Chapter 314: A Desperate Call

Kael couldn’t immediately understand why the twig was blocking his mouth.

He didn’t think he had said anything wrong. In fact, he was fairly certain it had been the correct thing to say.

Was his mate finding several marriage rituals tedious? Or was Kael being tactless because he hadn’t done much of the actual legwork and had instead stood around being intimidating and efficient?

Did Riley not want to get married repeatedly because Kael didn’t know about the forms or what needed to be written?

If that was the issue, then Kael could simply learn.

So long as his mate appeared, they could get married again.

And again.

He could do that. How difficult could it possibly be?

He would acquire his own rectangular device, connect to the internet, and find out how other races went about getting married properly.

Simple.

The dragon lord’s thoughts moved quickly, lining themselves up with ruthless efficiency, only to grind to a sudden halt.

Because he smelled something.

Not just something interesting.

Something compelling.

His twig.

Kael stilled.

He didn’t consciously lean closer, but the scent wrapped around him all the same, sinking deep and tugging at instincts he kept under strict control. Whatever his mate’s body was releasing was calling to him with alarming clarity.

A dragon’s mating call.

He could actually smell his mate’s call.

Kael hated it when other dragons did this.

He despised the crude release of pheromones meant to provoke, to lure, to press against his instincts in the hope that he would give in. They likely believed that if he were pent up enough, like any other creature, he would succumb to nature.

After all, beneath flesh and titles, they were dragons. Beasts.

Civilization, law, order, all of it came later. Before anything else, they had been created to ravage and take in the name of the gods.

That was why Kael despised such tactics. Especially when he knew they were used with such malicious intent.

However, the unmated dragons didn’t realize they were doing themselves a disservice. To those who had already begun bonding with a mate, such pheromones weren’t alluring.

Not at all.

Instead, they were actually repulsive.

Surprisingly, that was why Kael tolerated it.

The stench reminded him of his bond. It made rejection effortless. To him, they quite literally smelled like rotting meat.

But this was different.

Kael blinked and finally looked down at his mate.

Riley’s hands were still pressed over his mouth, as if that alone could stop whatever was happening.

It definitely couldn’t.

More importantly, Riley probably didn’t know there were much bigger problems than the words that would usually come out of his mouth.

What was this fragile shield compared to the real problem?

In fact, wasn’t he stopping the wrong person when it was Riley who was speaking without words?

If Kael’s words made celibacy difficult for Riley, well, the twig ought to know that he was not only making it impossible but practically criminal.

For the dragon lord to deny mating when desire was spilling so freely from Riley’s body was unthinkable. It felt wrong on a level Kael didn’t care to examine too closely.

After all, desire from Riley was not only welcome, but it was desired.

So the golden dragon figured he had to do something.

His hands moved before he fully decided to let them.

Large palms settled at Riley’s waist, fingers curving in with what Kael would later insist was a gentle touch. His grip slid beneath the hem of Riley’s shirt, thumbs brushing warm skin as he held him firmly from both sides.

The response was immediate.

Riley let out a strangled moan.

Kael froze for half a breath.

Then his restraint snapped.

Because really, what else was a simple dragon supposed to do?

__

“Nghh…!”

“!”

Lord.

Riley’s eyes nearly rolled back the instant those heated hands settled against his waist.

For someone who liked to think of himself as wholesome, the sound that left him was absolutely unholy. And it only got worse when his body betrayed him entirely and arched into Kael like it was seeking shelter there.

What the hell.

How could he be this shameless?

If lust needed a living representation, Riley was doing an excellent job of volunteering. Breath unsteady. Thoughts scattered. Body reacting far too eagerly to something as simple as being touched.

Clearly, it wouldn’t need to look elsewhere as he could be the poster boy for horny, thirsty, and positively titillated.

And it certainly didn’t help that his mate, the same dragon who had just spoken about restraint and patience, hooked a thumb beneath the hem of Riley’s silk pajama top and nudged it upward. Kael’s hand slid higher, then lower again, slow and deliberate, as if he were testing exactly how much Riley could take.

“!!!”

Riley’s hands, which had been covering Kael’s mouth only moments ago, flew up to clutch at his mouth instead. He just couldn’t trust his own trap to remain shut.

