Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 77127 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 386(@200wpm)___ 309(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77127 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 386(@200wpm)___ 309(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
I didn’t confess about the soup night because I didn’t want to traumatize Kenzie.
That at least got smiles from everyone before Lorne and Kenzie looked at Stefan again. I wasn’t sure why we hadn’t made progress, but I tried to look relaxed and not accidentally come across as guilty and distract the three worriers.
Stefan didn’t mind being my interrogator and sat straighter, so he was clearly worried about me. It was cute…but confusing…and his words didn’t help. “We’re glad he wants to do something special for you, but he’s…well…he doesn’t seem to understand much about being a dragon.”
Giving me a dramatic pause, Stefan started up again when it was clear I didn’t understand the problem. “We wanted to make sure he knew how he was supposed to treat his mate…and that he knew how to do stuff like shift and fly. He’s…he comes across as very human.”
Hmm.
“I’m willing to debate the coming across as human thing, but I have to agree that he doesn’t understand much about their history.” Or any of it, really. “He likes flying, though. He talked about that, and he was fairly confident that the compulsion was related to a mate bond, and he didn’t freak out about that. He has to get props for that.”
Big ones.
As heads nodded, I tried to decide how to make them less worried.
“The areas they moved to were very isolated for a long time and he was born before the internet, guys. Can you imagine trying to learn about what was going on with other dragons around the world by mailing letters?” I couldn’t.
But I’d been reading up on the groups that’d traveled west when I could take a break, and I’d come up with some ideas about what had gone wrong.
Eyes widened around the table and it looked like even Stefan hadn’t thought about that. His head cocked again and he went into librarian mode. “If that group of settlers didn’t keep good records or things like diaries, I can understand why a lot of their history was lost. They’d fill in the gaps with what was logical and just keep going.”
It was my turn to nod. “And for a guy who’d finally gotten internet and all the fun stuff that came with that, history would not be what he searched for first.”
“Porn.” Kenzie’s head bobbed like that was perfectly understandable. “I wasn’t interested in our history until I had to answer Talon’s questions. He had so many.”
Kenzie hadn’t been interested in anything outside of work or mischief, so that wasn’t a surprise.
“We’ll teach him and get him up to date.” Stefan liked that idea because he was nearly bouncing on the bench. “We’ll show him the diaries and some of the historical documents and then we’ll take a hike up to the portal. I haven’t seen it yet.”
“That’s because the hike is a pain in the ass.” Even with magical assistance the trail got overgrown and disappeared faster than any other one on the mountain. Kenzie’s father had said one time that it was like the woods themselves wanted to hide it for us.
That was great and all, but it made it difficult to get back up there.
“It’ll be fun.” Lorne wasn’t worried, but he was probably planning on making his Daddy carry him. “I have sparkly new hiking boots I want to try out.”
Stefan looked curious enough to ask him where the hell he’d found shoes like that, but luckily Kenzie saved us from a fashion adventure reenactment. “What about the friends issue?”
Lorne and Stefan sighed and nodded, but I looked so confused that Kenzie had to explain. “If he doesn’t make friends, he might leave and you’re his mate, so you’d go with him. He’s a dragon. They need people.”
Oh.
I wasn’t worried, but I could see how they would be.
Even Stefan looked concerned, so someone had made a very convincing argument.
“First, he said he knew I wouldn’t be happy anywhere else. He listed off my job and my house and even you guys as reasons why he knew he’d be staying here.” Logic was important but I knew from their skeptical looks that it wouldn’t be enough.
So I pulled out the big guns.
“And you’re forgetting he’s part mage. They’re cranky.” Yep, I knew I was playing into stereotypes and it made me a bad person, but I wasn’t going to try to reason with them. “I’d worry if he was too happy, honestly. Mages make trouble when they’re happy.”
Ours did, at least.
“Oh.” Their voices sounded like they were echoing around me since they all said it at the same time.
“Yeah. Mages are…well, he thinks dragon genetics are stronger but that mage crankiness seems like it goes through several generations just fine.” Shrugging as I watched them grasp the crazy logic, I kept going. “And creative types? He’s an artist. Kenzie, think of your work but turn the creativity and obsessiveness up to ten.”