Kiss of Frost (The Dragon Stone Saga Book 1)(18)

"Beck?" I press a hand to his stubbled cheek. "This sounds crazy but…" I duck my head, pressing a kiss to his chest.

"What is it?" He squeezes his arms around me, offering reassurance.

"I love you." I blurt out the words like someone slapped them out of me.

Beck smiles wide before dragging me up his body for a kiss so loving and deliciously dirty I'm ready for another round with my mate. "I love you too, mate." His nostrils flare and he growls.

"I don't think we're going to get any sleep tonight, are we?"

Beck rolls me onto my back again. "Not if I can help it."





Chapter 7





I roll over the next morning, deliciously sore from head to toe from our marathon of sex and cuddles this morning. Beck follows me as I roll to my side, throwing his arm and his leg over my side, and I smile. I look over at the clock. It's two in the afternoon. We'd only slept for about four hours, but if I don't get up now, there's no way I'll sleep tonight. I push at his arm, and instead of letting me go, he pulls me closer.

"Beck, I've got to get up."

"Why? Sleep with me a little longer." His tone is adorably grumpy. There's something about a man who just wants more of your time and is unabashed about letting you know it that's both sexy and sweet as hell.

"Can't. We've got to track down the other stones, tell Kay's family about magic, and get some info out of that mage." I slap at his bare ass. "Up and at 'em!"

He rolls onto his back, his morning erection tenting the sheet. Desire pools low in my belly but I slide off the bed, determined to tackle my to-do list today. Beck grumbles as I move away from the bed and I chuckle. I jump in the shower, quickly rinsing off before throwing on some jeans and a V-neck T-shirt.

I poke my head inside the bathroom, my breath catching as I watch Beck in the shower, water dripping off of every hard inch of him. I practically swallow my tongue. "I'll meet you downstairs. I'm starving."

Beck looks over his shoulder at me. "Yes, I could eat an entire cow."

I pause. "You mean, like, really? Or just you're really hungry?" Do dragons still eat cows? I thought that was, like, a medieval thing, but whatever floats your boat, I guess.

Beck rolls his eyes.

"What? You're a dragon. For all I know, you'll shift and go attack the local farm for breakfast!"

"I'm a civilized dragon!" He opens the shower door, throwing the bar of soap at me playfully, and I duck, laughing and blowing him a kiss. I descend the stairs to the living room with quick feet, making a beeline for the kitchen. Something smells delicious in there.

"Good morning, everyone!" I chime as I round the corner. Ann and Kay's mom, Emma, are at the stove, cooking and stirring things, and Kay and Zoey are sitting at the table, munching on some toast. "Hey, girls, morning. How'd you sleep?"

"Good," Kay and Zoey mumble at once through mouthfuls of food.

"Morning, sweetie!" Ann looks at me quickly before turning back to chopping an onion. "Sleep well?"

I blush, my gaze darting to the two teenagers in the room. Talk about an awkward conversation. "Um, yup. Slept great! Is Jem awake?"

"Yeah, she's in the sunroom looking for pictures of the ring and the bracelet. Can you go give her a ten-minute warning? Breakfast will be ready soon."

"On it."

I poke my head into the sunroom, spying Jem surrounded by piles of folders and pieces of paper. She's got some sort of system going and I know better than to step in the middle of a Jem-storm, as I call it. "Hey, ten minutes and food's on the table."

Jem startles, looking up at me and squinting her eyes. "Jesus H, you scared the shit out of me!"

I laugh. "Sorry, I thought I made noise as I was coming in."

She shakes her head. "I'll be in in a few. I found the entries in the ledgers for when the items were sold but now I'm sorting through all the invoices and inventory sheets." She looks around at the piles surrounding her. "I didn't realize Mom sold so much at the shop. Like, I mean, I know it does well, but fucking hell."

"Want some help?" Part of me hopes she says no, but another part of me feels guilty for not diving into the stacks of paper with her.

"Nah, I've got this. I think you and Beck should see what you can get out of that mage after we eat some grub." Jem rises from her seat on the floor and stretches. "You have a good night last night?" She wiggles her eyebrows and I roll my eyes at her.

"Not that it's any of your business, but yes, I did." My blood warms at the memories and I smile dreamily.

"Oooh, must have been one hell of a night!" She squeezes my side, pulling back with her jaw dropped. "Um, what is that?" She points to the new mating mark I've got across the top of my chest and down my arm.

"Oh, it's nothing." I brush her off, not quite sure how to explain it to her. It feels personal. Like it's something only Beck and I should know the true meaning of, but Jem's my sister and I love her to bits.

"Nothing? Are you kidding? That's, like, a giant tattoo! Where have you been hiding that?" She pulls at my shirt, exposing more of the design, and whistles.