Tropical Dragons Series Box Set - Naomi Lucas Page 0,45

I smile to myself.

We follow Father into the building, and Kaos drops the wet hide to the floor—like hooks aren’t even a thing. My smile grows.

His heart burns for me.

Everything else… is just else.

My gaze lands on the women and a couple of men seated on stools around the central firepit within. No one looks at me; they’re all staring in awe at Kaos. I can’t blame them. If one of the other tribemates brought Kaos to us, I would be doing the same exact thing. Though I know my eyes would be lingering, and I’d be strained with some jealousy. Clasping my mate’s hand, I claim him in front of my people.

The claim doesn’t go unnoticed.

Pernis, my grandfather, stands from his seat and clears his throat. His white hair is short, his back is hunched from years of labor, but his body is still sinewy with muscle. A male who is and always will be strong. “So this is the male…” he says, taking in all of Kaos’s strange features and differences.

Feeling the tips of Kaos’s wings brush against me, I nod.

“And you have found him deep within the forbidden jungle, as a giant beast?” Pernis asks.

“Yes, Grandfather.”

Some of the elders cough and hum.

“How do we know he won’t turn back into one of these giant creatures?”

Kaos steps forward. Pernis straightens. “I am bonded with Issa, as is the curse the red comet placed on my kindred—we take the form of human when touched by one.”

Oled grumps. “Unbelievable. They say you were a dragon. Your kind has never graced these lands before—at least not in my lifetime. Why are you here now? Why do we hear loud roars in the wind? Should we be worried?”

“My kind has always been here, human.” Kaos directs his steely gaze onto Oled. “This lagoon falls between two alpha dragon territories, mine, which was to the south, covering much of the jungle, and another to the north, who rules the water deep. Just because you have not seen us does not mean that we are not there. I was rousing from a long sleep when Issa came upon me. Perhaps… a far too lengthy sleep.”

“Is that a threat?” Oled snaps.

Grandfather grasps Oled’s shoulder. “Don’t, old man. If he is what he says he is, he could have destroyed us long ago. He could hurt us now. And yet, he hasn’t.”

“I don’t trust it,” Oled mumbles.

“You don’t have to.”

Esteus bangs his hand on the table. “Enough. Trust will be seen.” Father turns back to Kaos and me. “Should we worry about this other dragon?”

“No, he is fixated on one thing,” Kaos mutters darkly. “And one thing only.” His hand heats against mine, making me flustered, bringing a blush to my cheeks. “He will pursue the femdragon passing through our territories to mate with her. They will have no reason to seek you out or hurt you—as long as you don’t seek them out or hurt them,” he adds. “I suggest against the latter.”

“Young man—” Pernis begins.

“I am much older than you, human,” Kaos snaps. “Much older.”

“Kaos, is it then?” my grandfather asks.

“That is my name.”

Pernis steadies himself and glances at me before leveling Kaos a steely look of his own. “You hold my granddaughter’s hand. What do you have in mind for her?”

“To mate her, breed her, and protect her and our brood until our lives end.”

I stiffen, shocked at his omission, at the dark desire in his voice. Dropping my gaze from my grandfather, a streak of excitement and embarrassment rushes through me. My blush deepens.

It grows worse as silence falls. I swallow thickly, wishing I didn’t wonder at the thoughts running through their heads.

Then my grandfather continues, mortifying me further. “Will your children be human?”

“Yes,” Kaos states so matter-of-factly my eyes jump to him.

“Would you breed with other females of our tribe?”

My heart dies at the question.

Kaos growls and bares his teeth, startling some of the elders out of their seats. “Never!”

Pernis smiles. “Good.”

Astonished, I stare at my grandfather, his soft eyes meet mine.

“I accept you as one of us, Kaos,” he says as I gape.

Kaos’s growling stops.

“I accept you as a member of our tribe,” Father declares next.

They turn to Oled.

“I will not accept you until you prove your worth,” Oled fumes. He storms to the door and exits without a backward glance. Aida is distantly related to Oled, and yet I see their similarities. Kaos will prove his worth, I muse, relief already flooding my senses. Real, comforting relief. He will