4
Raja
That night, I practically paced a hole through my floor.
After dozens of spam messages and alphas looking for a quick lay, I finally found someone worth talking to. Lorenzo. I tried the exotic sounding name on my tongue. To be honest, I didn’t expect much when I first contacted him. The truth was, I was desperate and running out of options. I wasn’t lying when I told him hewasthe only alpha online that hadn’t already messaged me.
Did I like him well enough? Sure. For a guy I met online and barely knew, anyway. And for a fake marriage, that was good enough. After the fake ceremony, we could go our separate ways easily with no hard feelings. That was all I wanted.
The difficult part was over. Lorenzo agreed to the initial premise of a fake marriage and to meet me in a few days. But I had to admit, I was surprised. I thought he was lying about being a dragon - I mean, areal life dragon? It sounded like a joke, and there were no pictures on his profile of his dragon form. In fact, he only had a single picture on his profile. It was a simple front-facing photo. But the man himself was quite attractive. His hair was deep silver, but he wasn’t old - well, he was a decade older than me, sure, but he wasn’t old enough to have white hair. I assumed it was a dragon thing. Underneath the stunning silver hair was a handsome face, rugged and masculine, and wearing a kind smile.
When I started giving him directions to the nearest airport and how he would need the help of a native boatman to reach our island, that was when I truly believed Lorenzo’s claim. He said he would just fly over. I laughed out loud before realizing he was serious.
“Dragons can fly, remember?” he’d said.
This was going to be one hell of a first meeting.
I knew I had to tell my parents before a dragon randomly showed up in our village and they ran at him with pitchforks and claws. I wondered if they would even believe me. But first, there was someone else who needed an update more than anyone else.
“You arenevergoing to believe this,” I told Koto the next day.
Dawn broke outside and Koto was still in bed, wiping the sleep from his eyes. I slunk in through the open window and stood over him.
“Raja, it’s barely light out,” Koto grumbled. “Can’t this wait until I’m actually awake?”
“No, it can’t. I found a guy.”
Instantly, Koto scrambled up. “What!? You’re joking.”
“Not joking. I found an alpha. He’s coming to visit in a few days and we’re getting fake married.”
Koto’s eyes bulged like they were going to fall out of his head. “And heknows? He knows it’s fake?”
I stretched my arms behind my back. “Yeah.”
“You’re fucking with me, aren’t you?” Koto grumbled. “I’m going back to bed.”
“I’mnot!” I snapped. “His name is Lorenzo and he’s a single alpha from some place called Cinderhollow.”
“What animal is he?” Koto asked, getting up and narrowing his eyes suspiciously, as if he was still convinced I was lying.
“Okay, I’m gonna tell you, but you have to promise not to freak out or accuse me of lying, because I’m not,” I growled.
“Let’s hear it.”
I sighed, already knowing what Koto’s response would be. “He’s a… dragon.”
He threw his hands in the air and exclaimed, “Man, Raja! Get out of here!”
Before he could physically kick me out, I slapped my hand firmly on his shoulder. “Koto, I swear on my mother and father, I’m dead serious.”
That stopped him. To swear on your parents was a grave claim. He frowned, looking at me as if in a new light. After a long pause, Koto asked, “When will he be here?”
“Soon enough,” I said. With a roll of my eyes, I added, “I guess I have to tell my parents so they can get ready for the marriage.”
Koto grasped my hands seriously. “Raja, I know this is fake and all, but this is a big deal. Are you sure you want to lie to them like this?”
“You’rethe one who suggested this in the first place!” I snapped.
