“I don’t know how else to explain it…” she said. “But all I know is that I can’t believe I’m being so open with you, and this whole thing scares me to death. I don’t want to compromise anything.”

  “You’re not,” he said. “What you felt is completely normal. For what I am…” he stopped himself and pulled his hand away. It took her by surprise, and once his heat had left her directly, she felt like she was aching for it again.

  “What you are?” she asked.

  Before Dash had chance to answer, the waitress was back at the table with their meals and she set them down and broke the flow of the conversation. Amelia couldn’t believe all that was happening here, but something deeply had changed between them now. They had opened their hearts to each other, and it was clear their feelings were being reciprocated.

  After they were alone at the table again, they dove into more relaxed conversation, but they kept catching each other’s eyes and Amelia knew they would go back to it again and he would be honest and open with her.

  They talked about their lives before they had met, and Amelia even opened up to him about her past relationship. Dash admitted her guessed it must have been a guy that had sent her seeking a new life and he was impressed that she had the nerve to start again somewhere entirely new.

  “Why don’t we go and collect Nora together?” Dash said once they had finished and were standing outside on the street. “I can take the rest of the day off, we can get her settled at home and finish up our conversation properly.”

  Amelia smiled and agreed. She couldn’t have hoped for a better end to the most unexpectedly awesome day.

  She was going back to the Livingstone home once again, and this time, she hoped she was going to get some answers.

  Chapter 10

  Once homework was done, dinner had been cooked and eaten, and Nora was safely tucked up in bed, Dash and Amelia sunk down into the comfy couches in the living area and Dash opened another bottle of wine. They had had the most perfect day together, and it was a shame to bring it to an end.

  “Now this one,” Dash said as he held up the wine bottle started to pour into the two long stemmed wine glasses. “Is one I do know… and it’s a good one. My family sell it up at the golf resort.”

  “A golf resort too huh?” Amelia asked with a little laugh. “You really do own most of the town.”

  “Not most…” Dash winked. “But yes, quite a bit. I guess it comes with the territory of being one of the founding families here.”

  “Tell me about Misty Vale,” she smiled. “I’m intrigued to learn more about this place, it seems to have a very interesting history.”

  Dash took a sip and leaned back into the couch, wrapping his arm around Amelia’s shoulder as they both looked into the dancing flames of the fire he had lit earlier in the night. The logs were crackling and snapping in the fire, making the whole room glow with red.

  “Oh, it is full of mystery and secrets,” he said ominously but Amelia could tell that he was teasing. “And I guess it all begins with The Grand Lodge. Have you seen it?”

  Amelia nodded.

  “The huge hotel on the mountain, right?” she asked.

  “That’s the one,” Dash continued. “Well, way back when the first settlers came here, my ancestors included, there were a couple of families that were always fighting over things. Land, trade, power in general… and it all kind of culminated in some kind of feud surrounding the lodge. It was built originally when the first people founded Misty Vale, but something happened afterwards… the details are all kind of sketchy, but basically the original lodge was destroyed and a new one was built in its place round about the twenties and the prohibition era. Since then there’s been all sorts of legends about it being haunted, of supernatural beasts and creatures living in secret around these parts. And one of my personal favorites, that somewhere under the ruins of the original lodge, there is a treasure buried.”

  He paused and looked at Amelia who was watching him wide eyed. He wasn’t sure how she was going to react, but she seemed completely enthralled.

  “What kind of supernatural creatures?” she asked sitting up slightly. She was rapt in the story.

  “A vampire, a fairy… men who can turn into animals and beasts…” he said it delicately, almost expecting her to laugh, but she didn’t.

  “I love stuff like that,” she said with a beaming smile. “And I always knew that somewhere out of the main cities, there would be little towns with their legends, and I think it’s awesome. I hope it is true.”

  She grinned and looked into the fire.

  “I mean why not?” she said. “People see ghosts all the time… if this town has been here for well over a hundred years, then of course there are going to be some spirits lurking around. I believe in it all because I am certain I’ve seen a ghost before in my past. And I mean one hundred percent sure.”

  She paused and looked up at him and he felt his heart swell. She really was a kind and innocent soul. Most of the women he had met in the past would have snorted and laughed at him for telling her the history of Misty Vale and past it off as rubbish, they wouldn’t have entertained for a moment that it could be in any way true.

  “You’re incredible,” he said, unable to keep the words from bursting out of him.

  Amelia’s eyes fixed on his and he saw her pupils widen with lust and hunger for him, and he knew he must have been looking back at her in the exact same way.

  He took her wine glass from her and placed it down with his own, before the arm her had around her shoulder pulled her closer to him and he held her face with his free hand so he could stare deeply into her eyes, their lips only millimeters apart.

  “I’ve been waiting my whole life for a woman like you,” he whispered as his dragon began to roar inside of him.

