“Well, I don’t want to say you lack vision, because that’s rude, but I do have to say that Connie’s strong point is thinking outside of the box.” Gary leaned forward, bumping the stick of the remote control that was taped to floor of the big round clear plastic gerbil ball so that the truck drove a circle around my feet. “Now if he’d just feed me, I could die happy. Not that I’m going to die, because hello! I’m a knocker! But you know what I mean.” He beamed happily at me.
I looked at Constantine. He had the smug look of a man who was pleased with his creativity. “Well, other than being surprised that they made hamster balls large enough to hold your head, I think we’ll just move past all of that and get to the point. Which is Bael.”
Constantine’s jaw flexed, finger twitching. “Drive yourself downstairs and ask Madame Claude to feed you,” he instructed Gary, opening the door for him. “Tell her to bill me for the meal.”
“Oooh, I get to see the doxies? I hear they have both women and men. How exciting! You see, this is going to work out very well,” Gary said as his little truck buzzed out the door. “I don’t suppose my credit would extend as far as—”
“No,” Constantine cut him off. “You must make your own arrangements if you wish to patronize other services of the house.”
Gary sighed dramatically, but winked as he said, “I’ll rely on my skill as a storyteller and my innate charm, then.”
Constantine closed the door on him, leaning against it, his face shuttered, his arms across his chest.
“You cannot get more classically don’t want to talk about it than you are now,” I told him, glancing around the room, and picking out a window seat. I sat on it and patted the cushion next to me. “But that’s not going to work. What is bothering you that you keep making cryptic comments and walking out on me?”
He held his position for a full minute before he unbent and sat down on the window seat, his leg warm and solid next to mine. “What I tell you, only three living beings know, and one of them was my mortal enemy for most of my life.”
“Goodness,” I said, feeling a sudden surge of empathy. “If you’re worried I’ll spill your secret—”
“It matters not,” he said with a sharp gesture, looking at the floor with such an expression of bleak misery that I scooted over so I could put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. “After this day, all will know the truth. I will be censured, but I have lived in fear too long. It is true that I hoped to delay it for a few centuries, but that is not to be.”
“Constantine…” A sense of guilt overwhelmed me, driving out the overwhelming urge to kiss the breath right out of his lungs. What right did I have to force the man to bare his soul, just because I wanted him to help me? “I don’t know what it is that you’re afraid of, but I’ve changed my mind—we don’t have to talk about that, or your reasons for not wanting to deal with Bael. I would appreciate any advice you have, however, since I have a job to do, and with all respect to Aisling and her dog, I just don’t have a lot of faith that they can help with Bael. They may find him, but it’s not fair to expect them to do any more than that.”
“I will tell you my reasons. You will understand then why I have avoided this, but you have made me see that refusing to lend my aid will only end in more destruction.” He looked up, the emotion in his eyes now flat and cold. “The deaths on my soul were ones obtained honorably, obtained in the course of the wars between the dragon septs, but I do not seek to have others added to that total. Not when they could be avoided.”
“Good lord. Who do you expect is going to be killed? More dragons? Or someone else? And by whom? Bael?”
“Yes.” Constantine kept his gaze firmly on the wall across from us, his hands fisted where they sat on his thighs. “Bael is… he was not always known as Bael, nor was he born a demon lord.”
“I assume not, since demon lords are made, and not born into the position. Most were mortals that morphed into that via some demonic means or other. Do you know who Bael was before he was a demon lord?”
“He was a dragon.” Constantine took a deep breath.
“Mother of martyrs! A dragon? Why would he curse you guys if he used to be one of you?”
“It is for that reason that he wishes to destroy us. He was not just any dragon. He was a firstborn.”
“What’s that?”
“One of the children of the First Dragon, the progenitor of all dragons who ever were, and who ever will be.”
