Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
Cam regularly taught the young dragons flight maneuvers. Since Seahaven was so small, there were only two full-time teachers for the children, and so other clan members pitched in to help cover special areas.
However, as he waited for the students to arrive at the cliff overlooking the sea, his heart thumped harder than usual. He hoped everything went well today and that the students didn’t try to pull any tricks and get hurt in the process.
His dragon spoke up. Emily will enjoy it, regardless of what happens.
Maybe. But it’s the older students today, and they like to push boundaries.
You did the same, so you understand how to handle them.
There’s also Tor. He wants to try out his latest detection and vibration device for the first time.
You would never allow Tor to get hurt. But he’s nearly an adult now, and you need to start trusting him more.
I do trust him. But the new device is still in the developmental stage, and if something goes wrong…
Stop worrying. And look, they’re coming.
He spotted Carol, who was the teacher for the older students, heading their way. The dragonwoman was a little younger than his mother, and if Cam hadn’t still been on Lochguard at the time, she would’ve been his teacher since she’d taught for over twenty years.
Carol smiled at him as she waited for all the students to line up before saying, “Hi ya, Cam. Two hours, like usual?”
He nodded. “Aye. I’ll escort them and make sure they get back to the school on time.”
There were some grumblings from the students about being old enough to walk back by themselves, but Cam merely glanced at them, and they fell silent. Everyone was on high alert because of some dragon hunter sightings less than twenty miles away.
After Carol left, he met the gaze of every student in turn as he said, “Today we’re going to have a visitor named Dr. Emily Davies. She’s visiting from Stonefire, and so I need you lot to be on your best behavior, aye?”
One of the students, Maisie, blurted, “Is it true she might become your mate?”
Well, it seemed Euan had spread the word, as promised. “Aye, although it’s not a sure thing yet.”
Maisie smiled. “We can help you, Mr. Alexander, and tell her why you’re brilliant. You sometimes look lonely, and maybe she can help with that.”
Cam kept his face impassive. Maisie was notorious for trying to help people find love, even though she’d yet to find it herself.
Granted, she was sixteen and shouldn’t be in a rush.
But her parents’ love story colored her views—her dad was human and her mum a dragon-shifter—and she was determined to find the same.
And as realistic as he was, he didn’t have the heart to tell her real life was no fairytale.
His dragon sighed. Be nice. Maisie is still young, and there’s nothing wrong with dreams.
Some dreams, aye. But it’s harder for female dragon-shifters to find a human mate than the other way around.
Before his beast could respond, Cam spotted someone in the distance and instantly identified them as Emily. He made eye contact for a few beats, lifted a hand, and she did the same. When he looked back at the students, they were all whispering to each other.
“Och, that’s enough. Dr. Davies is nearly here, so be on your best behavior and follow my maneuvers to the letter, aye?”
Once they murmured in the affirmative, Emily came closer, and he took in the image of her hair mussed from the wind, as well as her lovely eyes and flushed cheeks. Maybe she’d look the same way when she first woke up in the morning. Or, after he’d made her orgasm.
And aye, he was going to try to make that happen. Because last night he’d decided to try winning her for real. He might fail, but if he didn’t at least give it a go, he’d regret it forever.
His dragon spoke up. She’ll be ours, just don’t hold back.
We’ll see, dragon. She’s been hurt before by her family and friends, and who knows what else.
Then Emily was there, in front of him, and without thinking, he took her hand and squeezed it.
She blinked, but then squeezed back. Whether it was because she was acting the part or for real, he didn’t know.
But Cam hadn’t even begun to show her what a determined dragonman would do to try and win a mate.
The entire morning, Emily had struggled to concentrate on her work. The dinner the night before, as well as Cam sharing his family history in front of the wall of photos, kept replaying in her mind.
While she’d made a lot of casual friends on Stonefire, she’d always fallen back on her closeness with Trahern instead of putting herself out there with new people. She’d only really made an effort with Sarah Carter-Wells since she was a bit more reserved with new people, like Emily was.
Sarah had even invited her to a few dinners and gatherings, but watching the happy extended family together had made her both sad and awkward, and so she’d soon found excuses not to go.
But when it came to the Alexander family, they welcomed her without a thought, treating her as if they’d known her for years.
