Soul Of The Dragon (Her Dragon's Bane 1) by Harmony Raines Page A

liked breasts, her mother had told her they were her only redeeming feature in her otherwise unattractive body.
    She winced subconsciously at the thought of her mother. The woman had given birth to her and Charlotte, that was about as far as her mothering duties had gone. If she had been a better mother, a better human being even, then Serena would not be stood here now naked before one of the great beasts.
    Stepping out of her panties, she straightened, shocked to see the hunger on his face. He had watched her every move, and the tightness of his pants told her he was aroused. And he was big, very big.
    Was he going to take her now? That was not what she had been told to expect. The deal was, she would come here today to strike a bargain with him. Then she must return in two days time to take part in the mating cycle, a time when dragon spawn were conceived by human women. That was the whole point, and she had to be a virgin. But if he forced himself on her now she would be lost, and so would Charlotte.
    Trying not to panic she averted her eyes from his groin, trying not to think how big he was and how much it was going to hurt when he did break her. It would all be worth it if she fulfilled the bargain and she got Charlotte back, then they would leave, go far away. Never to be under the control of man or beast again.
    He came closer, now she could smell him, a mixture of iron and musk, the man and the beast. Peculiarly, it lulled her senses, perhaps that too was part of the dragon magic, they incapacitated their prey with their very presence.
    She shook her head, needing to stay focused. Yet now she could feel the heat of his body, it warmed her skin, and she closed her eyes to try to block out the way he made her feel. She expected him to terrify her, but this was something different, perhaps she should be much more afraid than she was.
    “I want proof.”
    “Proof of what?” she asked, her voice trembling. He was so much more powerful than she could ever be. Even without touching her she could feel him, the very air alive with his presence.
    “That you are a maiden.”
    The word was old, archaic in it’s meaning, but she knew exactly what he meant. “I'll bring proof. A doctors letter.” She cringed at the thought of a doctor examining her intimately, but what would follow would be so much worse.
    “You expect me to trust a man I have never met?” He spat the words at her, his contempt obvious.
    “Then you choose a doctor and I will visit him.”
    “No. I only trust myself.”
    “Yourself?” she asked the question, but surely she already knew the answer.
    “Yes,” spoken as a low hiss, seductive, insinuating, sensual. His breath on her skin warm and arousing.
    What did she hate most, that he would touch her so intimately, or that he would know how turned on she was by him. That she could lower herself to the level a beast aroused her.
    “Very well. When I return, then you will know.”
    He chuckled. “You misunderstand. I have no intention of making the necessary arrangements for you to stay here without first examining you.”
    It took a few moments for his words to sink in. “You mean now?”
    All the time he had circled her, and now he stopped directly in front of her, watching the expression on her face. She was nothing to him, a thing to tease and mock, a bug whose legs he would happily take off one by one to see how it would react. He didn’t even answer, he simply watched.
    “How?” she asked, closing her eyes to blink away tears and shut him out.
    “Spread your feet a little wider.”
    “Here?” She looked around the large hall they stood in, draughty with many doors leading from it, anyone could walk in on them. To be naked was one thing, but to be touched by him here, it was wrong.
    “If you have changed your mind.” He took a step away, and she knew she was losing him. Or was he toying with her? She couldn’t take the chance, and he knew it.
    “No.” She edged her feet apart a few