I Married A Dragon (Prime Mating Agency)(17)

“So you experience it through the movies,” she said in a soft voice.

I nodded.

“I like family plays the most. I love seeing how normal younglings are raised by their parents,” I said wistfully.

“You are normal,” Kaida said with a frown. “You just have extra abilities.”

I smiled, both touched and amused by her reaction. “I didn’t mean to sound as if I believed myself less,” I said teasingly. “I’ve been told my whole life that I am actually greater than the common Derakeen. I do not have low self-esteem because of what I am.”

“Good! Nor should you,” she said firmly in a way that made me chuckle.

“Still, it would have been nice to see my lair filled with life, like in those plays,” I said matter-of-factly.

Kaida tilted her head to the side. “You want a big family with many children?”

“I did.”

“Did?” she repeated, frowning again.

“I cannot have one unless you fall in love with me,” I said with a shrug. “Most Shadow Lords remain single. But for those of us who take a mate, it is always their Ejaya.”

“Oh,” Kaida said, looking guilty.

“Do not feel bad, my Kaida,” I said. “Although Ejaya’s usually marry their Shadow Lord, it sometimes happens that an Ejaya is already mated by the time her Shadow Lord finds her. Some Ejayas meet their true mates afterward. There is no rule that states an Ejaya and a Shadow Lord must fall in love. She can be by his side during the day, then have a normal family who she returns to every night.”

“And the Ejaya’s mate doesn’t mind that another male is hugging his female and rubbing all over her for hours every day?” Kaida asked, her eyes wide with shock.

I chuckled. “We are not ‘another male’ but Shadow Lords,” I replied teasingly. “There is nothing sexual in those interactions. So no, their mates do not mind. Quite the opposite. It is an honor for a male to have an Ejaya as his mate. It greatly elevates his status.”

“Wow. That’s admirable.”

It was my turn to tilt my head and look at her strangely. “Admirable? You sound like you disagree.”

She shifted on her feet and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “I don’t consider myself the jealous or controlling type, but if my partner was an Ejaya, I wouldn’t be okay with them getting hugged the way you’ve been hugging me. Even though you’ve done nothing inappropriate, it’s too intimate. Only I should hold my partner that way.”

I reflected on her words, an uneasy feeling settling in the pit of my stomach. “So, if you were to find yourself a mate—human or otherwise—would you then abandon me to keep him from feeling unfounded jealousy?”

Kaida stiffened, her eyes widening as the greater meaning of her words dawned on her. She chewed her bottom lip before shaking her head. “When you put it that way, it’s suddenly less black and white. No, I wouldn’t abandon you. But man… I can’t imagine explaining this to my boyfriend or husband.”

My smile returned as relief drained the tension building in my back. “There’s a simple solution. The day you wish for a mate, pick me.”

Kaida’s lips parted in shock. I chuckled, unable to believe my boldness. I had not really considered that possibility, but that thought was seriously growing on me. Not giving her a chance to respond, I grabbed her hand and drew her after me.

“Let me show you the rest of the house. I do not really use these other rooms. They are basically guest rooms right now—not that I ever have guests—and were meant to eventually become my offspring’s nests.”

I quickly showed her the three spacious rooms, each a smaller version of my nest, as well as the two other hygiene rooms. I then led her to the fourth room.

“As you can see, this is currently empty. I intended to make it a playroom for the younglings. However, you are free to do with it as you please, be it an office, a training room, or whatever else you fancy.”

“Thank you! I could certainly use both!” Kaida said with a grin.

“Anything you need that isn’t available on Dramnac, I can open a portal anywhere in the universe to go fetch it for you,” I said proudly.

“You know, I could get used to that kind of first-class shopping,” she said teasingly.

“You most certainly can,” I said, both smug and serious. I walked back out of the room and showed her the last door closest to my lair. I opened it and waved her in. “This is technically your nest.”

“Technically?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

“An Ejaya sleeps with her Shadow Lord,” I said, as if it was self-evident.

“Like mates?”

“No, to the extent they don’t couple. It’s just for contact, unless they become mates,” I explained. “Anyway, Derakeens rarely couple inside their lair. My people mostly do it in flight. It also diminishes the risks of burning things at the time of climax.”

“You breathe fire when you climax?”

The words no sooner left Kaida’s lips than a bright shade of red suddenly crept up her cheek. It was insanely adorable.

I chuckled and shrugged. “Me? I don’t know. I’ve never coupled with a female. But it is common for both males and females to breathe fire when they do.”