Chapter 8
Chapter
Eight
C ade could hear him.
It was surprisingly quiet out here, without the children, odd, and Poe wasn’t sure exactly what to do. He kept stealing glances at Cade.
Had he just hooked up with the law? That would have made his hole-in-the-wall gang back in the wild west just roll with laughter.
Seriously, he was in the middle of so many paradigm shifts that he was spinning like a top. He wasn’t sure he was ever going to find true north again.
“You do think the babies are safe, don’t you?” someone asked, and Cade nodded, so certain.
“The pixies meant no harm.”
Poe wasn’t sure if that was true, but what was he going to say? He didn’t know. They may not have meant harm, but they sure caused it.
“But who did Penny find? The—” Beau held his hands open as if the word was going to fall into them.
“Wyrmnain? That’s my grandmother. She’s a mystic, a kyfrinial, and she was so excited to meet one of the new dragons.”
“Does she not live in the village?” Poe was never going to get all these new words and foods and things.
You’ll be fine, mate. It’s all new.
That’s the understatement of the century . He rolled his eyes.
“She is a kyfrinial. The universe creates spaces for them that are…sacrosanct. They visit us, but they live in groves of pure magic.”
That seemed lonely as hell.
No. No, she’s very happy with her mate. My mother says that it was an amazing place to grow up.
That’s—That’s wow. I mean, cool, but where I come from, that would be a little woo woo.
What is this woo woo? Cadeyrn frowned slightly, obviously trying to work that out.
Um. That sort of encompasses anything that’s dubious and mystical, supernatural, or unscientific. He kind of vaguely remembered that definition from a dictionary somewhere.
Ah. Well, yes. She is not dubious, but science cannot explain her life.
Poe chuckled. You’ll have to tell me all about it.
I will.
“Hey. You guys do know you’re not talking out loud, right?” That was Puck, who was grinning. “Cade, you want your basket now?”
“Oh, yes, please.” Cade gave him a glance that was almost shy. “I brought things for you and for Tanya. And for the other children.”
Poe felt his cheeks heat all over again. “That’s so sweet.”
The others produced the large basket, and he sat at one of the little groupings of chairs and benches to go through it.
“Oh, wow. Are these clothes for me?”
“Yes. I know that you came through with very few things. Having good clothing is essential to comfort.”
Poe rubbed one of the tunics against his cheek. “Wow. That’s soft and yummy.”
Cadeyrn frowned a little. “Is that good?”
“Yes, it’s very good.”
“I am glad.” That made Cade smile, his brilliant blue eyes lighting up. He really was a wildly handsome dragon, his hair sweeping his shoulders and back in long braids, the silver-and-gold strands almost metallic. He had a strong jaw, a stubborn chin, and a deep brow. Broad of shoulder, narrow of hips, with corded muscles on his arms where hints of golden scales tipped with silver glinted in the light.
Poe kinda wanted to jump on him and hump him like a naughty puppy.
But, even though Cade had stated his intention to court Poe, the humping seemed premature.
Cade’s eyes widened, his smile becoming far more…predatory. Hot as fire. Cade wanted him. Like, in a carnal way as well as a sweet wooing way.
His whole body went tight, his nerve endings firing, and every alpha male in the group turned to stare at him, noses working.
He moved close to Cade, the motion instinctive, his spirit craving Cade’s protection, his strength.
Cadeyrn put an arm around him, the warmth lovely, even though it was nice out. He leaned against Cade, exploring the other gifts. He laughed at the parasol. “Is this for Tanya?”
“I thought she would like it.” Cade looked a little uncertain. “The village girls like them.”
“She’ll love it. It’s very girly.”
Cade relaxed against him. “I am happy, then.”
Poe glanced up, and he realized they were pretty much alone, the others all moved to other parts of the commons. To the barns or gardens, giving them some privacy.
“I don’t have anything amazing to give you, but don’t worry. I’ll figure it out ere long.”
“You do not need to, Poe. I am happy to be with you.”
Was this guy for real? Goddess, he was so nice. “Should we take the kids their stuff?”
