Desired By My Alpha and the Dragon King

Chapter 7

Felita ran her hand down the length of one scaled arm, but she didn’t touch the large claws at his fingertips. “I think you are magnificent. I’ve never seen a dragon other than you, but I can imagine you are impressive.” Thorin jerked his large chin, “Look, the view is amazing.” Felita watched the ocean beneath them and the sky above them. It was exhilarating to fly in his arms. After what felt like hours, Thorin turned them around to return to the boat. He landed lightly on the deck and eased her out of his arms. Stepping back, she waited for him to return to his human form. The loss of contact made her shiver from the cold of the night. The heat that radiated between them made it easy to forget the chill of the air. Thorin stood beside her, “Let’s get inside where it’s warm.” He opened the door for her, and she flopped onto the leather sofa. Thorin sat next to her, and she nestled into his side. “I guess it’s time to call Stephen. I’m sure your parents are eager to see you and talk to you about everything that’s happened.”

Felita was silent momentarily, “Or, we could stay here tonight and go back in the morning.” Thorin held his breath for a minute. “You want to stay the night here with me?” he asked her. Felita bit her lip and gave him pleading gray eyes. He knew he would deny her nothing. “Would it be too much if we stayed the night together, but you know, set some boundaries? I think until a decision is made, we shouldn’t cross some lines.” She ran her hand across his abdomen, and even through his shirt, he could feel the warmth of their bond. “It sounds crazy, but I don’t want to let you go. Can I sleep in your arms tonight?” Thorin felt a thrill at the thought, but he was cautious. He asked his dragon, “Can you spend the night with our mate without pushing her further than she’s willing to go right now?”

The dragon’s reply was offended. "I would never hurt our mate. Why is this even a question? I would never turn her away. Why are you considering telling her no?" Thorin knew his dragon spoke the truth, "I don’t know. I just want to be careful. What if she doesn’t choose us?" The dragon softened, "It is good to be careful. Don’t worry, she will be ours." The entire conversation happened in seconds, but Felita could see his eyes grow distant, and she knew he was talking to his dragon. She didn’t know what to expect when he focused on her again. “I would love for you to stay the night with me if you’re sure that’s what you want to do.”

Felita hugged him to her, “Yes! Can we stay out here tonight? I want to enjoy the water a little longer.” Thorin chuckled, “Anything you want. If that’s to stay here tonight, then we will do that.” Felita sat back, and he was filled with so much happiness from her that he couldn’t hold back the smile on his face. “You better text your parents at least and tell them where you’re going to be, or they’re going to think I kidnapped you.” Felita agreed, “I will, but it’s not like they would stop you. You’re my mate and the prince.” Thorin narrowed his eyes at her, “They might not, but I think someone else would.” Felita grew serious. “Maybe I should step into the other room and make a few phone calls.” Thorin nodded and waited for her to close the door of his bedroom before going out onto the deck. He didn’t want to hear her conversation. Feeling her emotions was tough enough.

He mind-linked Stephen, “We will stay on the boat tonight. I will let you know when we need you in the morning.” He answered right away, “That’s great news, boss. Sounds like things are going well. I will be ready and waiting for instructions.” Thorin thought about his best friend while waiting for his mate to join him. He linked Basil, “I have no idea what I’m doing,” was all he said to his friend. Basil laughed over the link, “Don’t tell me one little mate bond has you questioning your game.”

Thorin sighed, “No, it’s just so complicated, and I don’t want to mess it up. Today, she asked me if I had children, and I avoided the question. I don’t even think she’s noticed yet. The pull of the bond has her too focused on being near me.” Basil’s voice was serious, “You have to tell her. When she chooses you, it would break her heart to find out later. Not telling her is as good as lying.” Thorin grimaced, “I know that. I will tell her, but later. My children are much older than she is. It’s not the same as having small children that she will have to help raise. My youngest is three hundred years old, for the Goddess’s sake.”

He could imagine Basil shaking his head as he answered, “It won’t matter to her. It’s the fact that you share that experience with someone else. That she won’t be the only person to have your children. For a woman, that’s a big deal. Sometimes, a deal breaker, my friend.” A shiver of fear ran through him at that thought; he closed his eyes and breathed deeply, trying to chase away the idea of her leaving him. “It’s not like you messed up and had one kid with someone, either. You have three kids with three women. The more I think about it, the worse this feels to me. You should tell her after you have a stronger bond, but before she chooses. You are in a precarious position, Your Highness.”

Thorin closed the connection to his friend, “You were supposed to reassure me, not make it worse,” he said to the darkness. He heard a door close and watched Felita come onto the deck. “What has you so upset?” she asked him as she sat in the chair beside him. “I was talking to my friend about something. I’m worried about it, but never mind my worries. How did it go?” Felita pulled a face, her mouth turned down, and her eyes were big. It made him laugh, “That's bad, huh?” She rolled her eyes up to the sky. “I didn’t want to talk about him, but I guess we will have to at some point.”

Thorin straightened in his chair, turning to look at her. “He’s not taking this situation well. I feel terrible, but I can’t change what the Goddess put in place. It’s crazy because I’ve only known you for a day, but I feel as strongly for you as I do him. He will struggle with me dividing my time between the two of you, but I won’t budge on this. I told him that if anything, you deserved more of my time because we just met, but he had known me my entire life. That didn’t help me much.”

Felita chuckled at the thought of Vallin swearing in response. “Anyway, everything is fine. I talked to my parents briefly. They understood, and I promised to be home tomorrow evening. I texted Rue, and she was dying to know all the details. I think she’s envious.” Felita smirked at him, “You are sexy as hell. I just hope it’s worth all the trouble. Otherwise, I may have to give you to Rue.” Thorin’s eyes grew big. “You can’t just give me to someone else.” Felita laughed, “I know. I was just teasing you. It appears you’ve made quite a stir in the pack. Now, all the she-wolves wonder if they could be mated to a dragon prince. I had no idea you had brothers.”

Thorin rolled his eyes. “Yes, lots of brothers. My parents have eighteen children. I just happened to be the oldest. I only have one sister out of all those children, much to my father’s pride.” Felita was the one with big eyes this time. “Are large families normal for dragons?” Thorin shook his head, “Not as large as my family. My parents are just crazy about each other. If my mom hadn’t been attacked, I think they would have continued to have more kids, but she was unable to.” Felita became serious, “Being the Dragon Queen is dangerous?”