The Dragon Lord's Omega

by E. J. Waugh

  “Soreness is to be expected, but it should never be painful for you. Riding the edge of pain can be pleasant, sometimes, but if I ever hurt you, I’d like you to stop me straight away.”

  “You didn’t hurt me. I was on the edge of pain, like you said, but it was good. I’m not sure how thrilled I’d be about it if I wasn’t in heat, though.”

  “Heats are a special case. But if you’d like to explore the possibilities outside of them, I am at your disposal.”

  Elston frowned. “You mean… when I’m not in heat?”

  “Yes,” Jaren said slowly. He could see that they’d run into a miscommunication, but he couldn’t see what had caused it.

  “But that’s pointless.”

  Jaren suddenly understood. Whether or not it was fashionable to have sex outside of heats changed from age to age, and he’d failed to find out what was commonly done at the moment.

  “You are not in any way obliged to do anything, but while it may be pointless in terms of practical purposes, you might find you enjoy it.” Jaren paused. “You did enjoy it?”

  Elston blushed darkly. “Yes. I thought… I thought with an alpha, I wouldn’t. I enjoy it by myself, but…”

  “I understand.” Jaren cleared his throat. “I’ll ask you to consider the possibility, and nothing more. There are many things I haven’t had the chance to show you yet, but it’s your decision, and there’s no rush. Let me know when you’re ready. If you’re ever ready.”

  Still blushing, Elston nodded. Jaren knew it was only a matter of time before curiosity got the better of him. Elston’s thirst for new experiences would transfer into this as well; his enthusiasm earlier had proved that.

  For now, though, Jaren was content to bask in his presence.

  Chapter Eleven

  Elston paused outside the door to Jaren’s rooms. He’d never been invited here before, though he suspected that was because Jaren had been afraid of showing too much of his heart.

  Elston was glad that had changed. His own feelings for Jaren had grown so much that he barely knew what to do with them. Now, he thought this was the undefinable thing he’d been waiting for, the thing that had made him so resistant to settling down

  People laughed at the idea that everyone had a true mate out there, somewhere. Elston had, too, but now he wasn’t so sure. Jaren was everything he’d dreamed of in a mate, and that seemed too good to be a coincidence.

  Taking a deep breath, he reached out and knocked softly on the dark wood of the door that cut Jaren’s space off from the rest of the living quarters. It felt as though he was about to cross a line, both physical and metaphorical. He’d never stepped over this threshold before—he’d only ever passed the door, and once met Jaren on his way out of it—and now he’d been invited in.

  “Come in,” Jaren called from inside the room. Elston pushed on the heavy door and found it swung open easily, as close to silent as something that size could be. He stepped into the room and closed the door behind him.

  Jaren’s quarters were not unlike his own. Larger, but then, they were for permanent living, and they did look lived in. His scent permeated the room so thoroughly that Elston would have known who lived here by that alone.

  The man himself was seated by the window, looking out over the snow-covered grounds beyond. They weren’t well kept, which Elston always thought was a pity, but not his place to say anything about.

  “I’m sorry for bringing you here like this, but this conversation requires the utmost secrecy.” Jaren indicated the chair opposite him, which also faced the window. “And I apologize for the way I have to approach this.”

  Panic set in straight away in the pit of Elston’s stomach. Had he done something wrong? Was there a disaster looming ahead? Jaren was a serious, quiet man most of the time, but the quiet seriousness of his current manner outstripped anything Elston had seen of him before.

  He sat on the edge of the other chair, and waited.

  “You should know that my feelings for you are very deeply felt, and that will not change. Whatever the future may hold.” Jaren paused. “You should also know that there is nothing I wouldn’t give you if it was in my power.”

  “I understand,” Elston said, though he didn’t even begin to understand.

  “Then believe me when I say that no decision you could make will make me think less of you.” Jaren cleared his throat. “But you should know that you are pregnant.”

