Page 103 of Scales ’N’ Spells: Volume One

Alric froze. No one would dare speak about his little afternoon rendezvous with Cameron in his office. The meeting with Dieter afterward had been difficult enough, though his advisor would never do something so horrible as to actually hint that he knew exactly what had been happening behind the closed door. Dieter wouldn’t spread gossip, but had someone else been walking by his office and heard him?

“I thought you didn’t listen to gossip,” Alric replied, trying to keep his voice calm and maybe even a little bored.

“I don’t, but this was about a certain mage and a certain king.”

Alric placed his right hand on the surface of the desk and pushed to his feet, eyes narrowing on his old friend, who looked as if he was about to bust open if he didn’t share what malicious little tidbit he heard.

“I’ll not tolerate anyone in the castle spreading malicious gossip about Cameron,” Alric growled. His dragon stirred, demanding Alric hunt down the person who was speaking about his mage. Maybe his dragon would have this person for dinner and still spend the evening licking Cameron. Yes, that sounded much better.

Baldewin snickered as he held up one finger. “First, everyone adores Cameron. No one is going to say one mean thing about that man.” Baldewin added a second finger. “And two, the gossip is that your powers have started showing up in Cameron’s spells. Care to comment, Eure Majestät?” His friend’s expression became positively smug.

Groaning at himself, Alric instantly deflated as he walked around the desk. His dragon grumbled and settled back down, content to ignore Baldewin again. He walked over to one of the chairs positioned near the couch and dropped into it.

“I’m sure some people are making more of it than there needs to be. Cameron has grown comfortable with me. If he needs my powers to work his spells, then I am happy to lend it,” Alric said with a wave of his right hand.

Baldewin rolled onto his side face Alric, his smirk still firmly in place. “Really? I pray you’re just lying to yourself, because we both know after all these years, you can’t lie to me.”

“What do you think I’m lying about?”

Baldewin scoffed and dropped onto his back again. “He’s your mate!”

“We are not bonded,” Alric said sharply, nearly coming out of his chair again.

“I never said you were bonded. I said he is your mate. MATE, Alric.”

“Baldewin—”

His old friend made another noise in the back of his throat. “You have never used the word gefreogen to describe him, but we’ve all known it since the moment he first stepped into the castle. Everyone can see it in the way you look at him. Even old Sandor can see it, and that dragon is mostly blind in both eyes.”

Gefreogen was an old term dragons used to refer to the mage they were courting in hopes of that person being their mate. It was different from the more casual terms they used to describe those they might be casually sleeping with while acknowledging that they were not and would never be mates.

Alric hadn’t allowed himself to think of Cameron as his gefreogen, even after the mage suggested they try dating. For humans, dating was a very casual affair with most of the couples going their separate ways after months or even years. Most of the time, a dragon didn’t part from his gefreogen. They just went on to be bonded.

He was too afraid to hope that Cameron might be his mate. His forever.

“Alric?” Baldewin’s voice jerked him out of his swirling thoughts. Alric blinked and looked up at his friend to find his expression had turned to one of concern. “You do see it, right? He is your mate. Your fated mate.”

Alric gave a quick little shake of his head. “Cameron hasn’t indicated⁠—”

“I’m not talking about Cameron. I’m talking about you. What you’re feeling. Cameron is human with a head full of human ideas about dating and not moving too quickly. He probably hasn’t even stopped to listen to his heart. I’m asking if you’ve listened to your heart? Or even your dragon? What does your dragon think of Cameron?”

That wasn’t hard to know. His usually reserved and grumpy dragon had been incredibly vocal about Cameron from almost the first second of meeting the mage. And in the past few weeks, he was growing even louder. Mine. Mine. Mine.

A low rumble like distant thunder rolled through Alric’s chest as his dragon made happy noises as he thought of Cameron and his beautiful smile. His shining, excited eyes behind adorable glasses. His enthusiasm and willingness to help anyone and everyone he met. His exuberance for life. His compassion and concern for Alric.

Mine. Mate. Mine.

“He’s mine,” Alric said softly. “He’s my mate. I’d slaughter every threat to his life. I’d die to protect him, to make him happy. He…he’s my everything.” Alric pressed his right hand to his rapidly pounding heart and lifted his eyes to Baldewin. “He’s my mate. My everything.”

Baldewin’s face broke into a wide grin. “Thought so.”

Alric crashed back down almost as quickly as he rose up, his stomach twisting into sickening knots while his heart lurched in his chest.

“Oh Scheiße!” Alric swore on a pained gasp. “He’s my mate. What if he doesn’t want to be bonded to me? What if he doesn’t believe I’m his mate? What if—” Alric rested his elbow on his knee and shoved his fingers through his hair as he struggled to take in a breath. He’d faced blood-thirsty mages in battle, angry dragons, and even his enraged father, and none of it had ever terrified him the same way he felt at the thought of losing Cameron.

The couch groaned as Baldewin shifted and his friend was suddenly kneeling in front of him, a hand on his shoulder. “Breathe, Alric. When has a mage ever not fallen for his fated mate? Never.”

“But—”