Dragon Royalty (Dragon Shifter Academy Book 1) Read online

  Even though I’ve kissed Damon and Ty, I had yet to be the one to initiate the kiss. My heart is racing and my nerves threaten to get the best of me for a split second. But then my lips touch his and everything in the world is right. I know exactly what he meant about his world being in black in white, because I didn’t realize until just now how bland my world was before I met him—before I met them all.

  These boys are my everything.

  How can that be so? How can I feel so strongly about three different guys?

  Before coming here, I wouldn’t have thought it would be possible. I would think surely the feelings for one would outweigh feelings for another, but that’s not the case at all. Now I know that this is normal. Maybe it’s not normal everywhere in the world, but it is here. And even if it wasn’t normal, I wouldn’t care. These boys are mine and I’m not giving them up for anything.

  Kade lifts me at my waist and deposits me onto his lap, our lips never breaking contact. I love that he did that because I was seconds away from crawling into his lap. It’s like he knew what I wanted before I did.

  His kisses are so soft and so aggressive at the same time. He kisses me like… like he might not ever get the chance to kiss me again. I kiss him back, trying to show him everything that I am feeling for him through our kiss. There are words I’m too scared to admit out loud, but while I’m kissing him, I am brave.

  Eventually, we do pull apart. I’m not even sure how much time has passed. All I know is that we’re both breathing heavy. His lips are swollen, and his hair is messed up. Neither of us say a word. Kade just holds onto me and I hold him back, wishing that time really would stop so I could stay here in his arms forever.

  Slow kisses.

  Kade doesn’t take me home until about ten o’clock that night.

  After we made out in his room for a long time, his dad eventually knocked on the door to tell us dinner was ready. At dinner, I got to meet his other dad, Stanley, who was just as nice as Pierce and Michael. Thalia was also there, and she made me feel right at home.

  After dinner, we went into the theater where we watched a movie on their huge projection screen. His whole family was with us, which was nice. I actually think his dads are really funny, and I could see myself being friends with his mom. She and I made plans to go shopping one day, which makes me really happy.

  I’m not ready to go home, but I also know I can’t stay the night with Kade. I mean, I want to, but I doubt Victoria would let me. Plus, I really want his parents to like me, and I don’t think me staying the night there would leave a good first impression.

  “You look sad,” Kade says, as we drive towards my house.

  He holds onto my hand, gently caressing my thumb with his.

  “I am sad,” I admit. “I wasn’t ready for the night to be over. I’m not ready to say goodbye yet.”

  “I’m never ready to say goodbye to you.” He squeezes my hand. “You make it hard to leave you.”

  The car comes to a stop at the front of my house.

  “Someday, I won’t have to ever say goodbye to you,” Kade says. “Until then, we should enjoy these moments of longing. We should enjoy the slow kisses. We’ll look back at this with fondness someday and tell our kids about it.”

  I grin.

  That does sound nice.

  “How do you always know what to say?”

  “I don’t,” he says, then sighs. “I will walk you to the door.”

  My heart sinks, but I take his words to heart—we should enjoy these moments. He’s right.

  Kade opens the car door for me and holds my hand as he walks me to the front door.

  “I had fun tonight,” I tell him. “Your family is awesome. Thank you for inviting me to hang out.”

  “You’re welcome any time.” He leans forward and kisses me on the cheek. “Go inside. Cuddle with Damon tonight.”

  I grin. “I wish I could cuddle with you too.”

  “Soon,” he promises. “Goodnight, Reign.”

  “Goodnight, Kade.”

  Once I walk inside, he turns and walks to his car.

  I put my hand to my heart, feeling just how fast and hard it’s beating.

  This boy doesn’t even realize that he completely owns my heart.

  He turns around and waves at me before getting in his car, and I realize, I own his heart too.

  I wouldn’t want it any other way.

  Friday, August 30

  Three day party?

