Page 59 of Her Dragon Daddy Disaster
She prowled forward across my roof, arms out wide, inviting me into her embrace. There was no saying no, no turning it down, and I groaned inwardly as my arms touched nothing but bare skin.
Lydia wore a nearly floor-length shimmeringglani, the traditional wear of dragon females. It was dyed a deep purple to match the scales of the dragon next to her and cut to emphasize her figure, which included revealing ample amounts of skin, from collarbone to navel in front, and it was backless and armless with slits down her sides.
It was obvious to anyone she wore nothing underneath.
Stiffly, I hugged her, wondering if the holes Sarah’s eyes drilled in my back would penetrate through and hit Lydia.
“Good to see you,” Lydia said, pulling away and acting as if she wasn’t causing all sorts of commotion in my personal life.
She had to know … didn’t she?
“You as well,” I said, looking off to the side. Studying anythingbuther. “What brings you here?”
Malakai spoke. He was still in his dragon form, sitting on the roof across from us with casual aplomb.
“We need to speak in private.”
I chewed on the near-command for a moment, trying to decide how to respond to his tone of voice. It wasn’t one I appreciated. Malakai wasn’t my superior. He was my best friend. We didn’t order one another around in such tones.
“It’s fine,” Sarah said with a hair of frostiness as I glanced at her, wondering how she would take it. “I’ll let you boys catch up.”
I hoped the coldness was directed at Malakai, but I wasn’t such an idiot as to think it wassolelyfor him. The entire situation was irritating her, and I would hear about it later for sure.
“That was unnecessary,” I said once Sarah was inside.
“She’s a human,” Malakai said, one of his wings flicking dismissively. “This is dragon business.”
I bristled on the inside.
“Levi,” Lydia purred. “This is important.”
I still didn’t look at her. Why did she have to be dressed that way?
“What’s going on?” I asked Malakai instead.
“You’re going to write another speech.”
It wasn’t a question or a request. Malakai expected to be obeyed.
“What kind of speech?” I asked, resolving to have words with him when Lydia wasn’t around, about the way he was talking to me. I wouldn’t embarrass my friend by calling him out in front of his mate. “What for?”
Something flickered deep within the dragon eyes that stared back at me across the purple snout. Something ugly.
“We’re going to do it, Levi. The last rally proved it’s time. Our support has never been stronger. The sovereign’s never been weaker.”
I hesitated. Was he serious? Could it be? “What are we going to do?”
“The sovereign’s time is over, Levi. We’re going to storm the palace. That’s what your speech will be for. To rouse the spirit of the men. Put them in the proper mood by regaling them with tales of uprising and revolt, of the better world we’ll create once I’m in command. Once someone who cares about the people and their wants leads them.”
“We’re so close, Levi,” Lydia said, leaning in to whisper in my ear. “One last push.”
“Indeed,” Malakai added. “One last push. One more speech delivered right before we make our move. To bring them to a frenzied pitch.”
I shook my head, seeing a dozen flaws. “Are you sure we’re ready? After the plaza, I think we need to reevaluate. Those loyalists were ready for us, Levi. They knew who we were, what we were doing, and they were organized. How did that happen so fast without us hearing about it?”
Malakai waved that off. “You didn’t see what I saw in the aftermath.”
I ignored the subtle dig at the fact I hadn’t been in the plaza until the end. “We need to gather more support, bring more people to our side first,” I said.