“Will you give me a kiss?” Cadeyrn had turned and was staring at his mouth.
“Um. Yes.” He beamed at Cade. That was a gift he could give. He slid a hand behind Cade’s head and pulled him down, pressing their lips together.
Cade moaned, opening to his tongue, letting him explore. Cade’s tongue touched his, a little tentative, but perfect. Cade tasted of spices and maybe mulled cider, and his lips were hot and soft.
Cade took a grip on his shoulders, not squeezing or hurting, but definitely holding him still for more kisses. He was on fire a little now, but Poe was also super aware that they were out in the open, right in the middle of the commons, and he didn’t want to take it any farther in front of the kids or the other dragons.
He pulled back, raising a hand to stroke Cadeyrn’s hot cheek. “That was wonderful.”
“Yes.” Cade watched him, eyes gone the color of sapphires, so deep and blue. “Yes, it was.”
“We can do it again, I promise, but we need to give the kids their toys, and I want to try all the amazing food you brought up. So does everyone else.”
The blaze in Cade’s eyes was quickly banked. “Of course, my—Poe. Come.” Cade rose, holding down a hand to help him up, and he thought he’d disappointed Cade some.
That was okay. He’d make it up to him.
Hopefully soon.
I think you can hear me. I didn’t want to stop then, but I don’t even have a place to make love with you, to touch you. I’m staying with Puck and them—I only have a borrowed room. So, we might have to go camping…
Poe realized he had no idea about where Cade lived, what his situation was. He assumed it was down on the in the village, but he didn’t know.
What if Cade lived with his mom in a basement?
Did they even have basements in the village? He blinked once. “Cade, do you have basements here?”
Cade blinked right back. “Yes. Do you not have basements?”
“Well, these houses have basements. There’s actually this weird interlocking cave system underneath with pools and places for children and stuff, but I’ve lived in houses that didn’t have basements. I’ve built a lot of houses that didn’t have basements because, well, building basements is hard.”
Cade stared at him a second in pure consternation. “It is?”
“Well, yes…because you have to dig it out? At least in my experience. I mean, I guess if you had some kind of a skill where your dragon could dig it out for you, that would be cool.”
He got another of those strange looks. “So your houses don’t give you what you need, as far as space goes?”
“No, that’s not usually how it works. Although from what I understand from everybody here, it was very much how it worked, especially once the veil started to open. So I think maybe this is just a dumb conversation.” And he was feeling very silly right now.
“No. It is interesting to hear about where you come from. Here, there is magic in the ground and the air. And, well, everything. While we must still build houses, the ground yields.”
“Yeah, not so much on Earth. I think maybe the magic was beaten out of the ground there a long time ago.” Which was sad, but it was what it was, he guessed.
“That is a shame, but now you’re here and this land is filled with magic.” Cade stopped, looked at him, stared at him with those sapphire blue eyes. “This land is filled with magic, and we are going to explore every inch together that you want to see.”
“Promise?” Poe stood there just sort of hot, his heart feeling like it wouldn’t quite fit in his chest. His dragon wanted to spring forth so badly, the urge larger than he could ever remember since he was a teenager and going scaly at a random rate.
“I do.” Cade looked pleased now, as if whatever Poe had done to upset him before had eased. “Let’s give the presents to the children, and then I was wondering, would you like to go fly with me? I know you had wanted to settle in more, but…”
Would he like to go fly? Poe hadn’t flown with another dragon since he’d flown with that giant orange dragon out near window rock four hundred years ago. Thunderbird, his name had been. He’d been clever old beast, a little wicked, but with a finely tuned sense of right and wrong. Poe had liked him a lot.
He had the sinking suspicion that today’s flying was going to be so much better. “I’d be honored.”
“Then we have a plan.”
Cade wanted to see Poe in his dragon form.
He wanted it badly, and he had time today. So he was going to take Poe flying. Dammit.
Once the children were all napping, he took Poe’s hand. “Come, sweet one. Fly with me.”
“Yes.” Poe beamed at him as if he’d fully expected Cade to forget all about it.