  When I wake up on Friday, I can’t help but be surprised at how quickly the week went. In St. Louis, I felt like my days dragged by slowly, but here there is always so much happening.

  I actually have friends now. Gemma, Courtney, and Piper are all turning out to be great friends. They don’t act jealous around me like girls always seem to. We even hung out on Wednesday after school at Piper’s house.

  Piper’s house was a little bit crazy. She has five dads and three younger siblings—triplets, actually. Two-year-old little boys. And they are so active. Piper told me that the triplets were a complete surprise. I guess they couldn’t conceive after Piper and they had accepted that they wouldn’t have more, and when her mom got pregnant, everybody was shocked. And excited.

  Aside from the girls, I also have Ty, Damon, and Kade, but I’m not exactly sure where I stand with the three of them. I’ve kissed them all now, and I’ve admitted to myself that I like them all and that I don’t want to choose, at least not yet.

  I try to imagine a life where I end up with all three guys. My heart likes that idea—a lot.

  I guess we will see what happens.

  There is a knock on my door at seven, right on the dot. I already know it’s Damon.

  “Come in,” I yell. I’m sitting on my bed putting my shoes on.

  “Hey,” Damon says, as he walks through. “You look beautiful today.”

  He tells me every single morning that I look beautiful and I never get tired of hearing it. Every time he says it, I feel the words deep inside. I know that he truly means the words and I’m really starting to feel beautiful.

  “By the way, you need to pack a bag.” He tucks his hands in his pocket as he watches me.

  “What for?” I ask.

  Before he can answer, there is a knock on my already open door. I look up to see Ty.

  “Hey,” I say, raising an eyebrow.

  Why is Ty in my house?

  “We’re going on a trip,” Ty explains “That’s why you need to pack a bag.”

  “And where are we going?”

  “Every year for Labor Day Weekend, we fly to Laguna Beach.” Ty leans against the wall as he speaks, a smile playing on his lips. “Kind of a goodbye to summer party. My dad has a house on the beach there and it’s always fun to go there.”

  “Basically, it’s a three day party,” Damon says.

  “We’re ditching school too,” Ty adds.

  “Wait. School has barely been back a week and you guys want to ditch already?”

  “Our teachers don’t care,” Ty lifts one shoulder in a shrug.

  I look at Damon. “Are you sure I can go? Do I need to talk to Victoria?”

  “She already knows,” Damon says.

  “Okay.” I blink a few times, trying to process. “I guess we’re going to Laguna Beach.”

  The first thing I do is change my clothes. Since we’re going to be spending three days on the beach, I put on clothes that are more appropriate for that. I slip on a bikini and throw a sundress over it. And in my duffel bag, I pack mostly all bikinis, dresses, and some cute pajamas.

  For the past few days, Damon has been sleeping in my room a lot. All we do is sleep, but I’m also very aware of what I wear to bed. I don’t know if he will still sleep in the same room as me this weekend, but it’s best to be prepared.

  “Is Kade coming?” I ask, as I zip up my bag.

  “He’s going to meet us at the airport. His dad is the one letting us use his private jet,” Ty says.

  Private jet. />
  Right.

  Because it’s completely normal to own your own private jet.

  What are these people’s jobs that they can afford such luxuries?

  “I’ll put our stuff in the car and pull it around front,” Damon moves toward me as he speaks.

  “Okay,” I say.

  He grabs my bag and leaves the room.

  I’m just feeling…

  Out of place.

  Once again, I am reminded why I don’t fit in with these people. Here I was making friends, but if they knew the real me—the me in St. Louis—they wouldn’t look twice.

  “What’s wrong?” Ty asks, grabbing my hand.

  I look at him and shake my head. “I’m just feeling overwhelmed. I’m not used to all this.”

  “I heard that your mom gave all this up.” Ty runs his thumb in circles on my hand. “That she was raising you as a human. I can imagine all this is overwhelming.”

  “What do you mean raising me as a human?”

