The Dragon Lord by Connie Mason Page A

peak. He bent his head to taste her mouth, stabbing his tongue into her in perfect rhythm with his thrusting hips.
    When the explosion hit her, she was ill prepared for the tumult of white-hot heat and the shattering power that spiraled through her, in her, around her.
    She cried out his name as he drove into her one last time, his body convulsing as he spilled his seed inside her. After a long, suspenseful silence, he said, “Had I known a virgin could give me so much pleasure, I would not have waited so long to take one.”
    Dominic’s words were like a splash of cold water in Rose’s face. She had given him pleasure, but any virgin would have sufficed. The arrogant bastard! She shoved him away, and he withdrew. The ropes beneath the mattress protested loudly as he collapsed on the bed beside her.
    “Leave now,” Rose demanded.” Tis over. You have done your worst.”
    Dominic rolled up on his elbow, his brow furrowed.“Did I hurt you? I know I gave you pleasure, too. A man can tell those things.”
    “I was not looking for pleasure,” Rose shot back.
    “Stop pretending, my prickly Rose. Once I got past the thorns, I found something rare and inspiring, something I did not expect. There is passion in your body and hot blood running through your veins. I believe we will deal reasonably well with one another. At least in bed,” he added.
    Rose reached for the bedcover and pulled it up to her neck. “I do not want to deal with you at all, in any way or form.”
    Dominic grasped the cover and pulled it away. “Hiding yourself from me will do naught but anger me.”
    “Will you beat me?” Rose challenged pugnaciously.
    Dominic’s mouth flattened.“Do not tempt me, madam. You do seem in need of a good beating.”
    “Tempting you is the last thing I want to do,” Rose charged. “May I get out of bed now that you have had your way with me?”
    “Aye, but from now on we will share a bed. With your uncle on the way to claim Dragonwyck, I want no one, least of all MacTavish, to question the legality of our marriage.”
    Pulling the cover about her body, Rose scooted to the edge of the bed and sat up before Dragon could change his mind. She did not want him to touch her again. Had she known his touch would trample her will and affect her in ways that made a shambles of her resolve, she would have fled to the convent with her mother and sister. She did not want to like the Dragon Lord, nor did she wish to become a victim of his lust.
    Rose left the bed and reached for her discarded clothing. A feeling of stickiness between her thighs caused her to look down. She saw blood staining her thighs and cried out.
    “Oh, no!”
    Instantly alert, Dominic leaped from bed. “What is it? Are you hurt?”
    “Nay! Stay away.I… there is blood.It startled me.”
    Dominic lifted her into his arms and carried her back to the bed. “Did your mother not explain that there would be blood?”
    There was no time. I did not come to the marriage bed totally ignorant but…” She turned her face away. “I never suspected…”
    Dominic poured water into a basin and dipped a cloth into it. Rose stared at him warily when he returned with the cloth and gently spread her legs. When she realized what he intended, her face flamed and she tried to hold her legs together.
    “Relax, Rose, I will not hurt you.”
    Rose was having none of it; her thighs remained locked together. Dominic pried them apart with little effort. Rose hid her face as he ran the wet cloth over her tender flesh, cleansing her. When he finished, he returned the cloth to the basin and stared down at her.
    Rose willed herself not to look at Dragon, but her contrary mind refused to obey. Oblivious of his own nudity, Dragon stood over her, hands on hips, legs splayed wide. Her gaze roved freely over broad shoulders, massive chest and powerful arms and legs, noting each and every battle scar that marred his hair-roughened skin. That he had survived countless battles was