Dragon's Deal; Dragons Series, Book 3

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Dragon’s Deal Willa Okati

All rights reserved. Copyright ©2008 Willa Okati

Warning: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.

ISBN: 978-1-59596-803-6 Formats Available: HTML, Adobe PDF, MobiPocket, Microsoft Reader Publisher: Changeling Press LLC PO Box 1046 Martinsburg, WV 25402-1046 www.ChangelingPress.com Editor: Crystal Esau Cover Artist: Reneé George

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This e-book file contains sexually explicit scenes and adult language which some may find offensive and which is not appropriate for a young audience. Changeling Press E-Books are for sale to adults, only, as defined by the laws of the country in which you made your purchase. Please store your files wisely, where they cannot be accessed by under-aged readers.

Dragon’s Deal Willa Okati

Alan, an ex-soldier tired of the wars, is in search of a better life. Traveling as far away from the crowded cities as he can, he finds a small slice of paradise at the ocean’s edge. His only problem is that he’s alone, and he misses his brothers-in-arms.

Sian, a misfit dragon without a way back home.

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Two men in search of someone to keep them warm and keep them company find one another in the most unlikely of places. In joining with a mating bond, the dragon and human form a partnership that will change the world.

All that, and mind-blowing sex too. The sex is Alan’s favorite part. (And Sian’s.)

Chapter One

Alan stretched, not yet awake and not quite ready to let go of sleep. The early morning light had found its way through the slats of his rough-and-ready home, striping warm, caressing bars over the length of his nude body. The sun wasn’t bright enough to make him screw up his eyes or cover them with a hand in protest, or even to turn over. His sleeping mat had rucked up during the night, molding itself perfectly around him. A mighty flapping of wings racketed outside, followed by screeching that would have woken the dead, let alone Alan, exhausted though he might have been from a day’s hard physical labor. “Seagulls,” Alan grumbled, sitting up and squinting through a haze of drowsiness. “If they’d told me there’d be pigeons with voices like air sirens out here, I might not have come.” He chuckled under his breath. Nah . Even if the noisome birds had possessed teeth as sharp as a barracuda’s, Alan still would have left the cities and traveled outward. It never ceased to amaze him how perfect and peaceful a world he’d found only a few weeks’ travel away from the crowded cities with their fires, rag-tag soldiers, and ever-more-feral “civilians.” They’d stopped clinging together and started snapping at one another’s throats in the name of survival. If something wasn’t done, whatever cosmic scorekeepers were out there could write humanity off as a loss. Alan stood, brushing bits of sand off his legs. He didn’t bother scuffing his feet. Why, when just outside his home spread nearly endless vistas of dark dun sand and a sea that went on forever? He breathed appreciatively of the salty air, savoring the fresh wildness and purity. Less than a year ago, he hadn’t even been sure all of this was real. It was. And it was Paradise. *** “Me, I still think you’re mad,” said Paddy, loitering in the doorway of the tenement falling down around

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their ears. Alan tucked his hair, which was forever escaping its queue and falling in his eyes, behind his ears and finished tying the straps on his rucksack. “Maybe so,” he agreed, amiable as was his nature. “Sure you won’t come with me?” Paddy hesitated. Alan waited, hoping against hope the old man would say yes. He hated like fire and fury to leave his aging friend in the urban ruins. Neither would he throw Paddy over his shoulder and haul him out against his will either. He deserved more dignity than that. “Sorry, lad,” said Paddy, scratching the bridge of his long, bowed nose. “I’m too old to go traveling.” “You’re only as old as you think you are, friend.” Alan stood, throwing the worn rope straps of the faded blue rucksack over his shoulder. “Fine. When I find a piece of utopia and I’ve fixed it up fit for settlers, and I come back to recruit folks, I’ll ask you again.” Paddy shrugged. Alan could tell, from the slight tugging at the corners of Paddy’s wide mouth, that he’d pleased his mentor. “And I might come with you, then. We’ll see.” He started to say something else, then stopped, eyeing Alan all too shrewdly. “What is it, you old fox?” “You’re a good man,” said Paddy, as if choosing his words carefully. “A man who likes company. I can’t go now, lad. There’s too many who need me here. I worry about you by yourself. Can’t help it. You’ll be lonely as the devil.” “Not for long.” “Maybe longer than you think. Who’s to say how long it’ll take to find this ocean, if it exists, and if it’s as unspoiled as those mad rumors say it might be?” “The sea does exist. I know it does.” Alan struck his chest. “I feel it in here.” “That’s neither here nor there.” Paddy made a dismissive gesture. “A man like you needs someone to take care of. To…” His weathered old cheeks turned faintly pink. “To love, as it were.” “You mean a warm body in my bed?” teased Alan. “I know. That’ll be tough. I’ll make it through. It’ll be worth it to find a place to make a fresh start. I’ve done my time as a soldier and I’m more than ready to beat my sickle into a plowshare.” “You’re a good fellow. Take care of yourself.” Paddy patted Alan’s back as Alan walked past him, bowing his head in respect for Paddy’s age. “Maybe you’ll find yourself a nymph or something.” “Now those really are just myths.” Alan winked over his shoulder. “You’ll be wishing they weren’t, soon. Bah! Get on with you. Travel safe, lad. And mind you’re careful of the dragons!” Paddy shouted after him. *** Alan tugged the remnants of his last pair of denims as snugly as he could around his waist as he made his

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way out his door. They slipped immediately down, loose over his obliques and hips, his body honed to carved hardness from months of unending work. He curled his bare toes in the warm sand and lifted his face toward the endless blue skies and sighed, contented. Heaven. The only thing he missed right now was company. Paddy had been right; Alan was lonely. He loved noise, crowds, laughter and a lithe body in his bed at night. Ye gods , did he miss someone heated and eager writhing under him or curled around him or riding him. Male or female, didn’t matter as long as they had a pretty smile and knew how to laugh. Someday, he promised himself. Someday. As soon as possible . Until then, there was so much else to relish, and a list several yards long of work to be done before the beach was ready for the settlers he planned to coax out here where they could start new lives. Alan tied his hair back with a strand of seaweed he kept soaking in a tortoise shell by the entrance to his driftwood hut. As it dried, it’d cinch tight. Worked better than any elastic band he’d ever met for keeping his too-long, too-thick brown hair under control. There. Shirtless, shoeless, warm, full of energy, all systems go. Alan clapped his hands together and strode out onto the beach. Not a cloud above and blue skies all the way. That was another thing. No dragons out here. Not a one that Alan had spotted since the day he’d seen the ocean filling the horizon. Paddy might like that, when Alan managed to coax him out here. Alan, on the other hand, had always been fascinated by the dragons, not frightened. Truth to tell… he almost missed them. Ah, well. Alan bent to stretch his legs, limbering up. Time to get to work. *** Sian curled his sinuous body tighter, nearly forming a ball, peeking warily out from behind the rocky outcrop he’d chosen to nap on the night before. In the dark, he had thought the nearby beach was as deserted as the rest of the coastline. He had not spied the shack or the raised gardens, the drying racks full of small silver fish, or the fascinatingly bizarre raised gardening beds trailing messy sprawls of seaweed and kelp. A proper dragon, one worthy of his scales, would have unfurled his wings and flown away the second he realized this beach was inhabited. Not out of fear, but in haste to make a report. At last, a human with enough common sense to leave the cities and find a good place to start fresh! The only trouble with that goal, unfortunately, was that Sian had been lost at sea -- so to speak -- for seventeen days so far, and had not as yet found his way back to the dragon lands. He knew for certain now that they were keeping him out on purpose. The old generals had said he was reckless, clumsy, too curious for his own good, and risky to have along on a campaign and that he needed to be taught his place in the world -- whatever that was supposed to mean. Bah! Sian angrily lashed the wave-washed rock with the golden tip of his tail. If they no longer wanted him, then be it on their own heads. He would no longer choose to have any part of them either.

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Besides, he obviously had better things to do. Human-watching was never dull, and this human in particular fascinated Sian. Clever, if the set-up on the beach was anything to go by, hard-working, given the sinewy-lean shape of the man, and, judging by the smile lines in his face and the way he laughed instead of cursing at the seagulls swarming him, good-natured down to the core. Kind, yes. And… appealing. Sian rested his muzzle on the rock and exhaled, shimmers of heat in his breath. He had, from time to rare time, heard of dragons taking humans as pets, even as lovers. He’d fallen asleep to those old stories when he was a dragonlet. But as he grew, Sian found that he wondered why, in the name of the Dragon Lords, anyone would want a human. If you asked him, they were small, fragile, cantankerous, and funny-looking, and he had not yet seen reason to change his opinions. This man, though… he struck Sian as different. Maybe it was that he had not seen or spoken to anyone else in seventeen long days, or just that he looked like the sort who might always have a kind word even for an awkward misfit, and Sian was lonely . Watching him, Sian thought that now he could understand why some dragons thought humans made good lovers. The way the muscles flexed under this man’s skin, the kindness in his face, the competence in his hands… even if Sian hadn’t been desperate for company, he’d have wanted to get to know this human better. More, Sian caught faint wisps of his scent that when the wind blew in the right direction, heating his blood and making him hungry for the man’s touch. Sian fidgeted, aching to fly from the rock to the beach, yearning for the company, but… would this man have any of that promised goodwill for a dragon? Sian huffed in thought. Most of the humans he had observed feared the dragon kind and ran screaming when they noticed their watchers. Out here with no other men or women for miles and miles, who knew how the man on the beach would react to a sudden invasion? What to do, what to do… A wave crashed over Sian’s back, not powerful enough to knock him off the rock -- he was no small dragon -- but startling him into loosing a yelp and a loud curse. He hid, fast, knowing the human would have heard that, and swore silently and viciously. That had torn it. The human would surely know he was not alone now. “Hello?” the human called. He sounded alarmed. “Is someone out there? Are you hurt?” Why would he think that? It was only a wave -- oh!Sian remembered now. Humans used to go to sea in boats, and more often than not in the older days, those boats wrecked, leaving the survivors who were strong enough to swim to wash up on the beach. It would, truly, be risky. Sian had never changed shape for more than a few minutes, and that on a dare, but by the heavens, he could not stand being alone for another second, and the man on the beach smelled incredible . “Yes!” he called back, shifting fluidly from his lengthy, snakelike dragon’s shape to that of a man’s, seeming alarmingly small, pink and fragile to himself, though still bigger than the human on the beach. “My boat broke up on the rocks!” He flung himself into the waves and started swimming for shore. After a

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few strokes, he remembered the next part and obediently shouted, “Help! Help!” An overcurious fish swam past Sian’s groin. Hmm. He hoped the human wouldn’t mind his being naked. The fish bit Sian’s human-shaped leg far, far too close to his groin for Sian’s liking. Sian shouted, swallowed bitter seawater, and started to cough, spasming in the waves. His panic was genuine this time when he bellowed, “Help!”

