Page 74 of Monsters of Air

Even through my anger I could feel the pull to them. My skin itched to be touched by them. My body tightened, demanding their touch to loosen my muscles and give me pleasure. Always. Constantly.

Everything was too exhausting. I hadn’t even had a chance to accept that I was doing all this without my father when he was supposed to be by my side.

He would probably have the answers I needed. Father’s always did.

I growled again and threw a rock in a small river that was cutting through the undergrowth. Everything was melting since we were further down the mountain now. It had definitely gotten warmer, but we still had a long way to go until we were at the bottom and out of here.

And hopefully to answers.

Chapter Twenty-Five

“Rayna,” Zilon’s voice was a soft whisper behind and I stiffened, I had been so lost in my thoughts I hadn’t even heard him coming.

“Rayna?” He said again, his motions soft as he sat on the bank beside me.

My name from his lips sent curls of fire through my stomach. I closed my eyes, hating that I was feeling that, but at the same time enjoying it. All of that exhilarating need that flashed through me was only made stronger thanks to his emotions, the concern and worry mixed with his own desire.

There was no regret in him, no anger. Just softness and warmth.

Zilon said nothing as he sat beside me, his arm and tail wrapping around me carefully. His touch was soft, warm, and my body reacted instantly, leaning into him as though he was the drug I had been waiting for. I didn’t fight the need for him, his grip shifted as he pulled me into his lap, facing me to him as I straddled him.

I rested my head in that nook in his neck that seemed to be made for me and took a deep breath, letting his scent soothe me. He smelled like the wind, like a whole world was around him, hidden inside of him. I could get lost in that scent. Zilon began rubbing my back, letting his hand go all the way down my spine, almost to the dip of my ass, then back up to my shoulder blades. He applied just enough pressure to lull me into complete comfort.

“In Gryiene,” he began, his voice soft as we sat there, staring at the slow trickle of water. “The world is unforgiving. Most of us are descendants of the traitors and criminals that the King has sent down there, my grandfather, my father, even the father of the girl I was to marry. They had all been banished, punished for crimes that we would listen to the stories of at bedtime. They were our histories, but they also made for a brash people in a cruel world.”

He paused, and I didn’t dare move. I just sat, listening to him talk about his home like it was another world. I guess in a way it was, they had their own God, after all.

“If you wanted something, you fought for it. You took it. You stood up for your family and protected your women from others who would take her. It’s all I’ve ever known. That fighting. That patriarchal world where men were in control, taking what they wanted.”

“You didn’t have to fight over me,” I exhaled, knowing what he was getting at.

“But I did. Because I wanted you, I wanted to protect you. And so did the others, they came from their own worlds that demanded a different kind of reaction. Philit has been raised beside dragons, he had been taught to treat them like Gods in their own way. He expected things to happen in a certain way.”

That much I had figured out, it wasn’t like he was quiet about it.

“And Landers?” I didn’t even try to disguise my disdain.

“Landers expected things to be a certain way too, didn’t he? Always handed whatever he wanted, always winning in life because of who he is back home.”

“A spoiled rich boy,” I scoffed. It was nothing new, we had them back in Lixny. They were the same everywhere. “Are you expecting me to just up and excuse your behavior because ‘you were raised that way’,” I laughed, loud and harsh. “I’m not going to give you a free pass just because you didn’t know any better.”

“No, I’m not asking that,” he shook his head, pulling away enough that those seafoam eyes bore into me. His wings shuddered as a breeze blew over us. “I am asking you to accept our apology. It is all we know, and sometimes it takes time to unlearn bad behavior.”

I stared at him, his emotions rampaging through me, the faint whisper of Philit’s right beside them. Regret. Apology, Empathy.

“We are sorry,” he whispered after a minute, his fingers soft as he moved some of my hair out of my face. His hand didn’t leave though, it drifted down to my neck, the pressure soft and warm. “I am sorry. I don’t know how to be a dragon, and I don’t know how to treat a rider. None of us do, even Philit who thinks he knows everything.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at that.

“But he doesn’t, because none of us do. Landers has to learn not to be an asshole, and Philit and I have to learn to…” he hesitated, looking for the right word.

“Share?” I provided. It wasn’t perfect, but it would have to do.

He nodded, “Yeah, and we are both territorial assholes. But we are all trying.”

I curled my legs into my chest, staring down at the water. I knew he was right, I didn’t have to feel his emotions to know that. I could see it in his eyes, I could hear it in his words.

“Alright,” I whispered after a minute. “But I will be calling you out when you start acting like shit heads.”

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