“Billie, please, you weren’t supposed to be in the sponsorship program, but when you chose to become Izule’s charge, we went with that.” He tried to sound like he was being reasonable, and we weren’t. “But your sponsorship term has finished now. We need you at the Delta 4 compound.”
 
 “I don’t care.” Billie rested her hands on my coil and looked to Alaric’s chest as she spoke. “I am happy to keep working as I am, or I can quit. Either way, I’m not leaving Izule. We are mates.”
 
 “Yes, they are.” Vrujac lifted up higher on his tail. Good. If he didn’t take point on this, I would, and my fangs would already be out. “Billie is as good as my sister.”
 
 “Oursister.” Jajana physically moved between the outsiders and the rest of our clutch. “I think you’ve overstayed your welcome, Alaric.”
 
 “We can continue to discuss other matters.” Vrujac slithered over to Alaric, making it clear we are still allies, I bet, but also nodded towards the exit. “But Billie is non-negotiable.”
 
 “But the prince can’t continue the Royal line with a human mate.” Rerasha tried to back his partner. I ululate with a gravelly wrathful edge. Howdarehe comment on if Billie and I can breed. That is none of his business, nor does it change how I feel about my mate.
 
 “He doesn’t need to. He’s my 37th brother, and isn’t required to breed at all. Now have a safe journey.” Vrujac is hissing at the edges and struggling to contain his anger on my behalf. He just got a drink on me as well. In fact, all my siblings have earned my gratitude as they made a line between me and Billie, and the outsiders. I kept Billie in my coil as Rerasha escorted the human leader away.
 
 “I won’t go.” I blink and look down at my mate. She has put her handheld device away and her hands are tugging at her skirt. Her honey brown eyes are fixed on my mouth and I use both hands to rub her shoulders.
 
 “No, you won’t.”
 
 “I don’t want to go.”
 
 “I don’t want you to go either.” I chuckle and adore her with every scale on my body.
 
 “…good.” Billie nods and shuffles closer to hug me around my waist. “Can we go back to our nest now?”
 
 “Yes, we can.” No one stops me as I lift Billie into my arms and wind quickly down the palace corridor toward our nest.
 
 Chapter 30
 
 Epilogue
 
 Izule.
 
 A few days pass and it seems Alaric has admitted defeat, for now. Billie continues to work her usual shifts at her computer station in her office with a strict 5pm shut-off. It would seem he really can’t afford for Billie to quit, so he has surrendered to her ultimatum.
 
 I try not to act coy as I recline in the luxury sunken bathtub. I ran the bathwater hotter, as per her preference, and recline so my arms rest on the rim and my tail sways in the water. Billie walks up the stairs and spots me in the bath. I say nothing but make sure to cup my hands to my ear holes. She doesn’t like anyone hearing her pee, so this reassures her I can’t. She goes behind the curtain to relieve herself, and I wait until she returns to my line of sight.
 
 “Good afternoon Billie.” I tip my head to one side and smirk at her as she starts to undress. “Have you had a productive day?”
 
 “Yes.” I lick my lips as more of her lovely body becomes visible. “You went hunting today. Did you kill anything big?”
 
 “Yes. A Blue-backed Gissok. Mean and big. Hard to kill.” She isn’t interested in what I’ve hunted. She’s being polite because she knowsIlike hunting.
 
 “Are you injured in any way?” She examines me in the water and I know she’s staring at my pouch when she sucks her bottom lip into her mouth.
 
 “No.”
 
 “So we can still have sex?”
 
 “Yes, if you like.” I chuckle. She nods and walks into the water towards me to straddle my tail. She means business today. I watch as she lowers down to mount my bulging pouch. Once seated she places her hands on my chest and takes a moment.
 
 “Yes, I would like us to have sex.” She kisses me and I moan into it. She bucks on my bulge and my slit parts at the stimulation. I am more than happy for her to take the lead when it comes to making love and relish her every touch. Yesterday she walked into our nest and declared she’s been wondering what it would be like to give me oral sex, and I had my cock out before she could finish asking me to unsheathe myself. Sweet ancestors, she took her time and I nearly lost my sanity at the back of her throat. She had to use her hands as well, but told me with practice she would learn to deep throat me. I don’t know what that means, but I can’t wait to find out.
 
 Right now she kisses me hungrily and I anticipate her shifting her hips to mount me, as she often does. I am not disappointed. She reaches down to rub herself against my cock and gives me a few maddening strokes, before lifting her hips up and holding me in prime position. She lowers to take me into her tight wet heat and I hiss with desire. My hands go to her hips and I loosely wrap my tail around her legs. I know not to hold her too tightly, or she doesn’t have the leverage needed to ride me. Like she is determined to destroy me with pleasure, she bounces up and down and shucks me into incoherence. I hiss and my tail slaps at the water, trembling under the onslaught of her need. I reach down to thumb at her clit as she rolls her hips over mine. Shuck. Billie kisses me and moans, panting and holding my shoulders for leverage. She makes me cum hard and fast the first time and I barely stop us from sliding into the water from the force of it. Shuck me, she’s good at that. Her sexy grin speaks of confidence. She knows exactly what she just did to me.
 
 My turn.
 
 I sit up and pull her against my chest. We’re both panting as I remain buried to the slit inside her. I kiss her, slow and needy as I coil my tail around her legs straddling me.
 
 “Together, this time.” I hold her between her shoulder blades and the back of her neck as I guide her to writhe with me. My tail tip is between us and strategically placed so each time we rut together I can tease her clit. I palm at her breasts and kiss her as we mate in a traditional Ucfeni tangle. I have to tip her pelvis towards mine to achieve it, but I’m more than strong enough to hold her at the right angle for this to work. Water splashes outside the bath as we pick up the pace and I grin as she starts to come undone. I lick at her throat and suckle at one of her breasts, learning she enjoys when I lick at her teats, and writhe deliriously with her. “Oh Billie. You’re so shucking beautiful. Inside and out.” She kisses me, and I know it’s to shut me up. She doesn’t want the distraction of me talking as we climb higher towards our climax. I pick up the pace, lifting her up and pulling her down onto my cock as we undulate together. My tail tip circles at her sensitive nub between our bodies, slick with water as we rut, and I am relieved when Billie cums. She pinches my sides with her legs and the grip of her pussy around my cock makes me hiss with abandon. She practically throws me sideways into my second orgasm and we nearly topple over as a result. I kiss her, moaning with her as her tight core milks my length for every drop of seed. I carefully lower us back to lay on my back and prop myself up against the side of the sunken bathtub. I loosen my tail and let Billie catch her breath and decide when she’s ready to rise off my cock. Once she does I draw it back into my pouch and relax.