“We are going to go fly,” Cadeyrn told the other alphas.
Beau studied him a moment. “You want company, or is this a private flight?”
Cade tilted his head, pondering. “Private, but may I call upon you to help if we tire?” He tilted his head back toward Poe just slightly.
“Of course, my friend. I’ll be on alert.”
“Thank you.” He tugged Poe away, toward the heights.
Poe came with him easily, looking around at everything with a curious gaze. The plants seemed to fascinate him, and he paused at one point, listening to the stream, which literally sang at them. Or rather hummed.
But it was musical all the same.
He grinned. Poe’s eyes were wide and a little wild, but he swayed, humming back.
Then Cade tugged at him, and Poe followed him up to a good launching point in the direction opposite of Cosmo’s home.
He took off his clothes and put them away in the pack he carried for just that reason. Then he nodded at Poe.
“Oh. Right. I reckon that it’s easier to do that than to come back and find them.”
“Or land somewhere and be cold because you have no clothes.” Dragons were, in general, not very modest. But in human form, the elements could be cruel.
“Right.” Clearing his throat, his cheeks hot, Poe stripped down.
Cadeyrn caught his breath, because his mate was…magnificent. He was pale, yes, but his skin had a translucent glow, all of the colors represented in the scales he could see glinting in the sun.
He was literally the most beautiful thing Cade had ever seen.
Until he backed off a few paces and shifted, his dragon coming to the fore, growing and changing his body.
Cade roared his pleasure to the mountain, then shifted as well, spreading his wings and offering to let Poe twine necks with him.
Cade! You’re so beautiful.
You are the beautiful one, my mate. He showed Poe how to rub and caress each other with their heads. Poe caught on quickly, humming with pleasure, sounding very much like their stream.
They gazed at each other for a long moment, faceted eyes wheeling, then he moved to the edge of the cliff.
You know how to fly?
It has been a long time. But yes. My dragon body remembers.
Then follow me. Tell me if you start to tire. Cade spread his wings and leaped off the edge of the rock, the wind gliding over and under his body, making him soar.
Gravity pulled him down, but then a thermal shot him up, and he laughed in his head, his dragon form so perfect for this task.
Poe roared behind him, the sound not as ground shaking as his, but the volume impressive. Then his mate whizzed by him in a flash of light, his smaller body so fast, so nimble.
Cade gave chase, yodeling his happiness to the sky goddess. He was so in love already. He could not imagine what he would feel for Poe when they had lived decades together.
They wheeled and dipped, swooped down toward the village, then climbed up over the mountains again. Cade watched Poe’s form, looking for any signs of fatigue, but his mate did so well.
It wasn’t until the sun had moved in the sky to indicate an hour had passed that he waggled his wings to catch Poe’s attention, then began the spiral down to land at the clearing of the Rocky Mountain clutch.
Poe was turning a dull gray, and he would need food and water and rest.
They came in to land, and Beau was there in dragon form just in case, willing to help Poe with his landing. Poe touched down a bit rough, but he did just fine, and Cadeyrn shifted down to his man form, his body feeling the effort from his flight.
Beau shifted as well, tugging his clothes back on as Cade dressed himself, then Poe, who was drooping.
“Dude. Poe, that was awesome! Way to go on your first Lunastra flight, buddy.”
Poe smiled a little. “Thanks.” He fanned himself. “That was so fun, but man, I’m pooped.”
Cade thought that meant tired, not the…other meaning of that word. “You need to eat and drink before you sleep, Poe,” he pointed out.
“Yes, mate.” The tone said yes, alpha father, and Cade had to laugh.
“I am just worried about you, love. It makes me snappish. I like to feel in control of the situation. I do not like how gray you are.”
“I’m fine. Really. It’s just been a long time, and the air up here is pretty thin.”
Beau laughed and clapped him on the back. “You didn’t live above the treeline like the rest of us, huh?”
“I’m from the mountains between Arizona and Nevada. Some of those passes are only at 6000 feet.”
“Ah. Gotcha. Come on. You know we always have food. There’s sandwiches and cake and stuff.”
