Dragon Treasure by SJ Sanders
Chapter 16
Fear beating out a wild rhythm in her heart, Tania considered trying to duck around him for all of two seconds. The fact she wouldn’t be able to escape him quickly set fire to anything that sprung to mind. That didn’t mean that she allowed him to collar her without considerable snarling, cursing, attempts to claw her way free, and even one ill-conceived attempt to bite his hand. She immediately pulled her mouth away the moment he flashed his dangerously sharp teeth, thinking better of it.
The moment it was around her neck, he wasted no time in attaching the rope and drawing it down to tie her hands together. With the excess length, he pulled her to a wall where he tossed the end over one ceiling beam, his cruel smile growing when he caught the falling end once more and gave a tug sharp enough to yank her arms high above her head but not so far that her feet weren’t solidly planted on the ground.
That, at least, was a small mercy, but likely the only she was about to get from the dragon that day. She watched warily as he took the end and lashed it to the bed post before turning his attention to her once more. Cold eyes took in her outthrust breasts presented to him before dragging down to her taut belly and rounded hips. His tail flicked, and he circled her slowly, her skin prickling with awareness.
Even when she couldn’t see him behind her, she could feel the weight of his presence as he stood there. Large hands grabbed her clothes, and her body jerked with the force of the fabric tearing free as he ripped them off of her, baring first her back to him and then her ass when he followed suit with her leggings.
She shivered as claws dragged erotically over her ass, the pinching pain she had been feeling flaring into a desperate need as her belly clenched and arousal slickened her pussy. She rubbed her thighs together, swallowing a moan when his tail dragged up her leg, the tip flicking over the wet heat of her sex before drawing away. Her hips jerked, a whimper—a wordless plea—escaping her.
Her bottom clenched and then thrust out when, out of nowhere, a hot, rough tongue slicked up along one ass cheek and down the other before dipping down to lap up the arousal coating her upper thighs. She trembled, the tightness in her belly unfurling and coiling in on itself in pulsing waves as she squirmed. Claws bit into her thighs as a hard hand gripped them, stilling her just as his tongue plunged upward into the very source of the nectar he was savoring with deep, rumbling growls.
The dexterous tip of his tapered tongue curled inside of her, dragging against the soft inner flesh. Tania swallowed back a cry of need, her hips quivering as she instinctively rocked her bottom against him, wanting—no, needing—to take in more of that thrusting tongue. The pressure built within her, clenching within her belly… until suddenly he wasn’t there anymore.
His tongue slipped free, and he stood, stepping away from her. She blinked in disbelief, sweat cooling on her skin as her body trembled on the edge of the orgasm denied to her. He stalked around her to grab the large chair, dragging it effortlessly across the floor until it was in front of her. Somehow, he had retrieved the bag too without her noticing, because he had that clutched in his hand, and he sat, his tail coiling around one leg. His eyes were cold and merciless, even though there was a glint of hunger within them.
He was denying them both, but she was the one feeling on the brink of madness.
Tania twisted helplessly, glaring at him.
“So this is your method of torture, dragon?” she snapped.
His lip curled with amusement. Unlashing the bag, his hand disappeared within for only a moment before drawing out the small carved box. His rough, scaled hand dragged over the top of the lid before his claw caught on the latch, flicking it free. Slowly, reverently, he opened the box, an almost melodious rumble vibrating in his chest as the glowing stones within were exposed.
Eyes dragging up to her, he turned the box to her fully, a growl replacing the softer sound that had come from him moments ago.
“You will be duly punished, mate, make no mistake. You stole from my hoard in more ways than one. Explain,” he snarled.
How the hell had she stolen in more ways than one? She only lifted gold and jewels. As far as she was concerned, that was a singular offense, a minor one given that she had barely put so much as a dent in his wealth. Her brow knit together as she thought, but she was distracted, watching the light frosty puffs of air coming from his mouth.
Not that she able to focus much at all with the way her body was humming angrily at her from a combination of her denied release and the strange malady that had snuck up on her in her flight from the city. Strangely—and certainly gratefully—the latter had eased up since the dragon plucked her from the side of the mountain, but the lingering affects paired with the deep, hollow ache of being unfulfilled left her panting and twisting against her bonds, her mind in turmoil as she struggled against the barrage of sensory overload coming from her body. As distracted as Tania was, however, it was obvious that he was unhappy with her.
She glared back at him unrepentantly. It wasn’t the first time she had been forced to face down an individual who objected to being stolen from. They all took it so very personally. Ridiculous, since it was business… mostly. Sometimes it was personal, as in the case of Jasnee’s previous owner, since the warrior had mistakenly thought he could screw her over on a job without repercussions. But that was rare. That the dragon seemed to be taking her thievery as a personal slight wasn’t so unusual in the larger scheme of things, but most of her marks didn’t possess the kind of claws and teeth he did.
Then there was her strange reaction toward him. Even now, simmering under the denied need, she could feel it building and burning deep into her bones. Gnawing her, licking at her… she shivered as that thought tracked into another hot burst of desire crawling through her.
She shook her head, her body straining until the wave she rode finally ebbed, leaving only the same consuming emptiness. Blowing her sweaty strands of hair from her face, she inhaled and attempted to focus. What had she been thinking about?
Her teeth ground together as she pushed back her physical needs and plunged within her mind, searching for that thread back to rationality.
Damn it. The dragon. I was thinking of the dragon.
