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“That’s only if you want the humans to remain in Maledin.”
“Of course I want them to remain in Maledin. It doesn’t matter if they settled here after Maledin fell, this is their home. Besides, there have always been humans in Maledin. We wouldn’t have witches if we didn’t interbreed.”
“Daughters of Maledinni becomeHratha’len,” Stesha points out.
“And who have the people always loved better, the witches or theHratha’len?” It’s a rhetorical question because Stesha knows the answer. The people love and respect the witches. Witches live among them, deliver their babies, and care for the sick. The people barely see theHratha’len, who live and work in Lenhale and cloak themselves in an air of mystery.
Stesha folds his arms and gazes at me. “Speaking of witches, I’ve heard that the future queen is not only also refusing her dragon, but her mate as well.”
I jerk my chin at the stone bridge. “I’ve had enough of you tonight. Be gone.”
“It’s an important question, Zabriel. Is your mate rejecting you? This affects all of Maledin if our Alpha can’t claim his queen.”
“My Omega and I are just fine. You know that when a designation emerges it’s a difficult time for an Omega. Or rather you don’t know, do you?” He wishes he knew, but he never will.
There’s a flicker of anger in Stesha’s eyes. If he doesn’t like fire then he should get out of the way of my dragon.
He strides away without a word, vanishing among the dragons of the flare.
I turn back to Scourge, wondering if I shouldn’t have made things quite so personal.
I stay with Scourge for several hours until I’m sure he’s not sickening and he’s falling asleep, and then I head back to the castle. In my rooms, I undo my gauntlets and chest piece and toss them onto a chair.
No. Fuck Stesha. It’s a sensitive subject, and he should have known better than to needle me with it after battle. I don’t want to playwhat ifover something so devastating as my Omega rejecting me. I don’t want a contingency plan. I just want Isavelle.
After battle, I usually enjoy a long soak in the bathhouse beneath the castle, so that’s where I head. There’s a freezing pool of water in the first room, and I strip off my clothes and leave them by a smooth, tiled seating area, moving deeper into the bathhouse to where the pools of water are hot. There are a handful of other dragonriders and wingrunners soaking up the heat and steam. I plunge into the hottest water pool and float in the water with my eyes closed.
When I open them again, I’m alone. I float for a while longer and then get out of the water, wrap a towel around my hips, and walk back to the stone bench where I left my clothes. They’ve all fallen onto the ground and become tangled up with several towels.
Something is moving around underneath it all.
“What the—”
A hand snakes out of the pile, seizes my wrist, and drags me down onto the ground. A petite, lush body with rounded limbs wraps around my torso and clings on for dear life. I pull my discarded shirt away from her face and see Isavelle, pupils dilated, cheeks pink, and panting.
“Sha’len? Are you in a false heat again already?” I press my face into her throat and breathe in. There it is, the unmistakable sweet scent of my horny, nearly fertile Omega. How the hell did this happen again so quickly? I wasn’t paying attention these past three days, and I must have missed the warning signs. My poor little Omega must have been working too hard to notice as well.
Isavelle slides across my lap and straddles my thighs. She’s wearing only a thin nightgown and her hair is loose down her back. “Zabriel. I missed you,” she breathes.
I groan at the feel of her body against mine and the neediness in her voice. I’m about three seconds away from lavishing her with praise and kisses, but I hold it back long enough to glare at her severely and say, “Did you follow me down here? You should have sent one of your bodyguards or a maid. It’s not safe for you to wander around in this state.”
Isavelle hasn’t heard a word I’ve said. There’s no point scolding her when she’s so far gone and she came looking for her Alpha. Smiling, I press my mouth to hers and kiss her. It seems like she’s all mine for this false heat, though I had better be careful not to get carried away and scare her off.
“I’ll take you back to your room. We can make a proper nest together. How does that sound?”
“I don’t want to go anywhere. I like it down here.” Isavelle wraps both of her legs around one of my thighs and squeezes, and she moans. That must feel good because she does it again and again until she’s working herself up and down against my thigh. Her nightgown is caught between her legs and it’s soaked through with her slick.
I ease slowly back on my elbows, transfixed by the sight of her. All the blood rushes to my knot. “Does that feel good? I guess you really need to climax.”
“Pardon?” she asks, confusion creasing her brow and her rhythm stuttering.
I quickly change the subject before I can put her off her stride. “You look so pretty with your legs wrapped around my thigh, Omega. Don’t stop.”
“I woke up and I needed you,” she pants, working her sex against my thigh. Grinding her clit into my bare flesh.
My lips curve into a smile. “I can see that. What do you need from your Alpha?”
“I don’t know,” she moans, her head tipping back and her eyes closing.