  Elston’s mouth fell open. He knew he’d heard Jaren correctly, but he couldn’t process the information. Jaren only looked human, and Elston had seen for himself what he really was. The knowledge hadn’t disturbed him, but he’d assumed that meant they were incompatible as far as pregnancy was concerned.

  Jaren had no reason to lie to him, though. Alphas could smell a pregnancy on a familiar omega as plainly as Elston could see his hand in front of his face. He was unlikely to be wrong about this.

  “This is not a state you have to remain in,” Jaren continued. “And I would not for a moment blame you, but I would also insist you never let the household know. I fear they might not accept that you should have such a choice. They are good people, but not worldly. You are smart enough to understand why I should offer it to you.”

  Head spinning, Elston took a moment to understand what Jaren was saying. “I… do I have to decide now?”

  “No, of course not. But within a few weeks would be best, and again, you should keep it quiet. Once people know, they know. I’d like to make it clear that I will still want you in my home, and my life, no matter what decision you make.”

  As an omega, Elston had always expected to be pregnant one day. It was part of life, and something he’d never thought too much about—just accepted would happen, eventually. On the other hand, there was a lot about his relationship with Jaren that had been unexpected, and this definitely fell into that category.

  “Do you want a baby?” Elston asked. If Jaren didn’t want a child, he’d have to consider that. There was no point in forcing fatherhood on him if he didn’t want it, and he’d managed to avoid it for a long time, as far as Elston knew.

  “I don’t think I should render an opinion. This is your decision.”

  “No. This is our decision. I appreciate that you want to give me the final word, but I’d like your input. I trust you.”

  Jaren cleared his throat. “I imagined that my preference for humans would remove the possibility of having one. It’s not unheard of, but it is rare, and I am not a lucky man.” He smiled a tiny, cautious smile. “Except in having met you.”

  Elston swallowed. His hand went to his stomach, though there was no change there at all. There wouldn’t be for a long time, but there was the seed of something. Something that could be great. Even if he was terrified right now.

  “So yes. You do want children.” Jaren’s response had been careful, but not careful enough to hide his true feelings. He considered this luck.

  That was enough for Elston. He cared deeply about Jaren, and wanted to make him even a fraction as happy as he’d made Elston feel safe. Besides being a way to repay him, pregnancies were good for omegas. They reduced the frequency and severity of future heats, which Elston liked the idea of.

  “Yes.” Jaren nodded. “But not enough to put you through a pregnancy you don’t want to go through.”

  “I do, though. For both of us. I know it’s sudden and I know we’re not really at that stage yet and I’m not expecting you to take me as a mate, but I’d like to do this. It can’t be that hard if almost every omega does it.”

  Jaren laughed at that. “Omegas have no idea how tough they are. Which is just as well for alphas, or they’d be leading us around on leashes.”

  The way Jaren’s whole posture and manner had changed told Elston he’d done the right thing. He didn’t want to have to mourn the possibility of a child, or worry that he’d made the wrong decision for the rest of his life. Any child of Jaren’s would be well provided for, and that was all he could ask for his bab
y.

  “Can we keep it a secret anyway? Just for a little while,” Elston asked.

  “Of course. I will take your lead on when and how to tell the rest of the household.”

  Elston smiled to himself at the thought of Alina’s reaction to the news, and made a mental promise that she’d be the first outside of this room to know.

  “Thank you.” Elston turned to look out at the grounds, imagining chasing a child around them with Jaren watching on. It wasn’t the adventure he thought he’d find when he left home, but it was going to be an adventure nevertheless.

  Chapter Twelve

  Even days after Elston’s decision, which he hadn’t had the heart to contest, Jaren could think of little other than the approaching possibility of having a child. He didn’t want to get his hopes up—there was every possibility that Elston’s body would reject a half-dragon child long before it was born—but it was impossible not to dwell on.

  The more he imagined himself, Elston and a baby together and happy, the harder it was to let go of. Jaren had never expected to be in this position, and he wasn’t sure how he was going to survive an entire pregnancy waiting.

