tonight.”

  “Wow.” It was all I could say. It was cheesy, but still one of the most romantic sentences that I had ever heard uttered in my entire life.

  “That was really bad wasn’t it?” He looked down at the lack of response. I guess that he was hoping to make me laugh, but I had been blown away instead.

  “Yes and no.” I felt the corners of my mouth tug up just a little more. I hadn’t smiled that hard in a long time and my face was starting to get a little sore. It was a nice feeling and I wondered how far this little game was going to go.

  “Way to be specific.”

  “Wow, that has to be the first time you haven’t spoken to me with proper grammar.” I have to admit I was shocked that he had let down his guard so much around me.

  “I didn’t even think about that.” He looked down at his feet. “I guess I was just nervous.”

  “Really, because I was starting to think that you were some kind of time traveler.” I reached out to touch him and he didn’t pull away as my fingers brushed against his elbow.

  “I promise that I’m not some kind of stuck up pompous asshole, alright?” He looked back up, locking me in his gaze.

  “Hey, if you were one, you probably wouldn’t know.”

  “You might be right.” His smile returned and he moved closer to me and once again I could feel my pulse start to quicken. Who needs cardio when all it takes is for this man to move back and forth to get my heart rate up. I probably shouldn’t have been thinking about that because his next kiss caught me by surprise.

  I fell into him this time, the passion cranked up to ten and I could feel my left leg start to twitch before it decided to lift, just like in every one of those non-realistic romantic comedies that the girls from work loved to watch. I was starting to think that maybe they had a few things right. It was a little strange to feel that way. His arms snaked around my waist as I looked up at him, this time my eyes were happily opened and focused on his. He looked happy, peaceful and for some reason my tension and boredom started to fade away.

  Maybe that’s why those n
aughty little thoughts were starting to rush through my head. I can’t really tell you, but my hand dipped down and tucked into the waistband of his jeans, inside of his shirt. It seemed to only fuel the fire between us and he lifted me up. My stomach jumped as my feet left the floor and he carefully placed my butt on the back of the pure white sofa. My legs swung out, facing him and wrapping around him. I was starting to regret that I had worn jeans that day. There was going to be no easy way to escape the sturdy denim confines.

  He didn’t seem to notice that the sofa was starting to wobble a bit, and I didn’t care. He held me tightly enough that I was absolutely convinced that I wasn’t going to fall. I clung to him as if my life depended on it. My arms were around his neck now, pulling his mouth closer to mine. I wanted more, so much more. I desperately wanted him to touch my bare skin over every inch of my body. My nether regions were screaming out for more and more, I wanted him to touch me more than I had ever wanted anyone to touch me. It was a heady feeling.

  I don’t know how we both got undressed. It was feeling like a blur, and I was still on the back of the couch. Frankly, at the time I didn’t care much about where my clothes were as long as they were out of the way. I suppose that we took a few minutes away from our heated passions to undress, but honestly, I don’t really remember. That wasn’t what was on my mind at the time. He kissed me, the hard muscles of his chest pressing, skin to skin against my breasts. His skin was hot and I was on fire. There was nothing stopping us, we were engrossed in the passionate embrace that is normally saved for big budget movies.

  I shifted my legs, pulling them up and wrapping them around his waist and he groaned against my lips as he brushed the warm wet center of my passion. He wanted me too and it had been too long. I pulled my legs in, pulling his body closer to mine and he paused at the entrance. “Is this what you want?” He asked, as if he had to. His hot breath was against my ear as he whispered the question.

  “Yes.” I moaned the word against his neck as I planted wet sloppy kisses on it. He didn’t ask again. We didn’t have to; we wanted it. I pulled my hands from around his neck and steadied myself on the edge of the sofa, eager to finally get what we both really wanted from each other. I can’t really say that there were anything resembling feelings, but that didn’t matter as his body moved toward me and I groaned at the slow and steady motion as his hands steadied my hips.