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“I do. Always.” She returned the sword to the box, then kissed him on the jaw. Her stomach growled loudly. “The babe has spoken. Now can you feed me? Your child is about to start a mutiny inside of me.”

“Yes. Then I believe you owe me one.” He winked at her as he got up and set the box on the table.

She rose from her seat. “Owe you one for what—”

He arched a brow at her before he headed to the closet to get Kai a robe and himself pants.

“Oh.” She bit the side of her lip. “Maybe while we eat, I can think of a creative way to repay you.”

Pants on and robe in hand, he approached his smiling mate. “I look forward to whatever comes to your brilliant, naughty mind.”

~YH~

“Fuck!” Liekki stomped up the stairs and into the Mckenna’s office and still pissed off to the point of wanting to kick something or hit someone.

He could hear Aodh’s assistant working in his office and on the radio with one of the various Thunder leaders.

Liekki knew he should have at least walked into Yeongi’s office and said something, gave the guy a wave, a signal, he was here and ready to get the day started, but Liekki wasn’t feeling fucking cordial right now.

So, he had walked past the smaller office.

Sitting behind the glass and steel expanse of his brother’s desk with more than a few reports from the day before stacked there waiting for Liekki to review in Aodh’s absence, Liekki groaned.

He didn’t mind covering for his brother, particularly with Aodh deciding to give Kai the human wedding of her heart and allowing them some time to connect was all well and good.

However, there was paperwork that came with the job or providing the office hours to hear the petty squabbles of the Thunder.

Liekki growled. Not today.

Shit. Yes, normally, he hated those two things. It was the managerial and peacemaker part of the Mckenna position, Liekki could live without ever having to do in his life. But it was before him today, and he should have found it to be a relief.

A distraction not to deal with the infuriating female at his home, in his spaces.

Avalore .

She was short and bossy.

More like short, stacked, and bossy.

Fuck. Fuck. Liekki blindly snatched one of the reports and began reading through it. Telling himself there wasn’t any reason to notice the curve of her body. Nothing was going to happen.

Then his mind flashed to what had happened. Her on the table before him and how well she had fit in his hands, against his cock.

His cock throbbed in agreement.

Liekki blinked and stared at the words on the paper before returning to the top again because he had missed every word of what he was supposed to be reading.

It would make his day more insufferable and longer if he had to read each report twice before approving it or have Yeongi call the leader responsible if he had questions about it.

However, as soon as he began scrolling through it, his stomach growled and he recalled why he was still hungry. Like fucking clockwork even on the mornings after he ended night patrol, he’d go to the hall and devour at least three full plates to satisfy his and his dragon’s hunger.

Drahks enjoyed eating and had big appetites.

Well, a big appetite in all things.

This was the only reason he could think he’d gone after Avalore after getting rid of the blacksmith. He could have quickly ignored her and walked away, then gone to Aodh’s head table and eaten.

But, his hunger for substance had been quickly replaced with an all-consuming starvation for her.

He shook his head and started reading the damn report a third time.

“What was she doing there?” The words tumbled out of his mouth without him being able to stop the thought.

He’d address that with Chumana, a Drahk female he should be trying to fuck where there would be no attachments instead of his sexy, no-nonsense houseguest. And the kind Drahk who worked in the kitchen had recently landed on his radar and he’d pondered the right moment to approach her.

Grr . No . His dragon growled.

“That was fucking before. Hold your damn tail and shut it,” Liekki grumbled back. He was very clear about where his beast’s territorial ass stood when it came to the hazel-eyed, sienna-painted beauty.

Chumana was kind and helpful, so he figured she would be the least threatening Drahk he could send to assist Avalore. However, he’d specifically asked the Drahkelle to take his guest a tray and clothes.

Because if Liekki had to go home and see Avalore dressed in his shirt or a sheet again, he’d fucking lose his mind or find his cock buried inside of her.

“Not going to happen.” He huffed a heavy breath, and a cloud of white smoke puffed out of his mouth, letting him know that his dragon was still fully invested in his mental conversation and steaming mad at him.

Liekki planned to keep ignoring the beast. He stared at the report a fourth time.

Why hadn’t Chumana done what he’d asked? If she had, he’d have eaten and had a bit of peace before the tortuous, mundane reports were before him. As the acting Mckenna in Aodh’s stead, Liekki would have to call the Drahkelle to task for ignoring his direct orders.

