Page 19 of Hoarded By the Dragon

I hiccup a laugh that turns into a groan.

I’m pregnant with a dragon’s baby.

I bury my face into the silky fabric of her shirt. “I’m going to have to talk to him.”

Stella runs her fingers in my hair. The action relaxes my tight shoulders. Discomfort has my throat swelling.

“I know he was a dick, and he’s a scary dragon, but did he make you feel unsafe?” she asks.

I bite my lips. Despite everything that happened last night and how he’d threatened me in the beginning… my instincts say he won’t harm me. Maybe that makes me stupid, but my instincts have saved me more than once.

Little queen.I shake the memory of the words from my mind.

“No,” I say.

Stella nods. “Then yes, I imagine you’ll need to talk to him eventually. Our world is a small one, and someone is going to notice you giving birth to a dragon. But it doesn’t have to be right now, or even this month. You can take however long you want to take. It might be better when you can prove the pregnancy other than just knowing because you’re a witch.”

I wince. “That would make it easier.”

The one sex education course I’d taken surfaces in my mind, and I frown. “There’s a chance it won’t stay, isn’t there? What with finding out so early. Humans usually have to wait weeks.”

Stella shrugs. “Miscarriages aren’t as likely for witches, but yes, if you want to wait to make sure before dealing with the dick, that makes sense.”

The relief is instant.You and I are a pretty sure thing,I think to the disruption in my middle. Now that I’ve identified the sensation, it’s not as jarring. It’s as if it’s happy that I know it’s there now.

I’m going to have a baby.

I wonder how long I can go without telling Kalos.

6

KATARINA

Not very long.

It’s only been a week. I shiver in front of the imposing mansion door. The summer sun on the back of my jacket should be sweltering, but I hardly notice it.

I didn’t want to contact Kalos through Stella in case this went poorly. So that left showing up to the man’s house.

I don’t want to break in again, but I will if I have to. The security guard at the gate had refused to even call up to the big house, but he’d offered to take a message to deliver later. The type of thing I need to say shouldn’t be put in a message. I shrugged and thanked him for his time. It helps to be polite if he catches me later.

Getting on the grounds had been child’s play. You’d think an immortal would have better security. Maybe he doesn’t need it.

The only thief to make it into his house, he’d caught himself. Then fucked.

Good times.

I ring the bell, and the sound is melodic, pretty. Too pretty for a dragon’s lair, but he must like pretty things because in the light of day, the mansion is gorgeous. It doesn’t look like any one architecture style, but rather a mixture. A column here, an arch there, the organic flourishes of vines in the stonework. As if the designer took the best of each period and somehow baked it into a perfect cake instead of a garish collection.

I bite my lip. I don’t hear anyone coming to the door. I ring the bell again.

If no one answers, I’m going to have to break in. It will be a little more time-consuming since I’m assuming he patched the wards around the pane I’d removed last time. Honestly, I could get through the wards without the weak point, it’s just with how strong they are, it will be more uncomfortable.

I’m not leaving without speaking to Kalos. If it were just telling him about the pregnancy, I’d wait as many months as I could just to avoid how awkward this will be. To avoid the words he’s going to cast my way.

But I need help.

Finally there’s a sound on the other side of the door. The man who opens it is decently sized enough to be another security guard but wears a sleek suit.

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