Jasper
To my knowledge, there is only one situation a Beta male of any race would go into rut because of a scent. The same reason an Alpha male would—he has found his fated mate. Lux's grin widened as he cut a sideways glance at Elias, who was sipping his beer with exaggerated indifference. He no doubt knew his accelerated heartbeat was apparent to our shifter senses. He pretended regardless. His behavior brought a small smile to my lips, even as my migraine began to resurface.
"My brothers and I suspect my sister is highly compatible with him," Lux said lazily. "They were awkward at first, but they're finally getting used to each other." My fingers tightened slightly around my glass. My stare was now centered on Elias. Someone who had grown to be just as much my close friend as Lux was despite our age difference. We haven't spent enough one-on-one time together for me to truly determine if we are Kaelin compatible, but…I don't feel an immediate no to the possibility. Today has been one reveal after another. First, my fated Velari, and now I discover that a close friend is possibly going to be a Kaelin to me. So, gods do answer prayers and walk our dreams.
I was considering visiting a temple tomorrow on my way to our estate in Rivershade, the 8th district, when my brain processed the other part of what Lux had said. His sister. His sister, Nyxara Ajei, who is engaged to Koba Dillard, is my fated Velari? Just to be safe, I asked a clarifying question. "Your sister's scent is dusk-bloomed sandalwood and black tea?" I kept my tone light as if the detail was of no consequence. I was reaching to get more food when Lux's hand gripped my wrist. I met his gaze to find his grin had slipped.
Lux's ruby and gold gaze was wholly focused on me with predatory curiosity. Elias' attention sharpened instantly; openly assessing me. Fuck. I was too direct. The pain from this migraine and these muscle aches are fraying my control. These two are my friends, but I'm touching on a sensitive topic. Control, Jasper Lucero Reigns. Do not, in your haste for answers, turn these two into obstacles. "On that note," Lux said slowly as he withdrew his hand from my wrist. This did not ease my nerves. Lux was now significantly closer to my side of the table.
He was within my personal space. "You're the one who picked out this incense blend, right? Why are you confirming it's Nyxara's? Is there something you want to tell me, Jas?"
Instead of keeping my gaze on Lux, I met the eyes of my only possible ally in this room. He raised one brow. I allowed myself a small smile. Understanding flickered across his face. Not alarm. Not accusation. Awareness. Elias twirled a small knife between his fingers when he smoothly spoke up before Lux could press my silence. He brought us back to Lux's original question. Oh, he is definitely Kaelin potential if he can redirect from me this smoothly.
"To answer your first question, Lux. No, I won't go into rut. The incense is close, but it isn't her. Plus, her personal scent doesn't tempt me toward rut." Lux blinked, then processed that this conversation had been redirected. In a blink, Lux was back in his chair, scratching his chin thoughtfully. This man has depths I do not want to test. Especially with the very strong possibility he is going to be my brother-in-law.
"So just highly compatible," Lux muttered, mostly to himself. "Not fated. That is unexpected. Aspen and Keir were also pretty sure you two are fated. Maybe after….that could affect things. I'll have to check with the others if that turns out to be the case."
His gaze then drifted back to me. The redirect didn't last long. I was not at my best mentally right now, but I prepared myself for the inquisition coming my way. The tension was rising again. Lux's examining gaze was not subtle. I was as ready as I was going to be as I watched him open his mouth again.
Then Elias came through with a second rescue by interrupting Lux when he accepted a dessert tray from one of the attendants. The other attendants were clearing the table. The dessert tray he brought over had s'mores ingredients of all things on it. Whose idea was it for us to have s'mores for dessert? The excited culprit was already using the remote to activate the array beneath the floor.
A contained fire pit rose smoothly from the center of the suite, low blue flames licking upward in a perfect circle. Lux was letting himself be distracted. Neither Elias nor I were under the impression that Lux was actually distracted from his line of questions. There was just an unspoken understanding that Lux wouldn't push me about my interest in his sister's scent right now, and I wouldn't make any complaints about this plebeian dessert choice.
He at least made sure we had a variety of high-quality ingredients. Elias handed out skewers with deliberate efficiency, distributing crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate like we were younglings again instead of men that people whispered about. Lux happily took his stick and immediately put three marshmallows on it.
We settled into silence, the crackle of contained flame filling the space between us. I watched the fire and my flaming marshmallow. As I picked out what chocolate and graham crackers I wanted, my thoughts drifted to the last time I saw Nyxara Ajei.
