The Sleeping Omega Prince

by Maggie Hemlock

Rhett

  “You were right about the carpet burn,” Brendan laughed still under me.

  “I have some spray for scrapes in my bag,” I told him.

  “Nah. I’ll be okay,” he shook his head. “Though, next time we’ll definitely bring a blanket. Heck, we could leave a blanket here if we put it back out of the way of the water. We have the whole island to ourselves. Well, except for your brother.”

  I opened my mouth to tell Brendan I’d have to go back to the civilized world at some point but stopped. How did one go about taking a man from the past and bringing him into the future? When did my life become a science fiction movie?

  “When you stumbled into the Other World,” my wolf said. “Stop overthinking it. We’ve found our true-mate. Everything else is easy.”

  That was easy for him to say. He wasn’t the one who had to explain everything to the rest of the world. Maybe I didn’t need to explain it to anyone. People went on vacations and met their true-mates every day. Hell, maybe I could disappear and live out the rest of my life on this island. At least until it sank.

  “The island’s going to sink?” Brendan sat up and pushed me off him.

  Shit! I forgot that he could hear me.

  “Not too soon,” I said.

  “Corden’s still out there, isn’t he?” Brendan asked. “That’s his plan! He’s going to sink the island!”

  His hands trembled and his fear filled the cave.

  “No!” I grabbed his shoulders. “Climate change left over from the crappy human governments is going to sink the island. Polar icecaps are still melting. They’ve slowed, but some places are going under. Apparently, the island is scheduled to go somewhere below sea level in the sort of near future.”

  “Corden’s behind it,” he whispered and pulled his knees to his chest. “He’s been out there waiting for me to come back so he could finish the job.”

  “No,” I wrapped my arm around his shoulder. “Corden disappeared from lore. Most believe he died.”

  “Don’t you understand? True evil doesn’t die! It just keeps coming back! There’s no place for it in the Other World so it comes here.”

  “What about Frost’s Pit?” I asked him.

  “What?” He blinked at me. “I don’t think Frost wants to fly around with a bastard like Corden shoved in his armpit!”

  “No, the place in the Other World where the bad guys go before, they can be reborn!”

  “You’re talking nonsense!” Brendan pushed himself to his feet.

  Standing up I pulled him close and kissed his forehead.

  “Stop panicking,” I said in the most soothing voice I could muster.

  “Don’t say that! You saying that makes me panic!” He roared.

  “My ears are ringing mate,” I shook my head. “Please, calm down. Even if Corden waltzed onto the island he isn’t going to have a chance to hurt you.”

  “Show me,” he said.

  “Show you what?”

  “Let me see what you know about climate change,” Brendan paced the small cave.

  He was right. Angry red friction burn marked his back and one of his ass cheeks. If it still hurt, he forgot about it in his panic.

  “How?” I asked him.

  Sociologists and scholars of Shifter Cultural Studies believe there was a lot to the true-mate response that we didn’t know. Some went as far as to state the claim that the finer details were forgotten as we moved away from magic to blend in with the growing human populations.

  “Didn’t your parents teach you anything?” Brendan tossed his hands into the air.

  “Plenty,” I managed a laugh for him.

  “Remember he’s centuries if not more behind the times,” my wolf reminded me.

  “We’re not behind the times. We’re timeless,” Brendan’s dragon chimed in.

  Brendan walked up to me and placed a hand on either side of my face. He leaned his forehead against mine. It was a common gesture between mates, but one sociologists had yet to explain adequately.

  “Now just stop trying to keep me out,” he said.

  “I’m not,” I met his gaze.

  “Yes, you are. Privacy is the natural state of the mind. Openness is a learned skill. It takes practice,” Brendan said. Frustration danced through his eyes.

  “How do I do that?” I asked.

  “Think about this climate change thing and just let me in. I can explore from there and then you can see what happened to me too.”

  “Okay,” I nodded and thought back to the first academic paper I read about climate change. It was one of the major downfalls of the human governments. They didn’t act fast enough to prevent devastating changes and their citizens lost faith in them.

