Reese plunges his speeder skyward and we exit the atmosphere with a burst into space. Reese’s home planet, Umbria is just below my orbiting moon of Arcadia. Umbria is a water planet, ruled by water dragons.

As we come into the atmosphere of his water world home, I marvel at the beauty of this place. I have been to Umbria more than once with my parents. There are many opportunities for research as well as recreation here.

Unlike Arcadia, which has abundant forests and mountains, Umbria is almost entirely covered in water. There are multiple islands scattered across the planet, but they are not large.

Most of the population of Umbria are water dragons who live in the underwater cities that proliferate across the planet. Many cities are domed and filled with air for interaction with non-water dragons. However, many more are open to the water and require underwater breathing to go there.

Reese angles his sleek ship into a dive below the purple waves of Umbria. I gasp as we charge downward, water enveloping the ship. I see the underwater world through the windows. Massive sea creatures bob in the distant black of the deep sea. Far below, the glowing domes of the capital city of Urbaan greet my eyes with their warmth.

Reese's ship slides through an entrance hatch where the water is slowly removed from around our ship, and we then fly into the underwater city.

The shimmering blue coral towers of the royal palace of Del’mineko stretch to the top of the dome. We land, setting down not five hundred measures from the main entrance. Reese takes my hand and we exit the ship. The thwacking in my chest won’t stop as we march up the pathway to the magnificent castle. Attendants wait for us as we pass. I feel my stomach clench, my nerves unprepared to be presented to royalty.

"I don't think I wore the right outfit today," I say.

I suspect I should be wearing a gown instead of this slim fitting suit.

Reese looks at me and shakes his head with a smile. "You look perfect. Absolutely breathtaking in every way. Every bit the White Queen of Arcadia.”

"Thanks, Reese," I say.

After a lifetime in the laboratory and the library, I feel awkward in this royal place.

Reese grasps my hand, his smooth skin velvety and soft to the touch.

"I'm going to introduce you to my parents: King and Queen Brio.”

"I'm not sure I'm ready for that," I admit.

"Don't worry," he says. “My parents don’t bite…much.”

I glance at him and realize he’s nervous too. I bite my lip as we reach the end of the hall. Reese and I take several steps up and enter the throne room.

Banners hang along the walls, and tall windows look out onto the walls of the dome. A massive sea octopyrus floats on the dark waters beyond the glass. Reese's parents sit on their gold coral thrones. Golden crowns spiral on their heads. Reese bows to his parents and I follow his lead.

"Mother, Father, this is my intended: The White Queen, Joon D’fray. My fated mate," Reese says as he straightens. “Dear Joon, I’m pleased to present you to my father, King Hecrosis Brio and my mother, Queen Elanorina Brio.”

"It is a great pleasure to meet our son’s fated. You had a surprise at the tournament, didn’t you, Queen Joon? How does it feel to be a queen?” Queen Elanorina asks.

Her pink hair coils around her head and shoulders, contrasting with her aqua green and blue skin. She wears a gilded pink dress tailored out of genuine sea silk. It fits her curves to perfection. Her crown seems to float on her head, weightless.

"I'm not a queen, your highness," I correct.

"Any female who has five fated male dragons is certainly a queen," Reese's mother informs me.

"I would agree," King Hecrosis says.

King Hecrosis is nude to the waist with only an aqua green sash with the crest of house Brio at his chest. His lower half is shifted into a single strong fish tail. A narrow pool lies at their feet, the king’s fin just touching the surface of the water.

"My family are academics and military. We aren't royalty."

"The Bones of the Gods have blessed you with five males. Including our son and heir to the throne of Umbria. You are now indeed royalty," his mother says.

I blush, remembering I still haven’t told my matches I intend to mate with them all. I know I should, but I’m unprepared for the reaction.

“Please join us for our afternoon meal," Queen Elanorina says.

The King shifts into bipedal form as his nanotech sash turns into a toga. The monarchs rise and lead me and Reese into an antechamber where a table is set for four. The King and Queen sit on one side and Reese and I sit on the other.

Servants bring us our meal of the finest delicacies of Umbria. Raw fish and sea potato, wave lettuce wraps. Deep sea salted water swine. It is served with exquisitely spiced merrow wine. I feel nervous, but as I eat and we chat about the family and Reese's younger siblings, I begin to feel more at home.

After meeting Reese’s parents, I understand him better. He grew up a royal prince, with all the servants and all the treasures of Umbria. For having such a privileged life, he’s amazingly humble. I’m lucky to know him, let alone have him as my mate.

We leave the city and go for a drive through the waves. Reese skims his ship over the water and dives deep, making me giggle. Finally, he stops and takes my hand in his. His stormy blue eyes gaze at me as he begins to sing. His voice is operatic and heartbreaking. His words thrill my soul. Each line of his song is another note in his adoration of me.