I edged my hand along his side until it rested on his thigh next to his fist, trying to provide what comfort I could. The pain on his face was etched deep; oddly, I could swear I felt his dragon fire condense down until it was almost extinguished. “I’ve heard of the First Dragon. He was like a demigod, wasn’t he?”
“Yes. He was literally the first dragon. His children formed the dragon septs. All of them but one—Kashi, who was not given a sept because his father did not see in him the signs of a wyvern.”
“What exactly are the signs of a wyvern other than…” I bit back the word stubborn. “… being dominant?”
“Wyverns have many traits that signal their suitability for the position. Kashi wished to control all around him, and a wyvern does not control—he guides, he mentors, he advises—but he does not treat the members of his sept like they are minions, there only to serve him.”
I gave his leg a little squeeze. “Was Bael—Kashi—part of your sept, then?”
“No. He belonged to no sept.” Constantine took a deep breath and turned to face me. “Kashi is my father.”
That was the very last thing I was expecting Constantine to say, and I will admit that my jaw sagged a bit at that statement. “Holy crows, Bael is your dad?”
His expression went blank, just as if a curtain had fallen in front of his face. “Yes.”
“But—couldn’t you—I mean, wouldn’t he listen to you?”
Constantine’s lips twisted into a wry smile. “I don’t know why he would. He never has. Bee, you must understand, he mated with my mother, a mortal woman, but when he realized that he would never be given a sept, he destroyed everything he could—he tried to kill me, but my mother sacrificed her life to save me. She convinced the wyvern of the black dragons to take me in, and make me a member in order to protect me from Kashi’s wrath.”
“But how did you—”
“No.” Constantine interrupted me by standing up, taking a few paces, and turning back to face me. “No more questions about that time. What is past is past. What we must focus on is how to stop him without destroying more innocent lives. I told you the truth so you would understand why I wanted nothing to do with Bael, but that point is no longer valid.” His eyes narrowed, and even sitting across the room, I could feel his fire blossom into life. “You said the green dragons were searching for him?”
“Yes.” I summarized my meeting with Aisling, musing to myself that Constantine had depths I’d never guessed at. What seemed like a self-centered, frivolous man turned out to be one who cared deeply for others, from someone as vulnerable as Gary to the mortals who might possibly get caught in the crosshairs of Bael’s wrath. My heart melted a little at that, and I began to think that perhaps I’d been overly hasty in setting a ban on any romantic relations with dragons.
Constantine was definitely a man worth investigating further.
“When will you speak with the green mate?” he asked.
I glanced at the clock. “Two hours. She said her demon dog would need some time to check around Abaddon for word of Bael.”
“I do not know that there is much we can do until we have an idea where he is.” Constantine rubbed a hand over his lower face as he thought. “I suppose we will just have to wait until we hear from her. Are you hungry?”
“Not really, no.” Not for food, anyway. I was a bit startled by that thought, and shifted a bit uncomfortably on the window seat, aware that I was having to restrain myself from moving closer to Constantine. When had I gone from wanting to hit him on the head wit
h a blunt instrument to seriously considering pinning him against the wall and nibbling all along his jaw?
“Would you like to return to Curiosités Demonia?” he asked politely.
“I don’t think so. I know you think toys are all that, but I’ve never really seen the need for them. Plain old normal sex is perfectly fine with me.”
“To each his own,” he said amiably, then looked thoughtful. “Was that an invitation, or a statement?”
I do not need another dragon in my life, I told myself. We all know how it’s going to end up, and I just don’t need that heartache again. You’ve set your limits—now hold to them. “Possibly both,” my mouth said without me approving the act.
His eyes lit with a golden glow, and instantly his fire overwhelmed me. I blinked at the sight of it spiraling up my body, bracing myself for the burn, but amazingly, it felt warm, not hot. Pleasantly warm. Tingly warm. It made me very aware that I was female, and he was male, and we were alone in a room with a sizeable bed.
“You want me,” he said, moving toward me in a slow saunter that reminded me of a jaguar about to pounce.