The damned dragon who showed up, dropping down out of nowhere for no other apparent purpose than to kidnap her and torture her.
She liked the creature better when it was mindlessly trying to fuck her into unconsciousness instead of this cold, calculating bastard she was facing now. His eyes pinned her in place like a bug under a magnifier as he gripped the small box that she had been unable to resist, holding it in front of his chest, his posture screaming accusations against her. Even if it played into whatever trap he set, the contents pulled at her irresistibly. She swallowed. The stones within glowed softly, their colors significantly dulled now that they were above ground, but even still they drew the eye. Her fingers itched to stroke over them and bask in their illumination.
She knew part of their allure was thanks to the magical surgery she had done. She saw more layers to magic woven in the darkness to the same degree that most humans saw natural light. Unfortunately, outside of mages and witches, she knew she would be unlikely to get much for stones that merely adjusted their natural light in reaction to the daylight hours. They were beautiful but would barely rank above a novelty in most circles. She didn’t know why she had felt compelled to take them, but they were far from what she would have considered the most valuable thing in her bag when it came to finding a buyer.
So why did he seem to ignore everything else in her sack in favor of the chest? His hands skimmed over the box almost obsessively as he eyed her. She wondered if he was even fully aware of what he was doing as he caressed it. He touched it like a man would his lover. The way his own hands had stroked over her not long ago.
A tingling warmth settled between her legs again, and she made a face at the box. He had pulled it out as if he had specifically searched for it and yearned to be reunited with it. The dragon’s infatuation with that box above all else she stole from him for some reason irritated her.
With all that treasure, how did he even know anything was stolen, much less that box specifically?
Tearing her eyes off the obscene movement of his fingers caressing it and the dirty thoughts they inspired, she sneered at her captor.
“Explain what, exactly?” she muttered. “Explain how I managed to get ahold of a map—from an asshole whose days in this world are now significantly shortened—that promised to set me up for life? Only to get fucked into the ground by a giant reptile and then snatched up and captured for daring to steal a meager one percent of what’s been gathering dust in the back of a cave. Well, there it is in a nutshell, you scaly prick. If you have any further complaints, you can register them at my guild, ‘I don’t give a fuck,’ and their sister guild, ‘Kiss my ass.’”
Throwing her weight back, she gripped the rope above her and brought her legs up, kicking out at the dragon. She snarled when he easily evaded her strike and swung back to make a second attempt before her arms became too tired. His tail snapped, the appendage knocking her legs back with bruising strength. She let her weight drop as her legs fell out from beneath her with a pained cry.
In that moment, she was given no reprieve. The dragon strode forward, the spines of the fanned ridges of his ears standing straight up with the webbing flared wide. He bent, and strong hands gripped her lower thighs, parting her legs with a sharp yank. Tania let out a piercing scream of fury, certain that now he would punish her in a degrading way, but his hold on her merely tightened as a fog of brilliant blue-white mist billowed around her lower legs. She could feel the chill of it surrounding her and stared down at it in horror when it solidified into an unbreakable sheet of ice extending from her knee to the spot her foot was now anchored to the floor.
The dragon’s mouth curved with satisfaction as he gave the ice a cursory glance.
“That should quell your violent impulses for the time being. It is clear that I am going to have be firmer than I expected. Very well. I am prepared to properly train you.”
Yanking her leg fruitlessly against the ice surrounding it, she shot him a look of disbelief.
“Are you fucking insane? Quit orating over there and get me out of this!”
Her captor snorted as he paced back to his chair and the small chest he had left sitting in the seat. He had moved fast—terrifyingly so. She had barely seen him move when suddenly he had ahold of her. She hadn’t even noted until now that he had even put it down other than the knowledge that he had held her in place with both hot hands.
“Cease complaining like a hatchling,” he grumbled as he strode over to the desk and set the box reverently upon it.
“Newsflash, being covered in ice isn’t good for humans. This shit can irreversibly harm me—possibly even kill me if it stays on me too long.”
He snorted again, this time with a telltale sound of mirth as he rounded the desk, his wings flexing subtly as he regarded her.
“You are being dramatic. It is merely uncomfortable because it is concentrated and restricting your mobility. It is not hurting you.”
Tania stopped moving and stared at the dragon facing off with her, the strange angles of his face softening with amusement. He almost looked attractive—aside from the fact he was determined to kill her.
He lifted his hand, his claws catching the light from the fireplace as he coiled her hair tightly within his fist. Dragging her head forward, he released a gust of frost deep in her mouth. Instinctively, she breathed it in, her eyes tearing when she couldn’t keep herself from inhaling and the cold raced through her, deep into her lungs.
And… nothing happened.
There was no terrible pain. In fact, just the opposite. She felt strangely refreshed. Parting her lips, she exhaled, and a puff of icy mist escaped her, cooling her mouth as it slipped over her tongue and teeth.
Leaning forward, he inhaled, and a deep rumble of pleasure vibrated in his chest. His eyes pierced her, his hand tightening further in the coil of hair wrapped around it before releasing her to move toward the hearth. Pressing his hand to the enchanted marking, he growled out orders at a low enough volume that she couldn’t quite make them out.
She hoped it was to remind the kitchen about their food.
When the droid arrived moments later, Tania cringed. Not only because it skirted too close to her, triggering her natural revulsion for the thing, but due also to what it had brought with it. There were platters of food on its tray, but coiled between them were lengths of rope.
Whatever the dragon had planned for her, she had a feeling that it was only just beginning.