15. Rehan
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
REHAN
T he sunset colors bathed the cliffside in rays of purple and pink. A few tiki torches sprang to life prematurely around a dance floor made of lava stone and earth magic. Off to one side, a tiki bar dished out drinks. At the other, a fire dragon DJ spun tracks of techno and Spanish guitar. His dragon ears and tail whipped through the air, just behind the beat, as he bobbed his head. Behind all of it, the forest loomed, getting darker as the daylight abandoned it.
Tyson had yet to bring my mate to The Social, but the event was just kicking off.
Elemental dragons rarely mixed. It was really just this event and the semi-yearly Elemental Meetings. Even tonight, pods of red-haired dragons, in their red jeweled button-downs, clumped together, keeping their distance from similar pods of blue and brown. As it had been for years, only a few air dragons were in attendance.
Ogden caught my attention. The earth dragon was around my age. I’d seen him at every social and Elemental Meetings for years, but we’d never exchanged more than greetings and superficial small talk. With my nerves rattling my mind, I found myself nodding at his familiar face.
The lanky earth dragon, dressed in a brown shirt and black pants, blinked at me in confusion, took a step toward me, then turned back to his fellow earth dragons, frowning.
We’d never approached each other before. Why would tonight be any different?
Mate. Mate. Mate.
My dragon chanted in the back of my mind. I turned away from the earth dragons, willing complete control over my body from my overly excited beast who felt Giggles moving toward The Social through our bond.
Tukaqu gaze bore into me from across the room. I took a deep breath and let it out. Although Grandad hadn’t said anything, he knew everything I did. I was sure of it. He would wait until he needed something and then use my secret to his advantage. I had to make Giggles mine tonight. Nothing could go wrong.
My gaze trailed to Ogden again. Having a friend outside my elemental clan would have been priceless, but it was much, much too late. Our isolation and my complacence in it hurt.
I scanned the clearing once more. It rippled with scales, cocktail dresses, and shifters sporting their elemental colors. One massive party providing poorly matched women a second chance and everyone else a reason to cut loose.
I rolled my blue sleeves up another level, accenting my thick biceps, and straightened my ponytail. I’d never been this nervous in my life.
Tyson’s dark red wings cast a shadow over the gathered as he circled the clearing, my mate pressed to his human chest. I suppressed an angry growl. The fire prince landed hard, jarring her, and I seethed moments from darting forward. Giggles virtually jumped out of his grip. She crossed her arms, accenting the cleavage her little black dress exposed. She glared at Tyson, who gritted his teeth and pulled his shoulder back.
They weren’t getting along. My cheeks pulled in an inappropriately wide grin. I puffed out my chest, my heart soaring and my nerves calming.
My mate. Smokey makeup brought out her big green eyes. Her black hair was artfully piled on her head, with curls hanging down to kiss her long neck. Although I loved it, she looked like a fish out of water. My mate wasn’t meant for dresses and heels. She needed the sun to kiss her skin and flats, which left her free to move however she pleased.
Tyson wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her past the bar before stopping at a small group of human women with white roses tucked behind their ears. He released my mate's waist, only to find her hand and hold it. The two gazed into each other's eyes, and my heart stopped. Something had happened between them.
What if he didn’t let her go?
Tyson’s eyes flashed with fire. He dropped her hand and shoved a white rose into her hair.
The tension knotting my stomach eased. A white rose meant her mating hadn’t taken. I’d already guessed it based on my security officer's flow of information, but I hadn’t been sure until this very moment.
Tyson leaned down and placed a kiss on her cheek. I growled, low in my throat. Waiting for him to get thrown back, but if my mate mark even hurt him, he didn’t show it.
He stood and looked straight at me.
I wanted to smash his face in.
“Relax,” Tukaqu said, placing a hand on my shoulder.
I hadn’t even noticed my grandad come to my side.
“Don’t be too eager,” Tukaqu continued.
I clenched my fist and looked away from Tyson’s smirking face. I would find out if he touched her, and I’d come for him after the social. Hitting Tyson would get me thrown out of the party, guaranteeing my mate left with someone else. Releasing my breath, I turned and gave Tukaqu a reassuring smile before stepping forward to watch and wait for the perfect moment.
The women with white roses in their hair congregated on the far side of the clearing, my mate with them. She glowed compared to the others. With her strong build and fierce eyes, it didn’t take long for an earth dragon to slide up to her.
I said I would watch and let her enjoy the party. If I made it look like I was playing the field, it would make it easier to claim I’d not cheated during The Hunt.
I said a lot of things.
When the earth dragon touched her, I sprinted forward and wrapped her waist in my arms, pulling her into my chest.
I growled. “Taken.”
The earth dragon, who I didn’t recognize, sucked in his round cheeks and narrowed his thick eyebrows. He looked me up and down before bowing his head and backing away. I had almost a foot on him and at least fifty pounds of pure muscle. He knew he wouldn’t win.
I puffed out my chest, pulling my mate further into me before terror seized my heart.
We hadn’t even spoken to each other yet. Now, I’d invaded her space and claimed her. What if she didn’t feel the same heat I did? Had she spent the last three days pining for me as I had her? What if she rejected me?
I schooled my face. Instead of giving in to my fears, I held her more firmly.