“What sort of cake?” Cade perked up. He loved cake.
“Carrot.”
“With that sweet and sour white icing?”
“You know it, man.”
Poe laughed, leaning against him as he wrapped an arm around him so they could walk to the houses. “They have you hooked, hmm?”
“Oh yes. It is like a cake we make here, only better.”
“My favorite cake is chocolate. I do love—” Poe glanced up at him. “Tell me you have chocolate here.”
Cadeyrn chuckled and nodded. “That was one of the very first things the children asked as well. We call it shokolade. It’s imported from a lower, warmer climate. We trade stones for it.”
“Wow, some things are eternal, right? Trading, bartering, buying, importing, exporting.” Poe grinned at him and gave him a tired wink.
“Papa! Papa! I thought you were gone, and then I saw you were flying, you flew so high!” Sweet Tanya launched herself at Poe, who caught her, but just barely, and Cadeyrn wrapped his arms around them both to steady them.
“Easy now, your Papa is tired. Next time, maybe you can come with us. We can fly together. Perhaps fly down and out into the village to meet some other children.”
“There are really more?” She looked as if the idea stunned her, and then Cade remembered that she was an only child and had probably been raised in isolation. From what he’d been told, dragons weren’t welcome in the world that the others had left.
They lived solitary lives, or in small family groups.
That seemed so…sad. Dragons were usually very social.
“There are. There is a school, as well. Our village is not so large as some, I hear, but it thrives. There is also another small fishing village down by the ocean. I hear Arielle has a friend there.”
“I do!” Arielle bounced up. “You are so pretty when you fly, Cadeyrn. You’re kind of amazing.”
His cheeks heated with pleasure. He was a proud dragon, and it was a lovely thing to hear. “Thank you, poppet.”
She grinned. “Now. Cake?”
“And something for Poe to drink.” He picked his mate up, carrying him easily, Tanya holding his arm as she skipped along.
“I’m going to make more friends too. More friends!” She bounced, and her feet left the air for more than a few heartbeats. “I already have Arielle and Nevvy. And Lia and Esther. And everybody else. Sebby is a good friend too. I love having friends!”
She’s so brave. Poe smiled down at her, tears in his eyes. I love her so much. I want her to be happy here.
I want you to be happy here, mate.
I think, now, with you, I can be.
They walked up to Zeke’s compound, and Little Jasper stood there with Samuel, his eyes wide. The little dragon vibrated for a second before they walked up. Preston wore the pirate hat that Cadeyrn had brought him, and the lad’s familiar was holding a flag with the skull and cross bones.
He had to smile. “Hello, Preston, little pirate, how are you?”
Preston stared at him with huge faceted eyes. The little boy’s vibrations were visible, and Cadeyrn looked to the child’s father, worried.
“He’s just excited because?—”
All of the sudden, Preston ran up to him, hugged his leg and yelled, “Arrrr!”
And then he ran like the wind, disappearing inside the house.
“You’ve made him a very happy little dragon, Cade. Thank you so much.”
“Of course. He’s a sweetheart.”
“He’s a silly little boy,” Arielle argued. “But he’s really fun. He’s going to be a librarian like my dad one day.”
“Do you think so?”
“Uh-huh. Penny says so, and not only that, he loves stories so much! They’re his favorite thing.”
Apparently, Zeke tells a lot of pirate stories to them, complete with voices. He’s so pleased now. Poe leaned against him, cheek warm on his chest, and Cadeyrn swore he could feel his heart swell with joy.
I’m going to build a home for us, have I told you? I want it to be somewhere wonderful. What kind of things do you like in a house?
Me?
Of course you. Silly mate.
Poe shrugged, cheek heating. No one’s ever asked before. I guess I like a fireplace for when it snows. I also like windows to look out. I’m not real fancy. You know, I just like what I like, but I’m not… It doesn’t have to cost a million dollars or be in Architectural Digest.
Cade wasn’t sure what exactly Poe meant, but it didn’t matter. He understood cozy. He understood warm and comfortable. Those were all good things.
