I guess my jealousy was more obvious than I realized. I glanced at Laszlo, and he smiled, looking annoyingly smug. I wanted to scream at both of them. “Nothing. I’m perfectly fine as you can see.”
“Maybe I shouldn’t have woken you up. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this snarly.”
Laszlo cleared his throat. “As I said. I thoroughly wore Roman out. He needs more time to recover.”
Holden looked like he wanted to eat Laszlo up, so I was thrilled when Laszlo put his arm around me to direct me toward the seating area. “Come, pet you need something to eat.”
Laszlo and I took the dainty sofa, and Holden sat in a chair across from us.
“Coffee or tea?” Laszlo asked our guest.
“Coffee, please,” Holden replied.
Without asking, he poured me coffee as well, then added cream and sugar exactly the way I would have for myself. “How did you know how I take my coffee?”
“I’m good at guessing.” Was this more magic? Why would dragons need coffee magic? Why wouldn’t they?
He offered Holden the snack tray. “Are you satisfied that your friend is well?”
“Yes. I actually think he might be better than he’s been in a long time.”
“I’m right here.”
“I wouldn’t want you anywhere else, pet.” Laszlo patted my thigh.
Holden gave me a thumbs up and mouthed good job before actually saying, “Do you want a ride home or are you staying here another day?”
“Roman and I have things to talk about,” Laszlo said.
His imperiousness almost made me tell Holden I’d accept the ride after all, but the thought of leaving made me feel queasy. I wasn’t ready. Not yet.
Would it really be so bad for me to be a dragon’s mate? It was certainly more exciting than being a shop clerk—or a student if I could ever actually save the money to go back to school.
Laszlo could send you to school.
No. I wasn’t going to get caught up in fantasies of a dragon sugar daddy.
“I’ll make sure Roman gets home safely,” Laszlo said.
Holden glanced at me. “You’re cool with that, right?”
At least he remembered I could speak for myself. “Yes. He’s right. We need to talk through some things. I’ll call you if I need a ride later or anything.”
“Okay. Check in with me later today. Or I’ll come back.” He gave Laszlo a fierce look. “I expect you to take care of him.”
I wondered for a moment if Laszlo’s talons would come out and slice him to pieces.
But Laszlo seemed merely amused rather than angry. “I swear to you, your friend will come to no harm.”
“He’d better not.”
“Shall we walk you to the door?” Laszlo asked
“Sure.” Holden stood and looked around the room at all the treasure on display. “You’re an interesting man.”
Laszlo smirked. “Indeed I am.”
Holden had no idea.
6
Laszlo
I opened the door intending to bid farewell to my mate’s friend, but before I could do so, Kymar landed on my front lawn with a flutter of his enormous blue wings, knocking over decorations and sending snow flying.
“What the hell are you doing?” I shouted at him. I was only able to hold on to my human form because he was one of my Lonely Dragon friends, not that I was feeling at all friendly toward him then. I would have roasted any other dragon who dared intrude on my property unannounced.
Kymar simply grinned. “Good afternoon, Laszlo.”
Roman grabbed my arm. “That’s… That’s another dragon.”
“Another?” Holden squeaked. He was staring openly at the blue monstrosity. His eyes were huge, and I really hoped he wouldn’t faint.
I glared at Kymar. “You can’t just appear out of nowhere like that.”
He dismissed me with a huff. “You said you had an omega who might like to work for me. I came to pick him up.”
“Is he talking to you?” Roman’s perplexed expression made me want to kiss him.
“Yes, in our dragon language. We can’t speak as humans in our dragon form.” I turned back to Kymar. “You could have simply messaged me back or arrived in human form. How many people saw you?” Kymar had always been far more reckless about appearing around humans than me. It was a good thing he lived way up in the mountains, or he would surely have been captured by humans by now.
Kymar flapped his wings one more time for no reason other than to show off.
“Whoa.” Holden’s eyes had glazed over. “This is the best thing ever. You see this too, right, Roman?”
“Oh, I see it,” my mate said. “Laszlo, what the fuck is going on?”
“Nothing to worry about, pet. This is Kymar. He’s known to me, but I’ll get rid of him.”
“Is it the dark-haired one?” Kymar asked, pointing a talon at Holden. “I hope so. I like him.”
“Is he talking about me?” Holden asked, practically swooning against Roman.
I rolled my eyes and looked to my mate. “It might be best to get your friend inside. I think he’s dragon-struck.”
“Dragon-struck?”
“Some humans are so awed by our presence it practically puts them in a trance. You can take him back to the drawing room while I deal with this idiot.”
Kymar snarled. “Don’t take him anywhere. He’s mine now.”
Uh oh. If Kymar latched onto the idea of taking Holden away with him, I might have to fight to keep him here. That was the last thing I wanted my mate to see. I would win, certainly—Kymar might outweigh me, but he was no strategist—but I’d rather Roman not see our more vicious side so soon.
“I don’t want to go anywhere,” Holden said. “That’s a dragon.”
Kymar transformed in a shimmer of light, until he stood before us as a human. A naked human.
“Oh my God,” Holden looked Kymar up and down. “How did you do that?”
