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“Holy shit,” I exclaim, sitting up and squinting to look closer. “You can already see his wings!”
“Yep,” Juliet says proudly. “It went a long way with calming some of the more unruly Draci upstairs.”
Upstairs is the euphemism we’ve taken to calling the three motherships circling the Earth. Some, especially on Draci II, were less than ecstatic to call Shak their new King. The Draci have a caste system and while Shak was the son of the previous King, he was a bastard, and to some, that was equal to being among the lowest castes.
But being able to produce a mostly Draci child after two hundred years of sterility? It will legitimize his reign and secure his position.
And Ezo and I will be right behind him. Or at least we should be…if only I would get pregnant already.
To say I was disappointed when I woke up this morning and there were no scales on my arms would be a massive understatement. And then I was so immature about it and ran to hide in the bathroom. God, I could’ve died when I freaked Ezo out so much he broke the damn door down! Gotta remember, alien dudes aren’t used to girly human emotions.
But then he was still so sweet and understanding. I’ve never had a guy be that nice to me when I cry. They usually just walk away, not break down a door to get to me.
I stare down at the picture in my hands some more. “He’s beautiful, Juliet.”
The most contented smile lights her face.
“So you really don’t have any idea how much longer it will be?” Giselle asks.
“Unless God hates me, it will be soon. Apparently Draci pregnancies last three months and obviously ours are nine. It’s been four but the Draci doctor’s scans show that the baby is pretty much full-size now. So it could be any day.”
“Have you been back to the ship?” I ask, absolutely jealous. I can’t believe she got to see inside an actual alien spaceship. I about died when she told me. It’s only been my dream since, I don’t know, forever.
Juliet shakes her head. “Shak will barely let me go to the grocery store. You think he’s going to allow interplanetary travel?” She laughs. “You’re cute. No, he brought the doctor and equipment to me.”
“Oh my God, one of them was down here and you didn’t call me?” I squeal.
“Uh, you do realize you’re mated to ‘one of them.’” Juliet arches an eyebrow.
Whoa. Sitting here and chatting with the girls like we always do, I forgot for a second. But I don’t really think of Ezo like that. Like an alien, I mean. Obviously he is. But apparently the rest of the ones without any human DNA look sort of reptilian. Like dragon people, basically. You know, considering they can literally spit fire. How freaking cool is that?
Shit, how have I not asked Ezo to breathe fire yet? They can do it even in their human forms. That’s definitely number one on the list of cool shit to do with my new boyfriend.
The back door pounds open and Shak makes a triumphant announcement. “Your males have prepared the feast of meats! Come, females, and partake of the ritual.”
Juliet rolls her eyes but can’t contain her grin. “Be right there, oh conquering hero!” she calls back.
Chapter Nine
Ezo
We spend all day with the King and Queen. I’m so happy to find that my first impression of the Queen seems to be wrong. I watch her closely throughout the meal and afterwards as we lounge around a small body of water that humans call a pool.
Unlike all Draci females I know, the Queen smiles and banters easily. She doesn’t cut others down with her wit and intelligence but instead includes my Ana and their other friend, Giselle, in conversation. She is a gracious hostess. She asks me questions and seems interested in my answers even though I’m of such a low caste.
But most important of all, she makes Ana smile. My mate smiles all afternoon in fact, the tears—I have learned that is what the eye water is called—of this morning long forgotten.
Ana is always by my side, too. There’s rarely a second she is not touching me in some way. Her arm glancing against my arm while we eat the meal. Her hand on my thigh afterwards while we chat amiably. And while we sit by the pool, she curls into my side on a lounger.
The afternoon is something out of a dream, to be honest. The sun is warm on my body. Draci was so bitterly cold at the end, sometimes I thought I’d never be warm again. The ship wasn’t much better. The cold, empty vacuum of space seemed never-ending at times. Those of us who were awake for the entirety of the long journey, seeing to maintenance, could barely keep going some days, half-starving to conserve the dwindling rations…