Last week at Lux and Aspen's masked birthday celebration, she had been dancing in the form of a ram-shifter. To the underestimating eye, it would have appeared like she was just enjoying herself on the dance floor with Lady Salgrave. She was graceful, as if entirely unconcerned with being observed. But she had systematically clocked every person of interest as she danced. She never let her guard down until she met up with Elias, Raine Xi, and Second Master Säntiägo Ivy.
The Nyxara Ajei, I had met on previous occasions, was nothing like the woman I observed that night. I hadn't realized then how unusual it had been for me to give her any portion of my attention. If I had, I wouldn't be reeling from the realization that my fated Velari was someone I knew and is my best friend's sister.
I will have to carefully plan how to approach her. Not just Lux but the entire Ajei family and enclave are very protective of their First Lady. That was made very clear over these past two months after the gossip went around that Nyxara had been hospitalized due to an accident. They closed ranks and shut down any real leaks of information. No one's spies could even get close to her until recently.
When the spies could get close enough, they told us Nyxara was a changed woman. She was no longer a pampered princess following the Dillard siblings around. She was recovering from her accident but it was more than that. She was becoming a quiet power. Despite still being Ember tier, she made those weaker and stronger than her pause and turn her way when she drew near. She was growing into someone I can take pride in declaring as my Reina. The thought settled within me like a silk blanket. My heart and throat cores warmed. I was not emotional nor did this feel like a dramatic moment. This felt inevitable.
Lux was staring into the flames deep in thought until his phone rang. He excused himself out onto the balcony. He didn't close the door all the way so I could hear him making plans to meet up with Raine and Master Ivy tomorrow. I was curious why he would be making plans with them when Elias tapped his foot to get my attention.
"They are potential Kaelin to Lux." I couldn't control my obvious surprise. Then Elias made my jaw drop with his next info drop. "They are pursuing Zenaida Salgrave. All three have shown strong indicators of high compatibility with Zenaida. So high that Nyxara and Aspen suspect they are fated." He spoke softly, answering my unasked question as he made his 5th or 6th s'mores sandwich.
I nodded in understanding. So that is who Lux's Velari is. This is going to be an ironic situation for Lux. If the intel is right, Florien Salgrave is as protective of his sisters as Lux is over his sister. Maybe the Creators are on my side to have him find his fated Velari at the same time I discover Nyxara is mine. He won't have as much time to focus on my pursuit of his sister if he has to pursue her best friend. If fate is truly on my side, Aspen and Keir will be occupied with their own matters too—removing those potential cockblockers.
Elias did not interrupt my thinking. He appeared to be in his own thoughts. "Is she merely compatible with you or is she your fated?" I asked softly, getting to the heart of the matter. It was soft enough that Lux would not be able to hear us without coming back inside. Elias looked at me out of the corner of his eye. "Only because I suspect she is your fated and you are my friend am I going to answer that very rude question. My soul and essence say she is my fated. But I don't physically react to her like she is. I haven't been able to determine the cause. I think it has something to do with her…accident."
I opened my mouth to ask about what happened, but Elias shook his head. "I will not talk about her accident or what is currently going on with her. It falls under classified information. I've already told you more than I should have. If it becomes necessary, I or she will share what is currently going on with her." Elias looked straight into my eyes. "I promise I'm not keeping information that you need to know from you. If we are truly to be Kaelin like I suspect, that trumps almost anything, but this is a very delicate matter. I will be straight with you; you are too volatile right now for me to tell you what is going on. Trust me to take care of her and be there for both of us." He held out his fist towards me.
I saw in his unguarded eyes the truth that whatever Nyxara was dealing with was a difficult situation, but Elias would protect her until I could arrange our meeting. I bumped his fist. "Understood. Let me know if there is anything I can do to help. Word is that the Ajei are preparing to enact some kind of ritual within the next two months." I didn't hide the grin on my face as Elias neither confirmed nor denied this tidbit of information.
We quietly talked about various topics, getting to know each other more deeply while we waited for Lux to rejoin us. I invited him to come with me into my seclusion, but he told me he was technically on assignment right now and could not leave the capital. Being the nosey dragon I was, I asked him how he was able to come out tonight if he was on assignment. He just grinned, telling me nothing. Which meant that his assignment was classified.