Holy crap!Alan dropped the conch he’d found, a good meaty conch he’d already planned on roasting for lunch without a second thought and raced into the water. The first thing he’d learned when he reached the ocean was how to swim, but it looked to him as if this fellow didn’t have a clue. He wasn’t the kind of man who’d stand by and watch anyone drown, and no way on earth or in heaven was he going to lose the first person he’d seen in almost a year! “Don’t fight!” he shouted, slicing through the waves with the rhythm he’d learned. You couldn’t wrestle with the ocean. “Try to float!” The stranger was too busy coughing and spluttering to answer, his struggles growing frantic. He hadn’t sounded that badly off when he first cried for help. He must have choked on a wave. “I’m coming!” Alan called, treading water for a second, only long enough to regain his bearings. The churning disturbance of the drowning man wasn’t hard to spot. Alan swam directly for him. “I’m almost there. Don’t fight . I can’t help you if you’re thrashing around.” “Help me -- I don’t want to drown!” the stranger protested, strained with panic. “You won’t. I won’t let you. Calm down. I promise I’ll catch you before you sink.” Alan caught a glimpse of dark gold hair plastered to the man’s skull, of fine features pinched with terror, and bright eyes wide with fear. “You swear?” “On my life.” Alan swam slower, gauging the man’s state of mind. “I’ll be there in three seconds. Can you do what I asked?” The man coughed again. “I can try.” Good enough. Alan kicked through the dark, salty water and wrapped his arms around the man’s narrow waist. The man shuddered and grabbed back. He locked eyes with Alan, his a startlingly clear blue-gray, his lips parting in what looked like more surprise than relief. “Thank you, sir,” he said. “I appreciate your kindness.” For the first time, Alan noticed his strange accent, heavy on the sibilants and tinged with some unusual spice. Where had he come from? Time to figure all that out when they were safe on dry land. Alan let go of the man’s waist -- a little reluctantly, not wanting to release the first human he’d held in so long -- and looped the man’s arm around his shoulders. “My name’s Alan. Just hold on to me,” he ordered. “I’ll swim us to shore.” “Thank you, Alan!” The man startled Alan nearly into slipping under the crashing waves himself by kissing him. Kissing him! He missed Alan’s mouth, brushing the side of his lips instead, but for all the difference that made in the sudden rush of desire and want that roared through Alan, he might as well have been on his knees sucking Alan’s immediate hard-on.

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Sweet merciful… Alan shook his head, splattering seawater. Enough of this! “You’re welcome. I won’t let you go. Kick your legs and swim with me.” His mind awhirl with questions and his body on fire, ravenous for even more contact, Alan swam as fast as he could toward dry land. I’m not alone anymore , he exulted. I’m not alone!

Chapter Two

Why did not every dragon have a human? That was the question Sian wanted an answer to as he basked in the sunlight on the warm, soft sands higher on the beach. He guessed not a quarter of them could be half as kind or gentle as Alan -- if they were, then they wouldn’t have nearly destroyed their world with fighting -- but men like Alan made the whole race worth saving. The other dragons would need to know that. When Sian found them, or when they found Sian. That’d be for later. Right now, he had Alan all to himself, and whether or not it made him selfish, Sian was glad he shared his human with no others, draconic or not. He sighed happily, stretching his legs and curling his toes. Human shape was not at all what he had thought it might be. No -- it was better. Strong legs, agile arms, and better still, a tingling heat in his belly that intensified every time he looked at Alan, far different and much more intriguing than typical dragon arousal. There was so much to learn about being human, but Sian wanted to start with some lessons on mating. “Feeling any better?” Alan dropped to the side beside Sian, folding his legs with easy grace and already busy knotting some frayed kelp together before his ass had fully nestled into the sand. “Some,” Sian agreed, turning his head to better watch Alan’s nimble fingers working. Though Alan kept his eyes on whatever he was tying together, he grinned, and Sian knew Alan knew he was being watched. “Hope you don’t mind my hovering,” Alan said as he deftly flipped three strands over and tied them in snug knots. “Not at all,” Sian said, barely paying attention, too fascinated by Alan’s hands. So much cleverer than dragon claws. Callused from hard work, yet supple. Curious, Sian stroked his own belly and shivered at the thrill of sensation. His male organ, which had lain quiescent on his thigh while he dried off in the sun, stirred. Alan quirked an eyebrow, no doubt noticing, but didn’t look up for more than a half-second’s amused glance at Sian.

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Sian’s face warmed as mild embarrassment suffused him. “Forgive me. I meant no offense by staring.” “Trust me, I’m not offended,” Alan murmured, tying three knots in a row. “Not at all.” He took a longer look at Sian. Sian recognized both yearning and arousal in the slight parting of Alan’s lips when Alan gazed at him. “You should rest, though. Nearly drowning is hard on a man.” True, except I’m not a man. I’m a dragon, and I feelfine. Sian started to rise, intending to prop himself on one elbow. Alan dropped his knots and planted his palm on Sian’s chest, pushing him firmly down. “I said rest,” he ordered. Unexpectedly, Sian’s organ twitched, his blood heated, and he shuddered, the command stoking the fires in his belly. He stopped, amazed at himself. Since when did he enjoy taking orders? Fascinating. The tips of Alan’s ears were bright red. He rubbed the back of his neck, his scent changing to one of uncertainty, then immediately to irritation when the strand of dried kelp tying his hair out of his face snapped, sending the thick brown locks cascading over his eyes. Sian couldn’t help laughing at Alan’s loud, frustrated swearing. Alan glared at him, one green eye visible beneath his hair. Sian caught the flash of white teeth in Alan’s grin, and didn’t worry that he’d angered him. Emboldened, Sian reached up to tweak a strand of Alan’s hair. “Soft,” he said, wondering. Even stiff with salt, it was so pleasant to the touch. He twined the lock around his finger and pulled, marveling at the dark shine. The light quip Sian had been about to make fell away, forgotten, when Alan shivered. Curious, Sian slid his hand through Alan’s hair, caressing the side of his head. So fragile. Sian could feel the pulse beating at Alan’s temple. Maybe this was why some dragons stayed away from humans. Their temptations were almost strong enough to make a dragon forget how easily they could be broken. Sian bit his lip. He should let go. He didn’t know enough yet about human limitations and what he could do in this shape that wouldn’t damage Alan. Alan was far too kind to risk in any way. If Alan’s scent had not risen in a sharp, high, unbearably spicy burst of arousal, Sian might have actually been strong enough to back off and behave. When the aroma assaulted him, however, forget it. Sian rose up, unhindered this time, and found that propping himself on his elbow was quite comfortable indeed. “Hello,” he said, intrigued by the way his human voice had dropped two octaves, emerging as a deep growl rather than a mellow tenor. Was this part of human arousal? “Hello,” Alan replied, confirming Sian’s guess. His voice saturated Sian with honey-rich and dragon’s mead melting heat.

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Sian’s male organ -- cock, he thought they called it -- rose fully firm, the head touching his lower stomach and leaking a drop of sticky fluid that felt warm even on his lust-hot skin. Alan coughed. “Definitely feeling better.” “Good enough to fly,” Sian said honestly, then mentally kicked himself for the slip. Alan didn’t seem to have noticed. He dropped his kelp ropes and leaned over Sian, tucking hair behind his ears in vain attempts to keep it out of his face, studying Sian with a strange intensity that made Sian’s cock twitch. “I don’t even know your name.” “Does it matter?” Sian asked, genuinely curious. Alan laughed. “To some men? No. To me? Yes.” He traced the line of Sian’s jaw. Sian hissed at the pleasure that simple touch brought him, and at how it stoked his fires. He needed Alan and needed him now . “Sian,” he said. “I am called Sian. Are we done talking now?” “Why?” Alan shifted position, dropping to his forearms in the sand, his face close enough to Sian’s for Sian to breathe in Alan’s exhaled sigh. Alan cupped Sian’s cheek, turning him, studying him with that curiously intent brightness. Brightness laced with doubt that simply would not do. “Because I want to do this instead,” Sian replied, catching Alan carefully but firmly by the back of his head and pulling him down. He underestimated his strength and instead of merely sampling the flavor of Alan’s lips as he’d seen other humans do sometimes with one another, he crushed their mouths together. Alan shuddered. Sian wondered if he’d hurt Alan by accident. Nope, he decided a half-second later, thrilled, as Alan moved over him, one hand braced in the sand on Sian’s left side to hold him up, all the better to plunder Sian’s mouth. That more than pleased Sian. He arched up, hissing against Alan’s mouth. Intending to tell Alan how much he liked this, Sian parted his lips in preparation for speech. He decided immediately that that could wait when Alan slid his tongue into his mouth and stroked it heavily over Sian’s own. Sian’s body seemed to act without his permission, hauling Alan closer to him. He spread his palm flat between Alan’s shoulders and yanked their bodies tighter together, hungry for Alan’s weight on top of him and desperate for friction on his aching cock. Alan tore away, breathing heavily. “This is a bad, bad idea,” he said, pressing his forehead to Sian’s. “I’m taking advantage.” “It would only be taking advantage if I said no,” Sian pointed out, hooking his leg around Alan’s and pushing up, groaning when he finally found firm, hot skin to rut against. “I say yes .” Alan shook his head, hair tangling over his eyes, and took Sian by the chin, returning to their kiss. Wonderful! Better still, he slid one nearly bare leg between Sian’s, the solid weight of his cock pushing

