Leah looked up at the sound of the deep, masculine voice, and into a pair of the deepest blue eyes she had ever seen. The man was huge, reminding her of a lumberjack. And, when he smiled, a dimple appeared in his right cheek, eyes sparkling with mischief. Leah was tall for a woman at 5'11", but she could tell she would probably only come up to the man's broad chest. He had to be well over 6 ½’, maybe closer to 7’. She knew right away by his scent that he wasn’t a dragon. Dragons had a distinct scent, like firewood mixed with something that uniquely identifies each individual. This man did not have the scent of firewood at all. He smelled like apple pie with an underlying scent that Leah recognized as wolf.
She returned the man's smile, a slight blush darkening her cheeks. "Sorry. They're just really good."
The man chuckled. "Is that seat taken?" he asked, pointing to the chair next to the one Leah was occupying.
Leah shook her head. "Not at all."
"I'm Ray Winston." He eased his massive frame into the chair and held out his hand.
"Leah Sullivan," she responded, returning his handshake. "Nice to meet you."
Leah stared openly at Ray as he got himself situated in his seat. He crossed one ankle over the opposite knee, and she licked her lips. He ran one hand through his black shoulder-length hair, and she bit her bottom lip to keep from outright moaning.
She had been around plenty of males in her lifetime, but, in all her thirty years, she had never felt like this. Sweat dripped down between her breast making her dress cling to her chest. Her panties became instantly soaked. She was so turned on just from looking at this man. If she were a cat shifter, she would have sworn she was in heat! She shook her head, resisting the urge to throw herself at him and demand he take her right here and now.
Before she could analyze her feelings further, Ray began talking. "So, tell me about yourself," he stated, as if they were on a date and getting to know each other.
"What would you like to know?" Leah frowned when her voice came out breathy and seductive. Since when do I talk like a $2 whore? She cleared her throat, smiled and started again. "Well, I am the oldest of five, and I live with my father and four younger brothers. My mother died ten years ago, so there is a severe lack of estrogen in the house."
Ray chuckled and raised one eyebrow. "That must make things difficult when you want to bring males home."
"Bring a guy home? I think not! My father would kill him, then he would kill me for even thinking that was okay," Leah snickered. "Once, when I was 16, I invited a boy from class over to study. Needless to say, the poor guy ran home crying and wouldn't talk to me or come anywhere near me for the rest of the school year. Nothing has changed in the 14 years since, unfortunately."
Ray's deep laughter boomed throughout the cafe, turning quite a few heads, both male and female. "I think I might actually like your father. "
"Yeah, it was hilarious," Leah smirked. "I wasn't too upset. He was cute, but he was kind of an ass. He deserved what he got."
Ray snorted. "I'll bet."
Leah got quiet. She wasn't used to flirting with men. They usually saw her as one of the guys, and didn't dare flirt with her when either her father or brothers were around. Plus, Ray seemed like a nice guy. She didn't want to lead him on when she knew it could never go anywhere. Not when her father had already sold her to the highest bidder. Leah sighed dejectedly.
Ray frowned in confusion. "Is something wrong? You seem sad. Was it something I said?"
Leah shook her head. "Oh, no. I was just thinking about my clan."
Ray dropped his leg, and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "You want to talk about it? I have been known to be a good listener," he said with an encouraging smile.
Leah returned his smile with a sad one of her own. "How much do you know about the dragon war?"
Ray sighed grimly. "We try to mind our own business unless it spills over into pack territory. But, I have heard there were many casualties on all sides."
Leah sighed. "Yes, that's the problem. My father is the king of the Sullivan clan, so he sees it as his responsibility to do whatever it takes to protect the clan." She took a sip of her Frappuccino, shoring up the courage to come clean about her engaged status, then continued. "My father met with Queen Dominique to find an amicable solution. They decided a mating treaty would be a good idea."
"So, you're saying that they want to mate someone from your clan to someone from the other clan?" Ray asked.
Leah couldn't look him in the eyes as she responded to his question. "Not just 'someone'. Me."
