Page 39 of Pregnant Rejected Mate

“I’m so scared, Kairo. You don’t understand.”

“You’re afraid of giving him another chance?”

I nod tentatively as I take a deep breath. “If I do, I’m afraid Felix is going to hurt me again. If I did really love him, I’d give him another chance, wouldn’t I? Maybe I’m mistaken…”

Kairo wraps an arm around my shoulders, pulling me into her warm embrace. “You love him, but you also love yourself enough to protect your heart. It’s up to him to prove himself now. Perhaps that’s why he suggested you meet the rest of our family.”

“Maybe he thinks I’ll leave…” I lament. “I’m not even sure what I want anymore.”

“Meet the family first, and then decide what you want. I know he wouldn’t force you to stay if you weren’t entirely sure.”

I nod as I uncoil my legs and decide to get ready for the day. Despite not returning his admission of love, he still wants me to meet his family. Perhaps he wants me to fall in love with the place instead of him.

If only he knew that I’m afraid of any kind of love and attachment only because it means I’ll get hurt.

***

I take a deep breath to strengthen my resolve as we enter the dining room. I’d foregone breakfast, thanks to Kairo, and offered to join the family for lunch instead.

The mid-afternoon sun warms the room as light filters in from the white blinds. Kairo and I are the first in the room, a dark-haired man entering soon after.

“Sierra Sanchez…” the man greets warmly, his voice gruff and commanding despite the cool tone. He rounds the oak table and stretches out a greeting hand. “I’m Dedrik Vulkan, Felix’s father.”

As I take the man’s hand to shake it in greeting, a beautiful woman appears from behind him, her features almost identical to Felix’s, with blue eyes and blonde hair, a warm smile that pokes dimples on her cheeks.

“And I’m Phoenix, his mother.”

I giggle nervously. “Oh, my… You’re both so… Young.”

“We haven’t aged in almost two thousand years,” she muses as she comes forward and pulls me into a hug. “That’s the beauty of immortality.”

“It’s quite impressive,” I marvel when she takes a step back. Her creamy skin is as smooth as marble, her delicate features etched into eternity. She’s stunning.

“You’ll make a fine immortal yourself, Sierra,” she praises warmly.

“I—” I gulp on my words, not sure how much Felix’s parents are aware of the situation. Glancing at Kairo beside me, she offers a coy shake of her head to signal that they know little, and I shouldn’t say anything more. “Thank you,” I say instead.

“There’s no need,” Phoenix giggles lightly, her blonde aves swaying like the finest silk in a gentle wind. “You’re beautiful, Sierra. I hope Felix knows how lucky he is to have you.”

It’s Kairo who replies to that statement. “If he doesn’t know by now, I’ll have my revenge in the arena,” she muses, though the glint in her eyes says that she means business.

It’s not that I’m insecure in any way. I witnessed the way his heady gaze drank me in on the mountaintop yesterday, and I’m certain he knows how beautiful I am.

That’s not what has fear hanging over my head. It’s the insecurity of not knowing what the future might bring if he suddenly decides that things couldn’t work out between us like he chose the last time.

With seven years gone by, I’m not sure if it’s been enough time for him to make a firm decision. Even with Draco and Aragon’s success stories with their human mates, will it be enough for him not to decide that a human and a weredragon can’t be together?

The uncertainty passes through me as a cold shiver, just as one of the success stories on the island walks into the dining room.

As described by Kairo, Lily is exactly what I’d envisioned she would be. With long, dark hair and the roundest brown eyes against ivory skin, she holds herself boldly as the Lady Dragon of the Aurora Dragons.

The alpha’s mate smiles warmly at me as she comes over to greet me for the first time.

We make our acquaintances, exchanging a few words as I marvel at how confident she is.

“It’s nice to have more non-shape-shifting people around,” Lily giggles. “It’s quite frustrating when an argument allows a dragon to just fly off from his problems.”

“What’s worse is being lifted off your feet in the midst of an argument,” Yazmine titters on her way in.

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