“Yes, but you want me, too,” I said, lifting my chin, and holding out my hand. His fire swirled up onto my arm, then poured onto my palm, forming an orb. I tossed it into the air, caught it, then flipped it onto him. “In fact, I’d say you’re wild for me.”
He smiled as he stopped before me, the fire spreading out across his chest before evaporating into nothing. His heat made the hairs on my arm prickle, and my nipples harden in anticipation. “I won’t deny it, but I will take it as a challenge to make you just as wild for my attentions.”
I drew a finger across his collarbone, and down the V of exposed chest. “We only have two hours. Are you sure that’s going to be enough time?”
He moved forward, causing me to back up until the wall pressed against me, as cool as he was hot. He leaned forward, his lips brushing mine. “Is it my prowess you doubt, or your ability to gain pleasure?”
I slid my fingers down his shirt, unbuttoning it, and trailing my fingers across his belly. His muscles contracted in a little intake of breath just as I leaned forward and gently bit his lower lip. “I have no doubt of your prowess. I just don’t know if there’s going to be enough time to do all the things I want to do.”
“Then I shall simply have to make sure that you are satisfied with the time we have.” His breath was hot on my neck, his lips burning when they kissed a path from my ear down to my shoulder.
I was aware that his hands were moving, but it wasn’t until cool air rippled down my back that I realized he’d removed my shirt. A noise from outside the room made me pause and cock an eyebrow.
“Gary?” I asked.
“He will no doubt be availing himself of the amenities of the house,” Constantine murmured, reaching out blindly to flip the lock on the door. I shivered when he nibbled on my earlobe for a few seconds before moving on to find the spot behind my ear that sent goose bumps down my back.
“I keep thinking that this is wrong, and I should stop, but then I see your chest and arms and shoulders, and I just want to bite you.”
“Really?” Constantine pulled back, his eyes bright with interest and passion. “Bite me where? How hard? Would you want to restrain me first? I do not wish to be restrained, and normally I do not care for my partners to be tied down, but if that’s something you want, that would be acceptable.”
“You really are the strangest man I’ve ever been interested in,” I told him, sucking in my breath when he cupped my breasts. “Oh, I do like that, though. No restraints, Constantine. I told you that I’m not into toys and things like that.”
“Have you tried it?” he asked, breathing fire on my breasts. The heat sank immediately into my chest, and pooled lower, down to my belly, leaving me feeling as if I had a fever.
“No, but I don’t have to try leaping off a building to know that I don’t want to do it.”
His hands were busy around my waist, removing my jeans with the minimum of effort. I took the opportunity to kick off my shoes before rubbing a leg up his.
“Let me try to change your mind?” he asked, stroking one hand up my leg. “So soft, so very soft.”
“I’m a girl. I’m supposed to be soft.” I leaned forward and bit his shoulder, gently. “What sort of thing did you want to do?”
“I want to show you that there’s no reason to fear trying new things,” he answered, giving me a slow smile that I felt right down to my toenails. “I won’t do anything that you don’t like.”
I had been leaning in to lick one of his pert little nipples, but stopped to slant a glance upward at him. “Do I need a safe word? Are you going Fifty Shades of Grey on me? Because I’ll tell you right here and now that I do not find that sort of thing at all sexy.”
“Nor do I. I am not talking about controlling you, Bee. I simply want to share some of my pleasures with you.” He leaned in and kissed me, his mouth sweet and hot and so enticing that I squelched my inhibitions. “Tell me that you trust me.”
“Trust was never an issue,” I said, sidestepping the question. Instead, I peeled off his belt and put my hand on his fly. Behind it, he twitched. “All right, you can try one thing. Just one. And if I don’t like it, I will tell you and you have to stop.”
“I agree to your terms,” he said, his mouth moving down to my chest. I shivered again when he removed my bra, leaving me in nothing but a pair of underwear that was fast making me feel like I had too much on. “Tell me what you like, my little honey bee.”
