Chapter 5 #3
Between the wine and her dinner, she was a bit sleepy. And yet, she wished they could keep talking about anything and everything else. It was rather…nice. She’d never felt so at ease with someone so soon before.
No, just stop. He isn’t for you, and this isn’t real. After all, this was merely a ruse to keep her on Seahaven long enough to do her research.
She nodded. “Right, well, I’m sure regular flatmate rules will work. You know, don’t steal each other’s stuff, ask if you want loads of people over, and share the cleaning duties, that kind of thing. I’m more worried about what we have to do when we’re in front of your clan members.”
“If you give me five minutes, then I can show you how we should act in front of the others—it’s easier than explaining it.”
Her heart raced as she imagined him holding her close.
Would he do that as part of his demonstration? Or, maybe they were less affectionate on Seahaven compared to other dragon clans, and he merely wanted to hold hands.
His voice snapped her back to the present. “I’m not going to maul you, lass. But it’s better for you to jump and blush now when we’re alone, aye?”
His words pricked her temper. “I’m not a na?ve virgin just out of school.”
“I never said you were. But you’re human, and they tend to be more reserved overall than dragon-shifters.”
“I’ve been living with dragon-shifters for years. I’ve seen how they act. Maybe they’re not as outgoing in the UK as in France, if the rumors are true. But I know what to expect.”
She’d heard of the French dragon-shifters and how they were quite, er, affectionate in public.
“No, I’m not French.” He stood and offered her a hand. “But if we’re living together, everyone will expect that we’ve at least snogged a few times. We need to practice.”
Her face flamed. “Kissing?”
“Aye, that’s what snogging means.”
His eyes danced with laughter, and she narrowed her eyes. One thing Cam didn’t know about her yet was that when Emily Davies committed to something, she was all in. Her competitive nature didn’t like failing, and that included convincing everyone she was actually interested in Cameron Alexander.
So she stood without taking his hand and stepped away from the table. Raising her chin, she was about to tell him to start when a flash of reason returned to her brain. “But what if we’re true mates? I don’t have time for a baby right now.”
As Cam’s eyes flashed to slits and back, some of her resolve weakened. Was she? What would happen if she was his true mate? Would she have to decide now if she wanted to stay on Seahaven?
Because if she kissed him and she was his true mate, then his inner beast would start a mate-claim frenzy that meant she either had to run far away while Cam was locked up, or she’d agree to the frenzy that only ended when she was pregnant.
Searching his gaze, she couldn’t tell what he was thinking. Even though she itched to run back to Stonefire and return to her old, safe life, she knew she couldn’t. Not only because of Trahern, but she wasn’t going to abandon her research unless she absolutely had to.
So Emily merely waited to see what he said, and then she’d have to form a plan from there.
Cam had been enjoying Emily’s company and fire so much that when she asked about being true mates, he instantly felt the fool. That was something he should’ve thought of.
He asked his dragon, Well? Are we?
His beast paused before answering, I don’t think so. But there’s always a wee chance she is.
Male dragons are supposed to know. How are you unsure? She’s a foot away.
His dragon took a minute to think, and Cam resisted telling him to hurry up. He couldn’t risk a mistake in this. Emily may have signed up to be his pretend mate, but not the actual frenzy.
Not that he wanted it, either. He didn’t have time for a mate and family.
His beast finally spoke up again. There’s a slight scent of dragon-shifter about her. Maybe she was injected with dragon’s blood at some point? That could be the reason I can’t fully tell.
Cam focused on Emily again and decided to be blunt. “Why do you smell slightly of dragon-shifter? Did you get sick and need dragon’s blood to recover?”
She frowned. “You can tell I’ve had dragon’s blood from my scent?”
“Aye, but you still haven’t answered my question.”
“Er, well, I’ve used myself as a test subject in the past. And yes, sometimes there was dragon’s blood in my serums.”
“Whose blood did you use?”
She searched his gaze. “Why does it matter?”
It shouldn’t, and yet, to a dragon-shifter, the giving of blood could be an intimate thing.
Only in recent decades had they resorted to giving it to strangers to help raise money and ensure their survival.
But in the olden days, it had been considered a bond and agreement between dragon clans and human ones.
His inner beast spoke up. Why do you care? She’s pretending to be our mate, and you shouldn’t get jealous.
He didn’t have an answer, so instead of replying, he studied Emily’s face. “Regardless of whose blood it is, it’s confusing my dragon. Maybe eventually he’ll be able to tell if you’re our true mate or not, but that means no kissing on the mouth until he can be sure one way or the other.”
“Can’t we just hold hands and say that’s good enough for now?”
“Not for Seahaven.”
She swallowed, and his eyes tracked her throat, so long and lovely. Maybe if he kissed her there, where her scent was stronger, his dragon would be able to tell the truth.
“Um, Cam?”
Shaking off his ridiculous thought—he did not want a mate now, maybe not ever—he defaulted to his stern Protector voice. “It’s late, and you’ll be gone for most of tomorrow, so we’ll talk about this again later.”
“You’re the one who brought it up in the first place!”
She crossed her arms over her chest, but he behaved himself, keeping his gaze on her face.
“Aye, I know. But things are complicated now, what with the mysterious dragon’s blood in your veins.
Maybe more time will allow my beast to figure out if you’re our true mate or not. For now, go to bed, and I’ll clean up.”
“No, I should help, especially since you cooked.”
He shook his head. “Go to bed, Emily. I need some time to think.”
After studying him for a few beats, she bobbed her head. “Okay, fine, I’ll go to bed. Thanks for dinner, and whilst I might not see you tomorrow, I still plan on going to your parents’ house the day after. Good night.”
“Night.”
Once she left, his dragon sighed. You didn’t handle that very well.
There’s no instruction manual for this kind of thing.
You don’t need one. You’re usually polite and supportive with the other females on Seahaven, unless they break a rule. But Emily hasn’t broken any.
He grunted, not wanting to talk more about it.
Eventually his dragon curled up and went to sleep, leaving Cam to replay the dinner and realize that he’d enjoyed spending time with the human female.
She was rather easy to talk to, and unlike some of the dragon-obsessed humans he’d encountered in the past, she didn’t try to flirt or praise him or say what she thought he wanted to hear. Dr. Emily Davies was simply…herself.
Although why she thought that was a negative, as she’d tried to warn him, he had no bloody idea.
As his mind started to imagine kissing her neck again, he quickly pushed the image aside and focused on all the tasks he needed to do the next day. Namely, connecting with Antony Holbrook and ensuring Emily’s safety.
Because that was his job—keeping her safe. She was his to protect, and nothing more.