Page 30 of Monsters of Air

“Oh, and let me guess, you shifted and everyone showered you with diamonds and presents and told you how pretty you were?” I asked, raising an eyebrow. I wanted to tell him how pretty he was.

“Oh, it was better than that.” He grinned, but the spark that normally filled his eyes had dimmed. “I was hooking up with a girl, making her feel really good when I shifted for the first time. Her pussy exploded around my cock as it swelled to dragon size.” He winked at me, leaning forward. “Want me to demonstrate for you? I don’t mind.”

My eyes widened, my mouth parting slightly at his words. Shit. Nothing about that should have been hot. But it was. I could feel myself getting wet just sitting there. Landers' nostrils flared.

Double shit. He could smell me.

“Enough,” Philit said as he forced an exhale and shifted his weight. Great, I guess everyone could smell me. “No matter how it happened, shifting as a dragon is a gift.” He focused on Landers. “And anyone who loses their life to a dragon’s first shift are heroes. Everyone will applaud them for years to come.”

Philit’s voice was a powerhouse as it echoed around the clearing. He wasn’t looking at me though, he was looking at Zilon. He had heard what Landers had not. Zilon had been home when he shifted, and a first shift left no survivors.

“Right.” Zilon’s voice was tight as he tore at the last of the meat, bone snapping underneath his hands. “I will wait for the goddess to prove that to me.”

Philit sighed before chucking a piece of bone in the fire. “Time to turn in, get some rest. The Fae are most likely near and there’s no telling what beasts will try to attack us. We’ll have to do shifts. I’ll take first shift. Zilon second, Landers third.”

“Me?” I asked.

Landers snorted. “Doubtful.”

“Oh shut up. I have to help. I want to help. I refuse to be a useless rider.” I was dead serious, but they all glared at me.

“Sleep, Rayna,” Philit said in that same powerhouse voice. “That will be help enough. You’ll need your strength for tomorrow if you don’t want to slow us down.”

“Give me a watch. I can help.” I was losing my resolve. There was no way they were going to let me help. I needed to find some way to solve this.

“Rayna. Rest up.” Philit left no room for argument, the overconfident, smug ass dragon was right, though.

I gave in, not like I had a choice and slipped onto the ground, realizing how cold it was against my butt. I really needed that fur, but stubborn ass me laid down, curling into myself and the thin blanket, trying to inch closer to the fire. I would probably end up lighting myself on fire if I wasn’t careful enough.

Somehow, that was more preferable than just going and getting my father’s blanket. Landers and Zilon settled in as Philit sat away from us, the darkness hiding him perfectly from my view. My eyelids grew heavy, but it wasn’t long until I was shivering, the cold slipping back into my bones as the temperatures dropped further.

This was not the best time to be stubborn, yet here I was.

“Fuck, I can hear you shivering from here.” Landers groaned, sitting up to glare at me through the fire.

“It’s cold. Don’t act like you're not freezing,” I chattered.

“I’m not,” Landers laughed, I could almost hear him wink. “Dragons are warmer than humans. I hear we get even warmer after we get our fire.”

Of course, yet another thing that made them more suited to this task, and me into chopped meat.

“Well, then you can take your warmth and–”

“If you can’t handle this, how are you going to handle the rest of the trip?” Landers cut me off.

“I’m shivering, not dying. Go to sleep, Landers.” I couldn’t even give him a good retort through the chatter in my teeth.

“Maybe if you di–”

“Shut the fuck up,” Zilon cut Landers off and scooted over, laying down next to me. “Come here, Rayna.”

“That’s not a good idea,” Philit called out, clearly able to see us from where he sat in the dark.

“And her freezing to death is a good idea?” Zilon scoffed as his arms wrapped around me, one thick corded arm sliding under my waist as the other draped over it, pulling me into him. Into the hard, warm, rock of his muscle chest, the ridge of his scales oddly comforting against my back. “Our bodies' temperatures are higher. It’ll keep her warm so she can rest. Otherwise, she won’t be able to travel anywhere tomorrow.”

Philit’s silence was permission enough. Zilon’s fingers fanned over my waist as he pulled me even closer, every inch of him warm. One of his large wings moved over us, protecting us from the cold night air like a tent.

He was hot. Super hot. So hot that there was no room for the cold to touch me. Thanks to his wing I felt like I was in a sauna, the heaviness of his arms around me had me melting into him.

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