Kymar frowned as he walked toward us. “Is this not the omega you offered?”
“What does he mean you offered him an omega?” my mate asked. “You can’t just offer a person to someone else.”
“Don’t worry, pet. The omega in question is Pierre, the one you were keen to get rid of the night you arrived.”
My mate snarled. “You mean the one that looked at you like you were going to be his dinner?”
“Yes, that’s the one.”
“Of course I’d like him gone, but you can’t just offer him to someone else. Please don’t tell me dragons keep slaves. I can’t stay here with you if you—”
I laid a finger over his lips. “Shhh. None of my staff are here against their will, and I pay them quite well. I wouldn’t send Pierre anywhere without his consent. I simply thought he would prefer working for another dragon. He has… gotten to know a few other dragons and enjoyed himself.”
Roman raised his brows. “And I suppose he’s gotten to know you as well.”
I stroked my mate’s arm, attempting to soothe him. “In the past, pet. Never again.”
“I should think not.” As Roman’s anger rose, the strength of his scent increased. I smiled as I breathed it in. I rather liked his jealousy. I needed to get rid of my troublemaking friend so I could concentrate on seducing Roman into staying with me.
I turned back to Kymar. “This is not the omega I mentioned. This is a friend of my mate. A friend who, until you showed yourself so blatantly, had no idea dragons existed.”
“Mate? Are you serious? You found your mate?”
I hadn’t meant to reveal that until I’d talked more to Roman, but what was done was done. “Yes, I have.”
“Dragons,” Holden said in a breathy voice. “You’re… you’re beautiful.”
Kymar smiled at him. “Aren’t you just precious?”
Oh fuck. This day was not going as planned. “I think you’d best come inside.”
Kymar grinned. “I’d like to come inside someone.”
“Manners!” I admo
nished.
Kymar snorted, and smoke curled from his nose. “You’re getting far too prim now that you’re over a millennium, but I will follow you inside so I can hear all about your mating.”
Holden looked from one dragon to another. “What’s going on here?”
“Laszlo is over a thousand years old and also a dragon,” Roman said.
“And he thinks you’re his… mate?”
Laszlo growled. “I don’t think it. I know it.”
“This is all so exciting,” Kymar shouted. He didn’t seem to be capable of speaking softly. “We should celebrate.”
I sighed. Kymar’s idea of celebrating would likely include drunken revelry and a swath of destruction through my lair. “Roman, take Holden to the drawing room, and I’ll get Kymar some clothes.”
Kymar snorted, and more smoke puffed out. Holden reached up and ran his hand through it. Definitely dragon-struck.
“If you insist,” Kymar said. “But I think it would be much more fun if we were all naked.” He gave Holden a lascivious once-over.
“No, that would be… Just no.” I took his arm and dragged him toward the stairs. “Do you have any idea how much of a mess you’ve created?” I asked once I had him alone.
“I don’t see what the big deal is, Laz. The boy certainly doesn’t seem to mind knowing there are dragons in the world.”
“It doesn’t matter if he minds. It matters if he tells anyone. Maybe you don’t care about your own safety, but I do. I also like it here and don’t want to have to move. So I need to keep my identity secret, and having a gigantic blue dragon land on my lawn is not the way to keep a low profile.”
He waved away my concern. “You live in the middle of nowhere. No one saw me.”
“You can’t be sure of that.”
“When did you become such a worrier? I remember when you used to love doing flybys with me and scaring the humans.”
“That was centuries ago when they didn’t have the firepower to shoot us out of the sky.”
He huffed. “Our scales are too tough for most human weapons to penetrate, and we can always scorch their fragile little bodies.”
I opened the door to my nest and practically shoved him inside, thankful none of my human staff was around to hear him. “Killing random humans is also not the way to keep a low profile.”
“Fine. Fine. But I want the boy.”
I shook my head. “You can’t just take him.”
“He looked very interested. I think he’d like to go with me.”
“But he has a life here, a job.”
“Doing what?”
“I don’t know. I just met him, but he’s a human with a human life.”
“Are you going to let your mate go back to his human life? And while you’re answering that you can tell me why you didn’t bother telling the rest of us you’d found him.”
“Of course I’m not going to let him return, but that’s different because he’s my mate. As to why I didn’t tell you, I found him just as his heat began. We’ve only just recovered from it, and I haven’t had a chance to explain to him what it means to be a dragon’s mate.”
“All right. I accept your excuse.”
“You…? It’s not a matter of accepting it or—”
“Let’s get back to this friend of his. Holden? Is that his name?”
“It is,” I confirmed.
“He smells absolutely delicious. Do you think he could be my mate?”
“No. My mate’s best friend turning out to be your mate… That’s ridiculous!”
He crossed his arms over his chest. “Why?”
“It’s just too easy.”
Kymar rolled his eyes. “You never do believe anything can be easy, Laz. That’s part of your problem.”
I started to speak, but he seemed oblivious. “Mate or not, I want him. It’s been too long since I had someone new. What harm would it do for me to take him home and play with him until we were tired of each other? I promise to return him in good condition.”
Did he really not understand how the human world worked in the current century? “He could lose his job. People will wonder where he is.”
