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Authors: S. E. Smith

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BOOK: A Dragonlings' Easter (Dragon Lords of Valdier 6.5)

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Chapter 10

Riley stood glaring at her wet mate. He was splashing water on Roam and
Bálint who decided it would be fun to play in the water with him. She knew he wouldn’t be getting out in his current condition, not unless he wanted to show everyone his bare ass.

“What? I wasn’t the one who started it,”
Vox said defensively as he caught Roam as he crawled up his back. “Besides, he’s just like you. He doesn’t fight fair. I’ve got half a dozen teeth marks in my ass.”

Riley shook her head as Roam grinned at her over
Vox’s shoulder. “You two are a mess. Come here you little rascal,” she laughed, reaching for Roam when he held out his hands.

Her loud
shriek echoed through the garden when Vox reached out and grasped her hands instead. With a jerk, he pulled her over the edge of the fountain and into his lap. He held on to her hands tightly when she started to pull away.

“
Vox, you…” Her voice faded as he kissed her.

Roam and
Bálint snorted, deciding the grownups weren’t any fun anymore. Instead, they started splashing and yelling as they wrestled with each other. The sounds soon drew the attention of Amber and Jade. They charged across the garden and scrambled over the side.

“Oh my,” Cara laughed when she saw
Trelon stagger out of the brush. “What on Earth happened to you? You are filthy! I think you need to join the girls.”

Trelon
shot Cara an exasperated look before his eyes darkened and an evil grin curved his lips. He laughed when Cara started backing up, shaking her head at him. He reached out and swept her up in his arms.

“I think you are right,” he murmured as he turned and headed for the glittering water. “Why don’t you join us?”

“Trelon… NO!” Cara squealed. “Oh, that’s cold!”

Abby, Ariel and Pearl laughed as they watched the girls splashing and playing. Trisha and Kelan had given up trying to catch
Bálint. Instead, they both sat on the side with their feet in the water, kicking and splashing as well.

Ariel stroked Precious who was sitting beside her. She smiled up at
Mandra when he came up to her. A shiver went through her when he pressed a hard kiss to her mouth.

“So, how did you do? Did you find any eggs?” She asked with a secretive twinkle in her eyes.

“Kelan and I found a pile of them,” Mandra boasted as he sat down next to her. “We put them in Precious’ pouch. Poor Jabir didn’t find any,” he said looking around with a worried frown. “Where is Jabir? I thought he was with you.”

“Nope, he was with you and Kelan the whole time,” Ariel said cheerfully.

Mandra quickly stood up and glanced frantically around. “No he wasn’t. His symbiot showed him playing then taking his afternoon nap.”

Ariel finally took pity on
Mandra as he paled and looked shaken. She reached out and touched his clenched fist. She rose when he pulled her up and wrapped her arms around his waist.

“He is fine. He should be awake any moment,” she assured him as she rested her cheek against his thundering heart. “He’s safe,
Mandra. I’ve known where he was the entire time.”

“Where…?” He started to ask.

Jabir’s soft babbling drew his attention. Glancing down, he watched in disbelief as Jabir’s head popped up out of the golden pouch on Precious’ stomach. A half-eaten egg was clutched in one color-stained hand while the other one held him upright.

“See, I told you,” Ariel laughed. “He was with you and Kelan the entire time. He has really enjoyed the eggs.”

“Son of a…” Mandra started to say before Ariel pulled his head down and captured his lips.

“Damn, I swear these have got to be the horniest damn males I’ve ever seen,” Pearl said with a shake of her head. “How in the hell does anyone get anything done?”

“Excuse me,” a deep voice said from behind her.

Pearl turned to make a sarcastic comment but the words died on her lips as her eyes froze on the huge male standing a few feet away. She swallowed as her eyes moved up his muscular frame. She
hadn’t seen muscles like that in… ever. Her eyes followed the path of exposed tanned skin until she stopped at a set of blazing gold eyes.

“Who the hell are you?” Pearl blurted out, standing up.

Asim’s eyes narrowed on the slender figure of the female. He liked the way the black leather trousers fitted her long legs. She was wearing a dark blue, silk blouse tucked into the waist. In his mind, he was already pulling it free so he could run his hands up under it to her soft skin. Her pure white hair was spiked on the top making it look like he had already been running his fingers through it.

A low growl escaped him as his dragon
jerked to attention. He recognized she was his mate at the same time as his symbiot answered his dragon’s call. The golden creature swept into the garden, landing a few feet away from Pearl. None of them were about to lose her. They had spent too many centuries looking for her.

“Mine!”
Asim growled as he began to shift.

“What the fuck?” Pearl said startled as golden bands formed around her wrists. “Who the hell are you talking about?”

“You are mine, female,” Asim’s guttural voice snarled before he released his dragon.

“Ah shit!” Pearl cried out as a dark grey tail wrapped around her. “Where’s my fucking gun when I need it?”

“Grandma!” Riley cried out, struggling to break away from Vox. “Let me go! Pearl!”

“You cannot stop him,”
Vox murmured as he watched the huge, battle-scarred dragon lift off the ground with Pearl securely enclosed in a golden cage.

