Page 28 of The Dragon's Flamebound Mate

Zayne held my hand as we walked down the hall to the kitchen. He helped me into a chair. I appreciated his attentiveness.

“Okay, let’s start with toast and water. Not coffee.”

“Oh no, I am going to need coffee, mate.” He wanted me to have coffee. The team wanted me to have coffee. Not having coffee wasn’t good for anyone around me. “If it upsets my stomach, I’ll stop drinking it, but I do need my coffee.”

“All right, then. Just take it slow.”

I had to give him credit. He obviously didn’t think it was a good idea, but not once did he decide his opinion mattered more than mine. I couldn’t say that I’d be as good of a mate had our roles been reversed.

Zayne set to work, and within a few minutes, he had a slice of toast, lightly coated with my favorite pear jam, in front of me. I took a tentative bite, chewing slowly to keep my body from rejecting the nutrients. Surprisingly, it tasted good. I’d been afraid that everything would instantly have me running back to the porcelain throne.

“Commander Emmon said to let him know if I started seeing any symptoms and that we could make an appointment with the physician here,” I said. While I was 100% sure that I was pregnant, hearing it from the physician would ease my nerves.

“That sounds like a brilliant idea. As long as I have known Vexis, he has always enjoyed when there is an omega expecting on the grounds.” Vexis being the physician. “He gets bored with treating broken limbs from flight training and sprained ankles from students running too fast in the quad.”

“Well, I think I will have a ton of questions. Does he have experience treating a pregnancy like ours? With a non-dragon shifter or half-dragon, I mean.”

I wasn’t sure what to expect and the unknown was always scary, but doubly so because in this case, it wasn’t just me I had to worry about. I had little ones on the way, and right now, I was the only thing protecting them from… everything.

“He’s older than I am, so I imagine that he has seen a thing or two. If not, I know that Lord Malic’s son just mated with a human, and Dr. Hugo, who used to be an Academy doctor, treated his human mate.” My mate had looked into this. Not that that surprised me.

“I suppose I can ask my parents any questions. They had the same experience as us.” They were going to be thrilled. I had let them know a few days after Zayne and I had been mated. They were, of course, over-the-moon excited that I had found a dragon for my mate. They’d have accepted anyone, of course, but being that I was technically half-dragon, they loved it.

Zayne handed me my cup of coffee and spread some jam on another slice of toast. He slid the plate across the counter. I nibbled on the corner of the bread.

“I could get used to this treatment. I’m starting to feel better,” I said.

“Good, that’s good. I wish there was more that I could do for you.”

“Oh, don’t worry. If I get too sick, I’ll just have you wait on me hand and foot. I’ll lie on the couch every day, get myself a little bell that I can ring. You can deliver me my snacks and drinks.”

I’d been teasing, but Zayne smiled as if the idea of being my personal waitstaff thrilled him. “I’d be honored to do whatever you need.”

“I think that I’ll be fine.” I took a small sip of my coffee. “Already, the nausea is gone. My big belly is still here, though.” I was still floored by that. I swore it wasn’t there last night. Or maybe it was and I’d been too busy paying attention to my mate’s body to focus on my own. Both were very real possibilities.

Zayne grinned. “But it’s gorgeous.”

He might think so, but I wasn’t so sure.

“Good thing we wear mostly track pants to work, because otherwise, I wouldn’t have anything that fits soon enough. I’m going to have to get a new suit for our first competition if the eggs aren’t laid.” I really wanted to be there for the competition, but family came first. It wasn’t like I couldn’t watch the tapings later.

“That’s a month away,” Zayne said. “Our eggs should be laid by then.”

I stood up straight, my spine stiffening. “How can you travel to a competition if my eggs are here? How will we— We can’t leave our eggs, Zayne. What will we do?” He could go without me, but the thought of him being gone with our eggs here with me, no one else to protect them, was terrifying.

He came to my side and wrapped me in his arms. The warmth of him calmed me. “Easy. Slow down, mate. Many dragons have brought their eggs along for travel. We have a special transport van that can fit most nests, and the team will help us as well. We have specialized things for this. You won’t be the first omega who has had to travel with their eggs.”

That caught me off guard. It wasn’t something I’d ever heard about, much less had experience with. If my mate thought it was feasible, I at least needed to hear him out. The team couldn’t go to competition without a Flight Leader, but also…

“Is this really a good idea? Me working and having eggs?” We’d talked about it before, but that was all in hypotheticals. The hypotheticals were over, and now we were in real territory.

“Of course. Our children are going to be so proud of you—the first omega eagle Flight Leader who won a championship while also in the middle of nesting? It’s amazing.”

I rolled my eyes. “I think you’re inflating my accomplishments. We haven’t won anything yet.”

“We will. I have all the faith in the world.”

I didn’t have the strong confidence my mate did in us coming out victorious, but enthusiasm and confidence were contagious. By the time we finished our conversation, I was beginning to feel the same way.

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