Chapter 2

“Khadar, can I just tell your mate she’s going to be okay?” Aurora asked, hovering a few steps away.

“Thank you, Lady Aurora, for your concern about my mate.”

“It’s hard to understand at first. I wish our families had shared the information more than handing down that old book,” Aurora told him with a disgruntled expression.

“What does my family have to do with this?” Lalani asked as Ciel came to join them.

“Did you ever hear the legend of the town?” Ciel asked.

“No. I didn’t grow up here. My adoptive parents lived a few hundred miles from Wyvern. They always bragged about how they’d chosen me. Of course, I’d wondered about my birth parents. When I found my birth mother lived here and was willing to meet me, I left my job and came to visit. Unfortunately, she and her husband were killed in a car accident a few days after I arrived. My adoptive parents both passed a few years ago.”

“I’m so sorry, Lalani,” Aurora said with tears in her eyes. “Do you have any brothers or sisters?”

“No. I’m the only one left now.”

Khadar wiped a tear from his mate’s cheek and drew her closer so her side rested against him. The tension eased from her body as she relaxed against him.

“I can’t imagine what it feels like to be completely alone. I’m glad Khadar found you. You’re part of our family now,” Ciel assured her.

He smiled fondly at the gold and silver dragon’s mates. The women had dressed and protected his mate. He would be eternally thankful.

Lalani’s stomach growled ferociously, and she slapped a hand over her abdomen to muffle it. “Sorry!”

“I am not taking care of you as I should, Lalani. Come. We will get you something to eat,” Khadar declared.

Intertwining his fingers with hers, Khadar led her through the crowd past all those standing in line to reach the buffet. His mate tugged at his hand, resisting him.

“Hey! You can’t jump past all of us in line,” an angry male voice announced.

Khadar turned and speared him with a look, allowing him to see a bit of his dragon shining through his eyes. The crowd glared angrily at the protester.

Backpedaling, the man apologized, “Oh. Sorry. Dragons first.”

“Khadar, it’s okay. I don’t need to eat,” Lalani whispered as she tried to tug him away.

“No. He spoke without knowing who… the dragon was,” a female organizer of the gathering said. “We owe our lives to those who protect Wyvern. Of course, they do not need to stand in line. Without Khadar, the gardens would not have been completed for a long time. Please, Sir Dragon, take your mate to the front.”

A chorus of “yes” and “he can take my place” echoed through the crowd. Forcing his annoyance away to focus on his mate, Khadar wrapped his arm around Lalani and picked her up to carry her the last few feet to the front. After setting her feet gently on the floor, he took a plate and ushered her through the buffet, heaping her plate with anything she indicated she liked.

“I can’t eat all that, Khadar.”

“You will enjoy anything you wish.”

“I don’t want the food to go to waste,” she whispered.

“It won’t. Anything else?” he asked.

“Good gracious, no.”

“Let’s return to the others. Look. They are behind us.”

The dais was empty in the corner. Khadar claimed a large chair, setting the plate on a nearby table. He lifted Lalani from her feet and balanced her on his thick thigh. Immediately, she tried to scoot off.

“Stay here, Lalani. Are you uncomfortable?”

“I can’t sit on your lap,” she hissed, looking around to see if anyone was watching.

“No one cares, Princess. You are safe here, and there are seats for the others.”

Lalani counted the chairs. He was right. She didn’t want her new friends to have to stand—or the immense shifters. They weren’t people to piss off. Not that they had done anything scary. They had protected her even before she’d been claimed by Khadar as his mate.

A fork appeared in front of her mouth, and she accepted the bite automatically before realizing he was feeding her.

“I can do it,” she stated firmly and reached for the fork.

“Not happening.”

When he lifted another tempting morsel to her lips, Lalani closed her mouth tightly and shook her head. “Uh-uh.”

“Behavior like this will earn you a spanking in the future. This is your only warning.”

The stern glint in his green eyes made her relent. He was not kidding. As she chewed, he added, “You are hungry. Let me take care of you. Especially now. I’m fighting the urge to rampage this gathering.”

She swallowed and asked, “Why?”

“They dragged you here in your night attire and scared you.”

“That was frightening. I didn’t understand what was happening and why. It’s always embarrassing to be undressed in front of others.”

“The men saw you without clothing?” Khadar roared possessively. Every fiber of his being vibrated around her.

“No. It wasn’t like that,” she rushed to assure him, inwardly tickled that he was so protective. “I was in my nightshirt. I wasn’t naked.”

The tension in his body eased against her. Well, grew not as alert. Did he ever completely relax?

“Eat.”

She accepted another bite, watching his face. Khadar divided his time between looking at her and scoping out the surrounding for threats. “Are you afraid of them?” she asked.

“Of the humans?” he asked in indignation.

“One puff of flames and the building is toast,” Ciel said in a teasing tone that didn’t detract from the truth of that statement.