Well, not directly, he’d made a request to a Thunder mate, one that she could have turned down. However, he’d seen the canary hue of her scale markings and the matching flames in the cook’s irises, evidence how curious she was to discover what woman Liekki had holed up in his place.

Liekki slammed his hand on the paper, flexed his fingers, ready to crumble the sheet and toss it away.

Shit. He caught himself before he destroyed the report, had to eat a vulture-sized bird, and ask Yeongi to create another report. And admit he didn’t know which report it was.

Pressing out the paper, Liekki looked at the heading: LIVESTOCK.

It was from Admani.

Well, at least, he’d only have to choke down one allegorical scavenger bird before the assistant.

He needed to ask Yeongi to radio the kitchen and have them bring over a platter. A Drahk couldn’t be expected to concentrate on boring facts on an empty stomach.

Knock. Knock.

The rapping on the sturdy doorjamb grabbed his attention.

Liekki glanced toward the entrance to find the assistant standing there. Yeongi was holding up the radio.

Liekki wasn’t sure if he should be grateful to have the distraction from the paperwork, or bemoan the fact that most likely Yeongi’s presence with the damn radio in hand meant the Thunder whining had started early and he needed to moderate a situation.

“Yeah?”

“Morning, Liekki.” Yeongi moved deeper into the office, holding the phone before him. “Sorry to disturb you, but I have the Fae Queen who needs to speak with the Mckenna. I let her know you were in place for him today.”

Liekki didn’t reach for the Sat radio, but kept his gaze on Yeongi. “She couldn’t tell you what she wanted?”

He figured the preternatural council magistrate wanted to confirm that Aodh and he would be at the meeting tomorrow afternoon. Liekki didn’t figure that warranted discussion with the Mckenna.

“No. She stated it was urgent.” Yeongi shoved the radio further across the desk.

Aodh was better at the diplomatic part of the Mckenna job because he was eloquent enough to speak in sentences longer than a few words.

Grabbing the radio, he compressed the button. “Iskah.”

He figured there was no need for the usual radio jargon. When he stopped talking, she’d either catch on that he was over or she wouldn’t. No sweat off his scale markings either way.

“Liekki. I’ll make this short...”

If she could make it short, she could have told Yeongi, but Liekki’s mother had at least raised him with a civil enough tongue not to be disrespectful.

He waited for her to finish.

“Chanin notified me that he had serious information to provide the council. Something possibly we’d need to act on soon. So, I am moving the meeting to dawn. I need all leaders and seconds in place by then.”

Liekki frowned. What could be so damn urgent? However, he allowed her to continue.

“Also, Marceline, Amaros’s Vice, stated an hour ago that they’d recently been made aware of potentially dangerous information to all the territories. I’m radioing Dov next. I’ll see you and Aodh at the meeting ground at dawn. Over.”

“Got it.” Liekki released the button and handed the phone back to Yeongi.

“Out.” Iskah’s closing came through the speaker.

Liekki ignored it. His mind was like a deck of cards, full of everything he needed to discuss with his brother. He already planned to share much of it when Aodh took the Mckenna reins back this evening, but now...

Yeongi lowered the radio and took a step back from the desk. Even the most mild-mannered Drahks needed their space. “What do you think is happening. Why the urgency?”

“I don’t know.” Liekki rose. “But it can’t be good for the Fae Queen to move the meeting from noon to dawn.”

“Should I go and notify the Mckenna?”

“No. I’ll handle it.” Liekki rounded the desk. If anyone were going to interrupt his brother and his mate’s honeymoon time, it would be him.

Besides, Liekki knew it was past the time for him to inform Aodh of the secret he’d been keeping from the Mckenna.

Aodh would be pissed.

But, Liekki would deal with it.

“Hold all the reports and meetings for now. One of us will radio the plan for the rest of the day.” Liekki headed toward the sliding glass door.

“I’ll take care of it.”

Liekki had just grabbed the door handle when Yeongi hustled up beside him.

“One more thing.”

He glanced at the Mckenna’s assistant and arched a brow.

He wanted to fly. Even for the short distance to the Mckenna residence, because having the wind under his dragon’s large wings would give him a moment of peace before the shit-storm that was before him when he had to not only interrupt his brother in his fucking-marathon with his bride-mate, but after, when his brother exploded over the unauthorized human in the territory.

“Will you inform the Mckenna that I’ve claimed Calida, and we are expecting.”