Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 93267 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 466(@200wpm)___ 373(@250wpm)___ 311(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93267 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 466(@200wpm)___ 373(@250wpm)___ 311(@300wpm)
Sora huffed a quiet laugh and dropped his arms to his sides. “I’ll be happy to have you as a student. First step will be learning a dragon’s mental health.”
An obvious dig, but no less than he deserved.
Salem turned his gaze back to Gregori.
Gregori lifted his right hand and dragged his fingertips ever so lightly across Salem’s cheek. “I won’t deny I want you in Brazil for my own selfish reasons, but I think you will learn a lot from the mages. They will help you to understand your magic, and you’ll be able to help even more people than ever before. That alone will make you happy.”
Salem shook his head. “Going to Brazil has to be about more than just magic. I told you, I don’t want to lose you, and I want to try for a healthy relationship. Still, I can’t promise that I can be your true mate. Once you’re home with your family, you might finally come to your senses and realize what a truly bad match I am for you.”
Gregori leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to the center of his forehead, and a knot that had tightened in Salem’s chest loosened at last. “I know what kind of person you are, and I’m not worried. But I agree. Come back to Brazil with us. I promise to take better care of myself, and we will take things slowly. If you need space, then that’s exactly what I’ll give you so we can figure this out.”
The promise of learning magic to complement his skills as a doctor. The promise of getting the space he needed to figure out if he could actually be in a healthy relationship with Gregori.
Hell, with access to so many mated mages, he might be able to talk to someone who could explain what it meant to be mated to a dragon, and just why he was so fucking bad at it.
Forcing a smile, he looked up at Gregori and nodded. “Okay. First, I need to write a resignation letter. Then let’s pack. We’re all going back to Brazil.”
Just over twenty-four hours later, Gregori tipped his head toward puffy clouds and roared as he glided over deep blue waters, wide strips of white sand beaches, and deep green palm trees. He was home, and he had his mate on his back.
They’d survived a chaotic day of Sora looking him over and treating him while at the same time giving Salem lessons on what mages could do with their magic. Meanwhile, Dimitri had been on the phone with Rodrigo, making his report about Gregori’s sad state. His king didn’t even ask to talk to him. No, he’d said only one thing.
I’m sending Thiago.
Fuck. The appearance of the king’s right-hand man was almost as bad as Rodrigo showing up on his doorstep. He was in so much trouble. He’d lied to Ha Na, which was just as bad as lying to Rodrigo, and he’d put his life in danger when he should have reached out for help.
Thiago had shown up at Salem’s apartment less than a half day later with two saddles, magic supplies for Sora, and a scowl.
After some quick packing, some additional dragon-pile snuggles, and a lengthy lecture about Gregori’s complete lack of common sense, they finally took to the air, flying toward home.
The first half of the trip had been taken slowly, with them making three different stops before they even made it out of the United States. None of his companions would allow him to push too hard, despite how much better he was feeling. And he was.
Flanked by two dragons and mages with his own mate on his back, how could he not feel better? His strength was improving. It was easier to shift back and forth between his human and dragon forms. His ability to use magic was almost back to normal as well.
But when they flew over the Valerii compound on their first circle as they headed lower for a landing, he couldn’t deny that a core piece of what he’d been missing slipped into place. Magic sparked and tingled thick in the air. Below, several humans shifted into dragons and trumpeted their own welcome. They spread their wings and launched themselves into the air to meet him.
Home. Home. Home.
He was home.
No dragon should ever have to spend so much time away from their clan. A single dragon was an incredible force of strength and magic, but it was nothing compared to the strength of an entire clan. Joy blossomed in his chest and formed a knot in his throat.
A squeal and shout from Salem snapped Gregori out of his reverie to realize he’d been sharply diving toward the Valerii private beach. Salem had been a real trooper, learning to put up with long hours in the saddle, but he was still too new to dragon riding to attempt anything fancy like a nosedive or barrel rolls. They’d work up to it.