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“I do not care for sandy horses.”
“And you will care even less for walking.” Alistair flapped a hand. “Leave it to me. Omega, can you ride?”
Peregrine blinked owlishly at Alistair. “Yes, my lord. I’ve been told I ride quite well, but you’ll have to take my word for it. It would not be proper to show you.”
“Proper?” Alistair narrowed his eyes. He spent a moment in thought, then clapped a hand over his mouth, aghast. “Lord, no! No. I didn’t mean it like that. What I meant to say is, can you ride a camel?”
“Oh.” Peregrine thought about it. “I’ve never seen a camel before, so I suppose I’d have to try.”
“It’s much like riding a horse,” Sebastian said, leaning in so his lips brushed Peregrine’s temple while he spoke. “Or at least, so I assume. You will be fine. And if not, you will ride with me and I will make sure you are fine.”
Peregrine’s cheeks heated. “Yes, my lord. I would like that.”
“Good.” Sebastian kissed him. “Alistair, procure the camels. We will ride.”
While Alistair went to arrange for their transportation, Peregrine lingered with Sebastian at the inn. There were fewer people present than there had been yesterday, and as a consequence, the room was quiet enough that Peregrine was able to hear an ongoing argument between a young man and the innkeeper.
“I have never heard a more ridiculous thing in my life,” seethed the young man. He was dressed for travel and seemed to have come far, judging by his accent and the threadbare state of his clothing. It was impolite to eavesdrop, but his tone of voice was so aggressive that Peregrine couldn’t help it. “You will let me stay.”
“I will not,” said the innkeeper. “You must go.”
“All I need is—”
“You must go.”
The young man balled his fists and tightened his shoulders. Peregrine was half convinced he was about to throw a punch, but instead he slammed a fist against the counter. It struck with enough force that Peregrine flinched.
“You will let me stay where I wish,” the young man uttered, “or I will be forced to—”
“Forced to what?” interjected the innkeeper with a snort. “Do you think I’m afraid of a tiny omega like you? No. Now leave.”
It seemed to Peregrine that the young man wasn’t the kind who’d give up so easily, but to his surprise, he said nothing more and turned away from the counter. Doing so allowed Peregrine to get a look at his face.
The omega was exceptionally beautiful with large dark eyes and inky black hair. The sun had coaxed out color from his skin and darkened a spattering of freckles that stretched from cheek to cheek over the bridge of his nose. Peregrine thought there was a rather cunning look to him. It manifested as a sharpness in his eyes and a tightness in the way he pinched his full, lovely lips.
In the second or two Peregrine took to study him, the omega noticed him and came to a stop. He met and held Peregrine’s gaze. It was unsettling. Peregrine had never had reason to be afraid of another omega before, and had no sensible reason to be afraid of this one, but goose bumps rose up his arms all the same.
It felt like the omega was peering straight into his very soul.
Only a second or two passed before the omega broke eye contact and went on his way, but it felt like much longer. It was fortunate Sebastian was there, as without him, Peregrine wasn’t sure what he would do. It was ridiculous to think a stranger would cause him any kind of trouble, but something about him triggered an instinctual response in Peregrine that warned him to take heed. To ward it off, Peregrine took Sebastian’s hand. The dragon perked right up and focused on him, and Peregrine rewarded his attention with a smile.
“Will it be long before the camels arrive?” he asked.
Sebastian shook his head. “No. Not long at all.”
“Good. I’m very excited to meet them.”
Sebastian smiled at him as though he were a very precious thing, and while he didn’t pursue the conversation, he never let go of Peregrine’s hand. It was a tremendous reassurance and a rare treat. Moments like these, quiet as they may be, were the ones he would remember when he was sent back to his cloister. A dragon’s affection was a hoard-worthy treasure, and Peregrine was lucky to have it, even if only for a time.
* * *
The camels were not all that difficult to ride, although they did sway an awful lot. At first Peregrine fought against it, but when Alistair noticed, he informed them that it was best to move with the animal instead of against it.
Still, it was a hard thing to do when it felt like every swaying step would be the one to finally knock him off.
Thank goodness for Sebastian, who shared a camel with him. With his arms around Peregrine, an uncomely encounter with the ground was far less likely.
Unfortunately, the constant swaying wasn’t the only issue. Camels, Peregrine discovered, were uncomfortable, and that wasn’t a thing a dragon could fix. Within several hours, Peregrine was sore. It was a relief when they stopped to shake out their legs.