  “I mean…” he pauses, like he’s trying to think of something to say. “Never mind. I just mean your mom left this life and she left Vegas to raise you in a different kind of life. I know that it’s overwhelming to come here and see all of this, but you belong here, Reign. This is the life you were always meant to live.”

  I nod.

  Maybe he’s right.

  I still don’t understand why my mom left this. What was her purpose? Did she have to leave? I have so many questions, but I don’t know that they will ever be answered now.

  Ty leans down and kisses me on the lips—just a peck, but my heart still races.

  “Will you always cause me to react like this?” I ask, putting a hand over my heart.

  He grins. “I hope so.”

  I do too.

  “Let’s go. Damon is probably waiting for us out front.” Ty tugs my hand and I follow.

  Posse of females?

  Damon holds my hand as we walk onto the private jet and take a seat. I can’t help but feel like I’m in some kind of alternate reality, or at the very least, a reality show.

  I’ve seen shows just like this one—a show with rich teenagers doing whatever they want. Money is never a problem and there are no limits. But I always say that is fictitious. Nobody lives like that. Yet, here I am, getting on a private jet about to go to a party on the beach that is apparently going to last all weekend.

  I wouldn’t be going if it weren’t for Ty, Damon, and Kade. I’m definitely not into parties. But then again, before I came here, I didn’t have friends to hang out with at a party. Parties would’ve meant a lot of guys flirting with me and a lot of girls glaring at me. At least this weekend I’ll have the guys to look after me. I guarantee that they won’t let other guys come flirt with me.

  “Are you a nervous flyer?” Damon asks.

  I buckle my seatbelt and look at him. “No. I’ve always enjoyed flying, actually. When I was a kid, I used to dream that I could fly. I know it’s silly, but I miss those dreams. I wish I could fly for real.”

  His smile widens.

  “What?” I ask.

  “Nothing, you’re just perfect.” He shakes his head, almost like he can’t believe I’m real.

  “What would you have said if I was afraid? Like, if I was scared of heights or something?”

  “I’d just say I would help you not be afraid.”

  “How?”

  “Just by holding your hand.” His tone is gentle, his answer a simple statement, and both have my heart melting.

  I clear my throat. “Well, now that you mention it, I am a little scared.”

  He laughs. “You don’t have to act afraid. If you want to hold my hand, all you have to do is hold it.”

  So I do.

  Because I like holding hands with Damon.

  Ty and Kade come and sit in the seats in front of us. The chairs are facing us, which is seriously awesome.

  “Is anybody else riding with us?” I ask.

  “Nah,” Ty says as he buckles in. “I provide the house, they have to find their own way to get there.”

  “Then I guess I should feel honored that I get to ride with you.” I grin widely. “So how many girls have you had on this jet?”

  Ty’s face turns red. “None.”

  “Only because we wouldn’t let him,” Kade says, grinning.

  “It’s true,” Damon pipes in. “We don’t like to put up with his posse of females.”

  Posse of females? As in a lot of them?

  “That was before I met you,” Ty says.

  I shrug, trying to look indifferent. “It doesn’t matter to me what you did before I met you.”

  And that is true.

  “More like who,” Damon mumbles.

  “I wasn’t patient,” Ty says. “I thought… well, most of our kind don’t meet their mate as young as we are. It’s super rare. I thought I’d have a few hundred years, and then you show up one day and everything changes. I should’ve waited. Even if it was hundreds of years, I know now you’re worth the wait.”

  “Hundreds of years?” I ask, then laugh. “It’s a little dramatic of an answer, but I think it’s cute. I don’t care that you dated before me. I’m dating two other guys and you’re cool with it, so why do you think I’d have a problem with you having girlfriends before me.”

  “Never girlfriends.” He scratches his head as he makes his denial. “Just… dates. One-night stands. Never commitments, though. I was waiting for you.”

  One-night stands?

  My chest hurts a little at the thought of Ty sleeping with other girls, but I know it’s silly to be jealous over something that happened before he met me. It really doesn’t matter who he was with in the past. It’s in the past and he is my future.

