Page 62 of The Dragon's Gambit

“I’d feel pretty damn pissed,” Xander growled as he marched toward them. Weston was beginning to ask questions, since Reiya had been gone for so long. He had to leave and be the concerned mate, even though he knew that Levi had probably captured the delicate fairy. Still, his timing was perfect, since he caught Clovis being an ass toward her. It would be uncalled for if Levi intervened. Why would he care about these trivial matters? He could see from the dark glint in Levi’s eye that he was going to snap any second, probably killing Clovis in the process.

“My lord, I meant no disrespect. It’s just we can’t afford to have her offend our deity.” Clovis bowed his head as Xander approached. His eyes flickered with resentment as Xander pulled Reiya into his side.

“I’ll deal with the deity. It isn’t your business. You will respect my mate, or there is going to be a real problem, one that you will regret. I promise you. And what are you doing down this hall? This is my wing. GET OUT!” Xander bellowed the last two words. Clovis flinched and slunk away in haste. On second thought, Xander should have made him answer the question, but he was too furious with him right now. He was a problem,and he knew that eventually he would have to deal with him. He turned and looked at Reiya.

“Ditching out on the meet and greet?” Xander smirked at her knowingly. “Sorry, but you are the number one person that everyone wants to meet. That’s the problem when you’re with such a popular guy.”

“Well, it isn’t so much that you’re popular, but they have to accept you as the king, so ... I mean, you can call it whatever you like, if it makes you feel better,” Reiya teased him playfully.

Xander tugged her along. “You guys are welcome to come too, if you want. Or you are welcome to go back up to our little pad. Your choice.”

“As long as you’re keeping an eye on her, then I think I’m going to go ahead and go back. Might as well get a nap in before dinner,” Brody said in an uninterested tone.

“I don’t really need a nap before dinner, but hanging around a bunch of dragons isn’t really my thing,” Chelsie said with a quiet, almost guilty tone.

Yeah, I bet he’s going to take a nap. Right after he has dessert before dinner.Reiya nodded her head for them to go ahead. Xander tugged her along with him, and she glanced back for a moment. She saw that Brody and Chelsie were no longer there, and she started laughing. She heard Lee begin to chuckle as well.

“Wait? What’s so funny? What am I missing?” Xander stopped and looked back at Lee.

Reiya reached her hand up and rubbed it over her face. “I need a drink. Something strong.”

“I don’t think so. I don’t want your judgement impaired around these animals,” Lee said in a fatherly tone.

“But ...” Reiya pouted as she gestured in the direction that Chelsie and Brody went.

“Something light. If you still need something heavier later, you can have it back in our place.” Lee grinned, seeing the uncomfortable expression on her face.

“Okay, what? Tell me?” Xander begged, both refusing to answer.

“It’s nothing, Xander. Come on. Introduce me to your kinfolk,” Reiya sighed, changing the subject. She felt a bit sad, though. Maybe it was embarrassing for Brody and Chelsie, or they didn’t know what to call it yet, but she thought for sure that they would tell her. One was her guardian and brother, and the other her best friend. Maybe they just needed some time to talk about it. They might not even know what was going on between them yet. For now, she would give them a reprieve.

Chapter 43 Princessssss

Reiya could feel the mood with the other dragons shift around her. With Mason and Weston now approving of her, the others were quickly following suit. Weston, though, was openly flirting with her. He seemed to be enjoying getting a riseout of Xander, going just far enough to provoke a small snarl before backing off. From what she could gather, Xander, Mason, and Weston used to play together as children. The King of the Northern Kingdom, Dex, was also close in age with them. They were all born around the same time, but they all lived very different lives despite being the leaders or future leaders of their kingdoms.

Xander had been alone most of his life. Only high-level dragons could come near him because of his strong aura, and even then, he was the crown prince, so he was avoided. He was basically raised by Lee and Grandpa Sage. When the kingdoms gathered, he was able to have short moments of being a kid with the other princes. Everything changed after Mason was cursed, though. They were also older by then, too, taking on different responsibilities and becoming very busy with their own kingdoms.

Here, in this moment, though, Reiya could feel it ... the bond they shared. It was something they’d carried with them.

“How’s my angel doing?” Mason smiled as he brushed Reiya’s shoulder with his own.

“Touch your own mate,” Xander growled, pulling Reiya closer into his side.

“Hey, she can’t be your angel. You have my sister,” Weston snorted.

Ruby slid into Mason’s side and smiled. “Reiya is our angel. She is someone we decided is going to always be important to us. She saved us both.”

Reiya shook her hand back and forth in front of her. “Really, this isn’t necessary. Let’s just be normal friends. Please don’t treat me like a savior or something, because I’m not.”

“She’s so modest, too. It’s adorable. Mason, I want her. Can’t we take her back with us?” Ruby tugged onto Mason’s hand like a child pleading to get her way.

“She’s not a pet, Ruby.” Weston shook his head. “Besides, I call dibs on her next.” He winked at Reiya, and once again Xander let out a low snarl.

“You’re really testing my patience, Weston.” Xander leaned down and gently inhaled near Reiya’s head, taking in slight whiffs of her scent.

“Aww, look. He’s using his mate’s scent to calm himself. That’s adorable,” Ruby gushed.

Ruby was not at all what Reiya had pictured as a dragon. She did not have that arrogant air about her. She was sweet and gentle, someone she admired and liked instantly. She was genuine. What she said about Xander had her thinking, though. Was Xander just playing his part well? To even think to feign calming his fake anger with her scent was playing his role to perfection.