Chapter Eight
For the past few months, Kelly’s sleep had been plagued by nightmares of her mother turning into a dragon and setting her on fire. In her dreams, her mother stood there and cackled while Kelly staggered and screamed, consumed by flames.
“You are your father’s daughter!” Her mother would caw triumphantly, pointing a skinny, accusatory finger at her.
This night was different. Kelly was having the most delightful dream. She was lying in a bed as soft as clouds, sleeping in Gabriel’s arms, and he was kissing her neck. Shivers of delightful sensation warmed her, and she groaned and reached behind her, pulling Gabriel even closer, pressing her butt against his rock-hard erection.
It all felt so real… Too real, in fact…
Her eyes flew open.
She sat bolt upright.
She was in Gabriel’s bedroom. Stark naked. Gabriel lay sprawled out on the silky sheets next to her, looking good enough to eat. And she should know. She blushed furiously, remembering the night before.
And somebody was pounding on the door to Gabriel’s room.
“Morning, sleepy-head. Shall I go kill Winthrop really quickly to make that noise stop, and then we’ll start the day off right?”
The pounding was Winthrop knocking on the door.
“Don’t kill anybody,” she said, staring around wildly. “Oh my God. You and me…we had sex!”
He propped himself up on an elbow and his lips curled in a sexy, lazy grin. “More than once. I want more.” He stroked her arm with his fingers.
She stifled a whimper of desire. “Stop…stop that… Damn it, Gabriel! This was very unprofessional of me! Nobody can know about it!”
“Nobody can know I had sex with my future wife? Sweetheart, this is a castle inhabited by a dragon clan. The walls have ears, and everybody gossips. Pretty sure everyone knows.”
She let out a groan of frustration and threw a pillow at his head.
“Well, it’s not going to happen again! Ever!”
“Of course it’s not.” But Gabriel’s smirk said that he thought otherwise.
Winthrop called out from the hallway. “Sir, your father wishes to speak to you post-haste!”
“Winthrop, get away from that doorway now or I will set you on fire!” Gabriel bellowed. “I’ll come down when I’m good and ready.”
“Very good, sir, I’ll let him know.” Even through the door, Winthrop’s voice carried a note of disapproval.
“What if it’s an emergency?” Kelly yawned and stretched.
“It’s not an emergency. It’s just my father. When an idea pops into his head, he needs to express it immediately.”
She looked up at the big railroad-station-style clock on the wall, which said 8:30 a.m., groaned and ran her hands through her sleep-rumpled hair. The sun was streaming through the massive window, and dragons flew by outside. They weren’t just awake already, they wereflyingalready.
“Does everyone get up at the crack of dawn around here?” she asked.
He snorted. “This is the crack of dawn? I gather you’re not an early riser?”
“Not voluntarily, no.” She stretched and yawned, then saw that he was eyeing her body appreciatively.
“Stop that,” she said nervously, and crossed her arms over her chest to hide the fact that her nipples had immediately hardened under his caressing gaze.
“I know how to make waking up each morning a delight,” he said with a wicked grin.
Her face flamed red with embarrassment, and she stifled a whimper of desire. “Stopthat,” she ordered him again, her voice rising.
