Vyr gave a mental sigh. “I’m ready.”
“Once upon a time, there was a witch and her daughter, and the witch had a husband who was a good man. The little witch was lucky, but sheltered because she had powers she sometimes couldn’t control, just like her mother. But by hiding, they attracted attention from a crew of very rare shifters that lived in the territory. Polar bears. They were trying to keep quiet. Keep from having to register like the government was making all the other shifters do. They would visit us and tell us to leave the territory because they were afraid we would attract attention. But we had nowhere to go. Eventually, the visits got scary. It wasn’t just about protecting themselves anymore. It’s like they could taste the magic, and it drew them in. Made them crazy. When they shifted, they would come closer and closer. And at nights, we could hear them roaring. Closer, closer, closer. The little witch’s father approached the crew to ask them to stay away, but he didn’t come back. And that same night, the roaring came right up to the trailer. The little witch’s mom scooped her up and ran out the back door just as the front door caved in. And they ran into the woods as fast as they could. And the little witch didn’t know she was doing it, but her fear was leaching power from her mother. So when her mother turned to defend them from the bears, she had nothing. No power.”
Riyah’s voice broke on the last word, so she paused and swallowed hard so her voice would come out steady again. “The little witch watched as the white bears ran through the trees. Two of them landed on her mother, and there were screams. And the little witch’s body was pulsing with power. The more scared she got as she screamed for her mother, the more the power burned to escape her. Fuck.” She wiped her damp cheeks fast and shook her head hard. Just say it. “My mom, she got a break from the attack, but I was surrounded. It was a big crew, and the bears were just…massive. She struggled to her feet and turned, and whatever she saw in me, it took the fear from her eyes. She was crying and bleeding, so much, but she told me, ‘Riyah! Do it!’ I was so scared of the white bears, but Mom said, ‘Baby, look at me.’ And she fell to her knees and said, ‘Do it now, Little Witch. Everything is going to be okay.’ And I screamed because the power hurt as it came out of me.”
Riyah swallowed a sob. “I decimated everything within a square mile, my mom included. So you see, Vyr, you think you’re a monster. And others think you’re a monster because you eat people. But they don’t realize you see the bad ones. You see evil, and you do something about it to satisfy your dragon. You protect your people at great cost to yourself. I, on the other hand, destroyed the person I loved the most. And she was good. Pure. Kind. You aren’t a monster, Vyr. I am. I see you. I know what it was like for you. You grew up different from everyone else. You had to hide all the real things about yourself. You had to appear tough, even when people hurt you with their words or the thoughts you could hear. You became steel. That scares other people, but for me, I love that I get to see past the steel. It makes me feel less alone.”
“You’re never alone. Not anymore, Riyah.”
“I will be if you quit fighting. So don’t. I don’t want to go back to the way it was. I want you to kiss me again. I want you to touch me, hug me, and when my world is crashing and burning around me, I want you to be the one to tell me everything will be okay. Promise me.”
“A promise like that should be made in person. What are you wearing?”
Baffled, she looked down at her oversize T-shirt. “Uuuh…sexy negligee?”
“Liar. Take off whatever you’re wearing.”
“Even my pink and black polka dot panties? I should tell you now I’m terrible at sex talk.”
“No, Badass Princess, you just did good. I can imagine those polka dot panties. They’re already way better than the brown ones.”
“Soft beige. And I’m wearing an extra-large, brown, threadbare root beer shirt that I bought with ten Pepsi bottle caps a decade ago.”
“I’m getting a boner.”
Riyah giggled. “Zip it,” she murmured, grateful that he was lightening up their conversation after her admission about her mother.
“I’m serious. Okay, imagine it. I’m lying right next to you. Kick the covers off.”
With a grin, she did and then laid back. “Covers are off. Root beer shirt is still on.”
“I’m running my fingertips up your ankle, up your shin lightly to your knee, over the curve to your thigh, up, up until I reach the hem of your shirt. I hesitate for just a second, and I’m looking right at you. I slide my hand under the shirt and grip your hip. Hard. I dig my fingers in and turn your body toward me.”
She turned and she could imagine him here, looking at her with those blue, human eyes, because here, in their world, she wanted to pretend he still had the dragon. She wanted to pretend they weren’t both damaged beyond repair. Tonight, she just wanted to be a regular girl in love with a boy.
“I hook a finger in the elastic of those panties and, slowly, I drag them down your hip, just enough to make room for my hand to slip between your legs.”
“Okay, this is really sexy,” she murmured, feeling flushed as she dragged her fingertip over her hip.
“We’re just getting started.”
She swallowed hard and murmured, “You don’t have a shirt on, and I’m running my palm down your chest, down your abs…”
“Mmmm,” Vyr murmured in a sexy, sultry groan. “Grab my dick. It’s so hard right now. I want to see your hand on it, stroking it. Slow. Do it slow at first.”
“I wrap my hand around you and push down, down, and you roll your hips, encouraging me. You keep us slow.”
“I’m cupping you between your legs, and you’re so fucking wet. I can feel it on my fingertips, and I’m desperate to be moving inside of you. My other hand…I’ve got it on your throat. I’m gentle about it. You give me this sexy, wicked smile because you know I won’t hurt you. You know I’m going to make you feel good. And I push my fingers inside you. Wet. So warm, I’m pushing my dick harder into your hand now because I’m getting desperate.”
“I bite your bottom lip to play. I like that you’re getting rougher but staying in control. I can feel a drop on the head of your cock when you pull back, and I want to taste it.”
“Fuck. Fuck, do that. Taste it.”
“You grip my hair, not hard, but with enough pressure that I know what you want. You pull your fingers out of me and push my face down toward your hips. And I slide my mouth over you.”
Vyr’s breath quickened, and God, she loved this.
“Keep going.”
“I put just enough pressure on you as I slide my lips down you as far as I can take, my hand gripping you, moving with my mouth. Slow at first, like you want. Slow, slow, and then your hand goes tight in my hair, so I suck on you faster. Faster and deeper, and you’re moving your hips with me.