Over the long months in space Ella’s belly grew rounder each day. She still had not spoken to her prince, and it weighed heavily on her soul. She longed for nothing more than to see him and speak to him, at least once.

Her only consolation was the quickening of her child inside her belly. With each passing day, she fell deeper in love with her baby. And consequently deeper in love with her prince. She never could have imagined, before leaving Earth, that she would ever feel this way.

The long months in space had made her grow impatient to be with him. Waiting like this was torture. But she knew that at the end of her long journey, she would finally be with her mate. They could start their lives together. The thought of being with Shay, and their baby boy, was what kept her going day in and day out, during the monotonous, long journey through space.

One day seemed to run into the next, and the only way to truly mark time was by the changes taking place in her body.

Nothing had really changed or happened, besides her belly, in six months. Ella was beginning to feel as if she might lose her mind.

One day, out of nowhere, Medic Zeke walked through the doors of her apartment with a distraught look on his face.

“What is it?” Ella asked.

“Please have a seat,” Zeke said, motioning for her to sit on the couch.

They sat together on her couch facing the big bank of windows, looking out onto space. They were passing a gaseous giant planet. They’d been traveling through this large solar system for the last several days.

“What is it?” Ella asked again.

“I have bad news and good news, as they say on Earth,” medic Zeke informed her.

“The suspense is killing me,” she said sarcastically.

Traveling through space had done a number on her character, and she could barely remember the woman she had been before she'd started her journey.

“I've been informed that the Mulgor have taken over an area in a star system we must pass through to get to Galaton.”

Ella gasped and narrowed her eyes. She knew about the Mulgor. They were the lizard men who were the ancient enemy of the Draconians. They were the ones who had attacked Earth, destroyed half the planet and killed her parents.

Every child on earth knew about the Mulgor. The effects of their invasion was still impacting the people of Earth’s day-to-day lives.

“Can't we just go around them?” she asked.

“There is no other route. All of the other star systems are uncharted and possibly even more dangerous.”

“What are we going to do?” she asked.

“That brings me to my good news. I know that you have longed for contact with your mate. And I am pleased to inform you that Prince Shay will be leaving Galaton to come rescue you from the bride ship.”

“But how can he possibly rescue us? We’re so far away.”

“The Galatonians have much better ships than the bride ships provided by Draconia. The bride ships were originally constructed to take brides from Earth through the wormhole to Draconia, which as you know, is a short trip. The Galatonians have faster ships with warp drives and cloaking shields. He will have a much better chance of getting here quickly and passing the Mulgor without incident.”

“When will he arrive?” she asked.

“Within the month,” Medic Zeke informed her. “Now, let me check on the child.”

He passed a medical wand over Ella's rounding belly and then checked the screen.

“Everything appears to be normal. Your baby is developing well. It is only three more months now until your child arrives. There is a good chance the baby will be born on Galaton.”

“I can't believe it,” Ella said at a whisper.

Fear and longing mingled in her chest. The threat of the Mulgor was terrifying, but at the same time the prospect of finally meeting her prince was everything she'd dreamed of for six months. She could not wait to meet him.

The month she waited for Shay to arrive was worse torture than before. Anticipation swam in her blood every moment of every day. Would he be kind? Would he find her beautiful? What would they talk about?

When she woke in the morning, she thought of Shay, and when she went to bed at night, her last thought was of him too. Shay's pictures filled the holographic screens of her room and all she could do was swoon over them. Soon, very soon, this handsome prince would be hers. She thought of him while she rubbed the requisite lotion on her body. This action was meant to alleviate Shay's mating thrall. While doing this inevitably made her orgasm, it also filled her with loneliness and longing for her mate.

The day finally arrived when Shay’s ship appeared in the star system. Ella could barely contain her excitement. She was seven months pregnant and full with child. Every sense of anticipation and excitement she could possibly feel surged through her veins at an alarming rate, making her blood pump and her heart pound. She couldn't calm down the entire day as she waited for Shay’s warship, the Black Spear, to catch up to the bride ship Mercury Rising.

Ella spent the day in her closet, picking clothes. She’d dressed in her most extravagant Draconian lady’s gown. It accentuated the beautiful curve of her belly and draped around her breasts seductively.

She had chosen a gown to honor her mate’s elemental designation of water. It flowed around her in cascades of blue and green and silver. She had done her hair in long braids that she wore over her shoulders and around her voluptuous breasts.

