Page 30 of No Ordinary Drakeling
“I can’t help being beautiful but shocking as it may be, I’m smart too. You think it’ll work?”
“I think so, but we should ask Ellery how he’s going to feel about shifting under a giant net.”
“It’s going to have to be one big-ass net,” Damian said. “We have no idea how large he’s going to be. Look how big King D’Vaire’s dragon is…he dwarfs Chrys.”
“Aleksander’s the biggest dragon, so we use him as the template. If Ellery’s larger than him, then we’ll get Aleksander to sit on him or something.”
Damian chuckled. “Remind me to make sure there’s no press around at this thing.”
“Remember, we’re talking about an elf shifting here, not an ordinary drakeling. He’s not going to want a bunch of people seeing him naked. I know these ceremonies are usually open to everyone, but that’s not taking Ellery’s other half into consideration.”
“Good point. We need to keep it as small as possible. The good news is, if he’s under a net, there’s less to see too.”
“There’s no reason we can’t hold it with our backs turned. We can have it designed that way to make it easier.”
After rising from his chair, Damian patted his shoulder. “We’ll get Larissa D’Vairedraconis to take care of it. She’s amazing.”
“I’ll discuss it with Ellery tomorrow.”
“Tell him I said you need to be Imperial Duke.”
“Fuck you, Damian.”
“Good night, Zane. I’m going to go ask Fate to bring your other half to you.”
With a roll of his eyes, Zane polished off his Sprite, then left the kitchen. He trailed up the stairs as he thought about the incredible family he acquired, even though the only parent he’d known was a world-class traitor. He’d gotten lucky, and he never took advantage of his position in the household nor was he going to allow anyone to call him by Damian’s title. As for his mate, he didn’t know what the hell to think about that. He wasn’t ready, and he didn’t know if he ever would be. Putting the thought aside, he stripped down for bed and stayed focused on the most important aspect of his life, which was protecting an emperor who needed to survive something no other had before. Something inside Zane told him Ellery was up to the task, but he wasn’t going to be able to sleep easy until it was over.
