Chapter 7 - Draco

Something is happening to Lily. But Im not sure what it is. The color visibly drains from her face, seeping off as if its being washed away.

“H-how?” she asks as one last flash of recognition shoots through her eyes.

She remembers who I am from our brief eye contact in the tavern.

Shit! I think, but then remain calm when I remember it doesnt matter. After all, I have her here on the island. A place off the charts, undiscoverable by the humans who walk the Earth.

Theres nowhere she can go. No one will ever find her.

So why am I suddenly concerned about what she thinks?

Its not like she has a say in this matter. I didnt, and Im the leader of the dragon clan in this corner of the Earth.

I must admit, playing tricks on her mind is slightly amusing. Though I never expected to feel excitement about any of this. This isn’t something I’d been looking forward to.

There’s a soft sigh from the woman’s lips before her eyelids flutter closed. Drifting like unsure butterfly wings, she sways and falls forward.

My nimble reflexes kick in, and I grab her by the shoulders. Limp beneath my hands, I groan in utter disbelief.

“What the—” I mumble under my breath as irritation grows like an infested wound. It’s been there all along—ever since the Dragon Council elders decided my fate.

This is exactly why I didn’t want this whole ordeal. Rolling my eyes, I use my brute strength to lift the woman off her feet. Scooping her into my arms with one hand beneath her knees.

“Humans…” I grate through gritted teeth. “Weak.” The scornful reproval comes with the plan of tossing her limp form on the bed. I look down, ready to fling her, when I’m suddenly frozen to the spot.

In all the time I spent watching her from afar in the human world, I didn’t notice how plump her lips were. Or how gentle her button-nose is. The soft tendrils of her dark hair hang over my arm, cascading in silky curls.

I didn’t even notice the freckles on either side of her nose. I mean, I knew she had them. It was evident from the picture on the screen when the Council showed me their decision.

At least, the decision of the Cube of Knowledge. Still, it’s not something I cared much about.

But now, I do.

And I don’t want to care.

“Measly human…” I grouch as I step toward the bed. Despite how resentful I am for this entire situation, I don’t just throw her down. Instead, I find myself being gentle as I lay her down slowly. Swooping her hair to one side as her head lolls onto the pillow.

Fragile, I remind myself as I take a step back. She’s a fragile creature, created to be weak. Mortal. Not a creation built to harness the creation of an immortal dragonspirit child.

But my step back only allows me to see her fully. The way her hips flare out, full enough to carry a child within her plumpier belly. Perhaps she’d be an ideal candidate for human children, I think as I rake my eyes down her body. The paisley-patterned kaftan whispers across her curvaceous body, hugging her in all the right places.

Wrong. I have to correct myself. Gulping as I run a hand through my hand, I’m reminded of how wrong this is.

How wrong she is as a mate for an Alpha dragon-shifter.

I can’t go through with this.

Shaking my head, I’m about to tear my gaze away when I hear a strange sound. The rumbling of her belly reminds me that she hasn’t eaten.

She must be starving.

My eyes flit to the brown bag that now lies on the ground. It’d fallen from my hands when she grabbed my sweater, the contents strewn from out of the packaging. Grunting, I pick the bag up and take one last look at the woman.

Lily Turner.

She has a name and a purpose here. Still, I cannot see beyond that she’s simply human. For now, she must eat. Lest she dies from starvation.

***

“I thought Kairo packed breakfast for her,” Mother frowns at me. Despite the questioning look in her eyes, she sighs and makes her way to the kitchen.

Usually, Mother hates being disturbed from her sewing sessions. Having taken up the hobby when she’d read everything the island’s library had to offer, she’s always to be found in her study.

And I’d come in to ask her to pack breakfast for the human.

“She did,” I admit tersely. “But I need more.” I don’t go on to explain why.

Mother nods as she prepares a new bag of breakfast, even if it’s nearing lunchtime. She holds the bag out to me.

“Will Lily be joining us for dinner tonight?” she asks as I take the bag.

I shake my head. “I haven’t told her what we are, Mother.”

Another frown flits across Mother’s face. “Why not?”

I only offer a dismissive shrug and reply, “I haven’t decided if I’m going ahead with this.”

There’s a pause, filled with tense silence, before Mother sighs. “You know the clan needs to expand, Draco. The twins were the last of our kind. That was—”

“Nine hundred and fifty years ago,” I concede. “I know.”

“And Stryder and Stryker are of age to mate too.”

Mother’s reminder only reinforces the weight on my shoulders. My youngest siblings—the twins—are eager to have mates picked for them from the humans. Having been the last of the dragonspirit children to waddle around the island, they hadn’t had friends to play with growing up.

Because this mating process is a trial, it’s left to me to see it through. If it’s a success, all of my brothers will have an opportunity to produce children of their own.

That burden makes my feet feel leaded as I drag myself back to Lily’s bedroom. When I enter, she’s still asleep. And I permit myself to gaze at her in deep thought.

