Ice: Dragon Clan. Read online

  He’d missed Nathan as they’d played. The guy’s dominant side matched his more laid back personality, and they were a damn good team when it came to the ladies.

  Dom tried to brush aside the other reasons he missed the male. Recently, he’d found himself more and more attracted to him, which did a number on his sense of self, as he’d always believed himself to be straight. Not that he cared who slept with who, but he’d never found dudes attractive. Until Nathan.

  At first he’d found Nathan intimidating, but over time, he’d noticed new things about him. Such as his insane physique, and his quiet dominance, and somewhere along the line it had gone from an aesthetic observation to something lustier.

  Then there came the game changer. The day he’d come home early from a trip away to find Nathan fucking a woman, her bent over their kitchen table, Nathan powering in from behind. He’d stood in shock of sorts and stared at his bonded male’s bare buttocks as he thrust in and out of her. His thigh muscles bunched from the effort, and his powerful form covering her body.

  For an awful, scary, self-shattering moment, he’d wanted to be in her place, receiving all that power.

  He’d shaken his head and walked through the room, shooting Nate a disgusted look as he passed.

  At first, it seemed to be a one-off. A strange moment. But then the dreams had started. Heat filled, sexy dreams, starring Nathan. Then the morning cuddles situation had developed. He still loved the ladies, and when he and Nate double-teamed some lovely human, it wasn’t as if he became all about Nate and nothing about breasts, hips, and more secretive places. But he harbored these feelings for his bonded male, and they were disconcerting because he half wanted it to happen and half feared it. Nate was a force of fucking nature and Dom didn’t know if he’d survive him.

  The woman he’d picked up moaned and turned over. She looked like an angel in the early morning light, with her long blonde hair fanned over the pillow. She sleepily blinked open her dark blue eyes, smiling when she saw him.

  “Would you like breakfast?” he asked.

  “No, I never eat in the morning, but maybe a coffee.”

  He looked at her for a long beat. His cock stirred and he fancied another round, but he yearned to shift and fly. He needed to change and stretch his wings.

  The phone by the bedside rang, making him jump. He snatched up the handset. “Yeah?”

  “Pack a bag and get yourself to Glasgow.”

  “Good morning to you, too.” Jesus, Nate enjoyed bossing him around!

  “Seriously, D,” Nathan snarled.

  Dominic ignored the growl and smiled at the use of the affectionate nickname. “When do you need me there? Trouble with the gold?” He tried not to tease, but held no interest in the clan wealth.

  “No. I think I’ve found…no, I know I’ve found our mate.”

  “What?” Dominic lowered his voice and turned away from the female in his bed. “You serious?”

  “Fucking deadly. Hurry. I need you here ASAP. We are on for drinks with her and a friend tonight. David’s coming, too but he wants her friend so a bit of a push from us and I am sure we can get rid of them. Just get here. I’m staying at the Radisson.”

  Of course. Only the best for Nathan.

  “I’ll be there this afternoon. I have a visitor I need to get home first.”

  “For the sake of the gods! You are obsessed with the females.”

  “Yeah, yeah. I’ll be there.”

  Dominic hung up, knowing Nate would give him hell for it. He needed to get the female back home and find a way to get into Glasgow fast. Shit. This wasn’t ideal.

  “I’ll be back in five, my lovely. I’m going to make us a coffee.”

  Once in the kitchen he used the phone there to call his friend, Jonathon. “Can you do me a big favor? There’s a woman here. I need you to take her home and then wipe her. Nate needs me so I’m going to pack a bag, fly to the edge of the territory and take a bike.”

  “Okay.” Jonathon yawned long and loud. “It’s not cool making someone else put away your toys though. You owe me.”

  “Yeah, yeah. I owe you one. You’re a pal.” He hung up and proceeded to make the coffee.

