Well, that was unexpected! Do you think Cedric made his point?
I wake with Cedric wrapped around me. I’m not sure he could have told me I was his more than he did. He clearly thinks that I’m with Ishir or Avani, eww, and he was staking his claim. What he doesn’t realize is that he hasn’t claimed me. At least not the way a dragon is claimed. He may think I’m his, his mark is on my neck and he can say it as many times as he wants, but I’m not a claimed dragon. Of course, ‘the other person’ I spoke about was my daughter, not another man. I have to put her first, and I won’t risk him trying to take her from me. So, until she is old enough, and strong enough to stand up to him on her own, she will remain a secret from him. I slip out of his arms. He was so close to finding my treasure trove. I hope that he’ll leave when he wakes up alone, but I don’t have time to get him out of here. I’ve been gone too long, and I need to get back to Kenna. I shouldn’t have done it. I shouldn’t have let him back into my heart, into my body. I should hate him. I shou
After waking alone the morning after claiming Tana again, I have an inkling of how she felt when I left her. I wanted her to know that I was claiming her, that I wanted her, that she was mine. But she left me. I’ve come back to this spot as frequently as I can. I’m hoping that she’ll come back, that maybe I’ll be lucky enough to be here when she does and we can finally talk, but she hasn’t returned. After the first couple of times, I started looking over the mountain wall that looked staged. What I found shocked me. It’s a cave of treasures; art, sculptures and gemstones. So many gemstones, some of them are larger than my fists. When I first moved the boulder that was blocking the cave, I smelled it. This must be her family’s cave. Since she’s the last of her kind, it would be hers now, but the scent of the others lingers here. Her scent lingers here. I’ve moved around this space, smelling everything, finding the pieces that smell more like her. She’s partial to the gemstones. A de
I watch as Cedric helps get Kenna out of her restraints. I knew she was terrified which is why I screamed in my mind for Cedric to help her. I never dreamed that he’d actually hear me. I watch him tease our daughter, getting her to relax. I know he doesn’t know who she is, but hearing him call her Little Red causes my heart to flutter. Damn him. Why does he have to be good with her. I’m keeping an eye on the fight with the dragons, not that it’s much of a fight with three fully grown dragons. The hunters have weapons but most of them bounce off their scales. Avani has taken an arrow between his scales but he’s still fighting. I turn back just in time to see Cedric rip the last harpoon out of Kenna’s wing. Her cry makes my heart hurt. I would kill these hunters if I could, but I’ll settle for watching my brethren kill them for me. I watch as Cedric wraps his arms around her face as best he can, being careful to not touch the open wounds. He waits until her cries stop. “Are you good,
Five dragons. I’m surrounded by five dragons. Well, four dragons and one asshole. Kaylani and Zephyr are gorgeous women, I guess that’s a dragon trait, but they are nothing compared to my mate. She is the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met. But this little dragon in front of me…I don’t what it is. I’m so drawn to her, feeling a pull to her in a way that I’ve only ever felt with Tana. Maybe it’s because I’m mated to a fire dragon that I’m drawn to them? And Ishir must not have known about this little one. He told me that there were only four. Something inside me clenches. I have no idea how long it takes for a dragon to reach maturity, but suddenly, I’m remembering Avani’s snide comment about it being good to be the last male of your species. And he was more concerned about this little dragon than his own injury, even if his were minor. Could this be his daughter? Could this little dragon be Avani and Tana’s child together? I grit my teeth to keep from snarling at the thought of them
While Zephyr and Kaylani were healing me, Avani told me I should give Kenna time with Cedric. I watched her when he was looking over her body and she seems as fascinated with him as he is with her. When the others left, Kenna begged me to stay so she could spend more time with Cedric. How can I refuse her? He’s her father. And even though he doesn’t know it, he is still being wonderful with her. “Let’s find a place that doesn’t smell of burnt flesh and a bloody battle.” I say. I turn, looking at Cedric. For once, he waits me out. I sigh. I don’t offer to carry people on my back. I’m not a pack animal and in truth, the only people I’ve ever had on my back are Ishir and Kenna. Ishir respects me as a dragon and it was necessary. And obviously I would carry Kenna anywhere. But this is different. Cedric thinks he’s claimed me. He hasn’t, but a person who claims a dragon becomes their rider. If he ever figured out how to truly claim me, he would forever be allowed to ride me and no one el
There’s something off about Little Red not shifting. I hope Tana knows that I would never be inappropriate with a juvenile, dragon or otherwise. “How old is she?” I ask, wanting to get as much information as I can about dragons. “She’s just over four years old.” “How long before she’s fully grown?” I ask, tossing one of the whole deer at her and watching her gracefully catch it and swallow it in one bite. “A dragon reaches maturity at five years of age.” “So, you’re a teenager?” I ask, tossing a second deer at her. I know I’m fanboying again, but I’m so fascinated by these beautiful dragons. I watch as she tosses her head back, swallowing the second deer, her throat gracefully moving as the deer passes through it. She rumbles her agreement and looks at me. “Well, hopefully one day I’ll get to meet you in your human form, Little Red.” She leans her head down, gently pushing against me. “You’d like that too, huh? Well, you’ll just have to convince Tana to spend more time with me.”
When we get home, Kenna can’t stop talking about Cedric. “Cedric recognized that he’s her father?” Ishir asks. “No, he just realized that she’s my daughter. He thinks you or Avani are her father, or he alluded that you might both be.” Ishir gives me a ‘you’ve got to be kidding me’ look before shaking his head. “Momma, when can we see him again?” “I don’t know, sweet girl. I don’t even know how to get ahold of him.” “He left his number in your bag.” I look at her, frowning. “He did?” “Mmhmm, when you were shifting, he put it in your bag. I saw him.” I walk to my bag, opening it and there it is, a note from Cedric. Tana, Here’s my number. Please use it. Cedric And under that was his number. I look at it. It looks vaguely familiar. I don’t remember ever calling him before, but I take his number and put it in my cell phone. I convince Kenna to continue our training the following weekend, but the weekend after that, she wants to see him. I finally suck it up and call him. It r
Once I realized that Tana was Ms. Blaze, I made sure that Bastian hadn’t actually slept with her, and I told him I better never hear him talking about her fantastic body again. “Of course, Alpha. But it does make sense.” I snarl at him. “What I mean is,” he says quickly as I take an aggressive stance, “my pull to her. It never felt sexual, it felt…protective. Same with her daughter. If she’s our Luna, then it makes sense that I would feel the need to protect her, even if I didn’t realize who she is.” For the next week I become increasingly aggravated when I don't hear from her. I was on the verge of driving to the human city and tracking her down when she called. And time with her and her daughter, even if Little Red still remains in her dragon form is great. But I want more. I want my mate in my life. But then I realized that I had a whole other reason to contact her. And I know that my account is her favorite account, so it’s a calculated risk when I call her to tell her I want a