Treasured by the Dragon

Ch 3: Wants

I claw at the floor, but it is just smooth enough to lack grip.

"Where did you think you were going? What point was there in running besides pissing me off!"

Despite our short time together, there's no doubt Cephias is the one struggling to hold me still.

"Where do you think, you damn dragon?" I squirm and snarl beneath his grasping hands. Every patch of skin he touches burns with his impression. "Away! I was running away from you!"

"And you think hiding under my bed was the best way to do this?"

"Any way is better than staying in a cell. No matter how slim the chance for success is, at least there is a chance."

I kick at his arms and then dig my claws into his hair. I grab a fist full and tug.

"Insolent woman," he snarls, his words hampered by how I pull his neck. "If you want me to believe your people are not ungrateful wretches, then you should start by demonstrating it yourself."

"You mocked me for not fighting for my freedom before and now you mock me for trying. Make up your mind!"

One arm snakes around my waist and presses me flush against his torso. The other hand climbs up my arm, his rough fingers dragging over my soft skin. He grabs my wrist and yanks his hair free. Before I can send my other hand to his ear, he snags it. Now both of my wrists are bound together beneath his long fingers.

"There," he says, his voice exasperated. "Now, will you calm down for a minute?"

He pulls my wrists over both of our heads and then pins them against my chest so that our hands rest in the valley of my silk-clad breasts.

"Had I known you'd be such trouble after waking, I'd have chained you to the bed. You sure you don't transform into a badger or something?"

"Sorry," I answer with a growl. "I am just a boring old human. My heart's only power is to keep me alive and I'm stuck in this body."

"Hmm, I wouldn't call someone facing the impossible, despite all their disadvantages, boring. Foolish, yes. Boring, no."

I can feel the heat of his breath against the back of my neck, and I'm reminded of the fire that so easily escaped Jennit's mouth. A shiver ripples through me despite how tightly Cephias constrains me.

"What do you want from me?"

Cephias answers by pulling me in and pressing me flush with the full length of his body. His nose digs into my hair, and I feel his trimmed stubble scratching against my neck.

"You cause me so much pain."

"What?"

My brow pinches, and I turn to assess his expression from over my shoulder. However, the movement only causes him to nuzzle deeper into my skin. When he speaks again, his teeth brush against my throat, his sharp canines tugging at my fragile flesh.

"What do I want from you? I want you to transform into a pile of gold. I want you to have never stepped upon my altar. I want you to go to your room and behave. I want you to test me so I can keep ensnaring you. I want you laid across my bed and pinned beneath my body. I want you to stand like this so I can forget everything for a moment. I want you to leave here and never come back."

He pauses and I search for words to answer him. Yet not a single one comes to me. It's as if I've forgotten how to speak, how to think. All that's left are impressions. That of his lips dancing across my neck; of his fingers flexing upon my wrists and grazing the sides of my breasts; of his arm keeping my hips locked against his so the heat between us pools and hardens.