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Sorin threaded his fingers through Bertram’s hair and kissed him deeply, and as he always did, Bertram kissed Sorin back like there was no one in the world he wanted more. How different things were now. How different they’d continued to be.
But this would always stay the same.
The fierce love they shared.
Everything else could change and they would be fine as long as it was there to ground them. With it there to strengthen them, nothing—not wild magic, nor the council, nor any other obstacle—could get the best of them. It was the light in the darkness, and every time, it would lead them home safe.
“I love you,” Bertram whispered, but before Sorin could say the same, someone politely cleared their throat. He looked over his shoulder in the direction of the noise to see that while Everard had gone, Harry remained.
“I’m sorry to bother you,” he said somewhat sheepishly, “but before I go, I have to ask you a question. Did you ever figure out a name for your snake? The Dragonet Club wanted to know.”
“Oh.” Sorin laughed, embarrassed, but too in love to let it deflate his mood. “I did. Her name is Genesis.”
“That’s a cute name. Does it mean anything?”
“Yeah.” Smiling, Sorin turned his head around, resting his forehead against Bertram’s. “It does. It means the start of something new.”
33
Bertram
In the quiet of the master bedroom in the house on Dragon’s Head drive, there lounged a naked dragon. He was without fangs or scales or claws, and at first glance appeared to be little more than a man, but nothing could be further from the truth, for beneath his human trappings, he was an Amethyst through and through.
More specifically, he was a Drake.
It did not escape him that there had been a time when he had been willing to give up that birthright. For a while, it had seemed like he would have no other choice—the society he had been born into was not one he was willing to live in, and it seemed unlikely that would change.
But somehow, the impossible had come to pass.
His father had heard him. Society had shifted.
And while it was not perfect, it was good enough.
The rest would come in time.
“Bertram?” Sorin asked in a small but contented voice. They lay side by side, Sorin tucked into the crook of Bertram’s arm, both of them only partially covered by the bedsheets. The room itself was a comfortable temperature, but the two of them were overheated from certain prior activities, and the cool air felt nice.
“Mm?” Bertram hummed. “What is it, love?”
“Perry reached out today and invited us to the next family gathering.” Sorin turned his head, his cheek coming to rest on the side of Bertram’s chest. “I know we’ve been keeping a low profile the last little while to avoid potentially stressful situations, but the eggs should be coming any day now. At this point, their development isn’t going to be affected even if things do get a little tense. So… what do you say? Do you want to go?”
Bertram drew in a deep and steady breath, then lifted his hand and swirled his fingers lazily through the air. Balls of fire the size of cherries burst into existence overhead, speckling the bedroom with their mock starlight. The treasure strewn about the bed—the crowning achievements of their steadily growing hoard—glittered under it. The sparkle was a welcome distraction from the way the question made Bertram feel.
“When is it?” he asked after some consideration. A gentle curl of his finger followed, and the orbs of fire overhead began to slowly spiral like leaves on the surface of a pond. “I would not deprive you of it, if it’s something you want to do.”
“You misunderstand me.” Sorin sat up with some difficulty, a strand of pearls the colors of an oil slick tumbling off his pregnant belly. “I’m not asking you for permission. Whether you go or not, I plan on being there. All I want to know is if you’ll be going with me.”
The fire stopped moving abruptly.
Bertram, caught off guard, turned his head to better look at his mate.
Sorin’s hair was mussed from sex, the gold head chain he wore knocked askew and partially hidden by his dark locks. His cheeks were flushed and his skin was glowing, but neither his happy pregnancy nor Bertram’s knot was enough to placate him.
He was no meek omega.
He hadn’t been when they had met, and he wasn’t now.
“I realize that it’s difficult for you,” Sorin said when Bertram was silent. He winced and moved the nearest pillow, propping it against the headboard to better support his back. “Even before you met me, you were the outsider. The one who was always forgotten. That’s not an easy thing to get over. I know what it feels like to be invisible, to feel like there’s a whole world out there you desperately want to be a part of but can’t. I know.” His voice threatened to break, but he did not let his pain win. Instead, he reached out and ran his fingers lovingly through Bertram’s hair. “But we didn’t get this far by giving up. We fought every step of the way, and we came here knowing the fight would go on. If you need to rest, that’s okay… but the only way we’ll get the happy ending we want is if we work for it. No one is coming to save us. The only way we’ll be able to close the divide between us and your family is by building the bridge ourselves.”
