Still, she didn’t feel tired this morning. She was too excited. Today, she’d get to fly on dragonback again—and then, she’d meet other dragon shifters.
Other dragon shifters with human mates.
Maybe it’ll be like going out with Clairice’s friends. I like those women well enough, but I’ll never be a part of them...
Or perhaps the other women would be just like her—completely new to the world of shifters, and excited about the freedom and adventure that their shifter mates had brought them. Perhaps, for the first time in her life, she’d find a small community of people just like her.
“Ready?” Timothy asked, pulling on a shirt that stretched deliciously over the hard planes of his pecs.
Liana swallowed as she watched his muscles move beneath the fabric.
Timothy had been a perfect gentleman tonight, and she’d never felt as safe and as protected as when she’d fallen asleep with her head resting on his chest.
Still, wanting to take it slow because it was all new to her didn’t mean that she didn’t want him.
Because she did. More than she’d ever wanted anything.
The mating. Not just our bodies touching, but also our souls.
Perhaps, after they’d returned from the trip, they’d have some privacy...
“As ready as you can be for a meet-up with a group of dragon shifters and their mates.” She found herself smiling, despite her nerves.
It would be all right. Timothy would be by her side. And if the other dragons
were anything like him, they’d all get along just fine.
“About time,” Braeden said when they joined him in the kitchen.
Liana grinned and snatched one of the pancakes from his plate while he glowered at her.
“Don’t think I’ll let you carry me like that again,” he told Timothy. “That’s horribly undignified.”
Timothy smirked. “So?”
Braeden sputtered. Before another round of bickering could begin, Liana intervened.
“Let him ride on your back,” she said. “I don’t mind. And he knows you can just let him drop if he doesn’t behave.”
Braeden clenched his teeth. “I’ve got perfectly suitable wings of my own, you know. If you’d take off those bracelets...”
“Nope, sorry,” Timothy said cheerfully. “Chimera’s orders. We’ll see him soon enough, so feel free to argue with him and see where that gets you.”
Then Timothy stole the last pancake from Braeden’s plate, who glared at them in disgust.
“Anyway, it’s getting late. Time to head out.” Timothy nodded towards the beach stretching in front of the house.
The beach was completely deserted and quiet, the sand gleaming white in the light of the morning sun. Liana gave the gentle waves a longing look—but there’d be time for further trips to the sandbank when they returned.
Five minutes later, they were up in the air.
Braeden was indeed perfectly behaved. For all that he liked to complain, Liana realized that he was mostly all bark and no bite.
Of course, with his powers locked away, it wasn’t as if he had much of a chance to act up. Still, despite the way he and Timothy squabbled, Braeden wasn’t all bad.
And unlike certain other fire dragons, he’d never tried to kill her.
The sprawling mansion on the beach grew smaller and smaller below them as they kept rising.