Now I’m the one that’s confused. It takes me a moment to remember what he’s talking about. The conversation with Thess about how he thought he was broken because he couldn’t communicate, and it turns out all the drakoni are cut off. “Did you really think you were broken?”
“Long time, yes. Quiet, quiet, all quiet.” He shakes his head. “Bad quiet. Murr broken, hide from other drakoni. No belong anymore.”
“Of course you belong,” I say softly, my heart hurting for him. To think he’s been carrying all this fear and doubt and I had no idea. I hate that. I feel like such a bad friend—and a worse girlfriend. “Just because something changed with how you talk doesn’t mean you’re no longer drakoni. It just means they have to listen a little harder.”
He kisses my fingertips again. “Dakota listens. Always, Dakota listens.”
A heated flush curls through my body. I can’t stop staring at his lips as he nibbles on my fingers. “Of course I listen. We’re friends.”
That makes him pause. Murr’s expression changes, and then he tugs on my wrist, dragging me closer to him. His eyes are swirling with a dark, rich gold, and he pulls me in close enough to wrap his arm around my waist. My breasts press up against his bare chest, and I stare at his clavicle before looking up into his face again.
“No friends,” he says. “Murr want Dakota wife.”
And then he kisses me. His mouth is on mine, hot and claiming, and his tongue sweeps against mine so boldly that it makes my toes curl in my worn shoes. I gasp when he pulls away, dazed at the ferocious, brief kiss. “W-what has Rabbit been telling you?” I ask, because I certainly haven’t taught him the word “wife.” “You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do.”
“Murr not wife. Broken. Now not broken.” His hand slides to my buttock and grips it tight. “Now wife.”
Oh, sweet lord have mercy. “You don’t want a dragon woman?”
“Want Dakota.” He leans in, his nose brushing against mine in the lightest of caresses. “What Dakota want?”
CHAPTER 60
MURR
Thess’s arrivalhas cleared my mind of all its shadows. For so long, I have feared that there was something truly broken inside of me, something to be ashamed of. That all the drakoni are struggling with the loss of our mind-touch is a strange relief. It is not something because of me, or something I did.
This means there is no reason why I would not be a good mate for Dakota. No reason to hold myself back from giving her the claiming bite, no reason I would not make her mine in every way. Just thinking about it makes my heart surge with yearning. More than the physical release, I want the partnership. I want to know that I’m no longer alone in the world, because my mate is here. Even if we cannot have a mental bond, we will have this to tie us to one another.
I slide my hand to the back of her neck and hold her as I kiss her again. Each time my mouth lands on hers, I am reminded how wonderful kisses are. How did I not know what they were before I met her? Impossible. How can anyone overlook just how erotic it is to touch lips, to taste one another? To tangle tongues together? I end the kiss as slowly as possible, taking mytime to pull my mouth away from hers, because I love the dazed expression on her face when I do.
“Murr wife Dakota?” I ask.
“You want to be with me…forever?” She looks emotional, her eyes shining. “Keep in mind I’m a package deal—I have a daughter already.”
I have always known that mating Dakota would mean that Rabbit would be part of our family. It is not a problem to me, but something to be overjoyed in. “Rabbit daughter.”
Dakota laughs, sinking her hands into my mane. “Okay, then. Let’s do it. Marriage. Yes!”
Elated, I pull her in for another kiss. My fangs burn with the venom that fills them, my teeth aching with heat. She moans against me, her nails lightly digging into my skin and sending pricks of arousal all through my already heated body. I kiss her again, and again, reluctant to leave the heated well of her mouth, but she needs to know what a drakoni mating looks like. I will not assume it is the same as a human mating. “Dakota…”
“Mmm?” Her eyes are glazed, and just the sight of that heavy-lidded gaze makes me want to kiss her all over again.
“Drakoni…wife…bite.”
The soft look in her eyes goes away. “Beg pardon?”
“We…wife. Bite. Bite make…together.” I use a hand gesture to show her what I mean. I lace my fingers, ignoring the throb of my fangs. “Is drakoni way.”
“One bite?” she asks. When I nod, her gaze goes to my mouth. “Will it hurt?”
“Is good bite,” I reassure. “Big pleasure. Murr never hurt Dakota.”
Her eyes go soft again. “I know you wouldn’t. Where do you need to bite me?”
I reach out and stroke her throat. “Neck. Here.” I tap the spot with my thumb-claw, and just talking about this makes my fangs drip heat onto my tongue. “Good bite.”
She leans into my touch, her eyes closing. Her tongue darts over her lips, wetting them, and our kissing has made her mouth flushed and pink and swollen. The sight just makes me want to kiss her all over again. Everything makes me want to kiss Dakota. She could ask me to build a fire and I would want to plant my mouth on hers, simply because now it is possible.
