She sighed and looked back at the door. "Speaking of which, shouldn't the kid be waking up soon?"
"Iyadre threw a blanket over his crate. Much like birds, if we cannot see the sun when we are young, we often do not wake until we are roused to do so. Besides that, he has had a very exhausting hatching," I said. I paused, then added, "I wish I could ask your mother where she got the egg from. It would likely be an incredible story, one that invites intrigue. Nesting dragons are difficult to steal from."
"I just know she bought it years ago and absolutely believed it was a dragon's egg," Olivia shrugged.
I stood and walked to her, breathing the essence of magic that swarmed around her body. Nothing less than burying my head against her and drinking in that pure energy would do, yet I restrained myself. She wasn't interested in me. I didn't wish to push my luck, when I had already asked so much from my little witch. "Stranger yet, then. Most who steal an egg wish to keep it for themselves, not sell it to the highest bidder."
"She can't have bid much. We had nothing," she said.
The strangest consequence. I shook my head and opened the door for her. "Let us go and see the whelp. Then you should sleep."
"Then I'm getting to work," she said, grabbing the door to hold it for herself. "Because I have a job to do, whether you like it or not."
I watched her go, my fingers still curled against the wood. Slowly, a smile pulled at my lips.
What may I say? Dragons do love fire.
Chapter 13
Vadriq
"I can't believe she left," I sighed, watching the microwave tick the seconds by until my single-serve cake finished cooking itself.
Iyadre shrugged. "And Nariti and Eskal with her. No doubt they'll be home before terribly long. I don't think she has enough in her to last the day. Besides, we'll have to go get them. And then we'll have to save the truck from impoundment. Nice of them to take the Hummer back to the Fontaines, though."
"Nice of Hudson to give us a car after how vicious Eskal is being about things," I muttered.
My wingmate shook his head. "It's because of the girl. I think she's gorgeous, too. I like her. But he's practically ready to go hunting for her. Actually, does that bug you at all?"
I looked off across the room to the windows. Outside, a kid biked past the house. Summer break would be over soon and all the smaller humans would be locked in their schools for the duration of the year. I considered Iyadre's words and tried to think through the best way to answer them.
Was I irritated that my lover had found another mate? Of course I was. Anyone would feel pushed to the side, ignored, maybe even replaced.
But was I angry that he was happy? Was I happy? Olivia was a cool, but gentle creature who had risked her entire life to help us save the nest. She was kind to me when we spoke, but I didn't know if I cared for her. Finally, I shook my head. "The witch will leave us eventually. She only signed up for this because she needs the money. When she does, I'll comfort him as I always do when something doesn't go his way. Let him have his fantasies. It's nothing to me."
"So, you're absolutely livid and you want her thrown out so you get all of his attention."
I snorted at him. "You're putting words in my mouth. I have no interest in who she is or what she does."
It was so convenient to lie to myself where no one else could hear me. Though Iyadre knew me better than that. I wasn't surprised that it was him calling me out on the current situation. I hoped I would be able to control myself. Eskal wasn't mine, exactly. What we did was fun more than serious. He had never considered serious, as far as I knew.
But I had, time and again, allowed myself to dream if he did one day look at me as a mate rather than a friend and lover. I was no omega, but I could try to be one for him.
"It's supposed to rain tomorrow. She won't be able to run off to work again. You should get to know her better. Let her see what it'd be like to stick around," Iyadre said.
I eyed him. "Are you having visions again?"
With a smile, he got up and left the table. Though his visions had been less frequent of late, he had never stopped having the irritating things throughout the whole of our lives together. I ignored him as he ignored me, leaving him to wonder. If he knew me as he thought he did, he knew I would be stung.
Yet who was I to question Eskal? I could never hatch a nest for him, never help him find one. I was just another beta dragon, amusing the alphas until I was useless.
The garage called me a few times, but I didn't bother to answer. I was lucky enough to have a day off, but they usually called me in. Not today. Not after the failure of the hatching last night and not when my wingmate was so enraptured by some human witch.
I threw myself down in a pile and played video games, instead. Though Eskal wasn't particularly fond of them, he had the newest systems for my personal addiction. The thought of Eskal