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insistently in the shallow of Sian’s hip. The salt-stiff denim Alan wore was too rough to the touch. Sian grumbled in complaint. “In for a penny,” Alan muttered, confusing Sian. Sian decided he didn’t care about riddles when Alan’s clever fingers undid the catches on his denims and he bucked, kicking them down his legs and shimmying them off. Sian bit Alan’s shoulder to muffle his moan of delight. Bare skin was so , so much better, only the dense hair surrounding Alan’s cock abrading him now, and that with a tingling rasp that drove Sian crazy with pleasure. “God,” Alan panted against Sian’s throat, sucking hard, a little painful, a lot marvelous, licking the spots he’d marked. “You,” he said, before he attacked Sian’s mouth again, delving deep. “You.” “More,” Sian pleaded, straining upward, grinding into Alan. Their cocks skated slickly over one another’s bellies. Madness consumed Sian, making it impossible to think. “Harder. More. Please.” Alan gripped Sian’s bare hip, the pressure of his fingers digging in painful and wonderful at once. A tangled knot of hunger, need and desire tightened unbearably in the pit of Sian’s stomach. He thrust up, involuntarily, fumbled for and caught Alan’s mouth in a desperate kiss, and exploded. Or so it seemed. Sian’s vision burst into white brilliance, the intensity of sensation in his cock drowned out his remaining senses, and he thought he might be dying. If he was, he almost didn’t care. Alan stiffened above him, groaned, bit down ruthlessly on Sian’s shoulder, and shook in violent spasms, coating Sian’s belly with sticky gushes of creamy liquid. Sian found himself gripping Alan’s shoulders and tightening his thighs around Alan’s, the thrills rolling one into the other until he collapsed, unable to breathe, dizzy and drunk, laughing despite having no air to spare for the noise. Alan laughed too, rolling his forehead against Sian’s collarbone. “Well,” he rasped, kissing Sian gently. “As welcoming ceremonies go, I’ve got to say I like that better than a handshake.” “Mmm,” Sian purred, lazily stroking Alan’s back. “Welcome to me.” “You have no idea how welcome you are,” Alan surprised him by saying before lifting his head and seeking Sian’s kiss-swollen lips once more. Sian surrendered, satiated and content and willing to do absolutely anything Alan wanted in thanks. Every dragon should have a human, definitely, Sian decided. Lucky him, he had one right there, and he fully intended to enjoy every minute of this, for as long as he could make it last. Speaking of which… “May I stay, then?” Sian broke the kiss long enough to ask. Alan’s eyes twinkled when he answered. “I wish you would. For as long as you can, consider yourself more than welcome here.” “Then I will,” Sian replied, happily surrendering to Alan’s hungry kiss. ***

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Alan chuckled quietly to himself as he stroked Sian’s drying hair off his forehead. The cut was short enough that Sian wouldn’t have the same kind of problems as he did with his own mop -- and trimmed or not, his own hair always found a way to fall over his face -- and the hair itself turned the color of old gold as it dried, gleaming with streaks of brightness more vivid still next to the darker strands. Sian didn’t react in the slightest. Alan had seen plenty of exhausted men in his day, soldiers who, once they felt safe and secure at last, would shake the rafters with their snores for two full turns of the clock. The thought that Sian might be that comfortable with him already pleased Alan down to his bare toes, which he wriggled into the dry, crumbly sand while he watched Sian sleep. “Drowning will take it out of a man,” he said in a low whisper, skating his palm down Sian’s bare chest. “Where did you sail from, Sian? Why did you leave? What happened to your boat?” He shook his head in amusement at himself. “Doesn’t matter, really. Not yet. You’ll tell me when you’re ready.” Still asleep, Sian turned his face toward Alan, sighing out a soft, contented breath. “You asked if you could stay, and I meant it when I said yes.” Alan stroked Sian’s lowest rib with his fingertip. “Stay forever. I’d like that. Believe it or not, I don’t usually put out on the first rescue mission. For you, though, I’ll make an exception. You’re something special, Sian, aren’t you? You’re like this beach. Different. New.” Alan lowered his voice and whispered, lips tickling the shell of Sian’s ear and added, “Unspoiled. So far. Unclaimed. How about if I decide to make you mine as well as keep you? What do you say?” Sian shifted an inch at Alan’s quiet laugh, sighed in what sounded like complete content, and released a snore that sounded far more like a purr. Exactlylike a purr, actually. Alan frowned and withdrew his hand. Last time he’d checked, humans weren’t capable of that kind of noise. Interesting. “I don’t know where you came from,” he said, lowering himself once more to lie by Sian’s side, resting his weight on his hip and one elbow, his head propped in his hand. “But I think I might know what you are.” How strange, and yet a relief, that he didn’t feel in the least afraid. Mind you look out for those dragons, Alan heard Paddy warning him, the memory as sharp and clear as if he’d had that goodbye conversation with the old man yesterday instead of almost a year ago. “They never hurt us,” Alan responded, pretending Paddy was there and could hear him, feeling oddly as though he was pleading his case to his father, which wasn’t far from the truth. He laid his palm over Sian’s heart and counted the steady, slow beats. “Everyone’s afraid of them, but why? No one worries about hawks or ravens, not unless you’re on the battlefield, and this is a safe haven.” He thumbed Sian’s full lower lip, smiling when Sian’s mouth opened slightly under his touch. “I might be wrong,” he said, careful not to wake Sian. “It’s always possible. Or I might be right and you are a dragon, not a man. You’re not here to see if I taste good with tomato sauce or if I’m crunchy, so I guess

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I’ll wait for you to tell me. Maybe you needed a safe place to hide too.” Bending, he pressed a light kiss to Sian’s lips, tasting salt from the sea and the flavor of a healthy male. “Take your time, whether man or dragon. I want to know why you’re not with your people, and what you’re going to do next, but I still want to keep you. So I’ll have to make you want to stay with me. Forever.” He kissed Sian once more and lay fully on the sand, seeing no reason in the world why he shouldn’t enjoy an afternoon snooze. When he woke, he’d take up his work, twofold now, and he’d see what two strong hands and a willingness for honest labor would net him.

Chapter Three

“Ready to put me to work?” “Depends. Are you ready to get to work?” Alan tossed Sian one of the nets he’d been trying to repair. “Are you any good with knots?” Sian wrinkled his forehead as he turned the net this way and that, getting his hands snarled in the webbing and blinking in surprise when one of his arms slid through a hole up to the elbow. “I could try?” He looked hopefully up at Alan, who waved him off and said, “Nah. Don’t worry. We’ll find something for you to busy yourself with. I’d still rather you rested a while longer.” “Worry not for my health,” Sian insisted. He’d barely swallowed any sea water. The only injury was to his dignity, and perhaps he wasn’t a sterling example of a dragon, for he barely felt the sting. He drew his tongue over his lips, deliberately over-dramatic and naughty. “I seem to remember exerting myself yesterday, and you did not put up a fuss then.” Alan shook his head, pinkening under his darkly tanned cheeks. “That’s different.” “If I was capable of coming apart under your mouth, I think I am fully capable of fixing a net.” Sian waved the tangled mess at Alan. “I can unravel the flaws and mend them. Just give me time. There has never yet been a puzzle I couldn’t solve if I was given enough time.” “Is that so,” Alan said, his tone impossible to read. It wasn’t the first time he’d confused Sian so far this morning. Every so often, he caught Alan giving him an oddly assessing sideways look. Though Sian refused to fidget, Alan knew something was off, for sure. He could not have guessed that sensible humans, other than those who’d been coaxed to the dragon lands as pets and lovers, would sit calmly by a dragon’s side and act as if they were the best of friends. Then again, from Sian’s observations of humans in general, they barely trusted one another either.

