Free Dark Heat: The Dark Kings Stories by Donna Grant

tide.
    Hal gave one last thrust that buried him deep and let the orgasm take both him and Cassie. The ecstasy took them, wrapped them, swept them over an abyss of never ending pleasure.
    He pulled out of her and rolled to the side before he collapsed atop Cassie, and cradled her on his chest. A smile tugged at his lips as he found true contentment that had eluded him for centuries.
    Cassie was warm and more relaxed than she had been in months. As she slowly woke, she realized the reason she felt so good was because Hal was still holding her.
    She was surprised to find him asleep, his face turned toward the fire. She couldn’t stop herself from running her finger along his jawline.
    Cassie leaned up to kiss him when her attention was snagged by his tattoo once again. To say it was incredibly odd that the man she’d found naked on the mountain also had such an elaborate dragon tattoo was stating the obvious. Coincidence?
    Maybe, but she didn’t think so.
    It was probably one of the things Hal had said he couldn’t tell her. Cassie didn’t like secrets, but she hadn’t been able to resist Hal. Even now, if he gave her the same option, she’d take him over knowing his secrets.
    She took a closer look at the tattoo. Though she wasn’t an expert, she didn’t know that ink could be an intricate swirl of red and black. It was a startling contrast to Hal’s tanned skin and made the dragon appear almost be alive. Whoever had done his tat was an amazing artist.
    Cassie reached out to touch it when the dragon moved. She jerked her hand back, her heart pounding as she stared at the tattoo.
    What the hell?
    Had she just seen it move?
    When she looked to Hal’s face, it was to find him opening his eyes. He gave her a heart-stopping smile.
    “Who are you?” she asked in a whisper, the words almost too much to get past her lips.
    “The man who can no’ resist you. The man who doesna want to lose you.”
    She looked at the tattoo again, wondering if she should tell him it moved.
    “I doona want you worrying about pregnancy or disease. I doona have anything, nor can I get you with child.”
    Cassie blinked. Belatedly she realized she should have worried about that before they’d slept together, but the passion had taken her.
    “Um … that’s good about the pregnancy thing. And I … uh … it’s been a couple of years since I’ve been with anyone. I’m clean as well.”
    He put an arm behind his head and regarded her. “What’s wrong? You seem like something is bothering you.”
    “Besides the fact I have a gorgeous naked man in my living room?” she asked with a teasing smile.
    He chuckled. “Aye. Besides that.”
    “Your tat. It’s similar to the one I saw on Tristan.”
    “It was dark. Are you sure you know what you saw?”
    She sat up and faced him, though she didn’t move away. The need to keep touching him was too strong. Yet there was no doubt she had heard an undercurrent in his voice. “Is this one of those things you can’t tell me? Just say so, and I’ll stop asking questions.”
    For long moments he simply stared at her. “What is it about my tattoo?”
    “It moved.”
    Hal’s brow furrowed deeply. “That’s the second time you’ve said that. First with Tristan’s, and now mine.”
    “I’m not crazy. I saw both of them move. There’s a connection between you and Tristan, isn’t there? For each of you to have such intricate dragon tats seems … well, odd.”
    He sighed and gently tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “They’re just tattoos. Tristan seems to appreciate dragons as much as I do.”
    Cassie let him lie. She’d known as soon as she asked the question that he might not be able to answer. But his lie told her one thing—the tats were important.
    She let the matter drop, however, as Hal jumped up and began to rummage through the kitchen. Still completely naked.
    Her gaze raked over his tall body and all the wonderful bulging muscle. He was a feast for her eyes, and