She stood at the entrance hatch of the Mercury Rising, waiting for Shay to fly over in a space pod. She could barely stay upright as the blood pumped in her brain, leaving her fingertips numb.

Finally, the door of the exit hatch swished open and there he was. He stood before her in a tight gray Draconian uniform that clung to his every muscle.

Everything in her wanted to fall into his arms, but she didn't know if it was the correct protocol. Shay made the decision for her, crossing the space between them in an instant and enfolding her in his massive, muscled arms. He towered above her by a foot and a half, and she could feel the strength and power radiating from his massive body. He breathed into the top of her head and took in her scent.

“It feels as if I had waited an eternity for you, my beloved,” Shay said.

Ella whimpered at his words, wanting nothing more than to retire to her chambers and complete the mating ritual right then and there.

“Are you prepared for your journey?” he asked her.

“I am,” she said, in a small voice she barely recognized.

The attendants on board the bride ship helped carry her bags into the space pod for immediate departure. It all happened so fast. Before she knew it, she was being strapped into the pod by medic Zeke.

“Don't worry, Ella,” Zeke said. “There is a medic on board your mate’s ship who will take care of you.”

“You aren’t coming?” she asked.

“We must leave for Draconia. Our journey is now over.”

“Thanks for everything,” Ella whispered and medic Zeke stepped away.

Her mate sat beside her. Her heart pounded in her ears as the space pod door swished shut and unlatched from the bride ship. She looked at her mate as he guided the pod toward the Black Spear.

“These accommodations far surpass the accommodations the Draconians provided my bride,” he growled, not looking at her.

Ella rose her eyebrow at his words, but didn't pursue it further. She got the feeling there was no love lost between the Galaton and Draconia. Although they were the same species, Galaton and Draconia were very different in many ways.

The long months aboard the bride ship had left her plenty of time to research her new home. She had come to understand how Draconia had left Galaton out of the mating lottery for far too long.

Every time the five-thousand-year mating cycle came around, Draconia did the same to Galaton. Every time, it resulted in the civil unrest Galaton was experiencing now. Ella had come to truly respect and admire Draconia but she couldn’t understand why they would treat Galaton like second class citizens. Perhaps it was because Galaton refused to bend to Dranonia’s rule.

The pod slowly moved through space and docked in the docking bay of the Black Spear. Shay helped Ella out of her harness. And the door slid open to reveal her mate’s ship. Shay held her hand as she stepped out of the pod and into the brightly lit docking bay. There were several other round black space pods docked there and a few technicians attending them.

Without a word, Shay led her down the hallway and came to a door that swished open. They walked inside and he turned to her.

“Are you hungry or tired?” he asked.

“No, not presently,” she replied with a croak. She was carrying this man's child, and she felt a deep sense of attachment to him, but she had never met him. Her human mind couldn't quite conceive of how she should behave or how she should feel in this moment. A torrent of conflicting and raging emotions swam through her mind, body, and heart.

“Very good,” Shay said. “We must now begin the mating ritual.” He growled at the words.

Ella squealed and took a step back involuntarily. The force of his words were instinctively frightening to her, but she knew exactly what he needed.

“Do you object?” he asked with a questioning look on his face.

“No,” she said. “I'm just confused.”

“Then let us proceed.”

Shay reached up with his big hands and slipped his fingers through the hem of Ella's neckline, pushing her dress down over her shoulders. She looked up into his moss-green eyes and bit her lip, her heart pounding in her chest. Her gown slid over her full breasts and he continued to push the garment down over her round belly. It fell to the floor and she was left standing nude before him.

His eyes drank her in. Ella gasped at the sight of the huge bulge in his skintight uniform. He flicked a spot at the base of his neck and his uniform contracted so that he was left naked as well. They gazed at each other, with the view of space outside the big bank of windows in his luxurious chambers. Out of the corner of her eye, Ella saw the bride ship, Mercury Rising, zoom off in the distance, back towards Draconia.

She couldn’t stop panting and her heart thumped so fast her head felt light and her body felt faint. She was about to buckle at the knees and fall to the ground when Shay swooped her up into his big, strong arms.

Ella wrapped her arms around his thick, strong neck and looked into his eyes. His lips curled back, showing his sharp teeth, as he carried her into his bedroom and laid her across his bed.

He stood above her and gazed down at her curvaceous body. His thick, long erection was as wide as a sapling and as imposing as a skyscraper. She leaned up on her elbows and licked her lips.