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Another way in which Alan was unusual, special, better, worth knowing, worth working to win over. Worth doing his utmost to keep. Which, Sian supposed, would require his not playing the stubborn fool. He had no idea how to repair these nets and it’d do neither of them any good to wreck them further. Better to let Alan take charge. Sian found -- quite to his surprise -- that he rather enjoyed taking orders, at least from Alan. He folded the net as neatly as he could and laid it aside. “I yield. What else can I do? I want to help.” He’d insist on that much. Although he’d only the knowledge that Alan planned to set this place up as a refuge for humans who wanted to start fresh, the understanding of how much sheer work would be involved dizzied Sian. Dragons had long since carved their lands out specifically to their tastes. This was an entire new world. Sian thought he’d already fallen in love with this ocean paradise, as well as -He caught himself. Love Alan? Surely he couldn’t feel such a thing so soon. Yet… what was this compelling sense of need to stay by the man’s side, to help him, to please him, if not love? The demanding hunger to lie on his back and spread his legs for Alan, to wrap them around Alan’s flanks and hook his ankles at the small of Alan’s back… that wasn’t love, exactly. Sian wasn’t certain what to call the peculiar urge. “Lust” wasn’t good enough; “lust” didn’t cover the entire scope. Alan’s scent sent Sian half out of his mind with this… this… drive, this craving, this growing addiction. Yes, Sian decided, nodding to himself. I have to prove to him that I am as fit as a dragonling in flight -- or whatever the human equivalent may be -- because I cannot wait another day to get him inside me. And if I’m strong enough to do a good job working at his right hand, then he will not turn me away when I ask for his body . A good plan, and truth to tell, Sian couldn’t wait to see what he could accomplish in this new human shape. He turned his full attention to Alan, who’d waited patiently while Sian mused his way through that lot. Alan’s smile, always beautiful, tugged at his lips. Sian could see fondness and amusement and something a touch wry in the curve of his mouth. “What?” Sian asked, suddenly uncertain. Would Alan let him help? “Nothing.” Alan pushed his hair behind his ear, the heavy locks slipping free the second he let go of them. He rolled his eyes and blew a noisy stream of air up, lifting his hair off his face. “Have you ever fished or dug for shellfish? You know, clams?” “Mollusks?” Sian hazarded. “Yes! Often!” “Good on you.” Alan stood, offering Sian a hand up. “There should be all sorts of mussels down on the rocks, and since the tide’s long gone out, I bet we’ll find conch too. If we gather enough to dry a bushel

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full, we’ll break for lunch and stuff ourselves with as many as we can eat.” Sian’s stomach roared, nearly as loudly as it did when he was in dragon shape. Embarrassed, he ducked his head, but stood upright when Alan laughed loudly from the chest. “Follow me, you,” he said, tweaking Sian’s ear. Sian caught his breath with a surge of desire at how easily Alan commanded him, rocked by how eagerly and instantly he wanted to obey Alan’s every whim. “So that the way of things is clear in my mind,” Sian ventured, “there are rewards to be won if we meet goals? Is that the way it works in your fief?” “Fief? I’m not setting myself up to be a lord or a king.” “You could. If you wanted to. People would follow you.” Sian had meant it as a compliment, but Alan didn’t seem to care much for the idea. He screwed his face up and folded his arms briefly over his chest. After a moment, he sighed. “Forgive me. I did not mean to upset you,” Sian said, a miserable sensation coiling in his chest. “Tell me how to make amends.” “Don’t worry,” said Alan, eyeing Sian. “I’m not angry.” “You’re not?” Alan drew an X over his breastbone. “I promise.” Sian huffed. “You are a very confusing man sometimes.” Alan hooted. “So I’ve often been told. Enough talk for now. Grab two of the giant tortoise shells, if you can lift them, tuck one under each arm, and follow me. I’ll show you the best hunting stretch on the beach.” He’d turned away, calling out orders over his shoulder as he strode down the beach, but turned to shoot Sian a wicked look. “And to answer your question, yes. There could be more rewards, as long as they’re for both of us.” Sian’s good humor returned in a rush. He hurried to fetch the tortoise shells. Work, food, and then getting Alan naked and eager to play with him, as he hoped Alan had meant. A gorgeous day to enjoy and an even better night to anticipate. At this precise moment in time, Sian wasn’t sure that if a portal opened up to the dragon lands right in front of him, he’d even be tempted for a second. Wondered, and then knew for sure. Here was where he would stay. And if that meant staying in human form for the rest of his life, never again a sinuous dragon dancing across the skies, then so be it. The trade was a worthy one. “Wait for me!” he called after Alan, racing behind his human. ***

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Alan steadied his balance on the bare rock, dark brown and jutting over the beach, his feet tough and his stance agile enough to stand fast when a wave broke across the outermost point and roared its disapproval, white foam cascading over Alan and soaking him. When he laughed, overcome by the power of the sea, he tasted salt in his mouth, and when the water receded, he could smell the wildness of the ocean clinging to him. “How’re you doing over there?” he called, allowing Sian the dignity of not turning to check on him as if the man -- every inch of him still naked -- was a boy in need of training and watching. Even if that wasn’t far from the truth. Sian shouted something back Alan couldn’t catch over the thrum of an approaching wave. Alan detected notes of anger and dismay that made him think not keeping an eye on Sian’s progress might not be the smartest move after all. Still, so it wouldn’t seem as if he was as worried as a mother hen with one chick, Alan played it casually. He raised his arms in the air and tipped his head back, letting the full force of the wave crash into him. Then, as carelessly-seeming as he pleased, Alan hopped sure-footedly off the rock, up to his knees in salty sea water, and tugged his hair back with one hand, glancing at Sian through slitted eyes. “You’d think this would tame it!” he called, gesturing to the messiness of his hair, already escaping his fist and plastering to his cheeks. Sian shot him a look dark enough to kill, yet Alan saw the unhappiness behind it. His heart went out to Sian, even though Alan supposed he ought to be angry. Sian had lied to him. There was no way he’d come from a shipwreck. He should have known before, of course, but rescuing a naked man from drowning and then drowning, himself, in the heat of Sian’s body, had distracted him a fair bit. For one, Sian didn’t know how to swim. For two, the fishing equipment mystified him. He’d turned it over and over in his hands, and gotten the pole the wrong way around before Alan set a discreet example. Then, when he’d actually hooked a small fish, he’d yelped and nearly overbalanced. For a third, Sian’s approach to picking mussels was… interesting. He’d spot a cluster, hover over them, then dive as a bird would, but with all the lack of grace of a brute animal, usually manage to knock the shells loose, skidding into the sea. He didn’t know for sure that Sian was a dragon, but… well. A guess was as good as a man could hope for, and perhaps Sian would tell him, in time. Unless he got bored, or got frustrated, and flew away. Pain unexpectedly sharp squeezed tight iron-like bands around Alan’s chest. You can’t go, he wanted to say. I’m already more than half in love with you, you crazy, impulsive, clumsy, sex-incarnate man . Instead, he cleared his throat and splashed in Sian’s direction, tossing him a careless wave as he passed. He sat on the sand, the receding tide barely reaching his toes to splash them, and shielded his eyes to

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watch the late afternoon sun already decorating the skies with reds and purples. He couldn’t hear Sian over the dull rush of the ocean, but sensed his approach, strangely attuned to his dragon. He patted the top of Sian’s bare foot when Sian came close enough. “It’s all right, you know.” Sian sat with a thump and banged his forehead against his knee. “Not so. I am incapable of even taking that which is right there for the picking.” He looked at his hands, seemingly mystified, then jerked back hastily when he took a sideways glance at Alan. “Maybe there is some flaw with their construction.” “Nothing wrong with you that I’m aware of.” Alan glided his palm up Sian’s calf, marveling at the strength of his construction, the toughness of his muscle and the smoothness of its flexing. He yearned to see Sian in the water, smoothly slicing through the waves, getting flashes of his ass as he swam. Alan stood, stretching faux-carelessly, and gave up on restraining his hair. The damp strands fell over his cheeks, blowing over his eyes. He couldn’t see Sian when he offered the dragon a hand up. “C’mon. What do you say we go swimming?” Sian flinched. “No!” He shuffled. “I do not -- that is to say -- thank you. No.” Alan had expected the protest. “You should learn how. I can’t have you drowning all the time.” His and if you plan to stay … went unspoken. He watched Sian heave a sigh, looking as torn as a man not rent into two pieces could be. Sian peeked behind Alan with unmistakable panic written on his face, then raised his eyes to meet Alan’s, offering him a helpless shrug. Alan decided he wouldn’t make Sian confess his fear any more than he’d pry a draconic confession out of him. “Tomorrow, maybe,” he said. “Or whenever you’re ready, as long as you don’t try on your own without anyone here to watch you.” Sian stood, more gracefully than before, probably getting used to his human shape by now. A clumsy dragon. Had anyone ever seen the like? Alan forgot to be amused when Sian gripped his upper arm and said, tense with something Alan couldn’t put a name to, “If you truly desire this of me… then I will try, at least. Now.” Alan regarded Sian in deep thought. Huh. He hadn’t thought about it before, but… interesting. “If I ordered you to, would you?” he asked, at first surprised, then reveling in the deepened timbre he spoke with. Sian’s throat worked visibly as he swallowed hard. He nodded his head. “If you gave the order, I would.” Alan nodded. He could almost hear the terrified pounding of Sian’s heart, and taste it rising hot in his throat. A dragon who enjoyed being dominated. Curiouser and curiouser. Was that what he wanted from Sian? Alan would have to think about that. Later. “Not now,” he said, clapping Sian on the shoulder, all bonhomie and good nature without any pressure.

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“You’ve got to be ready to eat fish raw.” “Fish is delicious raw --” Sian blurted before immediately shutting down, blushing as if guilty as all hell. Someday, Alan thought, when Sian had gotten comfortable enough with him to come clean, he’d have to tell Sian that he was the most obvious liar on the face of the Earth, and definitely in the skies above. As for the fish, it made sense to Alan that dragons, hunting with the swoop-and-dive of a hawk, would eat their prizes fresh and salty as they flew. Actually, that sounded delicious, almost better than cooking over a campfire. And what must it be like to fly, period? Better than standing on a rock and letting the sea roll over him. Maybe better than breathing. How could Sian bear to live without it? Why? For me?Alan dared to hope. He shook himself awake. “We’ll eat first. Lucky us, I’ve got some cod, or something like cod, preserved in salt. We can put the mussels we did get in the coals, roast the fish, and eat until we can’t eat another bite. Sound good to you?” Sian nodded, obviously relieved, and squeezed Alan’s biceps. “It sounds marvelous. Lead the way.” He brightened. “I could help you cook, could I not?” Alan resigned himself to burned fish and grinned brightly. “Absolutely. Let’s go home.” *** When the sun dipped toward the horizon, blazing red and gold, painting the sky a dark purple, Sian thought he might finally be dry. He had no idea how Alan could love it so, dripping wet all the time. Perhaps Alan’s possession of a pair of pants had something to do with his contentment. Walking about naked was a fine idea in theory, especially when there was a handsome man to display himself for, but after a few soakings Sian had discovered problems with… chafing. He fidgeted, uncomfortable. Chafing, yes, and sand got in places Sian had barely known he owned. Alan had explained, shamefaced, that he’d forgotten about finding clothing for Sian. Sian hadn’t minded the oversight, enjoying the delectable new tang in Alan’s aroma when he mixed wry abashment with arousal. He’d been less pleased by Alan’s confession that he hadn’t anything left to cover Sian with, although he could try and cobble something together out of knotted kelp…? Sian shuddered and drew his legs closer to his body. He’d rather flap in the breeze, thanks. The everyday smells of cooking enticed his senses now almost as much as Alan’s fragrance of man, musk, and constant, low-level desire for him. Perhaps even more so. Sian tried to count back to when he’d last eaten, and couldn’t quite remember. Fish, small silver fish washed clean of salt and wrapped in more of that damned seaweed, roasted on a driftwood spit over a small fire of the same. Mussels gleamed blackly under their fine coat of ash, the rich, fatty mollusks releasing no scent yet, but promising bursts of flavor when they slid over his tongue.

