Page 55 of Mage of the Dragon Prince
The shifter took a deep breath, which had the benefit of allowing him to smell Vanra even better. His dragon rattled in his cage again, furious over being denied access to the mage. “Humans still have it as a vestigial function. They are unaware, but it has a subtle influence on attracting a partner.”
“Wait, really?” Vanra asked in surprise. “If that’s true, why don’t I know about it? That seems like something humans should know.”
“It seems much has been forgotten in the years between now and your time,” Kitaro guessed, not having an answer to that question.
“Are you trying to say I’m in heat right now?” Vanra’s cheeks turned a becoming shade of pink.
It was a relief that he didn’t have to spell it out completely. By discussing what a heat was, it was making Kitaro hyperaware of Vanra’s. His dragon restlessly paced in its cage. “Yes.”
“So, I smell bad right now, and that’s why Mitsuki is mad at me?”
“Oh, no. It is quite the opposite, in fact. That was the temptation Father was referring to.”
“Temptation?” Vanra tilted his head with a puzzled expression.
“To bed you and drown in your heat scent,” Kitaro replied, feeling embarrassed to admit to the thing his dragon was begging to do.
“Oh!” Vanra’s eyes went wide in surprise. “What, seriously?”
“Indeed. It is a most…tantalizing experience.”
Vanra’s blush deepened. “Is that why you were so…this morning?” It was cute that he couldn’t find the right words to describe Kitaro’s lapse in bed.
“Regrettably.” Kitaro cursed his dragon for being so unruly earlier. “I was unprepared for such an impact.”
“Because I’m human?”
“No, because someone’s heat has never affected me before.”
Curiosity replaced Vanra’s discomfort. “Why is that?”
Kitaro took a moment to figure out how best to phrase his answer. “I have never been interested in anyone else enough that their heat influenced me.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Heat scents are only tempting to those who are already drawn to that person.”
Vanra’s expression became more confused. “But Mitsuki hates me. Why would it tempt him?”
That answer was more unclear to Kitaro. “There could be many reasons. I do not profess to understand my oldest brother’s mindset.”
“What are the Enchanters?” Vanra asked.
“They are the ones responsible for using their powers to enchant all the objects in our home with abilities,” Kitaro explained. “They are some of the most advanced magic users in the Living Realm.”
“Are they the ones who make the doors automatically open?”
Kitaro nodded. “Yes, they are the ones that have made it so that everything here functions through magic.”
“And they can make a charm that suppresses my heat scent?”
“Yes.” Kitaro’s dragon howled at him for daring to deny them the sweet smell of Vanra’s heat. He did his best to ignore it. “Under the circumstances, I think Father is right. This is for the best.”
“I’ll do whatever is necessary,” Vanra said. “I don’t want to cause any more problems.”
“You are never a problem.”
Vanra gave Kitaro a skeptical look. “You don’t think what happened with Mitsuki is a problem?”