I smiled at the term of endearment, arching my back when his mouth took possession of one breast. “Oh, I like that. Do the other one.”
“It shall be as you order. You see? I am letting you dominate me without complaint. That is because I am the most obliging of lovers.”
“You’re something, all right,” I said, laughing and unzipping his pants. I didn’t even look as I slid them down over his hips. “Luckily, I like quirky men with odd sexual tastes who can turn into dragons at the drop of a hat. Wait—that’s not what you’re planning on doing, are you? Because I hate to be sexist… no, I guess that would be specist… but I don’t get into the whole sex with a dragon thing. Dragon form, that is. Oh, you know what I mean.”
He looked hurt for a few seconds, actually looked hurt, which would have been bad on its own, but he stopped molesting my breasts in order to do so. They immediately complained about the lack of attention. “You do not like my dragon form?”
“I haven’t seen your dragon form. I’m sure it’s quite nice, but I really don’t want to have sex with… with… well, balls. If I say animal, that’s offensive, because you’re not an animal. Let’s just say that I’m not comfortable getting it on with you if you’re not in human form.”
He looked thoughtful for a moment, then shrugged. “I believe we’ll leave that discussion for another time, when I can show you just how interesting dragon form can make things. For now, I promise not to shift forms. I will, however, have to prepare you for what I have in mind.”
“Prepare how?” I asked, suddenly wary.
He smiled again, and after kicking off his pants and shoes, dropped to his knees, his hands sliding up the backs of my thighs before pulling off my undies. “I’ll show you.”
“Oh, yes please.” I clutched the wall when he pulled one of my legs over his shoulder, and turned his face into my thigh. He had a slight amount of stubble, not enough to give me whisker rash, but enough to create a delicious friction prickling along my flesh. I squirmed in anticipation when he moved upward, his breath hot on my various hidden secrets.
I managed to stand there without melting into the wall while he worked magic on my girl parts, his fingers teasing and dancing against me, his mouth doing wickedly wonderful things, but when he blew fire on me, I lost the tenuous grasp of control, and grabbed his head, urging him on.
He pulled back, asking, “Are you multi-orgasmic?”
I stared down at
him, my brain trying to come to grips with the fact that he stopped his wonderful mouth magic. His lips were moving again, making noises that I knew must be words, but at that moment, dangling as I was over the precipice of an orgasm to end all orgasms, I couldn’t decipher what he said. Instead, I whimpered, hoping against hope that he’d take pity on me and finish the job.
“Needy, are you?”
Those words filtered through the fog of lust and desire and yes, need that clogged up my brain.
I nodded, digging my fingers into his hair to tug his head back where I wanted it. He pressed a hot kiss complete with dragon fire to my pubic mound, then stood up, scooping me into his arms at the same time.
“Good. Then you should enjoy this even more.” He carried me to the bed, but rather than laying me upon it, and following me down, he set me on the edge. “Hold onto that demanding look that I see in your eyes, Bee. This will only take a minute to set up.”
The buzz of the near orgasm faded quickly when he moved over to a dresser, and extracted an apparatus of blue silk rope, the middle section of which was long and flat like a cummerbund. I watched him stand on a chair to hang two ends of the rope off a hook in the ceiling, the rest of the device trailing next to me. “Is that a swing, Constantine? A sex swing? I don’t think I’m going to like that—”
“Not a sex swing, no, although that is something to consider for another time,” he said, eyeing the device. He adjusted two sides of it so that the flat part swayed a little above the bed. “I can think of many games we could play with a swing, but for now, we’ll try this.”
Before I could ask just what he had in mind, he pulled me upright, his hands on my butt urging me closer to him. His body was as hard as mine was soft, and I gloried in the difference, moving against him restlessly, hoping he’d use his magic mouth on me again.
“Tell me what you want,” he demanded, his breath hot on mine.
I tangled my fingers in his golden brown mane, and tugged on it. “I want you.”