They hadn't even had a real conversation, but there she was, on his bed, round with his child, and ready to accept whatever it was he wanted to do to her body now.

She saw his nostrils flare as he took in the scent of her and climbed onto the bed beside her. He inched toward her body and wrapped his arm under her head, allowing her to rest against his thick bicep. She could smell the deep musky scent of his body and it filled her mind with rapture.

His big hand slid up her inner thigh and dipped between her legs, testing the moisture of her sex. She groaned and tilted her head back, consumed by his touch. He found her slick with need and he growled hungrily at the feel of it.

His long, thick finger caressed her need, dipping through her outer folds until he brushed over her tight clit.

Shay rubbed his finger in a tight little circle over her hungry clit. The mounds of her breasts swelled and her nipples tightened into sharp peaks. He leaned down and tasted her tight pink nipple, flicking his slick tongue over her tender flesh.

An electric shock radiated from her nipple down into her sex, making her pussy clench and gush with moisture.

He sucked on her tit as his finger dipped inside her core, rubbing in and out of her as he moved his mouth over to the other breast, and quickly sucking it too.

As his fingers slid in and out of her wet need, his thumb caressed her clit, bringing her closer and closer to release. He lifted his head from her breast and pressed his lips to hers for the first time. His tongue flicked into her mouth to meet her own hungry tongue, and her body erupted with the intensity of an exploding star.

She groaned loudly as his tongue dove into her mouth and his fingers dove into her pussy. Her body clenched around his fingers, sucking them deeper with each thrust. His tongue darted in and out of her mouth, and Ella threw her arms around his neck, wanting this moment to last forever.

But it didn't last forever. He withdrew from their kiss and ran his kisses over her cheeks and down her chest, inching down her body until he was between her legs, gazing at her throbbing, wet core. She looked down at him as his eyes gazed at her sex.

“I've never seen anything so magnificent,” he growled.

With that, he dove into her, licking up the juices he’d teased from inside her with his slick, hungry tongue. He lapped it all up and her moisture was replaced with his.

He darted his tongue in and out of her throbbing pussy. All Ella could do was hold on for the ride as he worked her body with expert skill. It didn't take long before she was ready to burst again, his tongue circling over her clit and his fingers pumping in and out of her core.

She erupted a second time, screaming out his name and arching her back with her release. He drew himself up on his knees and wiped the moisture from his lips, his eyes locked on hers. Ella glanced down at his massive erection as his hand gripped the amazing width of his shaft.

Still looking at her with those smoldering eyes, he began to pump himself with his strong fist. Slowly at first, but then his speed increased. Ella scrambled onto her hands and knees, her belly dipping low over the mattress. She wanted to taste the beads of precum that had formed on the head of his cock.

She leaned forward, licking up his cum. He growled at her and ran his fingers through her hair. Ella opened her mouth and tried to take in the head of his cock.

Even with her mouth opened as wide as it would go, she couldn't fully take him. All she could do was suck at the head and lick along the shaft between Shay’s strokes. The first taste of his precum on her lips made her vibrate with arousal. His hand in her hair and his cock in her mouth made her pussy clench as if he were pleasuring her with his hands when he wasn't even touching her there. Shay groaned above her and his seed erupted into her mouth, shooting to the back of her throat with the velocity of a geyser.

She groaned and gulped it down. The sweet and salty flavor was addictive and she couldn't get enough. She licked up every last drop from his magnificent manhood. He held his still-hard cock for her as her tongue ran up and down the thick ridged shaft and over the soft smooth skin of his head.

Exhausted, she fell back onto the mattress and put her forearm over her forehead. She was wiped out, her round belly heavy and her heart pounding with excitement. Shay lay beside her and stroked her belly lazily as he gazed into her eyes.

“I have waited so long for this,” he said. “You are more beautiful than I could have even imagined. All of these months, I've been forced to push you out of my mind. That alone has been torture. My vow, from this moment forward, is to never let you leave my side and to never let you leave the forefront of my mind. Ella, you are everything to me. You are my queen.”

“Oh Shay,” she whimpered, throwing her arms around his neck. “Waiting for you, waiting to talk to you, waiting to see you and feel you, touch you and taste you, it has been torture for me too. All I could think about was how much I needed you. You are everything to me as well, my prince.”

They held each other as Ella drifted off to sleep. In that moment she was more content and more complete than she had ever been in her entire existence. She had finally found her other half. Her mate. Her Dragon Lord.