Argenis sat next to Khadar and scooped Ciel up to perch on his lap as well. Lalani noticed Ciel didn’t make any move to resist. It was as if she did this often.

“Eat, Little one. You are safe here,” Khadar said softly against her ear.

Drake and Aurora joined them and occupied the same chair as well. That left one empty chair. Were there any more dragons with mates?

A movement caught her attention. Drake sat up even straighter, if that was possible. His nod toward the door made the other shifters focus that way immediately. They reacted as well, as if they were on guard.

“Is everything okay?” Lalani whispered.

“It’s Keres. He’s the black dragon. He’s checking for his mate. Fingers crossed he finds her,” Aurora said softly.

Keres was harshly handsome. His face was as chiseled as the others, but he seemed more… relentless?

When he turned to look at them gathered on the dais, Lalani huddled against Khadar, instinctively knowing he would ensure her safety. Khadar’s arm tightened around her. “You are fine, Princess.”

The conversation between the shifters and their mates continued, but Lalani noticed everyone kept Keres in view. When he’d circled the room twice with forays into the side rooms and along the buffet line, Aurora swore, “Damn.”

“Language, Little one.” Drake warned.

Lalani was glad she wasn’t the scolded woman.

“He didn’t find his mate, did he?” Ciel whispered.

“I did not,” Keres said as he approached. “My congratulations, Khadar, for locating yours. She is lovely.”

“Do not scare my mate, Keres. It will not bode well for you,” Khadar growled.

The air seemed to heat as Keres glared back at Khadar. Lalani didn’t dare move. It seemed like the situation could ignite at any second. The atmosphere felt electric, pricking over her skin.

“Are you a dragon?” a coquettish voice asked.

Lalani stared at the woman who had dared approach before rolling her eyes at the sight of the bane of her existence. Barbie Ann Peterson, her next-door neighbor who’d caused so many problems.

Keres simply glared down at her in exasperation. He didn’t reply but glanced back at the others. “Luck does not seem to favor me. Maybe next time.”

He turned to leave, and the eager woman trailed behind him, “Hi. I’m Barbie. What’s your name?”

Keres never paused as he strode toward the exit.

“Hey. You have crappy manners. I’m just trying to take pity on you.” Barbie spat after him.

Keres wheeled, eyes glowing black with anger. “I need no one’s pity, newcomer. Your family will never produce a mate. Don’t waste our time.”

A hush fell over the room. Everyone was watching the interaction. The shocked look on Barbie’s face almost made having to hide inside her mother’s house worthwhile. Almost. Processing through his words, Lalani realized Keres had just dismissed not only Barbie but her entire family as inconsequential.

“Dragons obviously have extremely poor taste,” Barbie announced to the silent crowd who turned to look at the mates on the dais.

Lalani knew she was targeting her with that dig. She regretted that Aurora and Ciel were included in the negative comment. Putting on a brave face, Lalani didn’t want Barbie to know her barb had affected her.

The three seated dragons bristled. Ciel pressed a hand to Drake’s chest and corrected her, “Being a dragon’s mate is a true honor and should not be cause for resentment.”

Barbie shrugged that comment off and returned to her seat. The hubbub of voices rekindled immediately.

“Could she be more unpleasant? Keres just became my favorite shifter,” Ciel joked. The immediate growl from the dragon holding her made her backpedal. “You’re my mate not simply a shifter, Daddy.”

“I’d hope so,” Argenis growled, obviously having not forgotten her statement.

Did Ciel call the shifter Daddy?

Flashes of erotic scenes ricocheted through Lalani’s mind. She knew there were Daddy books, but she’d always preferred the illicit videos and drawings she’d found on the internet. Her favorite fantasies about a powerful male who’d take care of everything and discipline her when she didn’t follow his rules were difficult to locate, but with determination, she’d found some good ones. Really enticing ones. Now that the internet had ceased to exist all that was gone.

She peeked up at Khadar, who watched her carefully. He lifted a fork to tempt her with more food.

“I’m not hungry anymore.” Sadly, she noticed a heap still remained on the plate. Barbie Ann was the best diet plan. Who could eat after all that negativity? She hated to waste food when it was more difficult to obtain and prepare. An image of the almost empty peanut butter jar waiting for her at home popped into her mind.

“We’ll work on it together,” he suggested and ate the bite himself. Wooing her with the choicest selections, Khadar tempted her from time to time to enjoy more as he devoured the food on the plate.

Lalani watched the other shifters do the same. How much could these men consume?

“Dragons,” Aurora explained when Lalani looked at her in disbelief.

“Why do I believe that’s the answer for everything?” Lalani said without thinking.

Aurora and Ciel laughed and nodded. “You’ve already figured that out. It took us a week or so.”

When the plate was empty, Lalani rested her head against Khadar’s chest. She was so tired. For the first moment in a long time, she felt safe. Closing her eyes, she listened to the gathering around her.