I never imagined that I’d have to bring a human to Aurora Island. On all of my travels to the human world, I merely viewed them as a creation made to be weak. It’s why we, the dragon shifters, had been put on this world in the first place.

To protect the humans in times of great danger. Perils that have plagued the world in the past.

It’s why we suffered great losses to our kind, by protecting the humans.

Sighing discontentedly, I take a seat on the edge of her bed when she stirs. My only option is to gauge if she’s fit to bear children for me. Even if it pains me to do so.

She finally wakes up, pointedly avoiding lifting her eyes to me. However, I notice her throat working on a gulp as she lifts herself to a seated position.

“Who are you?” Lily asks, her voice bold now that she’d taken a nap. I suspect she’s putting on an act, especially after witnessing her trepidation when she pieced together the puzzle of my identity.

“My name is Drake,” I reply coolly, passing her the brown bag. “I brought you breakfast.” Giving her my human name only makes it easier if I decide against the mating process. She wouldn’t have to know what I truly am, then.

“Why am I here?” she asks, shifting back against the headboard and taking the bag from me.

“Because its for your own good,” I lie this time. The first time I said those words, I’d breathed a trance into her face. So that she wouldn’t remember her flight to Aurora Island. Now, it’s a lie that she’s here for her own good. If anything, it’s a mistake. “Now, eat.”

Lily looks down at the bag, then suddenly flings it to one side. The second bag of breakfast mimics the first by falling off the side of the bed.

Revolted by her behavior, it takes every ounce of strength not to scold her for the retribution.

“Your loss,” I scoff as I get to my feet. “You need to eat.”

She folds her arms and turns her face away, displaying the kind of disgust I feel inside.

“I’m not doing anything until you tell me why I’m here.”

I open my mouth to retaliate, the truth caught on the tip of my tongue. After all, it would shock her when she finds out why she’s here. And what I really am. It doesn’t help that her belly rumbles again, signaling her hunger.

Fists curling in anger, I feel my heartbeat quicken with rage. “If you think starving yourself is gonna make this easier, you’re wrong.”

Lily lifts her face, eyes meeting mine. A flicker of fear flashes across the chestnut brown depths of her eyes, almost softening my heart. I refuse to allow her to weaken me, so I storm out of the bedroom.

The rest of my day is spent avidly avoiding any thoughts about the human. Throwing myself into Alpha duties, I distract myself with work. Instead of focusing on the task of the new mating process, I focus on training strategies.

When my eyes glow with the innate knowledge of a pending message, I stop what I’m doing.

“Brother… Where are you?” comes Kairo’s voice in my mind. It’s a form of communication only the clan shares. A link of the mind, that allows us to communicate without being physically present.

My sister must be downstairs.

‘In the study,’ I reply mentally as I gather the paperwork for filing.

“Dinner’s ready,” Kairo reminds me.

Glancing at the ancient grandfather clock on the left, it confirms that it’s dinnertime. Sighing, I tell my sister I’ll be down in a few minutes.

I pass by the human’s bedroom, holding my breath like I’m revolted by her mere presence. Grunting, I enter the lift that takes me down to the ground floor. Where the rest of my family gathers around the dinner table.

A quick headcount indicates that not everyone is here.

“Where’s Kairo?” I ask as I take my seat. Stryder and Stryker are caught in friendly banter as they take their seats.

It’s Felix who answers my question. “She went up to give your mate dinner.”

“She’s not my mate,” I grouch irritably.

Felix chuckles. “So you haven’t had sex yet?”

“Felix!” Mother intervenes as she enters the dining room carrying a tray of sweet potatoes. “Don’t be so brash!”

“Mother!” he whines as he sits at the table, reaching for the juice pitcher. “It’s a valid question. Draco has to pave the way for the rest of us, remember?”

The reminder is uncalled for. Unwelcomed. It doesn’t help that my sister has now taken to wait on the human.

After all, it’s not her responsibility.

My appetite disappears when I catch Felix staring at me expectantly. Not feeling the need to entertain him—or anyone for that matter—I shove myself off my chair and storm out of the dining room. Passing Father on my way out, I don’t offer him an explanation for my leave.

I just need to get out for fresh air.

“Kairo…”I call my sister mentally.

“Yes, Brother?” she replies, much to my relief.

I glance back at the building, lifting my eyes to the floor where Lily’s bedroom stands next to mine. All I can see is the window, which I’d purposely shielded with a protective layer of film that would prevent the human from seeing the island. If I choose to, I can see beyond the walls if I wield my power of seeing.

Something I choose not to do.

“Don’t tell her what we are,” I warn my sister. “Not yet,” I add.

Turning back to the island, I stare out across the ocean bed. The setting sun casts an orange glow on the horizon, almost calling out to me. Beckoning me to immerse myself in the sanctity nature provides.

Even if it’s for a moment. Just so I don’t have to think about the responsibility that weighs me down. I seek to be free, where my wings can carry me into the sunset.