Page 28 of Claimed by the Savage Dragons
I look at the pretty human again, smelling that mouthwatering scent. Tor was right. It’s already growing on me. And she’s more than pretty, I realize. She’s beautiful. Despite what my brethren think they know, it’s been a very long time since I indulged in a female at all, much less a human and Drey will give her to Aziel. He will demand it. Tor was right about that too.
‘There’s only one way,’ I murmur. ‘You’d never get away with it if it was just you… but both of us? It might be enough and even Aziel won’t be able to do anything.’
He stands up, the bottle in his hand forgotten. ‘Stake a claim, you mean?Bothof us?’
He looks more intrigued about sharing her than pissed and I raise a brow. That’s a start, I guess.
‘Why not? It’s done with the dragon females all the time.’
‘Only so there’s more chance of producing offspring because there are so few,’ he argues, his hands running through his sandy hair roughly. ‘That doesn’t apply to humans. There’s a fucking ton of them still.’
‘Do you know the law?’ I ask. ‘I mean the exact words?’
He shakes his head. ‘No, not the exact words.’
‘Well, I do.’ I lean toward him slightly. ‘You know there’s no mention of dragons or humans at all. Only ‘female’.
His eyes widen. ‘Are you sure?’
‘Hundred percent. Part of my job is knowing our laws. We claim her, both of us, and we create ‘a nest’. The nest is protected by our oldest decrees. Thousands of years of cases back it up. Drey wouldn’t be able to go against it, and, more importantly, he wouldn’t be expected to.’
‘So Aziel wouldn’t be able to use it against him,’ Tor finishes.
I nod. ‘Never know, our illustrious leader might even thank us. It’s rare that Aziel is put in his place these days.’
‘I didn’t think you’d be prepared to…’ He trails off and I quirk a brow at him.
‘Move against Aziel?’ I grin, glad to see that my acting skills are good enough that even my friend can’t tell what’s real and what’s not. ‘He told me to do it, you know.’
‘Drey? Do what?’
‘Get close to that asshole. Make sure I’d know if he was plotting something real.’
Tor’s surprise is evident. ‘At first, that’s what I thought but the months went by, and you argued against Drey more than once. You treat the humans the way he and his allies do.’
I give him a small stage bow. ‘Smoke and mirrors.’
Tor looks down at the human. Soon to beourhuman, I remind myself. I should be surprised at myself. I’m not one who likes the idea of being tied down. But there’s something about this one. Humans don’t usually earn a second look from me, except when I’m pretending they interest me.
‘If she’s going to be part of a nest,ournest, you won’t treat her like you do the others,’ he says quietly, his voice like steel.
I don’t look at him. Of course he’d think it was real. Everyone else does. All the humans cringe away from me when they cross paths with me as much as they do Aziel and his ilk. Hannah is very good at making sure everyone thinks she’s terrified of me. If we’re going to go through with this, I won’t be able to protect her anymore, I realize. I’ll have to move up my plan to get her away safely.
‘Things aren’t always as they appear,’ I say quietly.
My friend gives me a thoughtful look. ‘I guess not.’
‘We’ll have to do it before we leave here,’ I say. ‘The scents on her have to be strong. Irrefutable to the others.’
‘I know.’
But still he hesitates.
‘Why are you so okay with this?’ he asks.
‘Is ennui an acceptable answer?’
He lets out a choked chuckle. ‘No, Brax. No one decides to do something like this out of boredom. Not even you.’