  Nathan had spent the night like some stalker, standing in the damp night air, watching the flat where the female—and not just any female, but a mate for him and Dom—slept. He hadn’t been able to leave though, terrified something might happen to her. Already his fierce need to protect her kicked in hard. His ancient senses were in overdrive, and every sound, every scent, jarred him. A horn rent the air and he rubbed his pounding temple. How had he gone from revered warrior and leader of a mighty dragon clan to lolling about on the street, pathetically guarding his mate from outside instead of being with her, where he belonged?

  Dull light took over the darkness, and people moved on to the street, going about their business.

  With the bustle of the day unfolding, his paranoia lessened with each increment of light. He still wanted to march in there, sling her over his shoulder and take her back to the Clan but such actions would likely earn him her lasting disdain. So instead, he headed back to the hotel for a much needed rest. He needed to get his head together because he hadn’t been this off his game in centuries. Normally, he knew what to do in any given situation and didn’t take any crap. Now, he found himself in uncharted waters, with no clue of how to proceed. The way the female ignored him plagued his mind.

  At first, he’d been livid. Angered at what he’d viewed as her dismissal of him, and his evident position as her match, but contemplating her response, another, much more worrying thought niggled away at him. What if she didn’t understand that he was her mate? Something in her eyes, a spark of surprise and then the way confusion had clouded out everything else, told him the female didn’t get it. Maybe she’d turned her back on dragon living. Some dragonborn did, especially latents, who couldn’t actually shape-change and fly. They believed they’d fit better in the human world, where they wouldn’t be reminded of all they’d never be. If so, she might not know the rules and the way mating between dragons worked.

  Yeah, he needed to get his head down, have some sleep and then think about things. David had called moments ago to confirm their night out. After which, Nathan had immediately informed Dominic, who’d been full of his usual sass. Nate smiled despite himself. He enjoyed his bonded male’s spirit.

  How drinks would go later, he’d no clue. And once again, he began to think about Ice and how she’d ended up out in the human world alone. She certainly wasn’t of his clan. Her scent told him she must be exceptionally young for a dragon female, and probably only in her early twenties. Nate had been with the Scottish clan for over six centuries.

  So where did she come from? The only other places in the UK with dragon clans were Wales, Ireland, and Cornwall and those groups were small. He’d met all the Welsh and Cornish dragons. He’d have remembered meeting a female match. If not from a UK settlement, then maybe she heralded from somewhere on the Continent. Perhaps Ice came from Spain or somewhere Mediterranean? Her coloring suggested as much. Although, her remarkable eyes reminded him of the tales told about the Havsa. A fierce Romanian dragon group. They’d caused a war when males from the Havsa carried out an unprovoked attack on the Welsh clan. He shook his head. No way. She couldn’t be Havsa; they’d been wiped out well over a century ago.

  The Welsh dragons had decimated the Havsa in retaliation for the murder of some of their females. They’d gone too far, Nathan privately thought, but he’d kept out of it. Not his fight, and he’d wanted to protect his settlement from any spillover.

  Since the war had ended, peace reigned. All the other clans around the globe were on good terms.

  He entered the suite and let out a contented sigh. Spotless as expected. A nap called.

  Bang, bang, bang! Nate opened one bleary eye. Gods, room service didn’t give up easily.

  “You order me here, but don’t let me in.” Dominic’s irritated tone drifted through
the thick door.

  Nate grinned and got out of bed. He opened the door and Dominic hustled in, knocking into him with his bag. “Hello, bonded male-oh-mine.” Dominic smirked as he threw his bag on the floor. “Nice digs.”

  “One needs standards,” Nathan drawled.

  “So…” The air in the room thickened. “A mate? Really?”

  “Really, truly. Gods, D. She’s stunning. Unusual looking. Different, but in the best way. She’s also a fighter.”

  “Come again?”

  “Yeah. She does this…cage fighting?”

  “MMA shit?” Dominic’s jaw fell open.

  “If that is two people in a cage, fighting, no holds barred, then yes, MMA shit.”

  Dominic ran a hand through his hair, making it stick up at the front. “I can’t imagine how a dragon ever got involved in cage fighting?”

  “Gods know. It’s shameful. We will not permit her to debase herself this way though once she is with us.”