Riley watched in disbelief as her grandmother disappeared over the walls of the palace. She turned to look at
Vox who just shrugged his shoulders before glancing back up into the now empty skies. It took a moment for it sink in what had just happened. Disbelief still fought with reality before a low giggle escaped her. The more she thought about it, the harder she laughed.

“Payback is a bitch,” she said, grinning at Abby who was still looking up at the sky in shock. “I can’t wait for Tina to find out. She is really going to love this!” She added, referring to her absentee sister who was still back on
Sarafin.

Laughter filled the air as the kids, seeing the grownups were distracted
, tried to take advantage of the situation by escaping again. Abby turned and smiled at her extended family before she realized that her immediate family was still missing. She closed her eyes and rubbed the gold band on her wrist, seeking a response from Zoran and Zohar’s symbiots. She opened her eyes before quietly slipping away into the garden.

Chapter 11

Abby pulled back a branch and watched as Zoran carefully looked about him before stepping up to the trunk of a tree that had a hole in it. She stepped out and cleared her throat to draw his attention. A knowing smile curved her lips when he flushed a guilty red.

“Hi,” she said
, biting her lower lip to hide the grin. “Everyone has returned but you and Zohar. I think Carmen and Creon snuck back to their living quarters.”

“Oh, yes, well…” he said glancing at the tree before turning back with a frown. “What do you mean except Zohar? Isn’t he with you?”

Abby shook her head. “No, I thought he was with you looking for Easter eggs. That’s normally what happens,” she teased. “Unless you wanted to keep them all for yourself.”

Zoran had the grace to look embarrassed. “I…,” he released a deep sigh. “I would have shared.”

Abby laughed. “Yes, you would have. How many did you find?” She asked.

Zoran gave her a boyish grin. “Lots! It was really fun. I… I think it would be fun to hide them and watch Zohar look for them. Do you think he would enjoy it?”

“I think so but why don’t you ask him.” She nodded to the tree. “I think he has been having fun already.”

“What?” Zoran asked turning to look at where she nodded.

His eyes widened and a loud chuckle escaped him. All morning he thought he was being smart and sneaky. Instead, his son had outsmarted him. Zohar’s dark brown and copper head was peeking out of the hole watching him.

“You are just like your mother,” he murmured, reaching into the hole and
gently pulling the small dragon out. “Smart and amazing.” He brushed a kiss to the smooth head before rubbing his cheek against Zohar’s hair as his son shifted.

“You aren’t so bad yourself,” Abby said, wrapping her arms around both of her ‘guys’.
“I love you both so very much. Thank you for giving me such a wonderful day.”

Zoran wrapped his arm around her and pulled her tightly against him. A shudder went through him and his dragon as he thought of how close he had come to never finding her. If he had
n’t crashed on her mountain…

“You are my world, Abby. You have given so much to me and yet you still continue to give more. Sometimes I feel overwhelmed by the feelings inside me. If anything had happened to you…”

“Shush,” Abby whispered, touching his lips with her fingers. “That is in the past. We have so much to look forward to.”

Zoran pressed a kiss to her fingers and nodded. “Let’s get our prizes and take them back. I think we should share them.”

“Dada, share,” Zohar clapped and giggled.

Abby and Zoran stared at Zohar in amazement for a moment before their delighted laughter echoed throughout the garden. Yes, they had many, many more
things to look forward to in the future. Abby wondered how the guys would react to Halloween. She grinned when she thought of them dressing up as ghosts or goblins. There were a few Earth traditions that were going to be fun to share.

Epilogue

“What is that?” Arilla asked as she floated down from where she had been sitting near a waterfall of gold.

“They are called Easter
eggs,” Aikaterina said, setting the basket down on the steps inside the Hive.

“What do you do with them?”
Arosa, Arilla’s twin sister, asked.

“First you hide them, then you find them, then… you eat them,”
Aikaterina said, lifting a brightly colored purple and yellow egg up. “They are surprisingly good.”

Arilla
picked one up and studied it for a moment before she glanced around the glittering chamber. She loved discovering new things to do, especially if they were fun. She looked hopefully at the basket of colorful oval objects.

“Can we hide them?”
Arilla asked, biting her lip.

“Of course, but I get to go first,”
Aikaterina said with a sly grin.

“How do you hide them?”
Arosa asked as the other figures in the massive cavern gathered around.

“With this,”
Aikaterina grinned, pulling up Cara’s egg launcher.

“
Oh, that looks like fun. I get to hide them next!” Arilla clapped excitedly.

The End…. Or unti
l
A Dragonlings’ Haunted Hallowee
n
.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

S. E. Smith is a USA Today and #1 International Best Selling author who has always been a romantic and a dreamer. An avid writer, she has spent years writing, although it has usually been technical papers for college. Now, she spends her evenings and weekends writing and her nights dreaming up new stories. An affirmed “geek,” she spends her days working on computers and other peripherals. She enjoys camping and traveling when she is not out on a date with her favorite romantic guy. Fans can reach her at
[email protected]
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