“My love for thee it sends my heart stirring

You call my soul upon golden star beams

Love stops the hands of time, my mind a whirring

I bask in the glow of my shining White Queen.”

As the last notes of his song echo through the ship, he leans in to kiss me. I’m so touched by his words, I let go of all preconceived ideas about what is between us. His wet tongue flicks through my lips, and my body gushes with desire as I let him enter. We embrace each other, breathing in each other’s breath in our kiss.

Reese cups my face in his hands, gazing into my eyes. His aqua blue orbs penetrate me to my depths. He comes out to meet me in the dark, quiet waters of my heart and caresses the deepest tenderness of my soul. I feel our spirits entwine like the vines of the tiniberry that grows deep in the evergreen forests of Arcadia.

My legs find their way around his waist as we sit on the long bench in the front seat of his speeder. He pulls me on top of him, and I feel him rising between my legs. He licks my neck, twisting my head to the side for a better taste. I grind against him, sucking his thumb into my mouth.

“My star shine,” he whispers. His tongue finds its way down my neck to my shoulder as he pulls my jacket away. I let the jacket fall on the floor behind me. Reese cups my ass, holding the globes tightly in his sensitive hands. They slide down the cleft, teasing out new sensations with his gentle touch. I flick my finger down my wrist com and deactivate my nanotech suit, but I’m still wearing my leather ankle boots.

Reese sees my body before him and his eyes widen. He moves his hands to my breasts, staring at my body as he squeezes and fondles as if for the first time.

I place my hands on his shoulders, looking down into his face. Reese presses a button on his wrist com and slowly shifts out of his clothing. His body moves into half shift form. I find myself seated on his fish tail, a form only water dragons possess. Water begins to fill the cabin of the ship, and I gasp as it reaches up around my hips. His member is hard under me, but now, it seems to be formed out of the base of his long tail.

“Now we will both experience something new together,” he whispers in my ear.

“You’ve never been to a pleasure house?” I ask.

“I’ve been waiting for you. I’d wait for eternity to be with my fated one.”

My mouth drops and he kisses me, pulling me over the hard nub of his member. It’s spongy and moist, and it meets my pleasure buttons like it was made for him to touch. I groan, bucking against him.

“Yes, My Queen,” he whispers.

I move over him as the water sloshes around us. The windows above his speeder show the vast sea life that roams the deep oceans of Umbria. Inside the ship, we are in a pool of warm water that reaches to my hips.

Reese is so sweet and gentle and kisses me with such passion I’m lost in it. Reese enfolds my nipples in his mouth as his fingers pull the twist out of my hair. It falls down my back in a wave and he threads his fingers through it. As his hand cups the base of my neck, he begins to gyrate his hips. The intense sensation shocks me with electrified pleasure.

His spongy wet member begins to pulse under me as he holds me tight to his body. I groan as the orgasm strikes me. He comes under me, hot and thick. His semen coats my core, even as the water begins to wash it away. I gasp as I catch my breath, looking at him with surprise in my face.

“That was…unexpected,” I tell him.

“I am not surprised you are so beautiful when you climax,” he says into the crook of my neck.

He kisses me a dozen times across my neck, chest and face before returning the ship and himself to normal. I slide away, restoring my own nanotech outfit. My shoes are wet until I place them on the ground and the ship’s drying system sucks the moisture out.

My hair is a mess, but I twist it up into a messy bun that looks just as good as it did in the tight one.

“I don’t want to take you back, my darling,” Reese confesses, taking my hand in his.

“I know how you feel. Sometimes I wish I could just run away from it all.”

“I wish I could take you away. But I cannot ask you to do that, My Queen. The others would weigh on your soul forever.”

I gaze up at Reese, his dark curls falling around his face. I cup his sleek green cheek in my hand. He is so sweet and considerate to me. It’s like he feels my emotions better than I do.

“You love them, don’t you?” he asks me gently.

“I do love them. I love all of them.”

“I love that you love them all. It shows me what a big heart you have.”

“You aren’t jealous?” I ask him.

He turns away and looks out the window. When he turns back he smiles and gazes at my eyes for a long time, brushing a stray lock of hair back from my face.

“No,” he finally says. “Jealousy would mean I don’t understand that you were given these mates because they belong to you. Why would I want to take away what is yours? What makes you who you are?”

“Oh Reese, when you say it like that, it’s like I can finally accept why I have them all myself. That is a true gift.”

I kiss him softly on the lips and rest my forehead against his. “Thank you,” I say.

“Thank you, sweet queen,” he whispers, moving to press his lips against my forehead. “Now, let’s get you home.”