The (Not) Satisfied Dragon - Colette Rhodes Page 0,39
word. I hope my girls are brave and resilient like you are, though. I was raised to be very dependent on the males in my life, I'd like my daughters to be able to fend for themselves if they had to.”
“They’ll never have to,” Leo interjected sharply.
“There are no guarantees in life,” Roxana said gently. “I'm sure Shira can attest to that.”
Her attitude had taken me by surprise. Since my mother had died, the only female dragon I'd had for company was myself, and I questioned at least daily whether or not I was normal. Maybe I was? Or maybe I wasn't as weird as I thought, at least, based on this conversation with Roxana. I didn't want to entirely depend on my mates either, and I hoped that if I ever had daughters one day, they'd be able to survive on their own too, if they ever had to.
Leo hummed thoughtfully, taking a sip of his tea as Roxana sliced the lemon cake and distributed it among us. I took an enormous bite, happy for the distraction.
“I hope you don't mind us visiting,” Roxana continued, plowing ahead with the conversation. She was almost as opposite of Ezra as could be with her loud, rapid way of talking and dramatic hand movements. “We know the Council has been keeping the guys busy this week with that sordid business with Flight Milain, I was so worried you'd be lonely here on your own all the time.”
“Oh.” Her concern caught me off-guard. “I've been keeping myself busy, but the company is nice.”
“Enjoy the peace and quiet before the little ones come along,” Roxana advised with a wink. I gave her a tight smile, definitely not ready to head down that path of conversation.
“Now, Roxana. Don't get ahead of yourself, Shira may not want to stay,” Leo said lightly, though his gaze was assessing. “They didn't get off to the best start.”
Some of my nervous energy turned into irritation. He was right, but who was he to question the relationship I had with my mates? It was between the six of us. I didn't owe anyone else an answer. Why should I be subjected to this interrogation on my own? My mates should have to be there for this chat too. My reasons for leaving had been valid, and they knew that.
“That is a conversation for my mates and myself first. I'm here now and I'm sure Ezra will let you know if the situation changes.” Roxana and Leo gave me approving looks. Maybe that had been a test too.
I let out a discreet sigh of relief as a thud outside the front door alerted me to the arrival of a dragon. I was confident it was one of my mates. The more time I spent around them, the more attuned to them I became.
Ezra stormed into the den first, rounding the archway into the dining room, still securing his trousers. “What are you doing here? You can't just stop in whenever you feel like it.”
I sent him a shut up glare with my eyeballs. He was not helping with my plans to win them over. To my surprise, he dropped into the seat next to me and stretched his arm over the back of my chair, angling his body towards mine. It was an affectionate gesture for him, almost protective.
“Why can't we drop in?” Roxana asked, pouting. “Shira is my daughter-in-law, I want to spend time with her now that she's home.” She said the last word with so much certainty, even I believed it.
“You can't just visit Shira while she's on her own,” Ezra grumbled as my other four mates filed into the room, crowding around behind Ezra and I causing something inside me to settle at having them all close again.
“Why not?” Leo asked mildly, his eyebrows raised.
Because I murdered a flight of dragons and you knocking on the door almost made me wet myself in fear. But we couldn't tell them that. Feeling bold, I reached across under the table and gave Ezra's muscular thigh a warning squeeze, silently asking him to tone down the protectiveness. His hand landed on mine, holding it in place before I could snatch it back again. Roxana and Leo were probably wondering why my face had just flamed bright red.
“I'm sure we don't need to remind you that Shira was held captive by the fae for many years. We just want to ensure she always feels comfortable in the den, this is her