Chapter 281: Training Wheels Off

Okay. Slight miscalculation.

Looking had not been advisable at all because the demon in dragon’s clothing was too distracting with those eyes that kept flicking over just to check on him and those tiny movements Kael made with his mouth like he knew exactly what he was doing.

Well, of course, that guy knew what he was doing but that was beside the point.

It also didn’t help that Kael’s finger hovered so close. So maddeningly close. So close that if he just grazed his skin then the whole tutorial would’ve gone into a different direction.

So after watching and surviving temptation that could easily qualify as grounds for excommunication, Riley did the most responsible thing he could think of.

He ignored the hard pleas of his lower brain and chose to shut his eyes instead.

He shut them tight and forced himself to focus, trying to memorize the sensation of mana moving beneath his skin. If he could not convince it to obey, then maybe he could push it now that he had a known path that had been carved out by Kael.

And surprisingly, it worked.

From his damn knees to his heart, at least.

Riley could trace that path, again and again, easier now that he understood that the mana was not just being dragged exactly. It was following something. That despite his mana wanting to jump out of his skin, it would still have to follow a certain path that he felt was almost like the human circulatory system but… simplified. Cleaner. And finally more obvious as they kept on repeating the process.

Kael did say it would be different as a dragon, but that was a problem for future-has-horns Riley.

Right now, this version of Riley was learning to move his mana, and that alone was a miracle.

__

“I’m going to increase the distance,” Kael said.

“Huh?”

Kael lifted his hand. Slowly. His fingertip pulled away from Riley’s skin, inch by inch.

“Instead of my mana being this close and moving yours by dragging it around,” he explained, voice smooth as polished gold, “I’m going to do it again. But from this far.”

Riley’s eyes snapped open just in time to see Kael’s finger hovering a good six inches above his knee.

Oh.

Oh no.

Oh yes.

He could sense the mana from that far anyway. Actually, he felt that because of the distance, his own mana seemed to be more active.

Yep. It was actively yearning for what had been so close earlier.

There was a slight lag in Riley’s movements, though. Because the feeling was still surprising even after doing the same thing repeatedly.

Then Kael said, “Keep up with me.”

And the moment they started that phase, Riley realized he was being weaned off training wheels.

The black dragon who still couldn’t shift focused all his will into keeping up.

And shockingly—

That worked too.

The traitorous little mana blob that once refused to move suddenly followed like it had been bribed with premium treats. It chased Kael’s mana eagerly, almost happy to move even when the trace was much farther away.

Riley nearly burst into tears.

Such a night and day difference compared to earlier.

Wow.

Just—wow.

__

By the time he truly processed it, he was staring up in pure disbelief. Stark naked, yes, on a bed, yes, but none of that mattered right now.

Because after three hours of repeating the process again and again—

Riley finally felt like he got somewhere this time around.

__

Even Kael noticed the difference.

Suddenly his wilted twig of a mate was not so wilted anymore, and the golden dragon even found him smiling and chuckling like a man who just regained ten years of life.

Maybe Riley had gone slightly insane in the head, but Kael thought that was still better than being insane and depressed at the same time.

He could handle his mate being insane because he always thought of him as one. But what he didn’t want to see was Riley looking like he hated himself more each day. Not again. Especially when Kael couldn’t help but feel partially responsible for the spiral.

After all, who was the one who pushed so strongly for Riley to discover all this earlier than he should have?

Of course, the golden dragon lord had no way of knowing the truth behind everything nor could he have predicted the outcome when apparently nothing had gone how it was supposed to go. But guilt was a stubborn thing. That much he was certain about.

So after the initial failure of teaching his mate and the children something that came so naturally to him, he had been forced to reevaluate certain things.

So the great golden dragon lord forced himself to listen.

He observed. And he did it despite it not being a threat.

He took mental notes of Riley’s struggle and ramblings and he even paid attention to the children’s wild ideas and strange breakthroughs.