The girls around us went silent and leaned forward in anticipation. I’d hunted this woman for an entire day, the longest hunt in our history. She’d pulled two princes to her, and I had no doubt she was the talk of the party.
I finally looked down at the woman trapped in my arms. She didn’t struggle but gave me a solemn nod and tugged me toward the far side of the clearing.
My heart plummeted. I didn’t know what I expected. Maybe the same excitement as me. At least acknowledgment of our connection. Instead, her lips set into a line, and her posture shrank like she led me to my grave. Nervous sweat ran down my back, soaking into my shirt. I itched to take it off. I hated shirts, but this wasn’t a shirtless event.
When we had space between the other dragons and us, she patted at my pockets. My view went straight down her low top, and I fought to keep my hands away from the hem of the short skirt outlining her butt. Even though her touches weren’t sexual, my dick rose to attention.
I captured her hands before my brain settled too far below my belt. “Love, what are you doing?”
She flinched and paused, looking at me like I’d hit her.
I didn’t know what to do, so I shut my mouth, waiting for directions, desperate not to do anything to make her look at me like that a second time.
She tried to speak, but only a squeak came out.
“You still can’t speak?” I cupped her cheek and tilted her head up. “I know they brought in Doctor Raba.”
She bit her bottom lip, and I cursed. Pulling her head out of my hand, she mimicked writing, and I put together what she was after. I tugged my phone out of my back pocket and unlocked it.
She brightened before her face fell. Two deep breaths made her chest rise and fall. Finally her thumbs typed.
I fumed. There was no way the potion was still in her. She should have had her voice back. Combined with her wrong paperwork and missing luggage, something fishy was going on.
She bumped my arm with my phone, and I glanced down at the screen.
‘I’m sterile. I can’t have kids. The fire dragons want me to be your problem.’
My my stomach sank.
How could this be?
I’d spent the last three days picturing our lives, including the kids my family expected me to have. Why would she even be here if she couldn’t have kids? We had doctors pre- and post-check the women who applied. They shouldn’t have even woken her up to participate in The Hunt.
I squeezed my eyes shut, my shoulders sagging.
The fates cursed me.
Why give me a human mate if we couldn’t carry on my legacy?
She stepped back, taking her body heat with her. I took a deep breath, my heart racing in my chest. She took a second step and my entire being twisted.
I still wanted her.
Before she could take a third, I pulled myself together and opened my eyes. In one long stride, I wrapped her in my arms. The smell of roses and fire overpowered the licorice I remembered.
I growled and pulled her face into my chest. “It doesn’t matter. We’ll figure this out together.”
She wrapped her arms around me and shook. I suspected she cried into my shirt, but I didn’t say anything. I had no idea what this woman had been through with Tyson, but if it had been good, she wouldn’t be this vulnerable sea horse latching onto my chest for support.
I found Tyson, who didn’t try to hide his blatant observation of her, and I glared at him. He’d taken her and abused her. If he ever got near her again, I’d kill him. I didn’t know what was going on here. But, if she had bad intentions, she wouldn’t have straight up told me she was sterile. I would have bet my beach house that none of this was her fault.
She released me, and I let her step back. Thanks to dragon magic, her beautifully made-up face looked perfect. If she’d cried, I didn’t see any evidence of it.
‘Thank you,’ she mouthed the simple words.
I traced her face with my thumbs, loving her soft skin. “Don’t thank me. Something’s not right here, and Tyson should have taken better care of you.”
She frowned but accepted my words.
I gathered her under my arm again, and she let me, not quite molding her body to mine.
My dragon begged me to pull her in further, forcing her as close to me as physically possible, but I held back. She didn’t know me or feel the pull of a dragon’s mate. For all I knew, she didn’t want to even come with me now, much less explore our bond.
That thought chilled me, but I had to accept it. “Do you want to come with me?”
She squeezed me and nodded sharply, and my heart relaxed for now.
I focused on logistics. “I’m required to spend twenty minutes with three different women tonight.” I squeezed her shoulder. “You’re also required to spend time with dragons, but I doubt anyone will approach you, especially after this.”
She raised an eyebrow and looked up at me.
I cupped her cheek again, slightly bending down to give her a chaste kiss. She stood stiffly, her lips still, before suddenly wiggling and leaning into me. She placed both hands on my chest and matched my kiss before parting her lips and inviting my tongue to explore.
She tasted like mint, licorice, and life. Her tongue danced with mine as an equal, and my blood rushed, taking my brains for a ride south. It wasn’t until my lungs begged for air that I released her flushed body. I removed my hands from cupping her perfect ass and tucked her under my arm, my entire being feeling lighter.
She leaned against me, smiling, and shook her fingers.
I purred. “No one will approach you now. I’ve made it clear you’re mine.”
She wrinkled her nose adorably and stopped focusing on her hand to look skeptically at me.
“I’ll take you back to the other girls and get this over with.” I bopped her nose. “The sooner we get out of here, the sooner we can figure out why you can’t speak.”
She nodded vigorously. Taking one of my hands in both of hers, she pulled me back into the heart of the party. Murmurs and dark glares followed us, but I ignored them.
My mate. Mine. No rules would keep her from me.