Page 15 of The Dragon's Gambit
“No, go on home. Come see me tomorrow,” Reiya reassured Chelsie, who nodded in appreciation.
“I’ll see you tomorrow!” Chelsie left as well, leaving Reiya alone in the dragon kingdom. Well, practically alone. Lee was there somewhere.
“Are you okay?” Xander asked in a gentle voice.
Reiya nodded. “Yes. It’s a weird feeling. I’ve never been away from my family. I’ve never not had Brody near me. So, it feels a bit … different.” It felt lonely. It was only for a night, though, and then Brody would be there. She would try to get familiar with her surroundings and the people there.
“It’ll get better. This will feel like home soon.” Xander didn’t want her to be sad. He hoped she would be able to adjust and come to call this place home. “How about I show you around? That would be a good start.”
“Yes, I think that’s a good idea.” Reiya put a smile on her face. She wasn’t going to be depressed. She would enjoy this experience and learn as much as she could.
“So, how did you convince my parents?” Reiya tilted her head to look up at Xander with her brows raised and a small smile. “It’s just … I know my parents, and you wouldn’t scare them off just because you’re a dragon.”
Xander grinned. “Well, technically, I didn’t scare them off. Your parents were adamant that you would have to agree, or else they would take you back by whatever means necessary. Scary folks …”
“You were in there talking for hours!” Reiya looked at him curiously. There was a lot more talking going on during that time. “And where’s Grandpa Sage?”
“We had a lot to discuss. Gramps is always busy. He had to leave right after our conversation was finished. It took a good bit of talking in order to convince your parents, and he had other matters to attend to. All that matters is that you’ll be staying here for now.” Xander winked at Reiya and led her inside the maze-like castle. “Try to pay attention. It’s a big place.”
Reiya sighed. He wasn’t going to tell her anything, and her parents chose to leave those details out as well. She guessed it wasn’t important and figured that she would find out soon enough. Time to learn about her home away from home.
Chapter 9 Mate?
“Do you think you’ll be able to manage without getting lost?” Xander chuckled as he led her back to the main hall.
“Maybe not right away.” Reiya giggled. She was lost just walking with him. Some of the areas were enormous and were clearly made to fit dragons in their shifted form.
“Well, if you get lost, just yell for me. I have excellent hearing, and I’ll rescue you.” Xander grinned and rested his arm around her shoulders again.
Reiya had gotten used to having his arm on her. It was a comfortable feeling. There was an increased warmth that came from his body. It was soothing, and it calmed her. Somehow, she felt like they were kindred spirits. She was surprised at how relaxed she felt around this perfect stranger.
“Want to go back out to the party for a little bit before you turn in for the evening?” He looked at her, giving her his award-winning smile. Reiya couldn’t help but return a smile back to him. There was excitement in her chest from being in his proximity. Not only was he attractive, but he had an aura that drew you close. She was enjoying getting to know him better.
“Yes, that sounds nice. I love dancing.”
Xander led her back out to the party. There were several sets of eyes that followed them with interest. He led her out onto the dance floor and twirled her around, causing her to giggle at his goofiness.
“This is your second time dancing with a dragon. What do you think?” Xander lifted his chin and straightened his shoulders as he tried to look dignified.
Reiya giggled. “It feels like dancing with anyone else. How about you? This is your first time dancing with a fairy werewolf.”
“Hmmm … I guess it’ll have to do,” he teased. “I don’t sense your werewolf part of you, though. I can feel it from your parents, but I can’t feel it from you … well, it’s there, only it’s really faint.” Xander studied her eyes curiously. He saw a flash of sadness flicker over them, but it disappeared quickly.
“That’s probably because I haven’t shifted yet. I … well, it feels like my wolf is there but is having trouble surfacing. I’m not sure what it is. I guess she’ll come through when she’s good and ready.” Reiya did feel a little bad about not having her wolf, but there really wasn’t anything she could do about it. She looked up at Xander, who seemed to be studying her. He was looking at her like he was putting a puzzle together. She was curious as to what he was thinking.
“We’ll have to see about waking that wolf of yours up soon. After all, you need her around. Without her, your mate could be right in front of you, dancing with you … and you wouldn’t even notice.” Xander smirked and twirled her around again.
Reiya laughed. “Are you implying you’re my mate?” She watched Xander grin widely.
“You’ll have to find that out for yourself.” Xander winked at her and pulled her close to his chest. He leaned his head down, pressing his lips close to her ear. “Even without your wolf, though … you’d probably feel something, don’t you think?”
Reiya felt his hot breath on her sensitive skin, sending electric jolts down her body. Even being in the warmth of his arms, she felt her body shiver. There was something about him, but she didn’t know what it was. She didn’t know how she would feel if she was around her mate. She’d never had a boyfriend before, and she wasn’t sure what she should feel. She knew she was attracted to him, but she was attracted to Lee, too. That didn’t mean one of them was her mate. Right?
“So, what’s it like for dragons when you find your mate? Do you also have a link that tells you someone is your mate?” Reiya leaned back a bit out of his intimate hold so that she could look up into his eyes.
“Yes. It’s similar to werewolves, except your wolves tell you who your mate is. We dragons know for ourselves. Sometimes we know long before our mate knows. When this is the case, weusually wait for them. We want them to choose us as well. It’s more special than just being told ‘I’m your mate’. We want them to feel the connection to us also. Then …” Xander pulled her close to him again as he continued to slowly dance to the music, “when our mate also recognizes us, we mark each other so that everyone knows we’re taken.”
“That’s similar to werewolves, though not all female wolves mark their mates. It just depends on the wolf. So how does it work with dragons, if you meet a mate that isn’t a dragon? Obviously, wolves have mixes, but do dragons?” Reiya had never heard of anyone who was part dragon before. She felt Xander stiffen and frown.