  My thoughts morphed to show a story I only knew from lore. Corden showing up on a magic carpet and courting Brendan’s carrier. He was a schmoozer who only wanted to mine deep within the island to its diamond and gem core. The precious stones aided in the island’s natural ability to drift across the sea showing up in random intervals to avoid natural disasters. Then a flash of bright orange light and the world went dark.

  “That’s when he put me to sleep,” Brendan said.

  “Did you see what you needed to?” I asked shaking my head as my vision returned to the present moment.

  “I believe you about climate change, but the magic of the island wouldn’t allow itself to sink. Though, Corden’s still out there. I can feel it.”

  “Then I’ll kill him if he comes near you,” I told him.

  “Kiss me,” Brendan said. “I don’t want to think about any of it right now.”

  Pulling him close I kissed him hard. I didn’t want to think about anything else either.

  Chapter Twelve

  Brendan

  Dark strong clouds hung heavy over the island the next morning, but it didn’t rain. I woke up still in the cave with Rhett. He was out cold, but I was up at first light ready for breakfast. That’s always when we ate breakfast at the castle. An early start gave the day a beautiful sunrise and left hours for work and leisure. Not that I knew much of work during my parents’ time.

  I wanted to pace, but Rhett’s sleeping form took up most of the cave. Icy water slapped my face and back as I slipped out to find his bag. Maybe he had more food hidden away inside of it. If I paid more attention to what the maids did, I’d be able to wash his clothes too, but I hadn’t. I was grateful the trees hid the castle from sight. Yesterday, my head was fogged with relief of returning to the waking world and the victory of finding my true-mate. Today, the gray matched my mood.

  Rhett’s brother was cooking on a fire somewhere on the island, but I wasn’t sure I liked him. He was loud and road a boat twice as loud as himself. Sure, he was family now, but I wasn’t going to him with my hands out for food. Rhett’s bag was empty of food except for a few of those weird bottles full of water and two chocolate bars. I ate one and took the other and the water back to the cave for him when he woke up. I was still hungry, but I wasn’t going to eat all his food.

  Inside the cave was warmer than the chilly morning air. Later, I’d fly down to the shore to see where the island was. For a short period of time when I was still a hatchling the island floated through iceberg seas. Hopefully, we weren’t there again.

  “You shouldn’t have left your clothes back at the castle,” my dragon yawned. “And that chocolate tasted weird. Nothing like the stuff Dad used to make.”

  He was right, but beggars couldn’t be too picky.

  If Rhett doesn’t wake up soon, we’ll eat the fish.

  “Those fish aren’t for eating. Bright colors are dangerous. We’d be better off eating the bark off the trees.”

  I stretched out next to Rhett and rested my head against his shoulder. In his sleep, he wrapped his arm around me, and I scooted my head to his chest. Usually, omegas slept longer than Alphas, but I slept enough recently to last me a lifetime.

  My stomach growled and I willed it to shut up. The fish were poisonous, and I hadn’t
seen as much as a squirrel out this morning. Short of eating Rhett’s brother and stealing his breakfast I had a while to wait. I slid a hand down my belly feeling for signs of life. I wasn’t dumb. I knew it would take longer than overnight to feel pregnant, but our multiple rounds of getting to know each other might have given life to eggs.

  Out of the corner of my eye I spotted a piece of white chalk somehow spared by the erosion of time. Reaching to the back of the small cave I pulled it into my hand. Corden attacked me when I was too young to perform magic.

  Is my magic awake now?

  “Try it,” my dragon nodded.

  Try what?

  “The boundary spell to keep others out. It’s simple.”

  Sitting up I scooted to the opening of the cave just behind the waterfall. Careful to keep my chalk lines outside of the splash zone I drew a semi-circle cutting the world off from the cave. Next, I added the runes and sigils I watched Dad draw a thousand times over. Their lines, curves, and angles just as familiar as my own features.

  “Protect me Frost,” I whispered when I finished.

