Page 30 of Grumpy Dragon Christmas

“Oh, so it’s down to me to make you less grumpy?” Jade says as we make our way out of the smaller square and through the winding side streets which will take us to the main area where the celebration is taking place.

“You already make my life the brightest it’s ever been, heartsfire,” I say as we turn into the celebration zone, which is brightly lit with a myriad of sparkling lights.

Jade looks at me shyly from under her lashes, her hands clutching my arm tightly.

“I don’t know what to say to that, Drekkan.”

“Say you’re mine, forever.”

“I don’t want to be anyone else’s.”

“That’s not the same as being myszikra.”

“Szikra?” Jade queries, her pronunciation perfect. “That word doesn’t translate.”

“It means ‘my fate’ in old Sarkarnii.” I pull her ripe body against mine, the snow which has settled on her clothing melting between us as I tilt her face up so I can place a kiss on her lips. “You are my fate, Jade. If there’s only one reason I ended up on this ancestor forsaken rock, it has to be so fate could pluck you, my star, from the sky and hand you to me.”

I kiss her. She tastes like nectar, sweet, yielding, and glorious. I lose myself in her mouth, in my proximity to her, in her scent, in the press of her swollen stomach against my body.

Jade is my everything. The unborn young in her belly is my everything. If I can stay in this moment forever, it will not be long enough.

JADE

Drekkan kisses like he’s trying to draw out my soul. Dominant, possessive, and knicker-meltingly good. Everything, including the cold, disappears as my world contracts to just Drekkan and me.

“Such a sweet couple.”

“About time!”

“It’s what Sol-night is all about.”

Various comments finally make their way into my brain, and while we haven’t exactly drawn a crowd, we’re certainly attracting some attention.

I see my saviors from my night getting lost, Racil and Frank. They give me a wave and grin wildly.

“We should probably…” I stare up at Drekkan’s handsome face. The lights surrounding us glitter over his newly shed skin, and he’s looking at me like he wants to eat me. “…go to the celebration.”

“I will do whatever you desire, little snack,” Drekkan says in his dripping-with-sin voice. “You just have to say the word.”

His eyes are fire, such beautiful fire I don’t want to look away. This handsome dragon desires me, is at my beck and call.He worships my body. Despite my (as I now know) late-stage pregnancy, he wants more of it every day.

Drekkan is in rut for me and I’m already pregnant. I didn’t even think it was possible for Sarkarnii to go into rut where a female isn’t fertile, but he is. His rut is feral, demanding and I love it.

In fact, I think I might love him.

Gulp.

“Anything wrong?” he growls.

“No!” I squeak, wondering if I’ve just said something I shouldn’t have out loud. “I’m hungry.” I run my hand over my stomach. “And this one’s hungry too. We get to eat at this celebration, don’t we?”

I’m rushed through the building crowds so fast, my feet hardly touch the ground, Drekkan growling all the way, people leaping out of our way until we get to the open square.

“Drekkan, wait!” I call out, digging my heels into the snow.

The entire place is lit with holographic snowflakes, diamonds and other shapes I don’t recognize but which are all beautiful. The shapes hang in the air like Chinese lanterns and reflect the snow which is all around. The air is thick with the scent of cooked meats, sweet treats, and spices. Everywhere there are the brightly colored stalls selling everything.

I take it in with my big bad Sarkarnii at my back. His tail wraps around my ankle, and he has his hands around my shoulders, chin heavy on my head.

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