To Wake a Dragon - Naomi Lucas Page 0,45

flying throughout. I do not recognize anything. Even the trees…

Everything has changed since I last flew through these lands.

Or perhaps it is the perspective.

Noises bombard my ears, coming from every direction. Smells too. It is almost too much, and I shake my head, trying to rid my senses of the clutter. But when I stop, this new world remains.

I sense animals watching us. I sense their fear—they know what I am, what I was. Venys remembers those that rule the land and skies, even if they have not ruled in many years.

Milaye grumbles with annoyance, unaware of my thoughts.

She knows this new world, she is a huntress, my huntress. She will teach me new knowledge to replace what I have lost. But first, she needs to eat, to bathe, to heal.

I stand and scoop her into my arms.

“What are you doing?”

I venture into the jungle. “Making this right.”

She falls silent as she settles against me. My huntress, it is my turn to lead.

The idea of her leading now and again is growing on me. Though I will always be her alpha. The alpha. If humans do not have them, they will now. It is all I know.

We walk for a time, I keep holding her in my embrace, using my tails to clear a path for us. After a time, her eyes open, widening to more than mere slivers.

“You can let me down,” she murmurs. “Do you know where we’re going?”

I shake my head and continue on.

Because I hear water, and I head for that. Through giant leaves, a brook appears. Pink flowers are floating over it. I stop at the edge and dip my tails into it, swiping the flowers aside.

Crystal clear, shallow water opens up to us. Besides some frogs and small fish, nothing hides beneath the flowers. I set my female down and step into the water to make certain that no creatures are lurking, clearing the rest of the flowers out as I do. “It is safe,” I say, turning to my mate.

She is already crouching at the edge gulping water from her cupped hands.

I cock my head. Humans are strange. They do not have long tongues to bring water to their mouths—or snouts to take in swallows.

She looks at me over her hands. Rivulets of water slice down her skin and through her fingers. My shaft rises, fills with fresh seed, and starts to ache.

I need her. Now.

I stride to her and stand poised. Her gaze falls on my prick. Her throat bobs.

“I need you. We have left the cave like you asked. Now I will claim you for my payment.”

Milaye’s dark eyes widen, still glistening from her tears adjusting to the light. I tense, liking the way she looks a little too much, liking that her neck strains to meet my gaze so high above hers. I cup her nape. It is warm under my palm.

A human’s palm. Not something I ever had as a beast.

I can smell myself all over her. My seed still marks her legs. I see its trails on her calves.

“Now, female,” I whisper.

“Milaye,” she whispers back, correcting me.

Her obstinance makes me want her more. “Now.” I pull her toward me and bring her into the water. She gasps, the sound music to my ears.

“Cold!” She tenses in my hold.

“I will make you warm,” I promise her as I lower myself into the water as well. The brook is not that deep, and sitting on our shins, the water only reaches our waists. Gripping her shirt covering, I untie the strings holding it on her.

Milaye catches it and tosses it on the bank. “Yes,” she agrees a little breathlessly. Her nipples are hard and pointed, and for the first time, I see the way the colors contrast against her breasts. There is such vibrancy to this world.

I have noticed her staring at me too, now that her sight has returned. Her eyes trailed my face a hundred times. They trailed my chest and shoulders even more. She is seeing me under sunlight for the first time, as I have her.

I enjoyed her marveling at my new form.

I feel strong in this body. Strength attracts females. I must be appealing as a male of her kind. At least I hope so. It would make it easier to keep her—and it would deter any other males from stealing her away… Whether those males existed or not… What matters is that I am strong and she is mine. Taking her hips into my