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Sian could no longer bear the suspense. He crept closer to the fire, reaching out to snag a shell-full of meat. Fire couldn’t hurt him; he was a dragon, after all, and -“Ow!” He jerked back, shoving his burned fingers in his mouth and sucking, astonished by the pain. Alan didn’t scold him, but dropped to one knee instead, gently pulling at Sian’s wrist. “It’s easy to forget,” he said cryptically, and turned Sian’s hand this way and that, examining the redness of his burn. “You’ll live. They’re painful, I know, but there’s not even a blister.” He kissed Sian on the forehead, playful, and stood to dust the sand off his legs. Sian sighed. His stomach grumbled in sympathy. “If I asked you if there was anything to eat before this --” he jabbed to point, “-- was cool, you would only suggest I eat seaweed, yes?” “It’s good for you,” Alan chided. “Pah! Seaweed is rubbery. It smells burned. And it tastes --” Sian’s stomach flipped. “Complain, complain,” Alan said, seeming amused rather than irritated by Sian’s griping. “Shouldn’t be long now, greedy guts. Half an hour, maybe.” Sian’s heart sank. He’d never survive that long without something in his stomach to tide him over. He gazed at Alan, wondering simultaneously if seaweed really would be that awful, even with its rubbery pops as it was chewed. He might have to. Alan had refused to let him near any of the smoked and dried fish, claiming there was no need to dig into his supplies when they had fresh. And there was nothing else in sight to soothe his belly with, except… There was one other treat Sian could enjoy. He ran his tongue around his lips. The question was: would Alan protest? He did seem busy attending to the spit and the food. Alan leaned forward, the nearly gossamer-thin denim of his shorts straining over his halfway-hard cock, and hummed in pleasure as he basked in the flames. He could not have presented a more appealing picture to Sian if he had deliberately tried. Sian dropped to his hands and knees, whimsical, and scuttled to Alan’s side. Alan ruffled Sian’s hair without looking away from the fire. “Get up,” he said, a smile in his voice. “You’re not a dog.” Definitely not a canine, Sian agreed, but for the sake of play bit at Alan’s bare ankle. Alan yelped and jumped away. Merriment flooded his aura. “I know you’re hungry, but I’m not any good to eat!” Ah-ha; I have you exactly where I want you, now, Sian exulted, exuberantly enjoying the play. He rose to his knees, catching Alan’s narrow hips and holding him steady. He nuzzled the thin denim barely covering Alan’s cock and breathed in, reveling in the rich smell. “I think you would be delicious,” he murmured, nosing deep and mouthing over the hardening line of Alan’s rising shaft. “Can I have a taste?”

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Chapter Four

Alan swore a creative oath Sian had never heard before and stepped back -- dismaying Sian at first before he saw that Alan was only moving far enough away from the fire not to suffer his own burns. “You can have whatever you want from me.” Alan’s fingers quivered faintly as he opened the buttons of his fly. “All you ever have to do is ask. Sian? You know that, right?” “I would far rather you told me,” Sian replied honestly, confused embarrassment heating his face -- yet it was true. And since there was no point in doing anything halfway --”Tell me,” he said, shuffling forward on his knees and stroking his cheek on Alan’s thigh. “Tell me what you want.” Alan groaned. His knees bent briefly and he grasped Sian’s shoulder for balance. Bright pride thrilled Sian. His Alan could stand on a rock and defy the ocean, but he nearly fell down from wanting Sian this much. He was hard for Sian, his cock straining toward his belly in a dark, solid curve. “Tell me,” Sian coaxed. Alan steadied himself and raised his face to the sky, eyes closed, the last remnants of daylight gleaming over him and making him look both wild and unfamiliar. Breathtaking. “Suck me,” he ordered, grasping his cock and prodding Sian’s lips. “Let me come in your mouth.” Now it was Sian’s turn to rock backward, almost undone by the raw need Alan exuded. “Yes,” he breathed, drinking deep of Alan’s saturating aroma. “Oh, yes.” Curious and ravenous, he rose higher on his knees to lap the swollen head of Alan’s cock. Alan’s stomach muscles rippled and he released a noise that alarmed Sian. “What is wrong?” Sian asked, hastily retreated. “Did I hurt you?” Alan’s laughter was strained. “Are you kidding me? No!” Dark and hazy with desire, he looked at Sian with his eyes hooded. “You’ve never done this before, have you?” Sian bit his lip. He didn’t want to answer. Dragons mated… differently. If you asked him, he’d say they were missing out on quite a lot. But was it shameful to be inexperienced? “I do not want to damage you,” Sian replied without answering the question. Alan cupped the back of Sian’s head and rubbed his scalp, massaging in a way that made Sian want to sag against him and let his dragon’s voice purr until it rattled their bones. “Don’t bite. That’s all. You can’t do it wrong.” His chest hitched and his cock spasmed, twitching toward Sian. “Just… hurry, God, please hurry.” Mystified, Sian carefully took Alan’s shaft in his hand and circled his fingers around the length. “Why?”

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“If you don’t, I’ll come on your face.” Sian’s jaw dropped. “You could do that?” “ Sian!” He could recognize the sound of a man at the end of his tether, at least. Sian took a deep breath to center himself and firmed his grasp on Alan’s cock. Alan loved that, tightening his hold on Sian’s head. His hips jerked, a thrust aborted. Relaxing his jaw as much as he could, Sian went boldly forth and slid Alan’s cock through the open circle of his lips. The explosion of salty, musky taste inflamed his senses, drowning out all other sights, sounds and smells. He moaned around his mouthful of cock and sucked greedily. Alan’s legs trembled with the effort of holding still, hips twitching. Sian tasted his desperation, the straining need to come and the effort of will to hold back, to make the pleasure last. A game, then. Dragons were passionate about their sport. Sian could make this last; no one would have to twist his arm. He wished he could go on tasting Alan and balancing the hefty weight of Alan’s solid cock on his tongue forever. Sian rested his hands, palms flat, on Alan’s hips and drew the seal of his mouth up to the very tip, then slid back down. He tightened the seal and tried it again, thrilled by Alan’s high hiss. So much to explore! Sian found the soft, wrinkled skin over Alan’s sac and rolled the peculiar roundnesses inside, letting briefly go of Alan’s cock to curiously suck first one and then the other of the spheres in his mouth, tasting the differences. Alan’s cock trailed wetly over his cheeks and forehead, needy short cries escaping Alan and a strangled shout when Sian nosed further beneath and found a small blind pouch. He tongued the depression, carefully then firmly. This time, when Alan pulled Sian’s hair, it hurt . Sian popped up, his indignation dissipating when he saw the twisted determination distorting Alan’s face. “Careful,” Alan gasped. “You’ll end it.” “I want more,” Sian insisted. “Later.” “Okay.” Licking his dry lips, Alan raised his face to the sky and spread his legs wider, giving Sian more room. “Good. Need your mouth now.” Sian let himself purr once, low and muted -- he hoped -- by the ocean’s waves, and slowly slid his mouth down Alan’s cock, swallowing as much as he could take without choking. Alan shuddered at the grasp of Sian’s hands on his hips and, emboldened, Sian explored the taut solidity of Alan’s ass, fascinated at how the muscles clenched and tightened when he kneaded them. He slid an inquisitive finger inside and found a small opening, knotted tight, and prodded the hard flesh. Alan gasped, jerked, thrusting too far, and bowed over Sian, scorching jets of semen flooding Sian’s throat. He coughed, swallowing reflexively but nearly inhaling -- there was so much -- and drew off with a hasty pop! in time to catch the next gout in a stripe over his cheeks. Alan’s eyes enlarged impossibly wide and he loosed one more spurt, painting Sian’s swollen lips.

