“Are you threatening me, Abyle?” Atlas asked, his bear making his voice deeper.
“Atlas, you need to calm down. Your brothers are only doing what any male, who just found their mate yet lost her in the same breath would do.” Joni tried to soothe Atlas.
“I’m aware, love, but I don’t like their tone,” Atlas growled.
Joni snorted. “Look who’s talking about tone, bossy bear. Come on, I think we all need to take a break and just breathe. A lot has happened in a very short time. Now, to answer your question from earlier”—Joni paused, inhaling deeply before continuing—"Lula is a dragon, boys. Not like a dragon in a jokey jokey way, but an actual, fire breathing dragon. I mean, she’s a huge, pink scaled, fire-breathing one from the Fey realm. Does that clarify what she is?”
Abyle knew his mouth was hanging open but wasn’t sure he’d heard Joni correctly. He pulled up an image of Lula and her gorgeous pink hair and her wonderful cotton candy scent, and felt his body harden. “A dragon?” he whispered.
“How big are we talking?” Atika asked, his ass falling onto the first surface he found behind him. Luckily for him, it was the couch.
Joni bit her lip, gaze darting between Abyle and Atika. “I don’t really know, but bigger than a five-story building I think.”
“Fuck,” Abyle swore.
“She could be bigger, or smaller.” Joni held up her hands.
“Not helping, Joni.” Atlas wrapped his arms around Joni, his bear clearly ready to defend his mate.
“I think we need to go,” Abyle muttered, eyeing his twin. His brows were drawn in a frown, the same confusion on his face mirroring back at him.
“Yeah, let’s go home. It’s not as if she’s left us anything else to do anyhow. I mean, how the fuck do two bears mate with a five-story dragon, who left without even a see you around, to goddess knows where?” Atika snarled, getting to his feet. He walked out the door, a loud roar shaking the timber moments later.
Abyle followed, his bear roaring out his own frustration, claws bursting from his fingertips, the iron tips reflecting the moon above. He marked the trees with the huge claws, raking down the trunks as he raced after his twin, their dual markings letting any other predators know not to come any farther, their claim on the land one they wouldn’t relinquish, not even to the brother who was now the alpha.
Chapter Two
JENNA RAN HER HAND down her face, sighing out a deep breath. Dang it all, how did things go from hunky dory, to shitnshynoma in a moments time? She watched her best friend Lula pace back and forth, thinking how confused the young dragon must be, her mind whirling at the implications of her mating. Belle was going to have a hissy fit of dragon proportions, yet she would also be happy...surely.
“I need to go somewhere. Please don’t tell anyone I was here. Promise?” Lula blinked back at her.
She took a deep breath wondering how she could agree to such a thing without actually having to follow through with it. “I promise I won’t tell a soul.”
“Thank you. I knew I could count on you. I’ll figure this out, or confine myself to a convent or something,” she muttered.
Before Jenna could pull Lula in for a bone-cracking hug, Lula disappeared. “Well, fuck a duck. How do I work around that promise?” She bit her lip. Concentrating on where Belle was in the Fey Realm. She brushed off her ass even though there wasn’t anything on it, another reminder she wasn’t on Earth, then flashed to the kitchen where her oldest friend was. Goddess be damned she was totally screwed, because she was going to break a promise, or find a work-around.
The sight that met her eyes comforted her, reminding her that things do go on. A reminder even the damaged can be repaired and thrive, becoming more than they’d ever thought possible.
“Jennaveve, what brings you here?” Belle asked, standing at the stove stirring a pot. The aroma made Jenna’s stomach growl, like it always did whenever Belle was cooking. The dragon female sure knew how to make the most delicious things.
She smiled, loving the ease with which her little family appeared to be getting along. “I came to see how all of you were doing. Hi, Egypt, how are you?” Jenna smoothed her palm over the young human girl’s head. She’d been brought to the Fey Realm to heal with her mother, after she’d been abused. She studied her mother ,Asia, seeing a healthy happy human mama, smiling back at her. Both females were healing and getting stronger every day.
“She’s doing much better, aren’t you, sweetie?” Asia asked from the table where she was chopping up vegetables for a salad. Egypt nodded. Her mouth full of food as she smiled, showing the impish child she truly was.
The entire scene was so natural, almost like a normal home on Earth would appear. Jenna’s eyes burned as tears threatened, but she blinked them away. “Belle, can I have a moment?”
Belle tapped the spoon along the edge of the huge bowl before turning toward Jenna, her large eyes knowing stared back toward Jenna, as if she already knew what she had to tell her. “Absolutely. Asia, can you keep an eye on the stew for me?”
Asia got up from the table, smoothing her long skirt down. Her healthy glow making Jenna’s heart turn over. Both mother and child were doing amazing thanks in large part to Belle and Lula. She sent a mental image of them to Jozlyn, letting her know they were healing. The little mate to Turo, her wolfie friend of the Iron Wolves, was always wanting an update on the two females. One day Jenna hoped Asia and Egypt would be ready to return to Earth. Until then, they could stay within the space on Fey she’d given them, with Belle watching over her charges.
Outside, the beautiful suns stood overhead like dual sentinels daring anyone to try to dim their shine. She knew when Belle came out to join her, the dragon’s scent, very similar to Lula’s hitting her like a familiar elixir. “It’s so beautiful here.” Jenna took a deep breath, opening her arms wide and letting the warmth infuse her.
“Yes, it is,” Belle agreed.
“Nothing on Earth can compare to here, but it too, is beautiful, in a different way.” Jenna peered over her shoulder toward Belle.
“I don’t think you came here to talk about the weather, Jennaveve.” Belle moved in front, her taller frame blocking Jenna’s view.
Jenna lifted one brow. “You always were one to cut to the chase. So, have you talked to Lula?”
Belle sighed, turning away from Jenna. “Jenna, you’re the Fey Queen even if you’re mated and spend most of your time on Earth now. Why do you not come here more often and return to Earth without missing any time? You know you can manipulate time down there, so why don’t you do that so you can be here and there often?”
She shook her head. It made sense, but at the same time, she worried it would mess up how things flowed if she did it too often. Instead she kept her visits short and few. “I’ve already told you my reasonings. Now, back to my question?”
Belle’s eyes narrowed. “Do you know how much I can’t stand it when you ask me questions, like you’re leading me to where you want me to go, instead of just saying what you need to say? I’m assuming you’ve made a promise you intend to keep, but you’re hoping I figure out what it is you promised not to say. Is that right?”