  As if summoned by Jaren’s thoughts, Elston appeared to the side of his chair, though Jaren hadn’t heard him approach. They said pregnant omegas gained the ability to read minds and predict the future, though Jaren was hesitant to believe it. Rather, he suspected they simply gained a heightened sense of awareness, nature’s effort to protect their babies.

  “I was just thinking about you.” Jaren smiled up at him.

  “I was thinking about you, too.” Elston wet his lips, and then, without further warning, moved to sit in Jaren’s lap, facing him, with his knees either side of Jaren’s hips. Jaren was surprised, but not about to object.

  “I was specifically thinking about what you said about, umm…” Elston cleared his throat. “Exploring outside of heats?”

  Jaren chuckled. He’d known this would happen eventually, though it had been faster than expected—perhaps due to Elston’s pregnancy. In any case, between the way Elston smelled now and his charmingly forward methods, Jaren wasn’t in a mood to refuse him.

  “And what did you think about exploring?”

  “I like your hands,” Elston said, a blush creeping down his neck.

  “Do you?” Jaren purred, moving one hand between Elston’s legs, ghosting his fingers over the fabric at his crotch. “Interesting. What do you like about them?”

  “I like it when you touch me.” Elston swallowed. “I’d like more of it.”

  “And how would you like it?” Jaren asked, increasing the pressure of his fingers by degrees, rubbing the outline of Elston’s cock under the lacing of his breeches. Elston sighed breathily, his hips rocking against Jaren’s hand.

  “I thought this was pointless,” Jaren said, failing to keep his knowing smile to himself.

  “I’ve changed my mind. The way other omegas talk… I thought it was ideal that an alpha would lose interest in me when I wasn’t in heat.”

  “I will never lose interest in you. Everything about you is interesting to me.”

  To Jaren’s surprise, Elston darted forward and kissed him. It was awkward and inexperienced, as expected, but still left Jaren’s heart thudding in his chest. They hadn’t done this before, which made it seem more significant than it would have otherwise.

  Despite everything that had already gone between them, Jaren felt as though Elston was choosing him, specifically, for the first time.

  The thought left him speechless and helpless for long moments after Elston backed off. He swallowed several times, afraid that the next words out of his mouth would be I love you if he didn’t give himself time to collect his thoughts.

  Part of him wanted desperately to give Elston his love, but worried that Elston, being a kind, good soul, would take that as cause to stay with him. If Elston stayed, Jaren wanted it to be out of his own love, not out of a feeling of obligation.

  Yet, the longer he refused to say anything, the harder it would be for Elston to love him back.

  Before he was aware he’d made a decision, he opened his mouth to speak. “I love you,” he murmured, voice catching on every other syllable.

  In all of his thousand years, he’d never been so afraid. If Elston rejected him now, he would turn to stone where he sat.

  “I know,” Elston nodded. “And I never thought anyone would. And I… I love you, too. And I’m so afraid that at any moment I’ll do something you hate and lose you forever and I don’t think I could live with that.”

  “You will never lose me.” Jaren reached up to cup Elston’s cheek. “Dragons love with their whole being. I will love you as much as I do now until one of us dies.”

  “I want you to be my mate,” Elston said. “But I know it’s too much to ask.”

  Jaren’s head spun so fast that he thought for a moment he was going to pass out. Elston wanted to be his mate. He’d waited his entire life for this moment.

  “I said, when you asked about love, that I would give up everything I have for a few precious years with a mate. I would give it up twice for that mate to be you.”

  Elston burst into tears, wrapping his arms tightly around Jaren with a strength he wouldn’t have credited to the younger man before now. It felt as though he was already starting the fight against the rest of the world, and all the ways it might pry them apart.

  Jaren put both hands on his back, holding him much more gently, and leaned in to whisper in his ear. “I promise to protect you until my dying breath, Elston. I would be honored to be your mate.”

