Jory laughed along with him. It had been a while since he'd let responsibilities go and had a laugh with a friend. He drank down some juice to moisten his throat.
A chirp from Precious reminded him of his goals for the day.
"Shit. I have to call your uncle and see if he's done with some clothes for me, and I was told that Maurek might be able to find Precious a good home."
"Maurek would be a good one to see," Z agreed with a nod. "He's in charge of the dragon grounds. He'll be able to tell you what to do."
"Excellent. Val said he'd meet me for midday meal so I've got to get going."
"Don't forget to register your mating."
"Will do." Jory headed towards the bathroom to brush his teeth. "I'll catch you later, Z, and thanks for bringing me breakfast."
"No problem. I wanted to hear your news." Z stood up, gave Jory a loud smooch on the cheek and ran out the door while the dragon hissed at him.
Jory laughed and closed the door behind him.
Speaking of news… After making sure the door was secure, Jory pulled out his communicator and punched in the special code.
A series of beeps announced his connection. The front of the communicator slid open, and Jory was looking into the face of his good friend, Zar.
"Greetings, my prince," Zar greeted with his trademark smile. An intergalactic pirate, Zar was famous for hijacking slaver ships and relieving smugglers of their stolen goods. What most people didn't know was that he worked for Jory
"Greetings, my pirate friend. Uncle is going to be smuggling goods in the Villio quarter next month. There will be three ships with various goods, some slaves, some cash and a large amount of jewels from the Marl galaxy. He's also stepping up security so you'll need to be extra careful."
"I like your new outfit." The pirate leered at Jory's naked chest.
Jory laughed. "I'm waiting for my clothes. They should arrive soon, and if you want some of this, you'll have to wait in line. Right now, I'm the prize between two men who both want me to be their mate."
"Pick carefully, Joriah," Zar warned, his face uncharacteristically serious. "I'd hate for you to be bound to the wrong mate."
"I will, my friend. You watch out for pirates."
Zar laughed. "I will at that."
A knock on the door sounded soon after he hung up.
A quick glance around showed Precious was missing. Once again, the window had proved a convenient avenue of escape, odd since he didn't remember opening it. If the dragon didn't show up by the time he left, he'd have to go to the dragon keeper later.
Opening the door, he was greeted by Lila, wearing a wicked smile. "Don't let me interrupt. I believe you were only halfway to naked." She held a bunch of hangers, with clothes wrapped in plastic, in one hand.
Jory smiled back until he saw her face. Careful makeup application hid a lot, but he could see new bruises beneath the powder.
Fury filled him at the thought of this delicate woman being beaten. "Who touched you?"
Lila's smile faded. "I don't know what you're talking about. Come look at your new clothes. I promised Britson I'd bring them directly to you."
Jory placed his hands on Lila's shoulders, fury building when she flinched at his touch. "Tell me."
"I didn't have his food ready." She sobbed, her pretty hands twisting together. "He told me over and over that when he comes home he likes to have his food hot. But did I listen?" Her shiny hair bounced as she shook her head. "If I wasn't so stupid, he wouldn't have to hurt me."
Her violet eyes were wide and sincere.
Jory burned, anger tearing up his insides. He lowered his eyes so she didn't see his expression when he asked, "What's your boyfriend's name?"
"Wesland. He's one of the king's soldiers," she whispered, her voice filled with fear. "Don't say anything, okay? He's under a lot of stress to prove he's as tough as the others. He doesn't mean to do it, a-and he's always sorry afterwards. He's really a great guy."
Great guy indeed. The asshole needed someone to knock him around.