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He hadn’t caught his breath and barely hung on to his balance when he tugged at Sian’s hair and slapped Sian’s shoulders, urging him up. Sian rose, pausing only to lick at a splash of come on Alan’s belly as he got to his feet -- and when he was within reach, found Alan’s mouth slamming ruthlessly on his. Alan’s tongue fucked his mouth, sweeping from hard palate to beneath Sian’s tongue, licking out every taste and trace of his come. Sian stiffened, reminded of the throbbing need in his cock, which he’d ignored for the thrill of driving Alan wild. “Your turn now,” Alan broke off long enough to say, driving back in and wrapping his callus-toughened hand around Sian’s shaft. He worked Sian without mercy, tugging his sac and slicking his palm with Sian’s pre-come. When he whispered into Sian’s mouth, love-words that weren’t words but needed no translation, ordering him to give it up --”Come for me -- want to feel you lose it -- want you coming apart --” Sian bucked forward, buried his face in Alan’s shoulder and bit, jets of scalding semen splashing over Alan’s hand, his stomach, and down his legs. He hung on to Alan, dazed, a rushing and roaring in his ears that had nothing to do with the ocean washing ever closer as the tide came back inland. The first thing he heard, worn-out but heart-warm and glad as the sunrise, was Alan’s chuckling. To hell with the consequences. Sian couldn’t hold back his purring. He rubbed his cheek against Alan’s throat and kissed him sleepily, lazily, holding on and letting Alan keep him upright. He protested with a sleepy growl when Alan lifted his chin with two fingers, pleasure replacing temper when he saw the pride and satisfaction and affection mingled in Alan’s smile. Alan’s lips were puffy from kissing, chapped red. Sian had never seen anything more appealing in his long life. Everyoneshould have a human -- or be had by a human. Sian rather thought it was the latter way around, and that suited him down to the ground. “Just think,” Alan told him in a raw voice, “that’s only the beginning.” Sian gaped at him. “It gets better?” “Much, much more so.” Alan traced the line of Sian’s nose, from bridge to tip, and tapped it lightly. “Still hungry?” Sian intended to say no. His stomach answered for him, roaring a contradiction. Alan guffawed, tugging Sian close for a full-bodied hug that made Sian want to writhe with pleasure as he did in dragon form, undulating across the starry sky. Alan nipped his chin and said, breath warm on Sian’s cheek, “Let’s eat. And then we can have dessert.” *** Sian hissed. “Ahh!” “Sorry.” Alan withdrew, shuffling a few inches back in the sand. “Did I hurt you?” He drew his knees up to the level of Sian’s shoulders, eyeing Sian’s back with concern. They’d been having a grand time of basking in the afterglow of good food and great sex, Sian nestled contentedly, or so Alan had thought, in the cradle of his arms, leaning back against Alan while they both sat upright, the crackling of the cooking fire still warming them and washing Sian’s fair skin with shades of red and gold.

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“No,” Sian avowed, despite his uncomfortable fidgeting. “I just…” He rolled his shoulders and made a frustrated noise, seeming unable to explain his problem. “It’s all right,” Alan tried to soothe, running light fingertips down the line of Sian’s spine. Sian hissed louder, the startled, angry sound of a giant snake. Or a dragon , thought Alan. “Sorry,” he murmured, narrowly examining Sian’s smooth back. “Looks like you’ve got quite the sunburn settling in. I should have thought about that happening, as pale as you are.” “Excuse me? Burned? What?” Alarmed, Sian tried to twist to look over his shoulder at Alan, eyebrows climbing toward his hairline. “The sun burned me?” Alan hid a smile. He didn’t suppose it would be a problem for tough, glossy dragon scale. “Not badly,” he soothed, pressing a careful kiss to Sian’s shoulder blade. “It won’t scar.” “You are sure?” Sian flinched. “No, of course it would not scar. Stupid of me not to remember.” Alan kept a straight face. His dragon couldn’t lie to save his life, could he? “Ah, lad,” he whispered, ruffling the tips of Sian’s hair. Those, at least, wouldn’t sting. “Stay here. I’ve got something that’ll help the discomfort.” Sian groaned and dropped his head forward. “If it happens to be made from seaweed, I thank you for your offer, but I decline.” “Hey!” Alan tweaked Sian’s ear. “Don’t bite the hand that feeds you.” “What?” Sian looked baffled. Alan gave up on the effort not to chuckle affectionately. “Sit still, goofball. It’s an expression.” Sian seemed uncertain as he obeyed, though he watched Alan all the way to his shack. A quick rummage netted him a small turtle’s shell filled with carefully rendered fish oil mixed with, yes, strands from a species of kelp he’d noticed seemed to help with healing small injuries. Never had tried to use it on a sunburn before. He hoped it’d be of some easement. When Alan returned, Sian watched him warily. “Smells strange.” “I won’t disagree. I’m going to spread this over your skin, all right? I’ll try not to hurt you.” Sian opened his mouth, then closed it. Alan could see thoughts flying at the speed of dragon’s wings behind his eyes, but he said nothing and offered no explanation. Alan rearranged himself behind Sian and began to daub his back with the strange concoction. To his pleasure, Sian sighed in relief and relaxed. “Good,” he muttered. “Thank you.” “You’re welcome.” Alan dared a kiss to the nape of Sian’s neck. Ah, poor lad. There’s so much you don’t know, isn’t there? Keeping silent to spare a man’s pride only allowed for so much. If Alan’s turning a blind eye to Sian’s inexperience with humanity led Sian to getting hurt, even in minor ways, then he’d have to know the truth. Why Sian wasn’t with the dragons. Why he wanted so badly for Alan to believe he was “just” an

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ordinary man. Sian sighed from the bottom of his belly as Alan finished. Not a happy sound, nor one of pleasure at the absence of pain. No. Sian feared something. Alan suspected he knew what. Damned if he knew how to go about broaching this subject, though. “You should have told me earlier that you were in pain,” he ventured, toying with the short, soft strands of hair at the base of Sian’s skull. “You don’t have to hide anything from me. Not ever.” Well, nowthat was subtle , Alan congratulated himself in disgust. As much finesse as a sledgehammer. Well done, you . Sian had gone stiff, and he sounded nervous when he asked, “Why do you think I have any information to hide? I --” He stopped, making an unhappy noise. He stood abruptly, sand clinging in a thin, gritty blanket to his legs and tightened glutes. “I should… I need…” He sighed, rubbing his forehead. Alan sat back, braced on his hands, watching Sian. “It’s all right,” he said, relenting. “There’s time. Changes are confusing, and I’d bet you’ve been through some tough times recently. Yeah?” Sian nodded, blatantly relieved. “Yes. Very much so.” “You lost your people,” Alan prodded carefully. “Out there.” He gestured at the ocean. Sian wrapped his arms around himself. “Yes. I did.” “Do you have anyone to go back to?” Alan watched Sian as he asked the question, curious at how the directness seemed to lift a weight off Sian’s shoulders. “I do not know.” Sian shivered as if cold, though the night was warm and the fire hot. “If I should find my way back home, I do not think they would want me,” he admitted. “They never cared much for me to begin with.” Ah. Alan knew how that went, to live your life as the misfit. Only Paddy had understood his yearning to escape the bleakness of the cities and rising, futile raging of the armies, and not even Paddy had been willing to pull up stakes and come with him. Though he prepared a place for settlers, he didn’t know if anyone would be able to see that it could be better out here. For them, to them, Alan represented confusion. Too different for comfort. Depressed, Alan kicked up a swath of sand. “Same here,” he said, digging his toes in the beach. “Then you too are alone?” Sian queried. “No family of your own?” Alan shook his head silently. “You look sad.” Ironically enough, that made Alan laugh. “It’s nothing I haven’t made my peace with.” He glanced up at

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Sian, seeing him through a curtain of hair. “What about you? If your family called you back home, saying they’d welcome you with open arms, would you go?” Sian considered the thought, watching Alan with his gaze unreadable all the while. “No. I do not think I would.” Alan asked this next with his heart in his throat. “Why not?” “Because I have found something better. Here. With you.” A broad, white grin gleamed in Sian’s face, surprised and delighted. “You are far better than my old home. And I want to stay.” That was the confirmation he’d wanted. “There’s nothing I think I’d like more,” Alan agreed, reaching out to take Sian’s hand. “Except to take you swimming. Ah, ah, ah,” he cautioned, waving Sian silent. “If you’re staying here with me, on the sea, I won’t risk you drowning. Come with me. Let me teach you. I swear I won’t let you drown.” “I could learn to like seaweed instead?” Sian asked hopefully. Alan snorted with amusement as Sian pulled him to his feet, resigned, afraid, yet trusting. “You’ll do that, too. First things first.” He thumbed the corner of Sian’s mouth, amazed at what tenderness a dragon inspired him to. “Follow me to the ocean.”

Chapter Five

Alan laid his hand soothingly on Sian’s lower back when they reached the water’s edge, the foamy tide lapping over their toes. Sian watched the water as a hunting animal would examine its prey, dark and narrow and thoughtful. “Go on.” Alan gave Sian a gentle nudge. He didn’t mind taking more time than this, but Sian wouldn’t thank him for being handled with kid gloves… and then there was the intriguing spark that kindled in Sian when he received a direct command. Sometimes it was hot, sensual, aroused -- other times, like this, it was ill-concealed gratitude. Alan had thought he’d left orders and such back with the soldiers. Now, he understood he never could. If he hoped to bring settlers out here, they’d need a strong hand. Sian was a gift to him in more ways than one, teaching him this lesson. For that, he owed Sian, and he’d pay in the coin Sian seemed to like best. Alan stifled a small laugh at the thought of dragons and treasure and clapped Sian’s shoulder. “Follow me. I want to swim, myself.” “Right behind you,” Sian replied, as Alan had hoped. Alan didn’t miss Sian’s quick shudder as he