  Dominic turned his face away, but Nate caught his smile. “You don’t think it is shameful, D?”

  “I think it’s kind of cool. Different. Anyway, you’d better not start out the whole relationship giving out orders. Like I say, I think she sounds cool.”

  “You would.” Nathan opened the mini-bar and pulled out a tumbler. He checked his watch, and had to look again. Almost seven, he needed to get ready. So did D. How the hell had he slept for so long?

  “Get a shower and get changed. I’ll go after you. You want a drink?”

  “Yeah, a beer. I’ll have it when I’m done making myself beautiful.” Dominic grabbed his bag, and sauntered into the bathroom.

  They reached the bar a little after eight thirty. Nathan’s stomach kept doing a strange swirling thing. Nerves possibly, except, it had been so long since he’d felt nervous, he couldn’t say for sure.

  Despite the frenetic heat and noise of the crowd, he spotted her straight away. Off to one side, Ice fiddled with the straw in her drink and stared at the bar. Her long dark hair gleamed in the low light, and when she brought the straw to her full lips and took a sip, he almost groaned. She finished swallowing and bit back a yawn. Hmm, tired or bored it seemed. Hopefully, her night was about to get all kinds of interesting.

  Dominic kept to his side, and when they got close, his bonded male took a sharp breath and whispered Jesus, under his breath.

  “Told you,” Nathan said. “Made for us.”

  “You weren’t wrong.”

  Ice lifted her eyes from the bar as they approached. She looked at Nathan first, then Dominic. Her gaze flicked back and forth between them, and a sweet wash of color settled over her cheeks. Good! They affected her. His memories of the previous evening weren’t wrong. Whether she wanted to or not, the female reacted to them on the basest level.

  “Ooooh, hello handsome. You came.” Natalie thrust her chest out and smiled at him, licking her lips.

  Nathan flashed a smile in return and asked if anyone wanted drinks. Ice shook her head, but David and Natalie both gave him an order. It meant he’d an excuse to stand next to Ice at the bar.

  Without a glance at each other, he and Dominic choreographed it beautifully. He went to Ice’s left and Dominic to her other side.

  As Nate waited for the barman to notice him, he wondered how long she’d keep pretending she didn’t feel anything for he and Dom. Why she wanted to play this game he’d no idea, but he’d play along too, for now. If she truly didn’t understand about the mating match then they needed to take it slow.

  “So,” Dominic said. “You’re a fighter?”

  “Yes.”

  Dominic lowered his voice and asked, “Don’t your clan care? They could discipline you for such behavior.”

  “Clan?” Ice turned toward Dominic. “Do you mean my family?”

  “No,” Dominic said. “Your dragon clan.”

  Ice pulled back a little, bumping her ass into Nathan, who clenched his fists to keep from touching her. Her scent had his balls in a vise, her warmth cracking his control.

  “Sorry, you’re not making sense. Dragon clan. Is that some sort of online gaming community or something?” She turned back to the bar with a puzzled frown.

  Nate’s heart sped up. He believed her reply. Her heart rate didn’t spike, and she didn’t perspire. Her puzzlement was genuine. He was a bona fide lie detector when he put his mind to it and she told only the truth. The female didn’t know what a dragon clan was. Dominic’s raised eyebrows gave away his surprise at her response and Nate pushed off his feet about to take hold of Ice’s arm so he could speak to her when a pretty blonde pushed her way between Dom and Ice.

  “Heya, babe,” she purred, and wrapped her arms around Ice.

  “Hi Sian.” Ice squeezed in return. “Do you want a drink?”

  “Allow me,” Nathan interrupted.

  “Oh, hi there.” The blonde surveyed him, her eyes doing a full sweep of his body. Her pupils dilated and her lips curved into a seductive smile. “And you are?”

  “Nathan. A friend of David’s, who it seems, is a friend of Natalie’s.”

  He pointed to Dominic still behind Sian. “This is Dominic.”

  Dom waved and Sian giggled.

  “So…a drink?” Nathan asked.

