thought she’d roll away from him, but instead, she moved across him to get to the edge of the bed. Ailean gritted his teeth and willed his body not to react. It had to be one of the hardest things he’d ever done and he’d gotten in a fight once with a giant octopus.
“Will he come back?”
“I’m sure. He’s bonded to you, Shalin.” And he knew how the little bastard felt. Ailean knew if he left this moment, he’d probably come back, too.
“Come on, then, you little terror.” Shalin picked the dog up and walked to the door. Ailean heard it open and then Shalin’s strangled, “Uh…”
“What’s wrong?” He rolled to his side, raising himself up on one elbow, and looked toward the door. “Shit,” he barely had a chance to mutter before Bideven pushed past Shalin and stalked in, Arranz and the twins right behind him.
“You dirty bastard. Couldn’t keep your hands off her, could ya?”
Ailean slid off the bed and stood in front of his kin, the only thing holding up that fur covering his hand.
“I’m not quite sure what it has to do with you, brother.”
Bideven moved toward him but Shalin calmly stepped between them. “He never touched me.”
Arranz sighed. “Shalin, love, could you move? You’re in the way of some lovely violence.”
Giving no more than an annoyed sniff, she didn’t respond to Arranz and instead said again, “He never touched me, Bideven.”
“Then why was he here?”
“I needed help with my puppy.”
Arranz and the twins started laughing and didn’t seem inclined to stop while Bideven’s accusing gaze shot daggers at Ailean.
“You bastard!”
Shalin rested her hand against Bideven’s chest. “Stop this now.”
“Shalin, you’re an innocent about this sort of thing—”
Ailean didn’t realize he’d snorted out loud until they all looked at him.
He glanced at Shalin and shrugged. “Sorry.”
“—and his intent,” Bideven finished. “We’re just trying to protect you.”
Shalin folded her arms over her chest. “Do you think so little of your own brother?”
The confusion on their faces would be something Ailean remembered for ages.
“What?”
“Do you think so little of him? That he’d take advantage of me. Force me.”
“I never said—”
“Is that truly what you expect of your own kin? I thought the Cadwaladr Clan loyal to each other.”
“We are.”
“I haven’t seen it. Not when you barge in here and accuse your own brother of being all manner of lizard.”
“I never meant to—”
“Then you should apologize.”
“Apologize?”
“Yes.”
“You can’t be—”
Shalin’s foot began to tap and Bideven growled. “Fine. I apologize.”
Patting his shoulder, Shalin ushered Bideven and the rest out. “Now don’t you feel better?”
“Not really,” Bideven shot back, but Shalin had already closed the door in his face.
Ailean stared at Shalin. “That was…brilliant!”
Shalin held her finger to her lips while she bent over silently laughing. “He’ll hear.”
“Good!” Ailean watched her walk across the room. “How did you do that?”
She shrugged before falling back on the bed, her grin wide and happy. “Years of court life, my dear dragon.”
It happened so fast, Shalin thought a wizard must be involved. But no. It was simply rainy season in Kerezik and that meant sudden darkness and sudden storms.
Well, she thought, that might at least keep the beasts from the door for a little while. Lightning dragons, from what she’d read, didn’t much like traveling in this sort of weather. Not only did they possess lightning within them as her people possessed flame, but they attracted lightning. Which could make for painful, if not lethal, travels during storm seasons in the different regions.
Running a comb through her freshly washed hair, she looked at the courtyard beneath her window. Not surprisingly, very few of the human servants were about and the few that were quickly scurried toward one of the many buildings so they were out of the rain. Then she saw him, marching through the rain, not caring that his clothes were getting soaked.
Ailean stopped and spoke to a large, burly human. She’d guess the woman was the local blacksmith, based on her dress and the size of her arms. Laughing at some joke of his, the female placed her hand on his forearm, and Shalin’s eyes narrowed dangerously.
With a quick hug, the blacksmith walked away and Ailean continued on to his destination. She watched until he walked into the stables.
Stables?
“Yum…horse.”
Ailean gently brushed his favorite mare’s coat and softly hummed. Black Heart liked when he hummed.
He loved doing this. It was one of those things he could do and still focus on something else completely. Like why his family had suddenly lost their collective minds. Never before, in his nearly hundred and fifty years, had they ever cared about what he did or who he did it with. But now, suddenly, he had the lot of them trying to push him away from Shalin as if they thought he’d purposely hurt her.
Could involving himself with Shalin only lead to hurting her more than anyone else because she truly was innocent? He hated the thought of hurting her and hated the thought of never lying with her even more.
So focused on his thoughts and feelings—something Ailean rarely paid attention to for more than three seconds at a time—he didn’t notice Black Heart’s growing nervousness until she bucked suddenly. Ailean placed his hand on her flank, felt the tensing muscles. He crooned to her softly while he slowly, carefully stood. It wasn’t like Black Heart to be so jumpy around him. He’d ridden her and many from her line into local battles when he’d fought as human. She’d never balked before, although she could smell what he was.
“What is it, girl?” he asked softly. “What has you so nervous?”
“Is she for tonight’s meal?” that sweet, innocent voice asked.
And Black Heart kicked at the stall door, forcing Shalin to back up.
“Hmm. She may be tough of hide, Ailean,” Shalin said in all seriousness. “She’ll be hard to chew.”
Ailean quickly stepped in front of Black Heart before she could knock down the stall door. “Ssssh,” he sang softly. “It’s all right.”
Once he had her relatively calm, he glanced over his shoulder at Shalin, forcing himself to ignore how beautiful she looked in another one of his cousin’s gowns, this time a deep blue. Like before, it was too big for her and kept falling off her shoulder, giving just enough to tantalize and tease but still hold everything back. “She’s not dinner, Shalin.”
“She’s not?”
“No.”
“Then what are you doing with her?” she asked, honestly confused.
“Grooming her.”
“For what, if we’re not going