“There are ways to handle such things.”
I tried to stay calm as I led him to my dressing room and found something he could wear. “You’re not taking him anywhere without his consent.”
Kymar nodded. “You have my word. Now, can we party instead of making such a fuss over a simple hookup as the humans say?”
Flying a human off to a dragon’s lair was not a simple hookup, but I was tired of arguing, so I handed him some clothes. “Take these, get dressed, and then we’re going to decorate a Christmas tree and enjoy some holiday cookies, or is that too mundane for you?”
“Of course not. I’d love that.”
I frowned. “Really?”
“Who doesn’t love Christmas decorating?”
I was sure he’d tire of it quickly, but at least he hadn’t suggested we have a foursome. Yet.
7
Roman
Holden stared at Kymar and Laszlo as they headed upstairs.
“Come on,” I tugged on his arm.
Once we were in the drawing room, he blinked and rubbed his eyes. “Was that real?”
“Apparently.”
“Why didn’t you tell me Laz was a dragon?”
“It’s Laszlo, and I didn’t tell you because you’d think I was crazy and insist I leave.”
“Did you see Kymar? He was so blue and so….”
“I did. Both in dragon and human form.”
“His cock. OMG.”
I sniffed. “Laszlo’s is bigger.”
Holden’s eyes grew impossibly large. “No fucking way.”
They actually seemed to be about the same size, but for some reason I needed to assert that my mate was better. Fuck. I was calling him my mate now. “I know it’s a lot to take in”
“It’s awesome.” He practically fell into a chair, that absurd dreamy look back on his face.
“Aren’t you the least bit concerned, or scared, or disbelieving, or just something?”
“No. I know I’m probably dreaming, but either way, this is incredible. Do you really think Kymar will take me home with him?”
“You came here because you were worried about me, and now you want to fly off to who knows where with a man you just met?”
“A dragon I just met, and unlike you, I go home with strangers all the time.”
“But so far all your strangers have been human, right?”
He seemed to consider that. “I think so, but did you really see Kymar? I mean Laszlo’s hot, but—”
“Laszlo is the most amazing man—dragon—whatever in existence.”
Holden grinned. “So that’s how it is? Are you really like his fated mate or something?”
Was I? “He says so.”
“But what do you think? Do you feel some magical connection?”
Yes. “Um… maybe.”
“That’s so fucking cool.”
Before I could say anything else, Laszlo and Kymar joined us. Laszlo grabbed my hand and whisked me across the room away from the others. I shivered as he pulled me close and his warm breath caressed my ear. “I’ve invited Kymar to stay while we decorate and bake, but if you don’t want him here, tell me, and I’ll send him away.”
I glanced at Kymar and Holden. Holden was practically batting his eyelashes at the dragon who was soaking up his appreciation at least as greedily as Laszlo did mine. I was sure Holden was ready to leave with him right away. At least if they stayed he’d have a little more time to get to know Kymar. “I think that’s probably best.”
“Are you disappointed, pet? I was looking forward to more time alone with you.” His eyes darkened as he looked at me, and I felt my cock stir even though it should be much too tired.
“If we’re alone, I’m not sure we’ll actually get the decorating done.”
His lips turned up in a seductive smile. “Neith
er am I. Maybe after he and Holden are gone, I should remind you why you want to stay here.”
“We really should talk.”
“I promise we will, but let’s enjoy the rest of the day first.”
One more day of enjoying Laszlo’s attentiveness wouldn’t hurt, and I’d been longing for Christmas cookies since he’d mentioned them. I’d worked such long hours in the weeks before my heat was due that I hadn’t even stopped into my favorite bakery to treat myself.
I opened another set of the glass ornaments Laszlo had picked out in my shop. It seemed like it had been weeks since he’d come in wanting to buy them all. Had it really only been five days?
This box was filled with half a dozen smooth glass orbs filled with turquoise glitter. We’d already hung the red glass ones and ones with silver and gold glitter on the enormous tree in the conservatory. Laszlo had strung fairy lights along the crown molding and woven them into the branches of numerous small trees he had in pots. The walls were almost entirely glass, and I was certain the room would look stunning at night as the lights reflected off the windows. At least I would get to see it before I had to bring this fantasy to an end.
“Roman, are you all right?”
When I looked up at Laszlo, the concern on his face sent warmth racing through me, not sexual heat this time just the soothing feeling of being cared for.
“I’m fine. Just thinking how lovely this room must be at night.”
He narrowed his eyes, studying me for a moment. I could tell he didn’t believe me, but he let it go and picked up one of the ornaments. “Come. Let’s hang these. We’ll never get the tree finished at this rate. They certainly aren’t any help.” He tilted his head toward Kymar and Holden. They were kissing, and Holden looked like he was ready to climb the dragon. As we watched, Kymar sank onto the couch, lying back and pulling Holden on top of him as they ground against each other. I was certain clothes would begin to come off soon. “It’s like they don’t even remember we’re here.”
Laszlo’s forehead wrinkled as he watched them. “Even for Kymar that’s fast. Is my sense of smell off, or am I right that Holden isn’t even near his heat?”
The Christmas Dragon's Mate Page 5
