Rejected by Alpha, Collected by Dragon

Chapter 6. Plans gone awry

Duncan

She’s the most infuriating woman I’ve ever met.

And she was not supposed to be part of my plan.

I have no idea why I stopped when I saw her crying in that damned alley. I should’ve kept walking. I should’ve ignored it. I almost did. It wasn’t any of my business what her problem was. But then I’d stopped. I’d looked at her, and I knew I couldn’t leave.

And now I was getting behind on my work because I couldn’t concentrate with her in my apartment, wearing my clothes, and looking damned edible. She didn’t even seem to understand how she was affecting me. She’s all seductive curves that make my hands itch wanting to trace every contour, and that sassy mouth that I want on parts of my anatomy that would make that sweet blush stain her cheeks if she knew what I was thinking. It’s her wide, innocent eyes that captivate me, though. Specifically, the flecks of gold in the oceans of blue hold me prisoner. I’m a dragon, after all, and the color calls to me.

So, of course I followed her when she left to get some groceries and whatever she needed from her place. I wasn’t about to let her go unprotected in this neighborhood. I reasoned to myself that she’d never know. I’d stay far enough back that she’d never even guess that I was with her. Following that delectable ass in a skirt that should be illegal.

I hope she has one in every color.

When Dominick called her name and I saw her reaction, it suddenly made sense. He was her fated mate? Perfect! I couldn’t resist winding him up a little. Rubbing his nose in the fact that his mate was staying with me. Yeah, so what if technically I haven’t slept with her? He didn’t need to know that. And it was only a matter of time before I had her naked and screaming my name.

I hadn’t anticipated feeling so protective of her, though. That had come as a surprise, and I’m not sure I like it.

I also hadn’t meant to practically ravage her sitting on the grass next to the river in broad daylight. I wanted to comfort her, which was an odd sensation, but then she was so responsive! The feel of her body pressing against mine, the heat throbbing between her legs, and the sounds she made as she let herself feel with wild abandonment. I’m honestly impressed with myself that I managed to stop.

What I can’t figure out is why I’m not pushing my advantage. She made it abundantly clear that she’s not only willing, but eager to get horizontal with me. Something’s holding me back, though.

I’m not falling for her, I promise myself. That’s not what’s happening. It’s something else. Delayed gratification maybe. But I’m definitely not having feelings for her. She’s irritating.

But I held her hand all the way to her apartment. I’ve never held hands! I even had the desire to kiss her pretty fingertips, but managed to resist that sappy gesture.

When I thought she wanted to leave me, to go back to her comfortable little life, it was a punch to the gut. I tried telling myself that it was just because I found her when she was broken and added her to my collection. It had nothing to do with enjoying her company. I wasn’t lying when I said dragons are solitary creatures. Me more than most. And besides, she drooled on me. And ate half a pound of cheese.

That was actually kind of impressive, but still!

Irritating.

So, watching her stuff a suitcase with enough clothes for at least a week shouldn’t make me feel like this. Am I giddy? I don’t get giddy! Especially not over some little she-wolf.

Maybe I should just f*ck her and get it out of my system. Then I could go back to my routine. I’d carefully curated my life to ensure nobody f*cked with me if they didn’t want to wind up broke and lying in a ditch or worse. Because I could do so much worse than just financial ruin and death. I’m a little surprised that I want to punish Dominick on her behalf. I have a good thing going with Dom. He pays me a lot of money to make sure the pack’s secrets stay secret, and he's going to pay me a lot more when I have enough proof to show that his shiny girlfriend’s daddy dearest was extorting a massive amount of money from the pack. Why am I willing to put all that on the line to get back at him for hurting her?

She zips up her suitcase and turns to me with a smile and my heart lurches. That’s why.

I try to scowl at her, but the trust in her eyes makes it impossible. She shouldn’t trust me. I’m not that kind of man. But for some reason, there’s a tiny niggling thought at the back of my mind telling me I’d like to be that kind of man for her.

I haul her bag down the steps, and think we probably should’ve brought the car. Did she pack bricks when I wasn’t looking? The coffee house where she works isn’t too far, thankfully, and I hold the door open for her before following her inside.

There’s a middle-aged woman standing behind the counter cleaning a complicated-looking machine. She looks up and relief washes over her features as Chloe skips over to her. “Thank the Goddess!” she breathes, wrapping Chloe in a tight embrace. “I was so worried about you! I tried to call, but you left your phone here. Are you o-“ She stops as she finally looks at me, paling slightly.

If Chloe notices anything strange in the way her friend reacts to me, she doesn’t show it. “I’m so sorry, Brenda! I didn’t mean to make you worry,” she smiles. “The last few days just seemed to have gotten away from me!” Finally, she notices the older woman is staring at me, and she glances back and waves me over. “This is my new friend, Duncan. Duncan, this is Brenda. She owns the place!”

“It’s nice to meet you,” I say, trying my best to sound like an upstanding citizen, but it still comes out a little growly.

Brenda’s eyes dart from me to Chloe and back several times. “Your… friend?” she says, unsure. “You’re friends with Duncan MacElroy? The Black Dragon?”

