His hands reached around and grabbed her ass, lifting her. She obliged and wrapped her legs around his waist, pressing her pelvis against him. Maddie wanted the pressure of him against her core. She needed to feel him.
God, he was hot. Her hands running over the fire seeping out of his clothing, she welcomed the burn. She liked it, and the idea seemed mad.
A groan caught in her throat, her arms encasing his neck as he pushed against her rhythm.
“Wait,” he said, pulling away.
She blinked. Twice.
“What? No. You don’t say wait. That’s not how this works. I’m throwing myself at you. There is no wait.”
His lips spread into a grin. “Calm, mate. First, how do you feel?”
“Feel? I feel like I was about to have the best sex of my life and you just cockblocked yourself.” Maddie stopped. She was yelling for no good reason other than she was horny. Blowing out a breath, she suddenly realized that she actually did feel better.
A few more deep breaths and Maddie started to regain her senses.
The air around her dry and hot, but not unbearable. It was a desert, but this was the familiar heat she’d expected.
“I’m better -” she said. “Wait, what? Mate? What the what?” Her next breath wouldn’t go down past the sandpaper in her throat. No. She heard him wrong. All she’d done is make out with the guy.
“Calm yourself. I’m trying to understand your species.”
Her nose crinkled and she could feel the heat rising on her face, this time from anger.
“No. Wait. What did you say before? Go back to the mate thing. You didn’t bite me or anything, did you? Goddamn it. You hear about this stuff happening, but no one ever thinks it will be them. Oh, that’s it.” She squirmed. “Put me down.” He held tighter. “Mother? Where the hell are you?”
She stopped as his brow furrowed.
“What, Kal? Don’t you look at me like that. Mate. My Ass. ”
Kal seemed to be at a loss for words. Good. Serves him right. What a prick. She hadn’t even had the opportunity to decide if the sex was good enough to just let him have her as his mate or not. Sure. Just you watch. She’d get the one shifter who sucked in bed or something.
“You are my mate. Are you questioning this? The goddess herself had deemed it so. You see your markings. They match mine.”
Maddie narrowed her eyes. “I don’t like the sound of this goddess. You think she’d be on the side of all women.”
Stretching her arm, she took notice of the tattoos. There were indeed markings. Subtle designs marked her skin where there had been nothing before. Well, hell.
Why did she get the weird stuff? She’d never done anything wrong. She’d always followed the rules, well, except for not marrying her ex. But that hadn’t been right. He deserved to be loved. She just didn’t, she couldn’t. She wouldn’t marry him just because it had been expected. She hated predictability. Then again, right now she wasn’t sure she enjoyed spontaneity that had fucking tattoos showing up.
Right now, she wasn’t a fan. Thirty seconds ago… no. She needed to stay focused.
“I don’t understand? Any woman chosen by the goddess is blessed. She only chooses the strongest, most deserving females to mate a warrior.”
“Ha. A warrior? God, you shifters really need to figure out how to live in the twenty-first century. No one has warriors anymore.”
Gripping her hands on his shoulders, she tried to release herself from his iron grip.
Something very hard and very notable pressed against her own girly bits and she nearly swallowed her own damn tongue.
“I’m a warrior,” his tone stern.
His eyes burned bright, and she swore they changed into something else. A - a dragon? Maybe he wasn’t lying.
“You’re a shifter, right? You transform into some kind of animal.”
He nodded. “By that definition, yes. I am.”
Maddie nervously chewed her lower lip. “Okay. We’re getting somewhere. So, all right. Honestly now, what are you? Dragon’s aren’t real.”
Maddie swore she could see his chest puff out. Great. Macho ass.
“Never mind. I’ll just go home now. Once you put me down.”
God, did she really want him to put her down. Maddie shifted and nearly moaned as she rubbed up against him.
Think.
She needed to use her brain. Where the hell was home anyway. She’d come back to Roswell, to this desert town full of weird, strange, and magic because her mom wouldn’t stop haunting her damn dreams. She’d only come because, well, losing her show meant she didn’t have much to do elsewhere. But, coming here meant that she didn’t exactly have a home anymore either. Mom didn’t need a house now so where exactly was she going to go?
“Well. This sucks.”
Gently he put her down.
As Maddie went to step around him, Kal imprisoned her on either side with his massive arms.
“I think perhaps I have been misled or misinformed on humans. Can we start over?”
Stomping her foot, she shook her head. “Fine. Whatever. I don’t have much else going for me right now.”
He reached for the now wet rag dripping along the sidewalk.
“I transform into what you would call a dragon. We do exist. We are very, very real.” Kal moved in closer. She could smell his natural musk now, something spicy, new, him.
Would it suck to just let him do whatever he wanted? The scent of him seemed like a drug she was already addicted to.
“Just not here on Earth,” his words a tickle on her cheek.
Maddie gawked. “You talk as if you are from, well shit. ”
He shrugged. “I told you. I am not from around here. I really have a ship and my species is here to find our mates.”
He was batshit crazy. Wonderful.
“Okay. Okay. Space. If I believe
