Cameron called him that. There was such love and warmth in his voice. “You were meant to be my dragon.”
“And you were meant to be my mage,” Alric agreed.
Cameron kissed him slowly, his tongue sweeping across Alric’s lips, entreating entrance. Alric’s opened and welcomed Cameron inside; he wanted Cameron inside all of him. The kiss started with tenderness, whispering of devotion and unspoken promises of long centuries together.
But the heat was building. Hunger was growing. New urgency was bleeding into the kiss, teeth clacking together as they tried to get closer. There were too many damn clothes separating them. He needed to be inside of Cameron, to hear him moan and beg and cry out Alric’s name.
But removing clothing pushed them on to other events, and there were important matters that needed to be concluded first.
With a great deal of reluctance, Alric broke off the kiss, earning a soft whimper from Cameron that nearly had him diving back in again.
“Soon, Liebling,” Alric whispered.
“Oh, no. Not soon. Now,” Cameron grumbled. He grabbed at Alric’s shirt, pulling it from his slacks to get at the warm skin that lay beneath. “We’re finally alone. You’ve threatened the clan with being thrown in the dungeon if we’re disturbed. I’m getting me some hot dragon nookie.”
“And I am happy to give you some hot dragon nookie,” Alric replied around a laugh. “But there’s something I must ask of you first.”
“Position?”
“No, be serious please, Liebling. You’ve spoken the words I longed to hear. I must ask, do you intend to be my co-ruler as well?”
Cameron immediately stopped moving, his head raising to stare directly into Alric’s eyes. “I’ve been thinking about that a lot. And I’m not sure if I’d be good at it, honestly.”
“I think you’ll be amazing at it. After the fight was over, you took charge of the scene without issue. I didn’t have to give more than one order, and that was to retreat home. You handled everything else and did it well.”
“I…guess I did? People just seemed to need a little prodding, and I didn’t want you doing it, you were already in too much pain. Wait, is it really that easy?”
Alric felt vindicated that Cameron had such natural leadership ability that it hadn’t challenged him. He’d felt sure that was the case. “Yes. Normally, day to day, it’s that easy. Anything harder, we’ll of course do together.”
“Co-ruler,” Cameron murmured in understanding. “I was seriously stressing about that, you know. Being your consort. But I guess I was overthinking it. Really, if you’re there with me, I feel like I can do anything.”
“Ah, Liebling, you took the words from my mouth. That’s precisely how I feel when I’m with you.” He kissed Cameron softly, thrilled beyond words to get that answer. “Then you will?”
Resolve hardened Cameron’s jaw, and he gave a firm nod. “I will. Then we’ll marry?”
“Ja. I thought you’d also like to complete our bonding.”
Cameron’s head canted in question. “There’s more? I figured all we needed to do was tell everyone we’re mates, and I’m sure Ravi is handling that right now.”
Tilting his head up, Alric pressed a kiss to his lover’s chin. “There are promises and a simple spell we cast together.”
Cameron’s nose wrinkled as he glanced around the room. “Do…do we need anything for the spell?”
“No, just us—your magical skill and my power.”
The smile returned to Cameron’s lips, and he drew in a deep breath. “Okay, what do I do?”
Alric lifted one eyebrow at his mage, loving his excitement and enthusiasm. “Remember, this cannot be undone. Our magic, our souls, and our essences will be bound together for the rest of our days. As long as I’m alive, you will be too, your years extended for centuries. And if I die, you will likely follow me. There have been no instances of mages living past the death of their mated dragon. Are you su—”
“You do not want to finish that question,” Cameron said in a low, hard voice. He leaned forward, bumping his forehead against Alric’s. “I don’t want to outlive you. Whether we have days or centuries together, I want to spend them all with you.”
Alric closed his eyes, letting Cameron’s unwavering devotion wash through him. It went without saying that if something happened to Cameron, Alric wouldn’t survive it either.
Pressing a quick kiss to Cameron’s lips, Alric stepped back and took hold of Cameron’s hands in each of his so that their bodies formed a circle. He looked up at his soulmate and grinned.
“Cameron Park,