  The lines glowed a light frosty blue and my heart skipped a beat. Despite my sleep my magic had awoken. If my parents were still alive, they’d teach me all sorts of spells and tricks, but now I was on my own. Wards and protection charms were the domain of omegas. We had hatchlings to protect while the Alphas went off to bang on their chests and roar at each other.

  “Mornin’,” Rhett smiled from behind me.

  “Good morning,” I said and spun to face him. “I hope you don’t mind. I was hungry, so I ate one of your chocolates, but I brought the other one back for you.” I grabbed it from the side of the cave where I left it and held it out to him. My stomach growled at the thought of the food beneath the weird packaging.

  “You can have it,” he grinned. “What’s mine is yours.”

  “Are you sure, Alpha? I don’t want to leave you hungry.”

  “I can’t have my mate going hungry. Besides there’s more food in the chopper.”

  “Huh? In the what?”

  “It’s easier to show you,” he stood up and stretched.

  Sunlight glistened through the waterfall casting rainbow light on Rhett’s chest and abs. My tongue flicked over my lips. Heat rose from my belly. I tore the chocolate bar open and ate it in two bites. Then I walked to him and wrapped my arms around his neck. His morning wood pressed against my belly inviting me to lean closer and share in his warmth.

  “I’ll see your chopper, but first show me what we did last night,” I smirked. “Just so I know we did it right.”

  ***

  After our morning romp we left the cave. I left the protection spell active to keep any animals from wandering in and making themselves at home. We’d be the only ones able to cross over it since we were inside when the spell activated. First, we retrieved Rhett’s clothes and then made our way back to the castle to grab mine. I tried hard not to think about the ruins time and war turned my once beautiful home into. The balconies lay in crumpled heaps along with the towers, even my favorite where the library was. I held onto Rhett’s hand like my life depended on it and in some ways it did. Dragons didn’t fare well without their true-mates once they met. I think that’s why Dad suffered so much after his mate died. He was desperate for love and believed Corden would protect us and the island.

  “Do you think we could rebuild it?” I asked Rhett.

  “I think it would take some time and cash, but we could manage it.”

  “Cash?” I asked.

  “Money. Gold. Coins.”

  “We have all of the materials, though. Some pieces are still in big chunks here.”

  “We’ll need help putting it back together, though, mate,” Rhett said.

  “Maybe not. I’m a dragon and I’m strong. My magic is awake now too.”

  “I saw the ward on the cave floor this morning,” he grinned at me. “We’ll figure out how to rebuild the castle. I’m not sure how, but we’ll figure it out.”

  “I can do it,” I squared my shoulders. “I studied architecture. Before everything fell apart, I always snuck out and watched the construction crews whenever they built something new on the island. It was fascinating. They took raw materials from the ground and turned them into works of functional art.”

  Rhett stopped and pulled me close.

  “I’m too hungry to go again,” I laughed and kissed him anyway.

  “No heavy lifting. You could be pregnant.”

  “Pregnant dragons have torn apart armies and knocked down enemy strongholds. I don’t think a little building will hurt our eggs. I mean, if they’re even there,” I blushed and looked away from him.

  “We’ll know soon enough,” Rhett kissed me on the forehead.

  “Where are you from?”

  “The mainland,” Rhett said. “I have a decent-sized house there. I’m a professor.”

  “What do you teach?” I asked when we were back in my bedroom.

  “You’re not going to like it.”

  “What? Do you teach sex magic or something?” I laughed. “Because I’m not so sure I’m willing to share my mate with every omega thinking they can mix sex and magic.”

  “Archeology and history,” Rhett said quickly before I could ramble on any longer.

  “What’s wrong with history?” I arched a brow and stepped into my pants.

  “Well, nothing, but archeology is literally digging up the past. You don’t know how hard it is for me not to dig around here and try to put the whole story together.”

  My heart skipped a beat.

  “You will not dig up my island!” I squared my shoulders ready to fight if I had to.

  “I’m not going to, but it’s an itch I have.”

  “Then buy some cream. If you dig up the island where will we raise the kids?” I pulled my shirt over my head.

  “I have to go back to the mainland and settle my affairs at the very least.”

