I Married A Dragon (Prime Mating Agency)(60)

“It’s an honor to meet all of you,” Kaida said, looking as overwhelmed with emotion as my family was.

I caressed her cheek, then took a couple of hesitant steps towards my family. They stiffened, shocked by this unusual behavior.

“Will you not embrace me, Mother? I have an Ejaya now. It’s okay to touch me,” I reminded her softly.

A stunned expression descended on her features before giving way to wonder as understanding dawned on her. A slow smile stretched her lips and then something seemed to snap inside her. She broke into a run and threw herself into my arms.

Having inherited my father’s height, I towered by a good head over my mother. I easily picked her up and buried my face in her neck. A tsunami of emotions crashed into me as I deeply inhaled the beloved maternal scent I had been denied for decades.

“My baby! My beautiful baby! I thought I’d never hold you again. My Cedros!”

Tears rolled down my cheeks as she covered my face with kisses and held me in a bone crushing hug that belied her otherwise delicate stature. Gods, how I had missed her… missed them… missed this. Coming to see them in the past and being forced to stay at a distance had become too much of a torture for all of us. Therefore, we’d resorted to only speaking through vidcoms. But this…

My sister complaining for her turn finally convinced my mother and I to reluctantly let go of each other. I embraced Caldri and Roldren in turn, each of them giving me just as powerful and emotionally charged hugs.

But seeing my mother pull my Kaida into her arms completely turned me upside down. My Ejaya, my perfect mate... She had given me everything: love, happiness, and my family back.





Chapter 16





Kaida





Stunned at first by his mother’s unexpected hug, I melted in her arms and returned it. My already constricted throat, from watching the moving reunion between Cedros and his mother, tightened further. I’d never known what a maternal embrace felt like. Oshtara didn’t just hug me with her arms, but with her tail as well.

Unlike Cedros, she didn’t rub her face all over mine—which would have been awkward—but only her temple against mine, marking me with her scent. While her tail still held me close against her, Oshtara cupped my face with both hands and examined my features like I was a marvel that filled her with awe.

“Thank you, Kaida. Thank you, my daughter. You have given me my son back and filled the gaping hole in my mother’s hearts. With each passing year without him having an Ejaya, I mentally prepared for the fact I’d lose my firstborn to a premature death. But the Gods answered my prayers. They reached across the stars and brought you to my Cedros. You are a blessing to my son, to our family, and to the people of Dramnac. Welcome home, my daughter.”

I blinked rapidly to stem the tears threatening to gush out of my eyes. I’d never been claimed like this. Growing up, I’d just been one of many orphans adding to the burden of the struggling colony.

“Thank you for the warm welcome, Ms. Kendriz. Being Cedros’s Ejaya is a great honor. He’s been wonderful to me,” I said, my voice shaking with emotion.

“Tut, tut! No such formalities between us. You can call me Mother or Oshtara,” she said with false severity.

I chuckled and gave her a sheepish look. I licked my lips nervously, wondering if I would be so bold as to give her the name I wanted to.

She did offer…

“Thank you… Mother,” I said with a nervous laugh.

The way she beamed at me, as well as the approving glances her children gave me, confirmed I had made the right choice. Each of Cedros’s siblings gave me a bruising hug, making me feel unbelievably welcome and at ease.

For the next little while, we sat at their patio table, having a spirited conversation. We sipped on some alcohol and fruit mixes similar to those Cedros had made me try during our picnic. The whole time, Oshtara was constantly touching Cedros as if to reassure herself that he was truly here. And his siblings were having a field day recounting embarrassing anecdotes about him growing up.

“Cedros used to hold me by one leg and dangle me over the edge of the plateau because I’d eaten his treats,” Roldren said with a shit-eating grin. “Since my flight was still iffy back then, I’d cry out to Mother to come save me.”

Cedros scrunched his face, playfully glaring at his brother while his scales darkened with a sliver of embarrassment. “He was doing it on purpose. He never stole Caldri’s food or things, always mine. I often caught him spying on Mother when she was preparing our snacks, so that he could snatch mine.”

I chuckled. “So he ate both his and yours?”

“No,” Roldren said, unrepentant, proud even. “I specifically wanted his and would leave my own behind.”

I gasped. “Oh, my God, but why?!”

“Because he was my big brother. I wanted to be like him. Eating his treats and taking his stuff made me more like him… in my head,” Roldren said with a shrug.

Cedros’s face melted, and he leaned over the table to kiss his brother’s forehead before sitting back. Roldren gave him an affectionate smile. Then his expression took on a mischievous edge.

“But it was also just for the fun of pissing him off,” Roldren added tauntingly. “It is a younger sibling’s duty to annoy his elders.”