Leah looked up in shock when she heard Ray start to growl. His blue eyes were glowing, and his fangs were sticking out beneath the snarl of his top lip. She didn't know why he was so angry. She could only assume it was on her behalf. It was kind of sweet. No one besides her father and brothers had ever stuck up for her. Being an alpha and a princess meant that she was usually the one sticking up for others. Leah reached over and placed her hand against of Ray's cheek. He turned his face into her hand, and placed a kiss against her palm. The gesture sent a tingling sensation up Leah's arm, and straight to her clit. She didn't know what it was about this man, but something inside her was telling her that he was special, and she fully agreed. Ray nuzzled her hand a little longer, then turned to stare into her eyes, shaking his head vehemently. "You are not mating with anyone except me!" Leah tried to pull her hand back, but Ray wouldn't let go. She sighed, and gave up trying to take
Ray watched as Leah flew away from him, silently willing her to turn around and come back. She didn't. It wasn't fair. He had found his mate, only for her to be taken away from him. He would fight anyone for her, but he couldn't fight her. There was nothing he could do if she wasn't willing to meet him halfway. He understood loyalty, but this was ridiculous. She was his, dammit! "Is everything okay, Alpha?" Ray turned around to see his sister and pack healer, Francesca, standing a few feet away from him, a look of concern etched across her face. His two cousins and pack betas, Dallas and Jagger, stood beside her, looking equally as concerned. Ray rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. They must have heard him standing here shouting like a crazy person. Alphas didn't do shit like that! Especially not in front of his inner circle, even if they were related. "Yeah. Everything is fine," he reassured them. None of them looked convinced, but they wouldn't push it because he was
Dallas and Jagger pulled up just as Ray and Francesca were walking up the porch steps, and they all went inside. The guys all went straight to the living room while Francesca went to the kitchen to grab a beer for everyone. Drinks in hand, they all got comfortable, Ray in his favorite large blue lounge chair situated next to the fireplace, and the others grabbing a spot on the blue extra-large three-seater sofa sitting across from the fireplace in front of the window. Ray cleared his throat and smiled sheepishly. “So, you may have already guessed, but the female dragon you all saw me making a fool over is my mate, Leah.” Dallas burst out laughing, then held his hand out to Jagger. “I told you so. Pay up, Asshole!” Jagger glared at Dallas, reached into his wallet, pulled out a twenty-dollar bill, and handed it to his younger brother. “You got lucky, ShitFace!” Dallas snatched the money from Jagger, then smacked him in the back of the head, which earned him a punch to the arm. Th
Ray snapped his fingers, nodded his head, and pointed his finger at Francesca. “You may be onto something.” Francesca placed her hands on her hips. “Naturally.” Dallas chuckled. “Okay, Ms. Know-it-all. What other options are there for her? I mean, if the dragon leaders couldn’t come up with a better solution, how can we?” Ray and Jagger nodded their heads in agreement. Francesca sighed in exasperation. “Because we are on the outside. This situation doesn’t directly affect us, so we can look at the situation with unbiased eyes.” She went and retook her seat on the couch next to Dallas, pushing Jagger over to give herself some room. “Okay, let’s start throwing out some ideas.” She looked at the guys. When no one volunteered any suggestions, she continued. “Okay, then I will go first. From what I have overheard about Leah, she has some younger brothers. Perhaps one of them could take her place.” Ray scratched the back of his head and frowned. “It’s a good idea, but I would figure
They sat in silence for a few minutes, thinking about what they could do for Leah. Francesca noticed that Ray had turned his right hand over and was absently running his thumb over the back of the three-headed dragon tattoo that had been inked on his wrist since he was sixteen. Francesca looked at Ray contemplatively. “What would you do if you were Leah?” She asked Ray quietly. Ray’s head snapped in Francesca’s direction. He didn’t say anything for a few seconds, then he quietly asked, “What do you mean?” Francesca shook her head at him. “Come on, Ray. You’re always asking me what I would do in certain situations and telling me that I’m the only one who can understand what you are going through. I am asking you now: What would you do if you were Leah in this situation?” Ray bit his lower lip and chewed on it for a second. “I would do whatever it took to end the war peacefully. And if that meant marrying someone I wasn’t in love with, then so be it.” He looked away from Francesca,
King Marcus paced the library floor, and berated Leah. "I specifically told you that I wanted you here for the meeting! That doesn't mean show up at the end! Do you have any idea...?” Leah sat in her favorite armchair and tuned her father out. He could go on and on when he gets pissed like this, and Leah really didn't want to hear it. It's not like she didn't already know what the meeting had been about, so she didn't really understand why he was so upset. He had already told her everything she needed to know that morning. What more could there have been? Leah took the time to look around the library. This was one of her favorite rooms in the whole house, besides her bedroom. The room was massive, having used to be two very large rooms that was combined into one by knocking out the dividing wall. She redecorated this room herself five years ago for her twenty-fifth birthday. It had been sort of a gift from her father since she had been wanting to redecorate the room since before she
Leah woke up the next morning in a horrible mood. She wasn’t looking forward to meeting Theo Blackwell. Truth be told, she would rather be at the café chatting with Ray. Or doing pretty much anything except meeting with Theo Blackwell. After getting dressed for the day, Leah slowly made her way downstairs and to the sitting room. By the time she arrived, her father was already in there speaking with a blond-haired man who appeared to be in his mid to late 50s. While he wasn’t the most unattractive man she had ever saw, he certainly wouldn’t be winning any beauty contests. His huge hawk-like nose and beady eyes saw to that. When Leah started to clear her throat, Theodore’s head snapped up and landed on her. He gave her a slight smile before addressing her father. “Sir, you have a beautiful daughter.” Her father nodded, but said nothing, giving Leah a pointed look as if to say, “You better not mess this up!” Leah rolled her eyes at her father, then pasted on a fake smile for thei
Leah walked into the café, ordered her usual, and sat in her favorite spot. After ten minutes of just sitting there not even touching her strawberries, she noticed that she wasn’t getting comfort from her favorite snack. That’s when she realized that she was depressed. Leah loved her clan, and she would do anything to protect them. But at what cost? Her freedom? Her happiness? This wasn’t fair. She would rather be getting to know Ray than worrying about how she was going to get herself out of mating with Theo Blackwell. “A penny for your thoughts.” Leah looked up at the sound of Ray’s voice and smiled. “My thoughts are worth way more than a penny.” She patted the seat next to her. “Join me. I was just thinking about you.” Ray sat down in the seat she indicated with a smile. “Only good things, I hope.” Leah laughed, although it didn’t reach her eyes. “Of course.” She was surprised by how true that was. Ray was a great guy. She would be lucky if she could have him as a mate. “Did y