  Elston eased his grip slowly, sitting back after a moment to wipe his eyes. “How do we…?”

  “Dragon mating isn't so different to human mating.”

  “So a wedding?” Elston wrinkled his nose.

  “No, but your distaste for the idea is noted. The magic of mating happens on the wedding night. Not in the sex. In the acceptance of the bond.”

  “The sex is fun, though.”

  Jaren laughed. “And it does make it easier. More immediate.”

  “So we can mate right here?” Elston asked, clearly enthused by the idea.

  “If that's what you want. I thought you might prefer a bed. To be treated with the reverence you deserve.”

  “That sounds nice, but I need your knot in me now.” Elston shifted closer to Jaren's body. “And I don’t want to wait. We can be gentle later.”

  “You are full of surprises.” Jaren reached out to trace the shell of Elston’s ear. Without missing a beat, Elston reached down to unlace his breeches, shoving them down his thighs. He made a frustrated sound when he realized the flaw in his plan and scrambled off Jaren’s lap to get rid of them.

  “I want to see your cock,” Elston said, blushing high on his cheeks. “I know it’s different. I could feel that. But I didn’t get to see it.”

  “Then we must satisfy your curiosity.” Jaren stood and, with some fumbling, opened his own breeches, pushing them down to put himself on display.

  Elston wet his lips, staring directly at Jaren’s crotch. “May I touch?”

  Jaren laughed. “Please consider that you have total access to my body.”

  After a moment’s hesitation, Elston stepped forward, then fell to his knees, much to Jaren’s surprise. When his exploring fingers made contact, Jaren’s knees went weak. He watched as Elston traced each of the ridges of his cock intently, biting his lip as he reached the more sensitive parts, closer to the base.

  “I haven’t really seen a human alpha up close, but I know this is unusual. Nobody ever mentioned ridges.”

  “Well, I am a dragon,” Jaren said. “I really only look human on the surface.”

  Elston nodded. “I noticed your eyes, too. You have two sets of eyelids, like a cat. And you’re not always warm, either.”

  “I will be much warmer in the summer.” Jaren smiled, flattered that Elston had taken so much interest in him. “Dragons generations before mine hiber
nated over the winter, but it’s too great a risk to sleep unguarded for us now. You might have noticed I’m not the most popular man.”

  “You are with me.” Elston looked up at him, and then turned to crawl to the plush rug in front of the fire, lying on his back and spreading himself out once he reached it. Jaren wet his lips, and then approached.

  The scent of Elston’s arousal hit him as he knelt between the other man’s legs. He reached out to coat his fingers in the wetness he knew he’d find there, and then pressed them gently inside his body, as he had done before. Elston’s back arched, a low moan breaking free of his throat.

  Unable to resist any longer, Jaren put his other hand on Elston’s belly. There was nothing to feel there, yet, only the tiniest spark of life, but it brought him more joy than he could remember feeling before now. He couldn’t even begin to express how much it meant to him that Elston would want to stay, carry his child, and become his mate.

  “Are you sure about this?” Jaren asked. “Truly sure?”

  Tears sprung up in Elston’s eyes as he nodded. Clearly, Jaren wasn’t alone in having difficulty with expression. “This is the big adventure I wanted,” he said.

  “Oh, we’ll still go on adventures.” Jaren smiled down on him. “You will live the fullest, most satisfying life a human ever has.”

  Elston laughed, letting a few tears fall. “I believe that.”

  Jaren shifted to cover Elston's body with his own, lifting one of Elston’s knees to allow himself access. The slow slide into his warmth felt as good this time as it had the first, though this time he didn't have to worry about having his heart broken later.

  Elston was about to be his, forever, and he Elston's.

  Though Elston had said he wasn't worried about being treated gently, Jaren was in no hurry. This was about more than sex.

  “You don't need to say anything,” Jaren explained. “Just open your heart to me. If this is meant to happen, it will.”