“Aye, but it’s not much of a challenge unless you’re in a pack,” he mumbled against her breast, unwilling to release it.

She stifled a laugh and Briec grinned. He did enjoy making this woman smile.

“How do you live with yourself, Lord Arrogant?”

In between using the tip of his tongue to toy with her hard ni**les, he answered, “Very easily, Lady Difficult. I find myself quite charming.”

“All that gives me ease is to know you’ll be done with me soon. I’ll simply leave when the rains end—”

Briec brought his head up so quickly she gasped in surprise.

“You’ll leave when I’m done, little witch. Not before.”

Her brown eyes narrowed. “You insist on pushing me, dragon.”

“There is no pushing. Merely fact. I will tell you when your blood debt to me has been paid.”

“Gods damn you, Briec.” She tried to pull away from him, but he held tight to her hands. “Why do you have to be such an ass?”

“And why must you fight me all the time?” He rested his lips against her ear. “Why can’t you just come when I tell you and be done with it?”

Talaith shook her head. “Briec…” She let out on an exasperated sigh. “Be grateful for that blood debt, dragon, because I truly believe I would have killed you long ago.”

“Now you sound like my mother.”

She opened her mouth, he assumed to say something but nothing came out. And was her eye twitching? After several seconds, when she still said nothing, he kissed her.

Talaith’s fingers gripped him tight while the rest of her body melted beneath his.

He liked that his mere kiss could do this to her. Make her this wet and ready.

He sunk his c**k deep into her drenched sex and shuddered at the feel of her. Of the absolute rightness of his body inside hers. With each powerful stroke, he added more time on how long she’d stay with him. The first stroke led to another ten years. By the tenth stroke, another hundred.

When he finally climaxed and came deep inside her soft body, losing himself to her completely, the word “forever” crossed his mind.

* * *

Briec blinked, then stepped back from the cave entrance. His brothers stared, too.

“What the hell just happened?”

Shrugging at Gwenvael’s question, Briec took a careful step outside. The two suns shined brightly, no clouds to mar the beauty of the day. Normally not a strange occurrence…except for the fact that less than a mere second before, the storm had still been going full blast and had been for days. Black clouds roiled, rain came down in thick sheets to drench the land. And now—nothing.

“Anyone talk to Morfyd?” Briec asked softly.

“No. She’s been off with Annwyl.”

“You’d best track her down then.”

“What about you?”

He scratched the back of his neck with the point of his tail. “I’m taking Talaith home.”

From the corner of his eye, he saw his brothers glance at each other. “What?” He whipped his head around, nailing both dragons with one look. “What’s going on?”

Gwenvael rested back on his haunches. “You’re not going to toss her away when you’re done, are you?”

“What?”

“You’ll keep her, won’t you?” Éibhear asked. Well, it was more like a demand.

“What are you two idiots going on about?”

“We like her.”

“A lot.”

“And?”

“And, she’s not like other women,” Éibhear nearly snarled, but Briec already knew that. “Don’t simply toss her aside because you allow yourself to become bored.”

Briec didn’t think he could become bored with Talaith. Not ever. Since the rains hadn’t stopped for days, neither had they. Spending most of the day in bed or the hot springs. Only peeking out to get nourishment…or argue, which always led back to bed or the hot springs.

It had been amazing. Perhaps the best days of his already long life.

“What I do or won’t do, will be my business, brothers. Not yours.”

Éibhear, the youngest and most passionate of them all, pointed one black talon at his older kin. “Hurt her, Briec, and it will quickly become my business.”

Briec looked at Gwenvael. “Any threats from you?”

Gwenvael shrugged, his smirk well in place. “Just this—get bored with her brother, and feel free to send her my way. I’ll gladly take her in. And give her everything she needs.”

If Éibhear hadn’t jumped between them, Briec would have snapped Gwenvael’s neck like a twig.

* * *

“Not on your life, dragon!”

Talaith hid behind Éibhear, which seemed to anger Briec even more.

“You’re not being rational.”

“If rational means any more flying—then you’re damn right.”

Gwenvael laughed, but it turned into a cough as Briec’s violet eyes swung his way.

“You almost got me killed the other night. Can’t we walk? Or get a carriage with horses?”

Snorting out another laugh, Gwenvael quickly turned away.

“Talaith…come here.”

Wrapping the fur-lined cape Éibhear gave her tighter around her shoulders, she shook her head. “No.”

“If we leave now, we’ll be there in two hours. If we walk, we’re looking at days. In this unpredictable weather.”