Page 21 of Marked By His Alpha Dragon's Desire

“People love you. I can see why.”

The scarlet on his cheeks darkened.

Tyler came in and sat down at our table briefly. “Welcome to the pack, Luca. Theo is going to be ecstatic. He’s been petitioning me for weeks to be able to tell you about us. I was just about to break down and break all our rules. Now I don’t have to.”

“Only mates can know, huh?” Luca asked.

Tyler nodded. “Or under special circumstances, family members of mates. But yes, we don’t just tell any human. Even if they areas cute as you.” Tyler winked at him, and my dragon roared to the surface.

Luca’s eyes widened. “Down, boy. He was just teasing.”

I stilled. “You could feel that?”

Luca nodded. “Yeah. Little jealous, were you?”

It was my turn to blush.

Luca slid closer to me, and I wrapped my arm around his shoulder. He turned back to Tyler. “Well, your secret is safe with me. Thank you for always welcoming me, even though it seems I was quite the liability to have around.”

Tyler smiled. “It was our pleasure. And see? It all worked out.” He slid out of the booth and clapped Luca on the back. “Now the two of you are stuck here. You’re never leaving your pack now.”

“Thank you,” I said.

“This feels crazy,” Luca murmured after Tyler left. “A person shouldn’t be this happy this soon, right?”

“It’s okay,” I reassured him, squeezing his hand again. “It’s more than okay.”

“I think I’m ready to hear more about what this mate thing means,” he said.

“It means exactly what you would expect. You are my mate. My partner. The person who is perfect for me in all ways. The same way that I am perfect for you. Now that my dragon knows you and your scent, I will never care for another. I will never look at another the way that I look at you. You are it for me.”

“Wow. That’s intense.”

“It is. All shifters, not just dragons, search for their mates. Well, most of them anyway. I suppose some don’t wish to be tied down.”

“But you do?”

“I do. I’ve always wanted to find my mate, and I’m so very glad I found you.”

Luca sighed and leaned into me. The warmth of his body radiated against my skin. “I am too, dragon. I didn’t even know I was searching for you, but I feel complete now that I have you. Which is why I’m never letting you go. You’re moving in. Today.”

“You won’t hear an argument from me,” I said.

Chapter 12

Luca

Raphael and I made our way across the street to the large park where everyone in town had gathered. The park was on the opposite side of town than the fire station, but since it was such a small town, it was still only a short walk from our house. I carried a container of pasta salad I had put together for the occasion. Apparently, pack gatherings were potluck style, and we needed to bring a dish. Raphael carried our cooler full of drinks—a six-pack of beer for him and sparkling water for me.

“Luca, there you are!”

Theo raced toward me and wrapped his arms around me. “You smell so different,” he said. His eyes lit up, and the happiness radiated off him. He had been texting me almost non-stop since Raphael and I mated, asking details that I was not going to share over text. The heathen even had the audacity to ask for pics. I was only slightly tempted to send them.

I laughed when he stuck his nose closer to my neck and inhaled. I was still getting used to the idea that everyone smelled me.

“Theo, this is Raphael, my mate,” I said. The word still sounded a bit odd, but it made my dragon preen when I said it. I had tested out both the words “boyfriend” and “mate.” Mate seemed to illicit a thrill of desire through Raphael’s dragon, enough that I felt it through our bond.

Theo narrowed his eyes at Raphael and pointed a finger at him. “I know it goes against our nature to ever do anything to harm our mates, but I swear on all the full moons that if you ever do anything that even upsets my friend even a little bit, I’ll turn you into mincemeat.”

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