He laughed as I got out, staring with openmouthed amazement. ‘‘What do you think, little bird?’’

‘‘I think I’m going to hit you again. Little cottage, Gabriel? How many rooms are in your little cottage?’’

‘‘Bedrooms?’’ he asked, taking my hand in order to smooth out my fist. ‘‘Ten. But ours is the best. It has an unobstructed view of the water. Come in and see the house. Cyrene will love the room with the indoor pool—it’s directly below our room and also has a fine view.’’

The interior of the house was all light, with fresh white walls, huge floor-to-ceiling windows that must take weeks to clean fully, glass skylights allowing the room to fill with sunlight, and a gorgeous curved white stone staircase that emerged from the profuse plant life that was everywhere. I remembered the dark house in London that Gabriel had rented for a short while, the one that felt so empty to me, and reflected that this house was the reason for that. This house had heart—Gabriel’s heart—and I fell just as much in love with it as I did with its creator.

‘‘What do you think?’’ he asked after taking me on the grand tour. Tipene and Maata had disappeared into rooms Gabriel indicated as their private domain. We left his bedroom for last, with its gigantic, mosquito-netted bed, array of electronics that would dazzle any computer geek’s eyes, and breathtaking view of the water.

‘‘I think it’s heaven on earth,’’ I said truthfully, turning to him, noting that Maata was right; he had been worried. At my words, he visibly relaxed, pulling me into a loose embrace.

‘‘It wasn’t before you came here, but I agree that now it approaches perfection.’’

‘‘I’m just sorry we can’t stay here long,’’ I said, leaning into him and allowing the wonderful woodsy scent of him to sink into my bones. ‘‘Maybe Cyrene can put off Neptune for a bit.’’

‘‘Unfortunately, there is too much to be taken care of elsewhere to stay here,’’ he said, rubbing his chin on the top of my head. ‘‘We must talk to the other wyverns about reforging the dragon heart.’’

‘‘I know. It just seems like everything is so far away from here; it’s tempting to just let it all go.’’

‘‘What you need,’’ he said, scooping me up in his arms and marching me out to the balcony that opened off the room, ‘‘is some incredibly satisfying sex with an even more incredible dragon, and I know just the man to do the job.’’

‘‘Really?’’ I asked, getting into his suddenly playful mood. I tugged gently on one of his dreadlocks, twining it around my finger. ‘‘Would he happen to have the most amazing silver eyes that melt me with the merest look?’’

‘‘He might. He might also have every intention of giving you more pleasure than you’ve ever had before he takes his own,’’ he said, setting me down on a wide chaise longue. ‘‘Stay there. Don’t move.’’

He disappeared back into the room, and I took a moment to look around the balcony. Tall plants bordered either side of the deck, providing privacy from neighboring houses. Only the front facing the vast sapphire ocean was unobstructed. A few sailboats dotted the coastline, but they were too far off to see what we were doing. I started to take off my shirt, but Gabriel called from inside the bedroom, ‘‘Do not undress yet, Mayling. I plan on disrobing you slowly. Just sit there and mull over the many ways I’m going to pleasure you.’’

‘‘You’re not going to insist that we try to do foreplay, are you?’’

His head popped around the opened French door. ‘‘I promised you foreplay, and I fully intend to fulfill that promise. I am a wyvern. I have immense self-control. Just not around you, but that will change, mate; just you wait and see. I will control my seemingly insatiable desire for you and pleasure you as you deserve.’’

He disappeared before I could answer. ‘‘I think you’re beating yourself up unnecessarily,’’ I called to him, relaxing against the sun-warmed chaise, closing my eyes to better enjoy the thought of Gabriel, naked, and allowing me to frolic all over his delectable body.

A small fire broke out next to me. I beat it out as Gabriel answered, ‘‘That is not the point. As your mate, I am honor bound to show you certain respect. That includes giving you foreplay.’’

‘‘Somehow I doubt that ‘Must provide reasonable amount of foreplay’ made it into the wyverns’ handbook.’’

He leaned out of the door to grin at me. ‘‘You’d be surprised what makes it into the handbook.’’

‘‘Are you naked yet?’’ I asked, noting that what I could see of his chest was bare. I held out my arms. ‘‘Come foreplay me, you handsome dragon, you.’’

‘‘Not just yet.’’ He withdrew back into the room. I began to wonder just exactly what it was that he was doing—not to mention why it was more important than making love to me. ‘‘Well, so far as I’m concerned, foreplay is overrated. The way you do things is perfectly all right by me.’’

‘‘It’s not all right by me,’’ he answered, a loud thump punctuating the sentence, followed by a muffled oath. ‘‘Would you mind saying something lengthy?’’

‘‘Something lengthy?’’ I sat up and leaned over to peer into the door, astonished by the site of Gabriel blindly groping his way out of the bedroom. ‘‘Agathos daimon. What on earth are you doing?’’

‘‘Pleasuring you,’’ he said, waving a hand around in the air. ‘‘Say something. If I can follow your voice, I’ll find you.’’

‘‘Pleasuring me?’’

‘‘Well, I will be once I find you.’’ His hand waved around in the air as he took another couple of steps forward. ‘‘Speak, mate.’’

‘‘How about this: I highly approve of the fact that you are naked. No, more than highly approve, am sincerely grateful and completely enjoying the fact that you’re naked. But the bowl, the eyeshade, and the peacock feather have me more than a little concerned. You haven’t been hiding some deviant dragon-sex secrets from me, have you?’’