And as soon as we figure something out, it changes.
She appears closer to a five-month-old than her real age of seven weeks. Parenting blogs say that it’s unbelievable how quickly babies change, but a dragonling puts that all to shame. I’m not prepared for how much quicker she’s developing than a human child, and it feels like whenever I blink, she becomes someone new.
“We have an agreement of sorts,” Kalos says, sliding into bed beside me and combing his talons through her downy dark hair. “I spoil her, and she doesn’t try to wake you through your bond.”
I sigh and rest my head against his shoulder. “It seems like your agreement needs to be renegotiated.”
“Perhaps.” Kalos hums and kisses my cheek.
His contentment thrums through our bond. It had taken a couple of months to develop the bond to a place where he can feel me, and even more time for me to complete it enough to be able to feel him, but this intimacy is like nothing I’ve ever experienced.
For so long I was alone in the world, and now the ethereal bonds of my little family ensures I never am. The hatchling bond has been helpful for trying to guess what Evangeline needs. Every day I wonder if it will ever stop feeling like my heart resides outside of my body. Perhaps it will change at the end of the first year. That’s when Kalos says the bond fades into a more inactive form.
Eventually Eva finishes nursing, and Kalos whisks her away again. She doesn’t complain and gurgles happily at him.
“Get in the bath. I’ll handle things,” he says and heads out of the room before I attempt to protest, even though I’m aching for a good scrub and soak. Taking care of a baby is a lot of things, miraculous, amazing, and gross.
I down a granola bar and a ton of water as I wait for the water to fill the tub. By the time I rinse in the connected shower, the water is just at the right height and I lower in with a blush-inducing moan of pleasure, closing my eyes and relaxing in the luxurious water.
There are benefits to not being pregnant anymore. The ability to have a hot bath without the water going cold instantly is a big one.
Hot hands caress my skin, and my lashes flutter open, my mate’s eyes glow gold in satisfaction.
“Where’s—” I start but he interrupts.
“Maggie is watching her.” Kalos slips into the water behind me, my bare body resting against his.
I hum in gratitude even as I bite my lip.
Kalos’s chuckle vibrates against my back. “I can feel your guilt, my queen. She won’t miss us for the length of a bath.”
He’s right. He usually is. And I appreciate this time alone with him too much to complain about it.
With the help of magic, I’m completely healed from birth even if I’m still taking it easy physically. Luckily, we have so many people who are helping, but that’s a guilt in itself. Eva is developing so fast that it’s inevitable that I’ll miss milestones if I want to spend a day in my studio.
Kalos must feel the same because his inner circle has been running his business practically without him since the birth.
“When do you think she’ll slow down?” I ask.
“Another month maybe,” Kalos muses. “Her growth will start to match the pace of human development when she can move around by herself. The more independent she becomes, the less her magic will try to speed up her progress for her safety.”
I rest my head back, enjoying the light touches of my mate’s hands under the water. “That makes sense. Maybe it will be easier for me not to hover by then.”
Kalos brushes his lips against my shoulder. “Perhaps. And perhaps this is only a new skill to learn.”
The skill of mitigating my guilt. I suppose all new mothers have to deal with that.
His fangs brush over one of my mating marks, and a shiver runs down my spine. I hum and press harder against his body, needing the contact. Adapting to this new life will take time and skill, but I’m not alone, and my mate is excellent at providing healthy distractions.
“Does my queen need to be worshipped?” he asks.
“You worship me with every action.” I press my thighs together.
“As you do for me.” He drags his teeth over the skin of my neck again, an echo of when he tried to scare me away in the very beginning.
“I miss the way you feel inside of me,” I whisper. “I want to be used. I want to feel like that thief you caught stealing from your hoard.”
His chuckle is dark, and his hand slides up my inner thigh, massaging my pussy. His other hand cradles and massages my breast. I moan.
“Easy,” he says, stopping me when I try to turn in his arms. “Let me pleasure you how I want.”
I sink into the sensation of his touches, riding the rising waves of need this dragon easily stokes.
My breathing becomes choppy the longer he teases me, and I start to shift my hips without meaning to, arching my back. The hum of comfort rises in time to each movement and I sigh. Accents of bliss tantalize me until I’m clutching his hands.
“Please, Kalos, I’m so empty.”
This time when I twist in his arms to straddle him, he lets me. His lips part as his eyes devour my flushed face and breasts. Water drips down my heated skin when he clasps the back of my neck.
I rock my hips over his erections, but he guides me over his upper cock, the only one he’s allowed me to take since giving birth. I’m too greedy to complain about the ridged length and sink my hips down. The stretch makes me hiss, but feels otherworldly.
“Slowly, Rina, careful,” Kalos says, his voice deep with need, but stern.
“I can handle this,” I whisper, my eyes rolling back at the drag of the textured cock inside me when I rise up again.
He growls. “You’ll handle what I tell you to handle.”
I tense around him at that, delighting in his dominance even as it causes frustration. I keep my movements slow, the water of the tub lapping the undersides of my breasts. Kalos strums my clit with his thumb in slow circles, and I’m peaking before I mean to.
The orgasm only makes me needier to be filled exactly how I’ve craved. Kalos’s hips rock with me now, seeking his own release.
“I can take more,” I beg. “I can take your knot.”
Kalos grunts, and his healing release floods me, causing my toes to curl, but his body doesn’t relax. Not with how I’ve said the word knot. He’s been keeping that part of himself away from me, sweetly not wanting to push me too quickly.
But it’s left him short on control, and I’m ready to tear that bulwark down.
“Please,” I say, dragging my nails over the mating mark I left on him. “I need your claiming.”
Kalos snarls, lifting and turning me over the edge of the tub. Water splashes everywhere, but I couldn’t care less. Joy rushes through my veins that he’s going to give me what I’ve been begging for. The head of his hard lower cock presses against my pussy in circles, spreading his first release around messily.
“Is this how you wanted it, sweet queen?” Kalos asks, his tone vibrant with vicious need. A wicked part of me wants to push him farther, but he has me pinned in place.