Then, after going through something admittedly laborious, he tried to make his own conclusions based on what he knew as, well, the current supreme power.

Thankfully, this time it worked. Riley was happy. Radiant even.

Happy enough that Kael received a generous reward.

His twig suddenly tugged him down onto the bed. Well, tugged was a stretch when it was really Kael who allowed himself to fall, bracing himself against the mattress with one hand so he wouldn’t accidentally flatten Riley beneath him.

Green eyes stared at him, smiling so brightly Kael felt his breath catch.

“Thank you.”

He leaned up and planted a kiss square on Kael’s lips with a loud “Mwah!” that echoed in the room.

Kael blinked, a little surprised, but was now the type to bank on plausible deniability so he kept his cool.

“How did you even come up with that?” Riley asked, pulling the dragon’s head down against his bare chest and carding fingers through his hair.

Kael only shrugged lightly. “Only natural,” he lied smoothly.

As if it had not taken several days, countless attempts, and a frightening amount of patience.

Riley laughed under his breath, warm and low. Then he cupped Kael’s face, thumb brushing his cheek as he tilted his head up. Their eyes met. Golden and green. Close. Quiet. A slow, sweet pull.

Riley leaned in first.

A soft kiss. Welcoming warm lips and the feeling of his toes curling in quiet satisfaction.

The teasing ex-mortal pulled back, he didn’t go far and stayed in Kael’s space, their breaths mingling in the scant inches between them.

Riley’s gaze dropped to Kael’s mouth, then back to his eyes, only to smile and return again, this time with intention. Slower. Deeper.

That exploring mouth opened against Kael’s, his tongue tracing the seam of his golden dragon’s lips until they parted for him.

A hand drifted from Kael’s jaw, sliding back to bury his fingers deep into the thick, silk-soft strands of Kael’s long golden hair. He gripped the locks firmly, tilting Kael’s head to deepen the angle, pulling him closer even as Kael remained anchored above him.

The friction of their bodies, the sound of Riley’s ragged breathing, and the possessive tug on his hair sent a jolt of heat through Kael’s veins. He let out a low, rumbling growl of approval deep in his throat, finally letting his elbows bend just a fraction more, sinking into the heat of his mate’s embrace.

He could live and die like that. Kael felt rather certain about the simple truth.

And as someone who could survive on quite literally mana for a good while, he felt it would be fine to just stay like that for as long as possible.

However, at this point it was just him.

Unfortunately, his mate had a lot of things to work on before he could do the same thing.

Therefore, he needed to proceed as planned instead of simply taking him against the bed or against the wall. Or until adult responsibilities forced them to part with each other the next day.

But apparently Riley seemed sharper now as he suddenly asked, “Is something wrong?”

“No,” answered Kael who received a raised brow from the ex-human who clearly didn’t believe it.

“There’s nothing wrong.”

“Instead, I have something that could help.”

“Huh? Something that could help?” Kael watched those long lashes flutter in curiosity and he decided he should go for it.

“Here.”

Kael shifted his weight and sat up slowly, moving with the controlled grace that reminded Riley he was dealing with a predator.

The prey that was supposed to also be a predator adjusted himself as well, sitting up and instinctively reaching for the discarded blanket to pull it over his cooling skin. He sat there with the fabric bunched around his waist and shoulders, watching Kael’s every move.

Surprisingly, the golden dragon began to fiddle with his fingers as if searching for something. Then, with a subtle flare of power, he revealed a ring.

It didn’t sit in his palm. Instead, the ring began to levitate in the air between them, spinning slowly in a perfect circle.

Riley blinked up at the object, his head tilting in complete confusion as the metal caught the light.

“This is for you,” Kael said.

He reached out, catching the floating ring between his fingers with easy grace. He held it firmly between his thumb and forefinger before looking Riley in the eye.

“I want you to have this.”

“!!!”

Green eyes went wide as he stared at the unexpected offering.

Riley’s heart skipped a beat.

Or maybe several.

Because, Sir, just what did you say?!

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