Chloe’s eyes go wide as she looks at me like she’s just seen me clearly for the first time and I wonder briefly if I can shift and eat Brenda, but I figure that will just make Chloe more upset. “You’re the Black Dragon?” she asks. I nod, throwing a dark look at Brenda, who physically shrinks back. “Huh,” Chloe shrugs with a smile, “you’re not nearly as scary knowing you have a sweet tooth.” She pushes up on her tip toes and kisses me on the cheek, stunning both Brenda and I. “I need a few more days, Brenda. Things are kind of… weird right now.”

“You think?” Brenda mutters, staring at me like I still might eat her. She’s not entirely wrong. She shakes herself and turns back to Chloe. “Are you sure you’re ok?”

“Positive,” Chloe assures her. “I’ll be back on Monday, ok?”

“That’s fine, sweetie,” Brenda mumbles. “Whatever you need.”

I nod to her, not smiling, before putting my hand on Chloe’s back and leading her out the door. “You’re ok with that, right?” she asks as we walk down the street towards the grocery store.

I glance down at her, not really sure what she’s talking about. “Is what ok with me?”

“That I go back to work on Monday,” she c*cks her head at me, and I nod. By then, I will have f*cked her pretty little brains out and can move on with my life.

Hopefully.

By the time we get back to my place, my arm feels like it might fall off from dragging her suitcase all over the city. I settle on the couch with my milk and cookies that I feel like I’ve definitely earned, and pop on music videos while Chloe goes to freshen up. I’m pretty sure I’m not going to like the mess she’s about to make in my bathroom, but resign myself to having piles of her girly things around for a few days.

The smell hits me first. Crisp green apples and some delicate floral scent that is pure female. I glance over at the kitchen where she’s standing with her back to me, filling a glass with water. She’s wearing a pair of grey short sleep shorts with a ruffle of lace around the legs, and a tiny pink camisole that leaves her shoulders mostly bare. My mouth goes dry and all the blood in my body rushes south to the dragon in my pants. When she turns, I forget how to breathe. The camisole dips low between her ample breasts and her soft little belly peeks out between the bottom of the top, and the waistband of her shorts that sit low on her hips.

She joins me on the couch, stealing one of my cookies, but I just continue to stare at her. I can’t seem to tear my eyes away. She takes a bite of the cookie before finally realizing that I’m ogling her and she looks at me guiltily. “What?” she asks around the mouthful of cookie.

I swallow, not sure I can trust myself to speak. I shift uncomfortably, my shorts suddenly feeling a little tight. If I thought it was hard to concentrate while she was running around in my clothes, it’s nothing compared to seeing so much of her soft skin. I may as well resign myself to not getting any work done while she’s here.

I set the plate of cookies on the coffee table, and smirk as her eyes drift down to the obvious bulge between my legs. Her eyes go a little wide, and she takes another bite of the cookie, humming quietly to herself. Her eyes slowly work their way back up to my face and she pops the last of the cookie in her mouth, chewing thoughtfully. Stalling?

I reach up and flick a finger under one of the spaghetti straps on her shoulder, watching with fascination as goosebumps spread out from where my finger barely touches her, and down her arms. Her n*pples pebble, and my mouth waters thinking about pinching them between my fingers, sucking them, biting them.

I’m moments from pouncing on her and taking her right here on the couch when she lets out a little squeak and hiccups. I narrow my eyes at her, the realization that she’s actually nervous dawning slowly. In my defense, my brain is working a little sluggishly with my d*ck taking most of my attention at the moment.

I sigh, and pull back slightly. I’m big, even by shifter standards, and she’s probably only been with younger wolves who hadn’t found their mates yet, so maybe I should try to reassure her I have every intention of warming her up fully before ramming her full of my meat. “Chloe, you don’t need to be nervous, baby,” I let my fingers trail down along the outside curve of her breast, teasing us both. Now that I’ve started touching her, I’m not sure I can stop. “Why don’t you tell me what you like, and we can go from there?”

She bites her lower lip hard enough I’m a little surprised she’s not drawing blood, and shrugs. Her eyes are still abnormally wide, and I can tell she’s not just nervous, she’s terrified. What the hell?

“Chloe, you need to tell me what’s going on,” I growl. Cr*p, if Dominick did something to her before rejecting her, I’ll kill him.

She looks away, and sniffles. I’m about to demand she tells me what’s going on or I’m driving straight to the packhouse and pulling Dom out of his ivory tower by his d*ck, when she mumbles something. “Baby, I need you to say it a little louder,” I’m surprised how gentle my tone is with her, but she shivering like a lost lamb and it’s making me feel insanely protective of her.

“I said you were my first kiss,” she blurts out. “I’ve never done anything before.”

I blink at her admission, my eyes raking over her body. I find it very difficult to believe. “How has no guy managed to get past your personality to tap that before?” I ask.

She turns to me, eyes blazing with temper, her terror forgotten. “Excuse me? I have a great personality!”

“There’s my little fire ball,” I smirk at her, happy the distraction worked. She huffs at me, but I’m just relieved to see the nervousness doesn’t seem to be coming back. “Come on,” I say as I stand up. I bend down and pluck her off the couch, carrying her down the hall.

“What… what are you doing?” she squeals.

“Taking you to the bedroom,” I tell her simply. “It’s time for you to start learning what feels good.”