I Married A Dragon (Prime Mating Agency)(76)

“You’re my mate. That makes it my milk. He could share a little. I need it, too!”

“You are aware that the more Arzoth drinks, the more milk I produce, right? You should be grateful that he as such a healthy appetite!”

As if in response to his father’s shameless whining, Arzoth finally let go of my nipple, his little mouth chewing while he slowly blinked, looking ready for a nap.

“There, he’s done. Happy now? You can stop complaining.”

“YES!” Cedros hissed, coming to crouch in front of us.

I placed my palm over his snout, preventing him from leaning in to suck on my slightly sore nipple. He gave me an outraged look.

“Not so fast. You burp your son first. Then I’ll think about whether to give you the remaining milk.”

He made a face, looking at me as if I was doing him dirty, but still took our son with infinite care. I placed a towel on his shoulder and watched him settle Arzoth in the right position before tenderly rubbing his back. My heart melted looking at them. I leaned in to kiss our baby’s head before kissing Cedros. But loud screams outside cut that moment short.

“Oh brother,” I muttered, racing to the terrace to see what our other little hellions were up to.

Cedros chuckled in anticipation as he slowly followed behind me. My shoulders slumped, and I rolled my eyes at the spectacle that awaited us. Sitting on one of the chaise lounges on the terrace, our daughter Theka was directing the abuse Nero was inflicting on our firstborns. The shadow dweller held each of the twins by one leg, dangling them over the edge of the plateau. Whichever one Theka pointed at, Nero zapped with the electric tendrils at the tips of his tentacles. Obviously, it was no more than a tickle, but my wretched daughter had mesmerized the shadow dweller and had him eating out of the palm of her hands.

“Theka! Cut it out!” I shouted, putting my fists on my hips.

Looking guilty, Nero immediately tossed my oldest sons, Kairzan and Kinshu, onto the grass. They jumped back onto their feet, looking at me for the redress of their grievances. Theka stood up, holding my gaze with the same type of self-righteous outrage as her brothers.

“They stole my treat box and won’t confess!” she exclaimed, pointing an accusatory finger at her brothers.

I rolled my eyes. “They can’t confess because they didn’t steal it. I took away your box because you won’t stop gorging on the treats instead of only having a maximum of two a day, like we agreed when your father brought them to you.”

Theka scrunched her face before casting a ‘oopsie’ glance at her brothers. Then, brazen as always, she shrugged at them. “You still deserved it.”

The boys gasped in outrage and broke down chasing after their sister. She squealed and half ran, half flew into the house. Lightning fast, Nero swooped in, wrapping himself around Theka and camouflaging her. The boys shouted at the unfairness of it all while hunting them both down, making use of their freshly acquired Shadow Lord powers.

As amused and annoyed as I felt, my heart tightened looking at my children.

“What is it, my love?” Cedros asked, noticing my mood shift.

“I don’t want her to go on the Shadow Trail,” I said, piteously.

“She’ll be fine,” Cedros said reassuringly, drawing me against him with his tail.

“But she’s my only baby girl!”

“You sent out the twins and handled it just fine,” he countered.

“And they were gone for two years!” I exclaimed.

“And they just came back safe and sound as young Shadow Lords, didn’t they?” he argued.

“Yes, but she’ll be all alone. At least the twins had each other.”

“And she will have Nero. He worships her. You know he’ll never leave her side. She’ll be fine. Anyway, there’s no guarantee she will become a Shadow.”

Although I’d told myself the same arguments he was giving me, I wasn’t ready to let go of my maternal worries. “She’s a golden dragon, like all of our kids. There is a good chance she will become a Shadow Lady.”

Cedros nodded, not impressed or fazed in the least, and looking rather smug. “That’s right. One of the best Shadow Lords of this generation has sired them.” He chuckled when I glared at him and kissed the tip of my nose. “She’ll be fine, my love. Plus, we could always have another daughter.”

“What?! I’m not trying to find a replacement. Plus, I’ve just gotten off of maternity leave. You seem to forget that we haven’t shut down all of the illegal off-worlder fake shadow obsidian factories. Anyway, we already have four children.”

He shrugged. “You said Theka was becoming a spoiled brat, and that she needed a baby sister so that she’d be less of a little princess. And four is nothing. Trinit and Rovain have six younglings.”

“How many kids they have isn’t a valid argument,” I retorted, giving him a disbelieving look. “It’s not a competition.”

“It’s not?” he asked, opening overly innocent eyes.

Just as I playfully elbowed him in the ribs, Arzoth emitted a resounding burp.

“There! Burb done!” Cedros exclaimed with excessive joy. “Now it’s my turn to drink.”

I burst out laughing while rolling my eyes in discouragement. “You’re hopeless.”