It’s been nice, so nice, and had made Emily wish they were her family, too.
But she needed to be careful because she and Cam weren’t actually potential mates, no matter how she sometimes wished he would kiss her.
By the time her alarm went off—reminding her to stop so she could watch the young dragons practice flying—she was irritated at herself for wasting the morning and getting almost nothing done.
You’re here to work, Emily. That’s it. Daydreaming about the impossible doesn’t help protect the dragon-shifters, does it?
After giving herself a scolding, she felt more centered and quickly put away her supplies.
Once she was finally outside in the sea air, she inhaled deeply, and then again, clearing her mind.
And before she knew it, the jutting headland came into view.
Standing in front of a line of teenagers was Cam, strong and tall, looking as if the wind would never be able to blow him over.
His gaze met hers, and even though he was still far away, she swore she saw his pupils flash to slits and back.
A sizzle of wanting rushed through her.
He raised a hand in greeting, and she did the same before quickly looking at the students, who were listening to whatever Cam was saying.
She picked up her pace, taking a few deep breaths to push aside her attraction to Cam, and stopped a few feet from the dragonman in question. He took her hand and squeezed, and for a beat, she merely blinked up at him. Then she remembered they were supposed to be dating, so she squeezed back.
His pupils flashed a few times, his gaze never leaving hers, and her heart raced. The longer he looked at her, the more she wished they weren’t acting.
He finally nodded once before facing the students.
“This is Dr. Emily Davies, a human who has lived on Clan Stonefire for the past few years. She’s currently on Seahaven to help Dr. Keith with some research, but she asked to watch your lesson today, and so I invited her.
” He looked at her again. Since he still had her hand, he tightened his grip before releasing it. “Did you want to add anything else?”
The way he looked at her so intently, as if there was no one else around, made her skin heat. So this was what it was like to have the complete attention of a dragonman.
Even if it was fake, it was rather intoxicating.
Stop it, Emily. He’s not yours, remember?
She turned toward the students, smiled, and said, “Hello everyone. Yes, I’m here to help Dr. Keith, but I also love watching dragons fly and rarely get the chance since I’m always inside a lab. I hope it’s okay that I’m here?”
Maisie nodded. “Of course, Dr. Davies. Although I know you haven’t been on Seahaven long, aye? Have you seen Mr. Alexander’s dragon form? He’s a braw one, and you really should.”
The slightly younger boy standing next to the girl sighed. “She’ll see him anyway, Maisie. He has to show us the drills for today.”
“Aye, but before he does that, Dr. Davies should get a chance to see Mr. Alexander up close. You know that’s how Mum won Dad in the first place.”
“No, it was Dad giving little gifts to Mum and writing songs for her that did it.”
“That came later. Or, are you saying Mum’s dragon form isn’t beautiful?”
“Aye, of course it is. But no one falls in love at first sight, that’s bollocks.”
“They can, too!”
As the pair continued to argue, she glanced at Cam, who was staring at her.
He leaned down, his hot breath tickling her ear as he whispered, “That brother and sister pair can argue for hours. It’s best to let them get it out of their system a bit before stepping in.
Then they’ll usually behave for the remainder of the lesson. ”
“Doesn’t that waste a lot of time?”
“I’d rather they argue now than try to best one another and get hurt whilst flying.”
She looked back at the siblings. The girl couldn’t be more than sixteen, and the boy a year or two younger. Even if Emily had been forced to mature earlier than most, she knew teenagers could be daft sometimes if it meant proving a point or saving their pride.
Cam’s younger brother, Tor, went over to the girl, whispered something into her ear, and her cheeks flushed. Once she nodded, Tor went back into line, although Maisie looked at him as if he hung the moon.
She whispered to Cam, “Your brother’s already breaking hearts.”
He snorted. “Aye, he always has. Maybe one day she’ll realize you don’t have to mate a human to be happy.
” He cleared his throat, and the students quieted.
“Right, with that out of the way, I’m going to shift and show you the flight maneuvers we’re practicing today.
” Maisie opened her mouth, but Cam beat her to it.
“Aye, I know.” He looked at Emily. “Do you want a few minutes with my dragon form before I start the lesson? He’s keen for you to scratch behind our ears. ”