  “You’re not leaving me, are you?”

  Panic gripped me around the middle. We just met he couldn’t leave me yet! My heart raced and I grabbed his hand.

  “No,” he pulled me close again. “I thought you could come with me.”

  “I’ve never left the island,” I shook my head. “It’s my home.”

  “We need somewhere to stay while we rebuild.”

  “Alpha’s right,” my dragon put in his two cents. “Besides, we hatched here. We’ll be able to fly here from anywhere. Dragons can always find the place their eggs hatched.”

  My hands shook, but I knew soon I’d leave home.

  “I did say I’d follow you anywhere during our claiming vow,” I frowned.

  “We don’t have to leave right now,” Rhett pushed my hair away from my face. “We can stay awhile until you’re more oriented. I know this isn’t easy for you.”

  I pushed away the thought of my carrier fighting a war on his own. Well, not exactly alone. Not all of the islanders sided with Corden, but some did. The rotten stinkin’ traitors did.

  “I don’t even know what became of my carrier,” I said aloud before I could swallow the words down.

  “We could find out,” Rhett said. “Decoding the past is my specialty.”

  “Let’s go down to the shore for breakfast,” I took his hand and started walking.

  Before Corden I daydreamed about the life I’d have when my true-mate came. Sometimes I wondered how I’d meet him since I’d never leave the island. I imagined him out there searching for me and stumbling upon Moonscale Island unaware. Maybe he was a trade merchant or even a pirate. Maybe a merman or a famed, but illusive kraken shifter. Nope, life delivered me someone who dug up the past for a living.

  “Why do you dig up gravesites?” I stopped in my tracks.

  “To figure out how people died. Not everyone leaves behind a written history and even if they do it doesn’t always survive. I like piecing together the story of how we as a society got to where we are today.”

&nbs
p; “Thought you two would never come down for breakfast,” Seth emerged from the tree line.

  “I told you to stay out of sight until we came looking for you!” I growled letting my dragon take over. “We are having an important discussion!”

  “Woah!” Seth held out two plates full of bacon and eggs. “Thought you might be hungry. I don’t know how dragons handle it, but pack feeds pack during the true-response period.”

  “Sorry,” I looked down at my feet.

  “Thanks, Seth. We’ll be down in a bit,” Rhett said as his brother handed off the plates.

  “Good. We need to talk about my boat. That damn thing is the bread and butter of my business. It’s my best fishing vessel.”

  “We’ll make her seaworthy again, brother,” Rhett patted the other man on the shoulder.

  “You better. Short of cutting down some trees and rebuilding the bottom I don’t see what choice we have,” the other man grumbled.

  “We could fly to the mainland and you could come back with another boat and tow her home,” Rhett said.

  “I am not carrying a boat back to the mainland!” I growled.

  “I didn’t mean you’d carry the boat anyway. That’s what the chopper is for. The three of us could fly back in the chopper and then take a boat back out here.”

  “I give up. Take me to see this chopper thing.”

  Rhett and Seth smelled as annoyed as I felt as we walked down to the shore. Irritated or not, I didn’t say no to the plate of food Rhett offered me. Eating on the go wasn’t the royal thing to do, but it wasn’t like our maids were around to set the breakfast table.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Rhett

  Gray clouds clung to the shoreline. I landed the chopper high enough that the overnight tides hadn’t touched it. Good thing too, because letting borrowed property wash out to sea wasn’t the way to keep friends.

  “Brendan’s irritated with us,” my wolf pointed out. “He thinks we just want to dig up his island and put the bodies of his family on display.”

  I shook off the comment and turned my attention to Brendan. He’d finished eating and his eyes were glued to the chopper. His plump lips hung open in a bewildered O. I smiled despite myself. Since college, I chased the Sleeping Omega Prince. I followed every lead and lifted every rock determined to find my true-mate. What I hadn’t done was consider what exactly would happen after I found him. Of course, I thought about what would happen with the claiming vows and pups. Like a moron, I didn’t put any thought into how I’d introduce him to the modern age or if he’d want to leave his home at all.