The elders are going to give me a piece of land. I have long guarded the village, and now I have a mate and child to provide for. I hope to build between this place and the village so that Tanya can have friends to visit easily—everyone on both sides. I think it would be good.
I love that you think of her, too. She’s the daughter of my heart. I can’t imagine not being with her. Not watching her grow up now.
No, you are her family, and now I will be her family, and I will protect her and love her. Cade nodded, smiling down at the pretty little dragon girl. “Do you think that we should build a house?”
“Yes.” She nodded. “Very sure. I like staying with everyone. But it is time to have our house. And to learn how to be dragons together.”
“It is.” Poe laughed. “You can put me down.”
“Once you can sit.” Cade carried Poe to the comfortable seating they had been at before their flight. This was so lovely. When they built their home, they would need to put in an outdoor area in which to lounge.
“Here, Poe. Have some water and juice.” That was Seth, who always seemed to be helping others.
“Thanks, Seth. That really took it out of me.”
Abe came around, distributing cake. “I bet. That first unworried flight is wild, huh?”
“Oh Abe, it was heaven.” Poe gave them all the widest grin, his lean face transformed with joy. “It was pure heaven. I just flew and flew and…” Poe looked at him, into him and his entire body shivered. “It was the best gift anyone’s ever given me, to fly with my mate for the first time. To fly free knowing if anyone saw me, it didn’t matter that no one cared. That I could fly now if I wanted to. That was the best gift anyone has ever given me in all my hundreds of years.”
Cadeyrn swallowed around a lump in his throat. Poe said things to him that no one ever had. His mate was proud of him and pleased with him. It was simply the wildest thing he’d ever experienced. “Thank you. I’m glad. This will be only the first of such gifts, I swear to you.”
Seth sniffled and so did Puck, both dragons looking at him as if he was some sort of poet.
“Oh that was beautiful. Someone bringing out a bottles of wine and glasses so they can toast. So that we can toast to their happiness and health.”
“No, we must… I must woo my mate.”
Everybody glanced at one another. “What does that entail here?” Eagan came to sit with them. “That’s fascinating. You have rituals? Are there familial meetings that must be had? How does that work?”
“How does it work for you?” he asked, confused.
“Sex. Lots of sex.” That was Tyson.
“Ty, you can’t say that!” Brandon’s eyes were wide.
“Why not? It’s true.”
“That doesn’t matter,” Beau murmured. “There are children present.”
“Children know that we have sex.”
Nevvy went, “Oh!”
Sebby clapped his hands over his ears, so Keifer did the same.
Arielle just rolled her eyes. “Like we don’t know what sex is.”
“Still,” Gavin chuckled. “This may not be the appropriate venue.”
Poe got a piece of cake and stuck it in Cadeyrn’s mouth. Good cake, huh? His mate was tickled pink.
Exceptional. I think that we should have cake every day.
Oh, cake is good. I like pie. I want to learn all about it. Are they still talking about sex out there?
He nodded. Undoubtedly. Would you like to meet my mother and father; they’re not particularly social, but they care for me.
How are they going to feel about having an outsider dragon for a son-in-law?
Son-in-law?
Poe chuckled. Mate-in-law; your mate is what I mean.
Well, I don’t know. But we’ll find out, shall we? Perhaps. In two days’ time. Oh dear. Were they doing this?
It’s a date. What should I wear?
Some of the new clothes I gave you? That way you will look more like they expect.
I can do that. Poe beamed at him. S hould we rescue Tanya?
He glanced at the giggling girl dragon. I think she is fine. They seem to have changed the subject.
They do, hmm? Poe winked, and he felt his face flush. He was unused to such flirting.
“Are you two mind-melding again?” Zeke asked.
“It’s part and parcel of the whole mating gig,” Devon murmured.
“Well, yeah, but it’s no fair to check out when we’re trying to embarrass them, dude,” Justin said.
“Nonsense. It seems perfectly reasonable to become lost in my mate while you are teasing.”
“Yeah. So there. Ha.” Poe stuck his tongue out at them all.
The laughter rang out, and he felt a part of this group, as he did in the village.