put a stop to it, for good.” Yong met her narrow-eyed probing stare.
“I’m not following you.”
“Think about it for a minute. What is the one thing all humans consider the ultimate mind-blowing experience?” He took her hands in his.
“You mean like when I raged before?”
“No, angry energy feeds the change. We couldn’t both lose control like that at the same time. One of us is always less reactive, so one will still overpower the other.” Tatsu said.
“Anger is the highest peak I can think of. What else is there?”
Yong responded, mindful not to frighten her. “Orgasm.”
“What?” Her head snapped back, and she pulled her hands away. “Oh, oh .” Her heart-shaped face turned bright red.
“I know how it sounds, but that’s why Grandfather had Madame Eve set us up for a ménage. The best chance to have the same frenzied shockwave would be to—climax at the same time. We just didn’t expect the change so soon.”
She took a step back, frowning. “Couldn’t you have solved your problem, a long time ago by—pleasing yourselves at the same time?”
“It’s different.” Tatsu returned to the couch. “There’s a much greater response during sex with partners than during masturbation. It’s the connection between the mates, a package deal. Maybe it’s a dragon thing, but the mental, emotional, and physical turn on at the same time is the ultimate. You know what I mean?”
“That, yes, I do understand, but climaxing at the same time, that could be tricky to achieve.”
“Very.” Tatsu’s voice was filled with doubt.
“Why is all of this happening now?”
“Over the past several years, if one of us got riled up over something, it created—a quickening. Each time, it became more potent, until the energy started to shift. Tatsu has always been the more hot-headed twin, so he became stronger, but recently, something changed, and I started absorbing him instead.”
“If you thought it would take longer, why is it happening so fast?” Gwen drew closer again, looking into his eyes with fascination.
“We think, because it’s 2012, another year of the dragon. The last surge we experienced was in 2000—it’s the only thing that makes sense.”
“Why couldn’t you have cured it when you had sex before? Either of you?”
“Uh—that.” Yong covered his mouth with his hand through a fake cough.
“What?”
He winced at Tatsu’s hanging head and went over to the mini bar behind them, pulling out a bottle of cognac and three glasses, splashing generous amounts for each of them.
“Here, you’re gonna need a drink.” He handed one glass to Gwen and another to his brother.
“You’re scaring me.” Her shapely lips distracted him, and her cleavage didn’t help his focus any.
“The truth is, I’ve never been with a woman before.” He chugged back his drink.
“You’re gay?” Her mouth fell open.
“What? No, I’m not gay. I’m a—a—”
“Yong, are you a virgin?”
“Yes.” He turned back to the bar and grabbed the bottle, serving up another glass of courage.
“What about you?” She looked over at the wincing man on the couch.
“Uh—yeah, same here.”
“Sweet Jesus, are you guys kidding me?”
Yong placed his fingers under her glass and tipped it up. She swallowed the contents and choked out, “Virgins?”
“Look, it’s okay if it’s too much for you. I half expected you to bolt when you saw my back,” Tatsu said.
“No, it’s not that at all—this is a lot of pressure for a one-night stand. I’m no expert in bed.”
Silence filled the tunnel-shaped apartment. Gwen shook her head. Yong was sure she was contemplating the mess they’d put her in. Guilt permeated his mind and he walked over to the wall-sized window to watch the crashing falls through the dome-shaped glass.
“Gwen?” Tatsu said.
“Yes?”
“I know you handle fire like a dragon, but how did you get the ability?”
Returning to the couch, Yong nodded. “Good