Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 84237 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 421(@200wpm)___ 337(@250wpm)___ 281(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 84237 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 421(@200wpm)___ 337(@250wpm)___ 281(@300wpm)
Yes, they would feed him and tuck him away in their hoard. And books. He appeared to be the type who wanted to be surrounded with books. They would give him books and dusty old artefacts. They’d brought lots of rare relics from the Old Country. Or maybe shiny things filled with magic. That would please the mage.
Then they would be allowed to lick him.
Dimitri wanted to roll his eyes at the pushy needs and fragmented thoughts of his horny dragon. His dragon had no finesse, and this guy already looked like he was less than pleased to have Dimitri sticking his nose in his business.
But…really?
He was a dragon. Everyone wanted to get close to the dragons right now. Humans, governments, and corporations were all pounding on their doors, wanting something.
And this one little mage wasn’t interested?
Dimitri was going to fix that fast enough. Sure, it was mostly his ego that was pricked, but then the dragons had spent the past several months being wooed by the world. In his opinion, the Valerii didn’t need the rest of the world. Only the mages. And this little mage didn’t give a shit about dragons?
The man was just playing hard to get, and Dimitri loved catching elusive prey. It was just a matter of turning on some charm. If that didn’t work, he’d whisper those magic words You’re a mage and he’d be jumping at the chance to join their clan. It would be as Nikki Burkhard liked to say, easy peasy lemon squeezie.
Dimitri forced his eyes to the sheaf of papers in the man’s hands. It took an extra second to drag his gaze away from those long, slender fingers, so pale compared to Dimitri’s own swarthy skin and the tanned flesh he was more accustomed to seeing in Rio de Janeiro. This poor man was going to be sunburned in a matter of minutes if he wasn’t careful.
Dimitri shoved the thought aside and concentrated on the words, but that only caused a new frown. “I know that hotel,” he murmured. “It’s not in a very good neighborhood.” Screw that. There was no way he was letting this mage out of his sight. He’d simply have to bring him back to the rest of the clan for his own safety.
“It’ll be fine. It’s only for a night or two, then I’m hoping to head out again.”
Dimitri choked on his heart trying to climb out of his chest. “You’re planning to leave Barra da Tijuca already?” His eyes darted to the heavy bags hanging on the man’s shoulders. “You’ve just arrived! You can’t leave.”
The mage took a step away, eyes wide behind his glasses. The huge backpack bumped into the brick wall of a building, trapping him. His gaze darted away as if he was searching for a way to escape, and Dimitri didn’t blame him. He hadn’t meant to shout right in the guy’s face. He stepped back, giving him a little more breathing room while putting on his warmest smile. He was coming on way too strong, putting the mage on edge, which wasn’t his goal at all.
“I-I’m an archeologist. I’m here on a scouting expedition. In the forest. My guide is supposed to meet me here in Barra da Tijuca,” the mage started with a stammer, but his voice grew stronger with each word as if regaining his bearings.
This sounded vaguely familiar, pinging off faint memories of past conversations with King Rodrigo and his advisor Thiago.
“What’s your name?”
“Samuel. Dr. Samuel Hunter.” The mage paused, his brow furrowing slightly. “Are the Valerii the only dragon clan here in Rio de Janeiro?”
“Yes, definitely. Dragons get along much better when our territories aren’t too close together.” Dimitri smirked and moved closer, amused by the way Samuel’s Adam’s apple bobbed when he swallowed hard. It took him an extra second to realize that he’d once again stepped into the mage’s personal space. He wasn’t usually so pushy, but as he tried to retreat again his dragon let out a whine, refusing to allow another millimeter of distance to separate them. “We’re very protective and possessive of mages in our domain. When other dragon clans are too close, we get…grumpy.”
Dimitri waited to see if the mention of mages would cause a flicker of something in the man’s eyes. Maybe a flash of awareness. A look of hope. Anything.
Samuel remained unamused and distinctly uninterested. If anything, he was appearing very put out by this entire conversation. Dimitri did not understand this mage at all.
“You’re the archeologist wanting to go up into the mountains near Parque Nacional da Serra da Bocaina?”
The adorable little man winced as if his brain was in pain after hearing that question. After a second, he gave a brisk nod. “Yes. That’s the place. I believe it’s located only a few hours from here.”