  Though, now I worry—when Ty and I get to that stage in our relationship, is he going to think I’m not good? I mean, I’m not the kind of girl who has slept around. I have no experience.

  I’ll worry about that another time though.

  The pilot comes on the speaker to tell us that we’re about to take off, so Ty and Kade turn their chairs around, facing forward for take-off. I can tell Ty wasn’t ready to turn around. I think he’s bothered by the fact that I know about his past escapades. I make a note to make sure he understands that it doesn’t matter. And it truly doesn’t. Whatever Ty did… whoever he did… it doesn’t matter.

  Once we’re in the air, Ty and Kade turn back around. Ty doesn’t seem as happy. I know that I can’t really talk to him on the plane though. I’ll let him know as soon as we’re alone that all of that doesn’t matter. I just don’t want to bring it up again in front of the rest of the guys.

  I know that I was Damon’s first kiss, but I don’t know about Kade. We never talked about that. I wonder if he’s dated girls previously.

  “Are Gemma, Courtney, and Piper coming this weekend?” I ask.

  “I think Gemma and Piper are,” Ty says. “Courtney has some kind of family thing going on. She always does for Labor Day weekend.”

  “Ah, okay.” I’m glad I will have some friends there so I have people to hang out with outside of the guys. I hate the idea of being a clingy girlfriend.

  Not that I’m their girlfriend.

  I still don’t know what I am. I’ve heard them call me their ‘mate,’ which I don’t quite understand. I think that would make me their girlfriend, right? But I’m not sure. Do we really have to label it? I kind of want to, but I’ll ask them about it later. It’s probably too soon to talk about any kind of commitment.

  We’ve also talked about the fact that there are three of them. I know they said I don’t have to choose, but I need to know how long until they are going to want me to choose or even if they’re going to want me to choose. Just because their parents are in polygamous relationships, doesn’t mean they will want to be too. But I promised myself I wasn’t going to worry about that, so I don’t.

  “Jacqueline won’t be there, right?” I ask, just to make sure.

 
If that girl is going to be there, I need to mentally prepare myself. Though, to be fair, she hasn’t said a word to me since I told her not to that day in the cafeteria. I’m surprised it was that way.

  “No. We’ve banned her from coming to any of our parties,” Ty says. “Even before the whole drink throwing incident.”

  “Why?” I ask. “Wait… if you banned her, why was she at the black and white party?”

  “It was for charity,” he explains. “Everybody was welcome, though I regret that now. Sorry your dress got ruined.”

  “It was a pretty dress.”

  “I’ll buy you a new one.”

  “Don’t be silly,” I huff. “I have plenty of dresses. Victoria doesn’t like when I wear pants, so she made sure my closet is full of skirts and dresses.”

  “She’s old fashioned,” Damon says. “Actually, your entire species is. Ours too, now that I think about it.”

  “Entire… species? As in… human?”

  He doesn’t say anything, so I look between him, Ty and Kade. They’re all three looking at each other.

  Kade clears his throat. “I like the way dresses look on you. But you look good in anything.”

  Clearly, he’s changing the subject.

  Okay…

  “Thanks,” I say.

  I have to admit, I do like wearing dresses. They make me feel cute and girly. Part of me just wants to rebel and wear jeans because I know it annoys Victoria, but I don’t do it. I want my aunt to like me.

  Someday, I am going to figure out what all their cryptic comments mean.

  Waiting for something bigger.

  When we get to Ty’s parents’ beach house at Laguna Beach, I am blown away. It’s not just some small beach house. It’s a mansion. A huge mansion on the water, and it’s beautiful.

  I’ve never seen the Pacific Ocean. Sure, I’ve seen the Atlantic Ocean many times, but I’ve never been to the west side of the United States before. So, today is my first time in California too. It’s kind of cool that I’m doing a lot of firsts with the guys.