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stepped into the water, but neither did he fail to notice the lift of Sian’s chin or the jut of his jaw. Good man!Alan would have applauded his fierce dragon if he’d wanted to be that obvious about it. He settled for an approving nod and a jerk of his chin, indicating Sian should keep on going. And Sian did, his gritted-teeth determination softening with every step, replaced by a fascinated wonder. The ocean lapping around their legs and then their waists was warm from the day’s sun, purified with salt, smooth as the tissue-fine skin of an inner thigh. Sian paddled his hands in the water, trying to catch the foam in his palms. “It was so different last time.” “Because you were fighting it,” Alan agreed. “With anything the size of the ocean, or bigger, you can’t win a fight. You can only learn how to swim.” “Is that so?” Sian trailed his tongue over his lower lip, looking up through hooded eyes at Alan. The air around him shimmered, an effect Alan had sometimes seen during the worst of heat waves. He held his breath, wondering if Sian was on the verge of shifting shape. Suddenly, Alan wanted to see that more than anything. Wanted to know for himself what sort of dragon Sian was in his true form. The moment passed and the heat haze settled, its remnants clinging in a fine mist about Sian. He shook water out of his hair and regarded Alan thoughtfully. “You have a great deal of faith in me,” he remarked, unreadable. “It’s justified, isn’t it?” “That is not the point.” Sian splashed him, spattering Alan’s bare chest with droplets of salty sea water. “Why trust me at all? I am a stranger to you.” It was a good question, but… Alan shrugged, pretending to scan the water for fish. “You haven’t killed me yet.” He waved Sian off. “Besides, I saved your life. And I can tell you’re not one to go stabbing folks in the back.” “Stabbing in the…” Sian frowned. “I still cannot understand. Taking me swimming, for one thing. How could you be sure I would not panic again and drown?” “Because I wouldn’t have let you go. And because I trusted you’d find your footing once you were out here.” “Trust again. Why?” “You’re adaptable,” Alan said, wafting water around a particularly toothsome-looking fish. “More so than you might think.” There. Let Sian make of that what he would. He wasn’t stupid; he’d recognize it as a statement of Alan’s understanding of his dual nature. Alan hoped. Whether or not he’d guessed correctly, he wasn’t to know. Sian moved through the water, up to his sternum, and wrapped around Alan from behind. His hips fit snugly to Alan’s ass, spooned as perfectly

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as if they’d been made for one another, and who was to say they hadn’t? Sian mouthed hotly over Alan’s throat, swimming his fingers around to grasp Alan’s waking cock and stroke from root to tip, thoughtfully rather than with deliberate intent. More like asking permission. “Anything you want,” Alan said, remembering to add a note of command. “Do as I say, and do what you’ve got in your mind to do with me.” Sian shivered, not at all from fear. “Then what I want is for you to have your way with me .” “You’d surrender the control?” “Around you, I do not have any to begin with.” Sian pressed his nose to Alan’s hairline and breathed deeply. “Your scent… you intoxicate me. I can smell how much you want me. Have my body. It would please us both. So much.” Alan’s cock twitched. He’d had enough swimming for one day. “Then go back to the beach,” he directed, palming his cock to settle its urgency. “Get on your knees, and wait for me three feet from the tide’s edge.” Sian licked briefly at Alan’s ear. “Yes. Oh, yes.” *** Sian flexed and relaxed his fingers, which would curl into nervous fists when they had no reason for doing so. He wanted this. Everything Alan could give him. He knew there was more two men could do together than he’d -- they’d -- enjoyed so far. And he wanted it all. Would there be pain? Sian considered the mechanics and decided yes, probably so. He didn’t care. He craved Alan inside him more than flight. The splashing sounds of a human striding through shallow water drew Sian’s attention. Looking up, Sian drank in the sight of Alan, tall and proud, tough and strong, erect, his cock rising to his lower belly, and his ever-present grin tweaking his lips. No dragon that Sian knew had ever or would ever submit their will to a human, but Sian thought he did not at all mind being a rebel. He bowed his head to his human, saying with his body, here I am. I am yours . For all that, he couldn’t resist peeking at Alan as the human came closer and ever closer still, one salt-drenched step at a time. He fisted his own urgent erection, craving friction, and stared, drunk on the sight, at the beads of water trailing down Alan’s sun-burnished skin, streaming down his legs and sparkling in the hair on his chest, his legs, and his groin. Sian’s mouth watered. He craved a taste. Before he could start forward, Alan warned him quiet with a gesture. Sian shuddered, kept his mouth shut, and waited. It wasn’t long before Alan reached him, rested his palm briefly over the top of Sian’s head, and told him, “Lie down. On your stomach.” Sian moaned, soft and hungry. He rolled forward on his hands and knees and began to lower himself to

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the sand. Alan stopped him before he completed the movement. “No,” said Alan, hoarse. “Like this. This is better.” “As you command,” Sian heard himself say. He liked the sound of the words and the flavor they left on his tongue. Alan tapped his thighs. “Spread these. Wide as you can and still keep your balance. Hands where they are now.” Sian sensed the heated track of Alan’s watching him as he complied. “Does this please you?” “You have no idea.” Alan’s laugh was shaky. “The way you look… gods.” Sian whined, too eager to hold it back, when the light pressure and flickering wetness at the dip of his back told him Alan had kissed him there, with a teasing lick. “The fire you light in me,” Sian replied, knowing Alan would understand the comparison. “More?” “As much as you can take.” Alan licked a thin stripe up Sian’s spine, then down again, drawing slippery circles just above the cleft of Sian’s ass. “You do know what I want from you?” he asked. “Tell me.” This, Sian knew how to answer, and could be truthful. “You want to fuck me,” he replied, confident. “Put your cock in me and have me. Claim me.” “And is that what you want too?” Sian twitched irritably. His cock hung full and aching between his legs and he trembled with arousal. Wasn’t it obvious? “Ah, ah, ah,” Alan chided, teasing the softer skin of one globe, delivering the smallest playful nip. “I want to hear you say the words.” “Cruel.” “Only to be kind.” “Then I want you to fuck me,” Sian snarled, twisting to glare over his shoulder at Alan. “ Now.” Alan exhaled a lengthy, gusty sigh that spoke of satisfaction and the rawness of desire. He laughed and took Sian’s ass in his hands, parting the cheeks and spreading him open. Sian braced himself. Any pain will be worth it , he thought firmly as he dug his fingers into the sand. The thought of Alan’s cock splitting him open -- he hitched without meaning to, his throbbing cock burning to release its burden. He expected the hard, blunt pressure of Alan’s cock at his opening. What he got instead, nearly startling him into yelping, was something softer, wetter, more flexible. When Sian realized Alan had begun licking his entrance, he did keen and hitch back, frantic for more, more, more, now, now, now! “You like that, hmm?” Alan teased, his breath hot against the intimate spot he’d teased with his tongue.

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“Who -- could possibly not?” Sian gasped. “Can I -- to you -- later?” “Some men don’t. I love it. Lucky me that you do too.” “More?” “Oh, yes. All you can take.” The shock of a more substantial intrusion drew Sian up sharply. He hissed, stiffening. Alan massaged Sian’s hip until he relaxed. “Just a finger,” he said, amused. “Saliva to wet you, fingers to open you.” “Ah,” Sian replied, too dazed to come up with anything cleverer. “You have nothing made of kelp? Shame on you.” Alan whooped with laughter and slapped Sian’s hip. “Smart-mouth.” Sian purred, pleased, enjoying Alan’s fingers far more now he’d adjusted to the stretch and burn. Dragon Lords, if that was what one of Alan’s nimble fingers was like… He’d not stop now, though. He set his teeth and lowered his head. “Yes. More.” Alan crooned to Sian all the while he opened him, and though Sian could feel the impatience vibrating in Alan’s aura, his spicy aroma drenching Sian’s senses, Alan took his time and let Sian adjust by slow increments, kissing his back and working until he crooked three fingers peculiarly and -Sian howled, full-throated as a dragon, and thrust back, fucking himself on Alan’s fingers in frantic need. “Again!” Alan indulged him by slowly massaging the mysterious, amazing spot, each slow, dragging scrape jolting lightning-fast to Sian’s cock. He panted, mouth hanging open, forehead ground into the sand. He whined angrily when Alan slid his fingers out, leaving him too open and too empty. “Shh,” Alan soothed. He rose up, the next second replacing his fingers with the thick heaviness of his cock. “Ready?” “ Do. It!” Sian snarled. Alan laughed, shocky and breathless, and pushed. A slight resistance, a small sting, and he was in, filling Sian, splitting him open. Sian bellowed from the pleasure, writhing as if he were still a sinuous dragon, ravenous. All the way in, Alan’s balls heavy where they pressed the inner skin of Sian’s ass, he stopped. “Okay? Need me to wait?” Sian growled in return, making it clear what he thought of that courteous offer. Alan set his hands on Sian’s hips and nipped the back of his neck, a dominant taking his mate. “Good,” he whispered. “Hang on.”

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“Ahh!” Sian reared his head back, teeth bared in his quest for oxygen. Nothing could be better than the driving thrust in, the burn amazing and good now, but the long, slow draw out was almost --”Harder,” he begged, trying to help. “Harder, please --” Alan swore under his breath and moved faster, thrusting more sharply. He rode Sian as he would if Sian were in his dragon form. Sian’s breath caught. The picture in his mind of Alan riding him across the night sky -Unable to bear the searing pressure in his cock and sac, Sian tried to reach for himself and almost lost his balance, flailing forward. “No, no, this way.” Alan wrapped one arm under Sian’s chest and lifted him, moving back so that Sian rested on his knees now, his cock jutting angrily up, dripping. “Like this,” Alan murmured in Sian’s ear, taking his shaft and dragging his fist up the length. He rolled his hips, going deeper still, pushing and pulling. “Yeah?” Sian released a sound halfway between a sob and a laugh. “ Yes.” He tossed his head. Too much, too good. “Alan --” he tried to warn him. “ Alan.” “It’s all right. I’ve got you.” Alan pressed his thumb to the underside of Sian’s cock and bit his neck. He chuckled darkly when Sian gasped and threw his head back, colliding with Alan’s shoulder, and spurted thick, heated seed, the rivulets overflowing Alan’s fist and dripping down to be swallowed by the sand. Drugged by the bliss, Sian hung on and sang inside his head, a slow, languid dragon’s song, riding Alan’s increasingly ragged shoves. Alan swelled harder and hotter in him than Sian would have thought possible and lost his rhythm, grunting as would an animal in rut. Sian’s heart sped at the thought of Alan’s semen flooding him. “Release inside me?” he asked, his voice worn to no more than a whisper. “Fill me up. I want it.” Alan strangled off a yell, sank his teeth into Sian’s neck, and released streams of liquid, scorching strings that seemed nearly to boil inside Sian as they flooded him deep. He rode the wave with Alan, shouting wordlessly, wishing this would never end. All good things had to come to a conclusion. Kissing Sian’s shoulder, Alan slipped free of Sian and tumbled to the sand. He threw his arms around Sian and brought him down alongside, pulling close to kiss him. Sian knew they would do this again, soon, and discovered, well-pleased, that kisses in the afterburn were almost as good as kisses shared in the heat of passion. “Dragon,” Alan muttered in between one kiss and the next. “My dragon.” Sian stiffened. He knew .

