I had to finish this scene, so you get a second chapter tonight.
I’m a claimed dragon, claimed by my mate who understands me and loves me. While he heals my neck, I can’t help but curl my head around to touch him. He wanted me, he was planning to claim me to be his. The thought brings peace to my soul. I help Everett pull on my water to heal me. Unlike Cedric, who I had to help be gentle when he pulled on Tana's fire, Everett has a natural ability to heal and be gentle, so once he understands how to pull on my water, he begins to heal me quickly. Maybe it’s natural for him to be mated to a water dragon, his body is mostly made of water, so it’s already a part of him. Or maybe it's his natural ability to heal, but he takes to my element very quickly. “Kaylani, are you alright?” Kenna asks me. I lift my giant head and turn to see that Yhendorn and Merethyl have the elven troupe encased on some magical spell. “Everett is healing me. They tried to claim me by having the entire troupe fight against me,” I growl. It goes against the ancient tradition
I can’t believe I’m a dragon rider. I can’t believe Kaylani submitted to me. Even more than that, I can’t believe she’d been waiting for me to demand it of her in bed. I had no idea she wanted me to claim her so much. My mate, my dragon is truly one of a kind. I need to talk to Kaylani. I can feel the difference in me and I want to understand it. I know from being around the others that the rider takes on some of the power and the element of their dragon. The water has felt easy for me to connect with, probably because I already have it in my body. The other elements would have been much more difficult for me. But Kaylani’s water just feels right. The strength that I feel is another thing I’ll have to be careful with. When I was putting Elio’s IV in, I snapped the first two accidentally before carefully holding the third and finally getting it into his arm. The fatigue that has become so common unless Kaylani feeds me her strength, is gone. I feel energized, almost buzzing with energ
It was early in the morning when Everett began tattooing me with his chosen mark. He had me sit on his lap with a light shining on my back as I held up my hair for him. Each time he cut deep enough to make me bleed, he’d lean forward and kiss my shoulder, or tell me how much he loved me. He drew the image on me first, so it didn’t take him long to use his scalpel and slice open my skin before he applied the dye. “Are you able to close your skin without healing your body underneath?” He asked me. “Like this?” I asked, working to do what he asked. It was harder than I thought, only healing my skin but letting the dye continue to seep into my flesh. “Yes. Does that hurt?” he asks, rubbing his thumb over the area I just sealed. “It’s tender, but it doesn’t hurt. It’s probably the same way my mark feels on your chest,” I tell him. When it’s done, he kisses my mark. “Do you feel alright?” he asks. I turn and look at him over my shoulder. “I feel fantastic.” “Good, come shower with me
“Tell me again why you feel the need to find this female?” I ask Pyralis. I’ve always liked having a harem of men around me, enjoyed being the only female in a group of men, especially during sex, so I’m not thrilled that Pyralis is insisting on finding this female. “You saw how they took down that dragon. The man told her to submit when she was subdued. That’s what we need to do, we need as many people as we can get, and then we need to go after the white dragon. If I claim it, then it will become part of our group,” he says. “What does that have to do with this girl?” I ask. “She’s strong. Haven’t you smelled her scent? She’s definitely got some dragon in her,” he says excitedly. I growl, swiping my large lion’s paw at him, scratching his chest. He snarls, slamming me against a tree. “Knock it off, Truda.” “Make me, Pyralis,” I growl. He spins me around, his teeth puncturing my neck on either side of my spine until they hit bone as he rips my pants down and thrusts inside me.
We checked on the returning dragons and most importantly, Morgan. She had shifted but Amne was able to help her. The two of them animatedly told me about her shift and how she and Amne would shift back and forth. I notice Ancalagon being unusually quiet, but I wait until everyone else is settled and Naida steps away with Tesha. I’m pretty sure Tesha just wants someone else to be there when she says hello to Fenian. “Ancalagon, you’re very quiet. Is everything okay?” “Fine. Just being around thirteen, loud and boisterous dragons was a lot,” he says, acting moody again. I haven’t seen him like this for awhile. “I’ll check with Everett. You should be getting close to your shift now, Cal.” “No, I know it’s not time.” “How do you know?” I ask him, curious at his response. He gives me a dragon version of a very arrogant raised eyebrow. “I’m the Alpha of dragons, Kaylani. Just because you didn’t feel it, doesn’t mean I don’t.” “Well, I’m so glad your vacation put you in such a good mo
I wrap my arms around my overwhelmed mate, holding her while she cries, but inside, I’m on the verge of joining her. I have wanted children of my own, had hoped for children when I was younger. But when I didn’t find the right woman, someone who could accept my need to dominate them in the bedroom, I gave up the notion. Then, when I met Kaylani and realized that she was everything I ever wanted in life, I didn’t care as much about having kids. We both adopted children that needed parents and I was able to become a father, without having any of my own biological children. So, while I may not have over a century of wishing I was going to have my own child like Kaylani has, I’ve had a couple of decades. And now, my dream is going to come true with the love of my life, the incredible, amazing dragon who is all mine forever. I pull back, kissing my beautiful mate, and wiping her tears with my thumbs. “I’m sorry, I’m just so happy,” she says tearfully. “You have made me incredibly happy
I had to make some modifications to my class schedule since I can’t shift. Zephyr told me she was feeling left out since the rest of us are pregnant and I’m sure in a couple of weeks she’ll be announcing her own pregnancy. In addition, Everett began treating Brooke with Avani’s DNA. Her body is beginning to respond and he’s hoping that he can wake her in another week or so. He called Yhendorn about books on human-dragon mate bonds and child births. He and Kenna arrived one evening, a couple of days later, just before dinner and the four of us sat down to go through what he brought. “These are ancient manuscripts, you understand that? These are one of a kind books that I and my family have collected over centuries,” Yhendorn says, before laying a canvas bag on the table. “I understand. I’m only interested in them because I need to know how to keep Kaylani and my children safe during and after her pregnancy,” Everett assured him. “What are you concerned about, Yhendorn?” I ask him.
It’s been an extremely busy time for me in the laboratory. I’ve been working to fix Brooke’s DNA which I think is about done. I’ve been working on the anti-venom for the paralytic, which I am ready to begin testing and then I’ve been pouring over the manuscripts that Yhendorn gave me. I realized right away why he wouldn’t want anyone else getting ahold of these. It has everything from dragon anatomy, to ways to claim a dragon, to ways to kill a dragon. My stomach turned more than once with the reminder of the cruelty of humans. However, it’s not just humans that are cruel. The elves and other shifters have also been cruel to the dragons. The desire for power makes people do terrible things. Every night, when I wrap myself around my dragon, I’m impressed all over again by her ability to love unconditionally, so wholeheartedly. After everything that has been done to her kind, she still willingly gives herself me. I know she can feel the turmoil in my head, feel the fear that has start