Page 12 of Alpha Dragon's Mating Contract
Raptor stepped closer. He brought his warm, calloused fingertips to Walren’s jaw and gently pushed his mouth shut, leaving his touch there for several heart-stopping seconds.
“Now, I’m going to make some food. Come out whenever you’re ready.” Raptor’s fingertips whispered against Walren’s skin as he pulled away. Then he grabbed a stack of papers off his desk, and left the office.
Walren looked down at Zebbie, who was starting to look sleepy. “Holy gods,” he whispered to his baby. “That just happened.”
Zebbie blinked innocently at him. Walren thought about texting his friends, but he didn’t want to blow this out of proportion.
He poked around in the filing cabinet where Raptor had retrieved the playpen. To his surprise, he found diaper-changing supplies there. InRaptor’s office.
Walren nursed Zebbie and changed his diapers, before rocking him to sleep.
I owe Raptor something, right? He didn’t call the cops on me. Even though I broke in and raided his fridge.
Maybe Raptor had a different kind of payment in mind?
Is that why he looked like he wanted to eat me?
Walren gulped. When Zebbie was finally asleep, he laid his baby in the playpen, then quietly slipped out of the office.
Only to step into an ocean of delicious scents. Walren was so hungry, his stomach almost digested itself.
When he entered the kitchen, he found his forgotten cucumber sitting on a small table.
Walren froze.
Raptor turned around and grinned. “I won’t ask if you’re ready for cuke. That comes later.”
“Later?”
“Mm-hm. If you agree to my... proposition.” The alpha gestured vaguely at a stack of paper on one side of the table. “But first, eat.”
He set down several bowls and plates of food, carefully arranging them. Walren gingerly approached.
In the largest bowl, Raptor had prepared a beautiful serving of ramen—thin noodles surrounded by a savory marinated egg, deep-fried sweet potato slices, some paper-thin sheets of crispy seaweed, and a generous portion of fried mushrooms.
Pan-fried dumplings sat on a separate plate, and in a small bowl were the stewed mushrooms Walren had drooled at earlier. Raptor had even included two sticks of fried bread, and some deep-fried mashed potato balls topped with crispy fried onions.
Walren moaned and dropped heavily into his seat, grabbing the fork instead of the chopsticks. “I don’t know how to use chopsticks.”
“That’s okay. I can teach you how, but not right now.” Raptor sat across from Walren at the table, untying the knots of his apron. “Eat the food and give me your honest opinion.”
Walren went for the slices of sweet potato first. He plucked one out of the ramen bowl with his bare fingers and stuffed it into his mouth, moaning at the crunch between his teeth. He ate a stewed mushroom next, then a vegetable dumpling. He slurped up some noodles and popped half an egg into his mouth, swaying side to side when savory flavors exploded across his tongue.
“I’m so happy,” he whimpered.
A slow, satisfied smile spread across Raptor’s face.
Almost too late, a thought struck Walren. “Wait. I only have money for the noodles.”
He panicked and began patting himself down for his wallet.
Raptor waved dismissively. “On the house.”
“But this is a lot of food!”
The alpha shrugged. “If it makes you feel better, consider this a bribe.”
“For what?”