  Her eyes seemed so open and engorged, and he stroked the side of her face with his thumb and pulled her in ever so slightly, so their lips grazed against each other and he felt her tremble and heard her gasp. He could hear her heart pounding, and he could smell her arousal. She was willing to open for him like a flower, but he had to be careful with her, she was delicate, and he was so powerful, and she didn’t yet know what he truly was.

  She bit her bottom lip nervously and he could sense how much she wanted him, it was palpable. Her heart was pounding so fast and her skin was prickling with desire and heat. When he finally leaned in and put them both out of their misery, he kissed her long and hard on the mouth, taking her breath away as she moaned and leaned into him. She slowly let her arms come up and wrap around his neck, holding him there as they passionately embraced and kissed each other, exploring each other with their tongues in what was the culmination of all the tension that had been between them since the very moment they had almost bumped into each other outside of the B&B.

  When they finally broke apart, Dash gasped too, he felt as if his soul had been stirred so much that he was standing on the edge of a cliff, about to throw himself off into the unknown. He looked deeply into her eyes and knew that it was meant to be, but also that he was on dangerous ground.

  Could his heart handle it?

  She smiled and stroked his neck with her fingers as she stared into his eyes.

  “I want to be with you,” she whispered, and he could see the look in her eyes. The naughty glint of longing, the desire for him to take her to bed and make her his.

  And he wanted that too, more than anything. But he had to tread carefully. To unleash his dragon on her without her knowing, could be a disaster. And he was falling deep for this woman, he was certain she was his fated mate. He had to be cautious.

  He rose to his feet and pulled her with him, when she felt his power she gasped, and he could hear her heart pounding away in her chest. He found his eyes travelling to where it lay beneath the skin, his dragon stirred even more, his cock pulsing in his jeans, getting harder by the second.

  God, he wanted her.

  And it made it even harder for him to know that she wanted him so badly too.

  He kissed her again, their lips meeting in a total frenzy, before he scooped her up effortlessly in his arms and began to carry her as he walked toward the hallway, out of the kitchen and living area and into the main entrance hall. The huge chandelier glinted over their heads as he began to walk up the stairs, one by one.

  At the section where they split, he went to the right and into his side of the house. His huge master bedroom was already lit with lowlights and the gas fire was burning in the corner of the room. It felt so romantic, and it hadn’t even been intended. It was all like it was meant to be, and the flames casting fiery light around the room only made it more perfect.

  He stepped close to the bed and lay her down, their eyes locked in on each other’s as he slowly began to remove her clothes. He pulled her jeans off slowly, teasing them off as she arched her back and moaned as he leaned in over her and began to trail kisses up her stomach.

  When she was only in her underwear and was laid out in front of him like an offering, he took hold of her by the ankle and kissed her there, before trailing kisses up her thighs.

  “I need you,” she gasped as he moved up higher.

  He growled, his dragon coming to the surface, and he saw the expression on her face change. For a moment there was fear, before the lust took her over again.

  “There’s still so much you need to know,” he whispered.

  She arched her back as he slipped his hands into her underwear and pulled down her panties before he tossed them over his shoulder onto the floor. When he picked up her legs and moved his face down between her thighs, he could feel her tense up ─ until he ran his tongue over her and she exploded into moans and groans.

  As he licked and ate her, he tasted her sweet juices and felt her heat rising. The dragon inside of him was desperate to claim her, and he felt his energy go into her, it possessed her and was taking her over. When she came hard and heavy, she grabbed hold of his head and he took as much of her cunt into his mouth as he could as she bucked her hips and quivered. He was so hard and wanted so badly to fuck her, but he had to honor her. He had to wait.

  After she stopped panting and writhing around on the sheets, Dash climbed up beside her and wrapped her up in his arms. He knew she would be exhausted… even though she didn’t know it yet, having a dragon go down on her would have taken all her energy, and he watched as she quickly fell asleep in his arms.

  He smiled and kissed her on the neck.

  He did love her already, he knew he did.

  She was so incredible, and now, he had shown her an animalistic part of him that would either terrify or excite her.

  He just hoped it was the latter.

  Chapter 11

  Amelia woke to the sensation of being wrapped up on a soft, fluffy cloud. The comfort was enveloping her, making her drift between asleep and awake, and as if she were drifting through space.

  She had never been this comfortable or rested in her entire life. The blanket and pillows she was using, the mattress they were lying on, all of it was another level of bliss. When she finally worked up the courage to open her eyes and potentially break the spell, she was stunned for a moment as she had to work out where she was.

  She sat up slowly and looked around the room, only to see the fire still burning away in the corner, the wonderful view of the pine trees out the window, and the deep rooted knowledge within her that she was in Dash’s bed. She smiled and the memory started to come back to her. The kiss, the incredible kiss.

  Not just on her lips, but somewhere else too.

  She felt herself begin to blush. What a night it had been.

  She had had the most intense orgasm of her life, and she had felt something change between her and Dash too. He had done something to her. Something very exciting and intense.