In fact, at this point, he couldn’t trust any part of himself to behave.

Just what was going on?!

“Honey,” Kael said calmly, far too calmly for the situation, “are you sure about this?”

“Huh?”

The ex-mortal blinked, confused.

Sure about what?

Thinking was hard. Very hard. His mind felt muddled, fogged over by the sensation of those hands at his waist. Was he really reacting like this over what was basically a touch? Was he that deprived?

How could he be so deprived when, sure, they wouldn’t actually go all the way, but whenever possible, Kael would execute all the lessons he learned and perfected.

The man was oddly responsible that way.

So surely, he shouldn’t be feeling like a simple massage should be sending him to heaven, right?

Though right now, it did feel like he was going to be sent to hell.

But before he could form a proper thought aside from chastising himself, Kael spoke again.

“I’m fairly certain you don’t realize this,” he said, voice low, “but you are releasing pheromones.”

Riley froze.

“Huh?”

Pheromones?

“What pheromones?” he asked weakly.

“Pheromones,” Kael replied, tone maddeningly matter-of-fact. “The kind that’s telling me I need to be inside of you.”

“???”

Kael paused, as if considering his words for the briefest moment.

“!!!”

“What?!”

Riley jolted so hard he nearly lost his balance against Kael. The reaction had nothing to do with pleasure and everything to do with shock.

“What do you mean by pheromones?” he demanded, flustered and flailing. “How can I even have those? And why would I be releasing them?!”

“Well, you are a dragon now,” Kael answered simply. “It just comes with the territory.”

He shifted closer as he spoke, hands still warm and firm at Riley’s sides.

“You’re familiar with it because much like mana, it’s not something humans really notice.”

“As you could expect, it’s practically nothing to them, the same way humans don’t notice when animals around them stake their claim or decide to perform a mating call unless they witness it with their eyes.”

“But you’re not exactly human anymore,” Kael continued. “And I am your mate.”

His fingers slid higher, gathering fabric, drawing Riley in without force but with undeniable intent. What Kael likely believed was gentle was anything but to Riley, whose skin felt like it was burning everywhere Kael touched.

“So yes,” Kael finished quietly, “you are calling out to me.”

“…And right about now, your body is quite frankly ordering me to fuck you.”

And Riley, unfortunately, couldn’t argue with that at all.

__

He couldn’t argue when he pulled up closer against him.

He couldn’t argue when his body, devoid of that flimsy piece of silk, rubbed against his mate’s chiseled chest.

He definitely couldn’t argue when the nubs on his chest hardened against the touch of Kael’s thumbs.

But more importantly, Riley, a supposed celibate newlywed, didn’t bother to argue when he pulled Kael’s head down for a maddening kiss.

He didn’t know what pheromones were just moments ago, but Riley, bless his heart and his ass, certainly knew what pheromones were the moment his lips locked with his mate’s.

Said celibate reached up, curled his fingers into Kael’s golden hair, and pulled down.

The kiss that followed wasn’t gentle.

It was hungry.

Kael kissed him like something had been unlocked.

The first press was deep and unyielding, mouths fitting together with shocking ease. Kael’s lips were warm, firm, unrestrained. Riley barely had time to inhale before the kiss turned consuming, his mouth opening instinctively as Kael chased that soundless yet extremely clear invitation.

Their tongues met, slow at first, testing.

But as the truth of their restraints slipping began to show, their kiss deepened. Tongues slid together with a heat that made Riley’s thoughts scatter entirely. It wasn’t frantic, but felt like nothing could ever be more urgent.

Each movement carried desperation, possession, and something far more dangerous than impatience.

Riley whimpered softly into Kael’s mouth, the sound swallowed immediately as Kael kissed him harder, like he needed to feel every breath Riley took. The taste of him lingered, warm and dizzying, and Riley felt it everywhere.

That was when he noticed it.

The air had changed. In fact, he could taste it in his dragon’s mouth.

Kael’s presence intensified, surrounding him, pressing in from every direction. The scent was richer now, deeper, yet unmistakably Kael. He’d never smelled it before, but holy hell. It settled into Riley’s lungs and made his spine shiver.

Oh.

This had to be it.

This was what it meant when Kael said he was calling out.

It really was a call that deserved an answer.

Therefore, how far could they go today?

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