I didn't have enough clues to guess what his assignment could be, so I shifted topics. I instead asked if he thought it would just be us in the mating circle or if he thought she would call more to our circle. I did ask him for reasons I will not think hard about if he knew anything about Nyxara's engagement situation. I didn't like nor dislike the Dillard Scion. Something about him just never sat right with me.
A soft smile bloomed on his face as he set his skewer to the side to sit back in his chair. It was obvious he was thinking about Nyxara. I was a little jealous that he could be around her when I could not. For now. It is only for now that he can keep her to himself. On that note, how is he able to be in close contact with her? He is in the paramilitary, not the palace guards. Curious indeed.
"I honestly don't think just us will be enough. Nyxara is so multi-faceted that I would say four Velari at minimum and six at maximum. Keep this to yourself for now, but the engagement is going to be dissolved. I don't know the details, but what I have gleaned is that the Dillard Enclave had something to do with Nyxara's accident." He then pulled out a container and put two s'more sandwiches he had made but hadn't eaten into it.
"Make two s'more sandwiches, and I'll give them to her for you. I'll help you do some pre-courting until you can do it yourself." I froze, not expecting this kindness. Not all Kaelin helped each other court their Velari after all. He is truly a worthy friend and Kaelin. He thinks of how to help me plant a seed of interest in her. I grinned like I hadn't done in a long time in happiness.
I quickly made two sandwiches made up of peanut butter, chocolate, and honey graham crackers with jelly-filled marshmallows for him to take back. He gave me food for thought and a reason to investigate the Dillard Enclave. No one harms my Velari and gets away with it. I have no doubt the Ajei will get their pound of flesh, but that doesn't mean I can't make things difficult for the Dillards. I handed over the two completed sandwiches, and Elias put them into the container just as Lux came back in.
"Sorry about that, I was making plans with some new acquaintances of mine. They might possibly be my Kaelin. I met them at my birthday party last week." He sat down and began making more s'mores. Elias and I sat back listening to him tell us about Raine and Säntiägo. He also spoke of his secret chats with Lady Salgrave. The calm and cold business man I was used to was practically vibrating in his seat while speaking of the courting gifts he and the other two had already begun to collect while they waited until she was officially available for pursuit. She was still currently in a relationship with Säntiägo's twin brother, but Lux had overheard Nyx and Lady Salgrave talking about her breaking up with him.
Lux falling in love is weird to see. He is normally more animated when he is with me and Elias, but this is a whole other level of talkative and animation. Is he that nervous that she won't accept his pursuit?
His nervousness was unfortunately contagious. I began to consider the possibility that Nyxara may not accept my interest in her. My foot tapped a rhythm until Elias placed his foot over mine. He tapped out a message in Morse code. [Don't worry. Efforts matter. Stay calm. Bring you scented items.]
I have never had anyone other than my parents instinctively understand me like this. I moved my foot and tapped back, [Okay.] So this is what the beginning of the Kaelin bond feels like. With the support of my Kaelin, my dragon who was beginning to get agitated, calmed down. While Lux spilled all his thoughts and feelings, Elias got up to blend some more incense.
As the scent of black tea and dusk-bloom sandalwood spread throughout the room. My migraine stayed a dull throb, and my muscle aches returned to post-workout levels. Thankfully, my chest pain remained absent. I will need to have Rhett procure this incense blend for me to take with me and to have a stock of it sent to the Reign Sanctuary for my use upon my return.
In a wonderful mood and for once looking forward to the future, I listen to Lux and Elias talk while I considered what my future mating with Nyxara will mean politically. While certainly on ally terms, the Ajei and Reign bloodlines have never been mixed. It is a complication I will have to plan for before the engagement negotiations. Soon after I write up a plan, I will have to secure Nyxara's affections.
I will need certainty before I can go to my parents with this joyous news. I need proximity to get that certainty. I will also need to gain that proximity without letting Nyxara's protective family get in the way. Elias will at least be of help in this aspect.
My dragon began to get agitated until I inhaled another lungful of incense. He calmed down once again. I spoke softly to him, "This will require patience. We cannot scare our mate away. Patience will win us our mate." My inner dragon closed his eyes as he gave his assent of understanding.
The next time I saw Nyxara Ajei—I will confirm she is my fated Velari. Then I will begin in earnest my claiming of her. I would like to say I have time to pursue her however long it will take but I am on a deadline. So if I have to play dirty to claim my mate—I will. I am a dragon after all. What I claim I will acquire by any means necessary.
Rest well, my Reina. I'm coming for you.