  “Yes please. I’ll have a gin and tonic. You look pretty empty there, babe.” Sian pointed to Ice’s glass. “Will you buy Ice a drink, too?”

  “My pleasure.” Nathan smiled and Ice clocked it. Her heart rate kicked up a notch and her breathing quickened.

  Good. Despite the unbelievable notion of her not seeming to know about her heritage, that heritage owned her innate responses.

  Nathan ordered three gin and tonics—specifying Bombay Sapphire for the gin, and three beers for him, David, and Dominic.

  “How long have you two known one another?” Dom asked.

  “Nearly all our lives. I met Ice, Claire as she was known then, when she moved in next door, aged about four…five?”

  “Four.” Ice supplied.

  “Her mum and dad, and my parents, are good friends.”

  So Ice had lived amongst humans since the age of four. She wasn’t playing a game. She’d no clue what Nathan or Dominic were. More to the point, she’d no clue about herself.

  Holy fuck! He glanced at Dom and his wide eyes said it all. They’d found a dragon female who didn’t know what the hell she was.

  Chapter Three

  Ice shivered as they stepped out into the cool night air. She’d a nice buzz going on. She’d only had three gin and tonics before changing to lemonade, but she didn’t drink much due to her training so they’d gone right to her head.

  Sian and she had talked in the toilets. Sian telling her that—the frankly hot as hell—Nathan was clearly into her and she should go for it. Or as Sian actually put it. “Have a casual fuck with Mr. McHottie and put loser Carl out of your mind for good.”

  Ice had split from her boyfriend, Carl, when Sian found his not so well hidden profile on Tinder. Not that she cared an awful lot. Other than Sian and her parents, Ice didn’t get close to people. Too damn afraid of hurting someone by accident. She shivered at the thought of her freakishness and pushed it out of her mind. Not now. Not this evening, with the world all mellow and shiny from too much gin and the attentions of two sexy as sin men.

  “Would you ladies like to accompany us back to our hotel and get a drink in the bar there? We’re at the Radisson.” Dominic smiled at them. God, he was as hot as Nathan when it came down to it.

  Something about the two of them had her all fired up, in a way she hadn’t been in…ever. They smelled of woods and pine cones, and tropical breezes. All night she’d found herself staring at them. Surreptitiously at first, then frank and flirtatious.

  Nathan’s big body oozed power. She spent oodles of time around insanely fit men, but Nathan put all of them to shame. And his skintight T-shirt left little to the imagination. Dominic had the face of an angel, but with a devilish grin that declared he k
new just how to be naughty.

  She’d quite enjoy some fun-time with either of them, truth be told.

  “Give us a minute, we’ll catch you up.” Sian smiled at the men and grabbed Ice by the arm, holding her back.

  Nathan frowned, but Dominic shrugged and smiled. “Okay.”

  “We’ve got to go back with them.” Sian gripped her arm and jiggled it. “Oh my God, they are hot! I’ll take the one you don’t want. Seriously—give me the leftovers and I’m a happy lass.”

  “I can’t, honey.” Ice smiled to soften the blow.

  “Why not?”

  “Sian, you of all people know how careful I have to be, how badly I might harm someone. I can’t do random sex. What if…what if it happens again?”

  “Babe!” Sian took hold of her hands. “I get you’re scared but, you aren’t living. You didn’t hurt me badly. Okay, it burned for a few moments but when you let go…nothing. And that man, he deserved it. Let it go, honey. Otherwise, you may as well lay down and let me cover you with dirt right now, because you may as well be dead.”

  Ice gasped. Sian never spoke to her in such a way.

  “Don’t give me hurt puppy eyes. I love you, which is why I am saying this. You spend your life picking loser assholes because you figure you won’t care about them and won’t hurt them if they shit on you. You put up with crappy sex because you are terrified good sex will push you too far, but babe, think about it. You haven’t burned anyone since that bastard tried to rape you.”

  Ice flinched. “Great image to bring up when you’re trying to convince me to go off with a couple of…” She trailed off not wanting to voice her overwhelming attraction to the two men for some reason.