  She reluctantly swung her legs out of bed and rose to her feet, only to find that her whole body felt different. It was as if she had been reborn, her eyes felt wide and sparkling, her heart was beating with purpose, and she had the sensation rocketing through her that her blood was powerful and new. She was full of energy, and she felt so satisfied and overtaken by pleasure, as if she has been released and then left to float to the ground, landing on soft feathers.

  In short, she had never felt this damned good in her whole life.

  She saw her clothes had been moved to a chair by the large French doors that overlooked the back garden and the pine trees beyond. She scooped them up and dressed quickly, her newfound energy helping her each step of the way. She felt strong and capable, and completely different to how she had felt when she woke up the morning before.

  And Dash… Oh My… Dash… she thought.

  She had fallen for him now, and she knew there was no turning back. He had wanted her the same as she had wanted him… and he had taken charge of her body and shown her what intense passion and love could be like.

  She wandered out of the bedroom and around the gallery landing, her mind had been in such a swirl of passion and desire when he had carried her to the bedroom she barely remembered getting there. And it was as if she were seeing this part of the house for the first time. The right side of the staircase, Dash’s side, with his incredible master suite, office, and games room.

  She went down the stairs slowly and couldn’t believe it when she saw the clock on the wall said it was almost noon. She had slept for almost twelve hours. She picked up her pace, expecting to walk into the kitchen and see it empty, but her instinct kicked in and it took her by surprise. She felt the pull of him, and she knew he was near.

  Dash was waiting for her in the kitchen, he was standing, leaning back against the counter, sipping a cup of coffee, and looking rugged and so damned good she didn’t quite know what to do with herself. She felt something ignite within her, something animalistic.

  She faltered and his eyes moved up to meet hers, a wry smile playing on his lips.

  “Good morning,” he said with amusement. “Or should I say…”

  “Afternoon?” she interjected and smiled at him knowingly.

  “You needed to sleep,” he said. “It was to be expected.”

  The sentence surprised her. She didn’t know what he meant by it exactly, but she could only figure that it had something to do with how she was feeling. As if she had been changed somehow, deep inside of her.

  She looked at him and cocked her head to the side, and she suddenly noticed that he had cooked for them both. She had been so busy looking at him she had barely noticed the delicious brunch laid out on the island before him.

  “Wow,” she said. “That all looks very, very good.”

  She moved closer, and Dash reached out and wrapped his arms around her. He pulled her up against him, and she felt his taught muscles beneath his t-shirt. She reached up and ran her hands through his hair and down to his beard before he kissed her hard on the mouth. Her whole body responded to him, and the memory of him and what he had done to her the night before made her nerve endings tingle. She wanted him all over again, to feel his mouth against her pussy, to feel his hot and heavy tongue flicking up and down her and making her crash into that wave of pleasure.

  She was almost panting, and when their lips broke apart and he stared into his eyes he saw he had a passionate look in his too.

  “Last night,” she whispered.

  Dash nodded.

  “It was incredible,” he said. “You were incredible.”

  She smiled meekly and then as he slipped his hand into hers and led her back to the island so they could sit and he could serve her brunch, she realized how at home she was with him there. She truly felt as if this home was beginning to become hers too. As if they were already slipping into family life.

  “Did Nora go to school okay?” she asked.

  Dash nodded as he put the plunger down in the coffee and began to pour Amelia a cup.

  “She did,” he smiled. “She’s looking forward to heading up to the golf resort later for Kid’s Club.”

  “I’m looking forward to seeing it too,” Amelia admitted. “It sounds lovely from what you’ve told me.”

  “It’s good for the town,” he said as he began to present different plates of gorgeous-looking food. Bacon, pancakes, fresh fruit, syrup, pastries and preserves. “We need to keep this place sparkling and with high standards so that we keep attracting tourists. Winter is usually our busiest time when ski season has fully kicked in at its height and people come to spend the holidays here at cabins. A lot of wealthy families from all over the country have their own properties here and are members of the golf resort year-round too, but we get a lot of new folks coming to town for a one-off year. Some lease the mountain log cabins or bigger houses and stay throughout Christmas and New Year’s. It really is a magical time around here.”

  “I bet it’s amazing,” she said. “It’s so picturesque anyway, but when it’s fully covered in snow and twinkling lights, I can imagine it is even more stunning.”

  Dash smiled and sat next to her. She felt as if they had completely eased into each other’s company, and now that they had broken the sexual tension between them she didn’t feel as if she had to avoid his gaze anymore for fear of giving herself away. But she could tell that he was still holding back on something, and the way that she felt so amazing and reborn was also making her wonder what was going on.

  Who was this man, really? And what had he done to her?

  Before she had chance to open her mouth to broach the subject, Dash suddenly turned slightly toward her and took a deep breath.

  “There’s something I need to tell you,” he said quickly, as if the words had been trying to fight their way out of him for days.

  Amelia felt her stomach drop with nerves and her mouth instantly went dry. She could see the look on his face, as if he were very nervous and she could only assume that this would not be good news.

  “Okay…” she said, her hands shaking a little. The last thing she wanted was for him to break it off with her before things had even really begun.