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Chapter Six

Oh… damn. Alan released Sian’s lips, watching him carefully at a distance so close their eyelashes all but tangled together as did their twined limbs. He deliberately refused to loosen his hold, keeping Sian firmly pinned down through his flinch of surprise. “How long have you known?” Sian broke the silence first to ask, woebegone and dejected. Alan’s heart hurt. Sian should never feel that way. “Since the first time I watched you sleep,” he said, sweeping his thumbs over the dip of Sian’s back. “I’m not angry that you tried to fool me. I think I know why.” Sian grimaced. “I thought you would fear a dragon. But I swear, my Alan, I would never hurt you.” “I know you wouldn’t. Not you.” Alan gave in to the urge and tasted Sian’s lips again, nudging them open with the tip of his tongue and sliding inside. “But how could you have -- not only because you saved my life,” Sian said when Alan drew back, his dismay transmuting to wary consideration. “Are you not afraid of dragons at all? I thought all humans dreaded us.” “Most do.” Alan dipped his head to playfully bite the point of Sian’s chin. “Not me. Why? Does your kind plan to kill us? Eat us?” “No!” Sian sounded genuinely shocked. Curiosity overcame Alan. “Then why?” he asked, lifting away to prop himself on one elbow. “What’s the reason for flying through the skies?” “Because we like to fly,” Sian answered immediately, blinking at Alan as if it should have been obvious. “And because you’re interesting.” “And not at all because what with the way we’re going, there’ll be a nice empty world for you draconic types to take over as you please soon enough?” Sian’s mouth twisted in disgust. “We have our world. It is enough for us. About you, I think most of us are… we are curious,” he said with a helpless shrug. “And some of us, once we found you, discovered that humans are good company.” Alan raised his eyebrows. “Is that why you came to me? Curiosity?” Sian bit his lip and looked away. “Uh-uh.” Alan pulled him back. “Do I need to make it an order?” He relished Sian’s slight shiver, sensing the shock of arousal at even so simple a thing. “Tell me, Sian. Why did you pick me? Why did you come looking here?”

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Sian laughed, a humorless, bitter sound. “Because I have no home among the dragons. I did not lie when I called myself an outcast. The portals are closed to me.” “What?” Alan was honestly shocked. “Why?” “I don’t know.” Sian raised a shoulder. “The dragon generals and scions all say I am too inquisitive, too clumsy, too heedless. A risk.” Anger kindled in Alan. “Their loss,” he said roughly, dropping down and yanking Sian to him. “My gain.” He seized Sian by the back of his head and dragged him close for a bruising kiss, not letting go until his head swam for lack of air. “I am not…” Sian faltered. “Not angry. Not since it led me to you. I did not look here on purpose, but I would not have found what I wanted anywhere else. Not anywhere .” His nostrils flared with the vehemence of his speech. “I do not want to go home. This is my new-chosen home.” He waved to encompass the whole of the beach. “If… if you let me stay. With you.” Alan snorted. The dizziness had failed to pass, and he had to blink to clear his vision. For all that, he didn’t hesitate to reply, “Just try and get away. You’re never leaving me.” “Do you promise?” Sian asked, hovering over Alan’s lips. “I swear,” Alan said, and let himself be taken, Sian’s tongue curling eagerly in his mouth. The ocean -or was that vertigo? -- roared in his ears and he thought he was flying. So good, so good, and yet -Alan cried out, pushing Sian off. “Alan?” Sian pulled away, staring at him strangely. “What’s wrong?” Alan shook his head, sand rough and gritty on his scalp. “Just… strange,” he said, licking his lips, dry as bone despite their kisses. “Something in here. Different.” He rested his hand over his heart. His voice cracked with wry humor when he asked, “You’re not poisonous to humans, are you?” “No, I do not think so.” All concern now, Sian took Alan’s face in his hands and turned him this way and that, studying him intently. “There are old tales, and stories; we’ve known humans for a long, long time, centuries and centuries’ worth of time. Dragons have taken mortals for mates before and they --” His pupils dilated wide, shaping into serpentine diamonds. “ Oh!” Even as the spasm of oddness passed away, gone like a wisp of cloud over the moon, Sian tried to jerk away. Distracted, Alan almost missed his instinctive grab and barely managed to catch Sian by the wrist as he would have fled. “What is it? What’s wrong?” Sian’s skin gleamed golden in the dark, an impossibility by moonlight -- but perhaps not for a dragon. “I cannot. Sorry, Alan, I am so sorry -- if I had remembered, I would not have risked you --” “You are poisonous?” “No.” Sian tugged. “Let me go.” “I said I never would, and I meant it.” Alan jerked Sian off-balance and rolled to him at the same time, covering Sian’s lean body with his own. “Talk to me. That’s an order. What’s got you so upset? If it’s

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not going to kill me, then I’ll live.” Sian huffed, not finding the pun funny. “There are stories,” he confessed. “Legends. They say that if a dragon and a human bind themselves to one another, then the human… changes. I do not know how. I have never seen this for myself.” He blew out a miffed stream of warm air. “They say I am too young.” Momentary alarm spiked through Alan. “Sian, how old are you?” Sian blinked. “Five hundred,” he said. “And three. Five hundred and three.” “God.” Alan thumped his head to Sian’s chest. “Don’t scare me like that.” “ Thatis what bothers you?” Sian demanded, incredulous. “Not that swearing yourself to me means you --” Alan had had a few second’s worth of time to consider Sian’s words. They were all the time he needed. “What will be, will be,” he said, tracing the soft skin beneath Sian’s diamond-pupilled eye. “You cannot mean that.” “No? Try me. Listen.” Alan cupped Sian’s cheek in his palm and shook him lightly. “Enough people think I’m mad for coming out here in the first place. Maybe I am, because as long as I’m not alone anymore, I don’t care if you’re dragon or human or a three-toed sloth --” Sian wrinkled his nose. “All right, I might not be so fond of a sloth.” Impishly, Alan bit the tip of Sian’s nose. “You, though. You’re willing to help, you’re cheerful, and so what if you’re a little clumsy?” He softened. “Sian, you’ve just said it for yourself. You’re a misfit. So am I. And that makes us alike already.” He shrugged. “Truth to tell, I always thought the dragons were beautiful. What do I care about the rest?” Alan covered Sian’s mouth with his own, kissing him into submission. As his cock rose, more interested in the heat of Sian’s body than in any foolish arguments, he rubbed Sian’s thigh and parted his legs. “I’ve gained everything,” he whispered into Sian’s ear. “A partner. A friend. The hottest lay I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing.” He swallowed Sian’s surprised laugh, drinking it down. “So I’ll change. That’s human nature. Either change, or die, that’s how it’s always been, and I choose change. Especially if it means you’ll never leave me.” “I never will,” Sian swore, twining his arms around Alan’s neck. He gazed at Alan, brave despite his clarion alarm, and nodded to show his willingness. “I know very little about how it works. You might remain a man on the outside and a dragon inside. You might be able to change shapes.” He hesitated. “That bothers you not at all? Not the least bit?” Alan rolled his eyes. “Quit asking, or I’ll punt you back out to sea.” He shifted Sian’s position. “Time to get some sleep. Since you’re staying, there’s a lot you’ll need to learn, and it’ll be daylight before you know it. Rest.” “You really are keeping me,” Sian marveled. He tentatively stroked Alan’s arm. “You love me?” “I do. With all my heart. Quiet, now, and sleep. Tomorrow, we’ll get back to work. Agreed?”

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Sian nodded and settled, quiescent, in his arms. A half-moment later, Sian popped up, hooking his knee around Alan’s leg and canting his hips. “I would rather fuck again than sleep.” Alan hooted, tickled half to death. “I think I might too.” He ran his fingertip over Sian’s eyebrows, admiring the slitted gold of his eyes. “Come what may, Sian, I’ve got the better part of the deal. A dragon’s deal. Now shut up and let me enjoy you.” Sian closed his mouth with a snap, moaning gladly when Alan kissed him back open. He relished the taste and the willingness of his lover’s submission. Such good times lay ahead of them! Challenges too. Those he hoped to bring with him to these rocky shores would have their objections to sharing it with dragons and half-dragons, for sure. It’d take effort to smooth the way between them, but hadn’t he already found out for himself that anything was possible out here by the ocean? He had so much work to do, still. But now, he had someone to work with as he shaped the world, and he’d happily bed down with the same man -- dragon -- by night. A fine deal. A dragon’s deal. Alan loved, and was loved, no longer one alone but two together, and was content.

Willa Okati

Willa Okati is made of many things: imagination, passion for manlove, creativity and sheer bloody-minded determination to keep writing, getting out all the stories in her head. The only problem with that clever plan is that as she writes, more story ideas pop up… She’s getting into ménage these days, and finding that it’s really peachy to write female leads -- but these leading ladies have always gotta have their two men (who are into each other as well as her). That makes for extra-special spicy good times! Willa, by the way, looks nothing like her picture -- but she wishes she did! You can reach her at [email protected], visit her at her website (www.willaokati.com) or join her Yahoo! Group for updates at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/willa_okati/ May the force be with ya’ll!

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