Page 55 of Captured By the Dragon Warlord (Fated Mates of the Sarkarnii Warlords #2)

I f he wanted to destroy everything, I know Dexx could have. But instead, he did not rip off limbs, nor did he dismiss Dante out of hand.

Instead, despite the snarls and growls, he kept his head.

As he kisses me, I draw strength from him as he said to Dante. The Sarkarnii are a force which have survived almost everything the universe can throw at them. They can survive some mad alien professor who thinks he can control them.

In fact, I’m surprised anyone thinks they can control the Sarkarnii or use them for their own ends. I’ve seen both Dexx and Dante in action, and it’s hard to think of any species less predictable or more chaotic than my dragon boys.

Which begs the question…

“Why?” I ask as Dexx lets me up for air and I’m left gasping in the wake of a kiss which has almost pulled my insides out.

It’s certainly made parts of me damper than before.

“Why?” he echoes.

“Why the Sarkarnii? Why make robot clones of you? What does this…professor…want?”

“Drex will tell us, but I’m not going after him until you are safe and the rest of the warlords join me,” Dexx says. “This ends now, with all of us together.”

His arms are around my waist.

“I’m not leaving you,” I say, because it’s what I feel, regardless of how silly it might seem.

“I would never ask you to,” Dexx rumbles, rubbing his chin over the top of my head and releasing a deep, satisfying purr. “And I can only protect you if you are with me, nor will I ever leave you.”

“What about your shift?” I ask.

“I can control it,” he says, his voice quiet. “I have always been able to control my shift, unlike some of my warriors. But it makes me sick. If I get too sick, I need you to ensure you are with me. Once I shift, I will stay shifted for several nova-days.”

“I wouldn’t be anywhere else,” I reply. “And…” I hesitate because I’m still not sure what I’m asking. “If you need to bite me, bite me.”

“My claim on you will only take place once Vorostor is cleared of this threat,” Dexx rasps. “Then I will take what is mine, and be in no doubt, little mate, you are mine.”

The way he growls sends shivers through my body, so inappropriate for the threat we face but I can’t help it. Dexx is, and remains, as sexy as hell.

He inhales over my head, a guttural purr flowing through him and into me. He makes me feel as if I am the only creature in the entire universe.

“Dexx.” The growl which interrupts us is like nothing else I’ve heard. Dark, almost as if it were wrenched from the ground itself.

Dexx doesn’t move, his arms remaining wrapped around me.

“This is your mate?” the other Sarkarnii says.

I get a brief view of him from under Dexx’s arm. He is huge. And given Dexx is massive, that is saying something. His scales glow, and there is something of the grizzled, aged warrior to him but not something which in any way indicates he has lost any of his power over the years.

“Do not look at my mate, Dalox,” Dexx growls, possessive to the last.

So, this is Dalox, the once mighty leader of the warlords.

He still looks pretty mighty and pretty terrifying. Not a creature I’d like to meet on a dark night. Dalox’s eyes burn with a fire which looks like it’s been purchased from hell itself.

“Hmmm,” Dalox rumbles, entirely unconcerned at Dexx’s threat as he inspects me from head to toe. “They’re small, these humans, aren’t they?”

Dexx gives him a death stare.

“Still.” Dalox rubs his chin with a scratching sound. “They can carry a sarkarnling. And I need to breed.”

I absolutely want to warn all my friends instantly about him. In that they need to stay away in all capital letters.

“Before we get to the breeding part.” Darax steps out of the shadows. “We need to deal with the thing which wants to kill us.” He’s carrying a couple of the laser weapons, one of which he throws to Dexx. “Perhaps we can all go back to wearing pants after.” He gives Dexx a long look.

“Pants are overrated,” Dexx growls.

I can’t stop the snort of laughter which bubbles up inside. I guess this is how the Sarkarnii live. Mostly impervious to death or serious injury, the concerns have to be around pants.

And in Dexx’s case, given how much time he has to stay shifted, pants are most definitely overrated.

I sneak my hand into his and give it a squeeze. His singular gaze swings to me.

“I love you,” I say quietly. Because I do. “Pants or no pants.”

For a brief second, my huge, imposing warlord’s face softens. He pulls me against him, capturing my lips with a kiss.

“I hope it is mostly without pants,” he rasps.

“Ah, mouth mating,” Darax says knowledgeably as Dalox looks like his eyes are about to pop out of his head and Dante, who lands next to us, stares unabashedly at what we are doing. “Good, isn’t it?”

“It is a kiss,” Dexx announces. “And it is good,” he growls.

Oddly, neither Dalox nor Dante look impressed. If anything, I think I might see fear on Dante’s face. I probably should warn the others about that too.

“What do we know?” Dalox demands.

“Whatever is setting the explosives, it is also making clones of Sarkarnii, only without any Sarkarnii abilities,” Dexx says. “They can’t shift. I expect they cannot flame either.”

“How do you know?”

“I am a Sarkarnii warlord. I know things,” Dexx says petulantly.

Dalox growls, and Dexx returns the noise. I can’t imagine any of this posturing is going to get us very far.

“Kerra, Darax’s mate, met something she called the professor because it looked like a human but a specific type of human. You all rescued her, and us, from it before anything else could happen. I believe it’s using clones and some sort of mind control to infiltrate Vorostor.”

“To what end?” Dalox rasps.

“With the intention of destroying the Sarkarnii,” Dexx answers in my stead. “An intention we all know will fail.”

All of the warlords visibly stand straighter. Another emerges from the shadows behind Dante.

“We survived the wormhole, we survived the loss of our females,” Dexx growls, “and we are stronger than ever. This creature, this master , whatever it is, will not be our end.”

“Dexx is correct,” Dalox snarls. “Nothing and no one gets the better of the Sarkarnii. And this time we do this together.” He glares around, daring any insurrection.

Dante plucks a grenade from his belt.

“It’s time to end this.” He tosses the grenade to Dexx, who grins at me in turn.

It looks like the Sarkarnii are ready to fight back, and whatever it is which wants them has literally no idea the chaos which is coming.

A chaos which might just save us all.