Page 123 of No Ordinary Drakeling
Chapter 39
The moment Ellery opened his eyes, Chrysander pulled him into his arms, and they made love frantically. He understood his urgency as the day ahead was full of questions. Ellery was determined to handle it without fear. Whatever his destiny was, he was fully prepared to embrace it. Once they left their room, they found Aleksander’s giant mansion filled with family and some guests. There was a tension in the air that Ellery understood was for him.
“I can’t believe the rest of the Skeleton Seven decided to stay home,” Damian said to Alaric.
“They preferred not to be underfoot today, and they were concerned with making sure Ellery’s privacy was respected.”
“That was nice of them, but I would not have argued if they wanted to come,” Ellery responded. Chrysander was quiet as he’d been all morning. It made Ellery anxious to shift so his other half would no longer be drowning in nerves.
“Your photographer should be here soon. It’d be good to take a few shots of you before and after,” Damian informed him.
“That is fine with me.”
Aleksander walked up to where many of them were lounging on the deck with a blond man a few inches shorter than him. “Emperor Chrysander and Emperor Ellery Draconis, allow me to present Jeremiah Wellsdraconis.”
“Jeremiah, it’s such a pleasure to finally meet you in person,” Ellery told his dragon trainer.
“Your Majesty, the pleasure is mine.”
“I thought we were past the majesty stuff weeks ago,” Ellery admonished.
Jeremiah smiled. “Sorry.”
“Thank you for all you’ve done to help Ellery. I appreciate it,” Chrysander finally said.
“It’s been my pleasure, Your Majesty.”
“There is a photographer arriving soon. Can we have a few minutes alone before he gets here?” Ellery asked.
“Sure,” Jeremiah responded. “I was going to ask you if you wanted to do that just to work out the last bit of nerves you might be feeling.”
“I have no anxiety,” Ellery informed him. “I am ready.”
“If you guys want to stay outside, you should have plenty of privacy on the other side of the changing room,” Aleksander suggested.
“Great, thanks,” Ellery replied and turned to his stone-faced mate. Chrysander’s expression didn’t change, but he swept a hand over Ellery’s cheek and kissed him tenderly. “I will be right back.”
“I’ll be here.”
With a nod, Ellery and Jeremiah strolled over to where Aleksander recommended. Once they were there, Jeremiah grinned wildly at him.
“This place is incredible. What a lovely spot to welcome your dragon.”
“Yes, I agree.”
“Did you want to go over anything before you shift?”
“If I die, I do not want you to think that it is your fault. You have done an outstanding job of working me through this process, and I believe you have a bright future training dragons. I will do everything I can to ensure your reputation stays intact if I fail.”
“I appreciate that, but I wouldn’t consider you dying a failure. I believe you can do this, but if I’m wrong, then it’s not Fate’s intention to allow hybrids to survive. It’s as simple as that.”
“That is a good point. You are right.”
“You have so much determination, and you’re completely at peace with your dragon. If you can’t do this, no one can.”
“I am ready.”
“You’re so awesome. You are going to do great.”
