Sometimes, Bram wished his head Protector would be a little more open and forthright, but that wasn't Kai's personality. Bram was one of the few people who knew Kai's greatest secret, but it wasn't Bram's place to push on the matter. Well, at least until it caused his Protector to lose focus and put the clan in danger. So far, Kai hadn't shown any of those symptoms.

He stood. "Of course you do, or I wouldn't trust you with the safety of my future mate."

Kai turned to go but then turned back around and said, "Is she your true mate? Is that why you've claimed her so quickly?"

His dragon huffed. It's none of his business. Evie is ours. That is all that matters.

Still not telling me your reasons?

Silence was his answer.

Rather than try to make his dragon talk, he said to Kai, "I don't think she is, no. But she has knowledge to help our clan. Just like you do everything in your power to protect the clan, so do I."

Kai looked unconvinced, but rather than argue, the male nodded and left Bram alone in his cottage.

Evie was waiting for Melanie Hall-MacLeod to bombard her with questions. Ever since she'd whisked Evie from Bram's cottage, the woman had been pointing out houses and businesses and explaining them as if she were a tour guide. Despite her earlier behavior when Evie had still been just a DDA inspector, Mel wasn't being as blunt as before.

However, ten seconds after she, Melanie, and Samira entered Mel's house, she turned toward Evie and said, "Tell me what's going on with Bram. He couldn't keep his eyes off you the entire time we all were saying goodbye. His eyes even flashed to dragon slits once."

As she looked from Mel to Samira and back again, Evie debated her options. These two women knew the ways of dragonmen well, and probably could already guess Bram's attraction to her. Denying it would be a waste of time.

She also needed to convince Melanie to tell her more about this mysterious dragon expose book of hers. The truth might win the other woman over. "He said I could tell you two and no others. Bram is taking me as his mate."

Mel placed her hands on her hips. "Did you trick him? Or force him? You can't be his true mate, so I'm trying to figure why he'd agree to that."

Evie resisted blinking. That wasn't the response she'd expected. Still, as much as she wanted to fit in with the two human women in the clan, she wasn't about to take their crap.

Evie took a step toward Melanie. "I'm sure people questioned your relationship with Tristan in the beginning. I expected better of you, but you're just as judgmental as the dragon-shifters I've dealt with over the last seven years. Without giving me a chance, you think you've figured it all out."

Mel's hands fell to her sides as she narrowed her eyes. "I don't know how Skyhunter treated you, but my motives are true. Bram is my leader. I only want what is best for him."

Evie clenched her fists at her sides. Resist the urge to tell her to fuck off and mind her own business. Remember, she wants to help the clan improve their image. Bram needs her help.

With a deep inhalation, she forced her temper down a notch. "He's your leader, yes, but how well do you know him? I don't need the mate-claim frenzy to entice the man to open up to me. He has more burdens than you can imagine. I can help with that."

Samira stepped between them. "Melanie, you're getting nearly as bad as Tristan when it comes to protectiveness." She turned her deep brown gaze to Evie. "How about we get you ready for the dinner? I'm sure you have questions that need to be answered. You might not be a sacrifice, but not even your experience with the DDA will prepare you for mating a dragon-shifter."

Taking another deep breath, Evie forced her tone to be more even. "I spent seven years with the Department of Dragon Affairs and a year before that in an intensive dragon-shifter study course. Seeing as I surprised Bram with some of my knowledge, I wouldn't dismiss me just yet."

Melanie frowned. "You knew something about dragon-shifters that Bram didn't?"

She nodded. "Yes, and if you ever stop interrogating me, I want to propose working with you on the launch of your book. My knowledge concerning British law alone is worth a lot to you."

The two women glanced at each other. Evie knew these two had had months to get to know each other, but she hated being the outsider yet again. Except for her one dragon-shifter obsessed friend, Evie had been pretty much alone for the last seven years.

Most humans didn't like to associate with a known DDA employee. Talk shows and conspiracy blogs had convinced too many people that dragons liked to pick off the DDA employees; associating with one would make you a target as well.

Add all of that to the recent targeting of DDA employees by the dragon hunters, and, yeah, people weren't exactly lining up to be her best friend.

Melanie was the first to speak again. "Let's try this again. I think my mate's behavior is rubbing off on me, and I need to tone that shit down. Just let me say this-if you hurt Bram, I won't forgive you. He sacrifices a lot for the well-being of the clan, and while I think he likes you now, I don't want him to suffer in the long run."

Staring at the other woman, Evie decided her best chance at eventual acceptance was to start over. Even if her connection to Bram was new, she already felt protective of him. Maybe explaining that would ease Mel's worries. "Look, from what I've seen of Bram so far, he's a strong, funny and clever dragonman. As long as he doesn't betray me or break my heart, I won't do the same to him. After all, he's taking on a lot more than just a mate with me."

Mel frowned. "That's a bit cryptic. Care to explain what you mean?"

Honesty, Evie. Keep at it. After all, these people will soon be your clan too. "The dragon hunters want to kill me. Bram is mating me to protect me. In exchange, I'm offering him information. Since even Arabella was interested in my information, I can only imagine your whole clan would like my insider knowledge."

Samira interjected, "Arabella? You met her already?"

Evie nodded. "She was sent to babysit me last night. I only managed to type out the information about the dragon hunters, but she absorbed every word."

Melanie sighed. "Of course she would." She waved a hand in dismissal. "I'll talk with Ara later since she's supposed to attend tonight's dinner. She might very well be planning something daft, such as going after the dragon hunters alone."

Evie frowned. "I might talk with her too. Taking on the dragon hunters by herself is bloody idiotic. We need to make sure that doesn't happen. After all, there are other ways to go after them, ways that will sully the hunters in the eyes of the human public."

Mel nodded. "I agree. She might be my sister-in-law, but Arabella doesn't necessarily listen to me. The more people watching Arabella, the better." Melanie paused a second, then added, "Ara keeps her distance, but persistence pays off in the end. She could use more friends. I hope you give her a chance."

In one way, at least, Arabella MacLeod was like her. "She's clever and doesn't beat around the bush. We should get along fine." She looked from Mel to Samira and back. "Right, I think we'd better start with dressing me up. I'm not a smart dresser, so you two are going to have to help me with the hair and such."

Samira smiled and placed a hand on her back. "I live with two males, so I take any excuse I can get to dress up another female."

Evie gave Samira a wary glance. "Just don't go overboard."

Samira pressed against her back, urging her to walk. "Don't worry, dragon-shifter traditional dress is quite simple, really."

Evie resisted a sigh. "Yes, I know, but the dresses are like half an outfit. Is there a way to cover up some of my skin? Bram doesn't need the distraction."

Mel beat Samira to a reply. "Even with some kind of unique leotard underneath, he'd still be distracted. Dragon-shifter males love to see their females in the traditional style. Just wait until you get the mating band with his name engraved on it. That'll really turn him on."

Rather than comment on the far-off look Melanie had in her eye, no doubt she was thinking of her own mate's reactions, she turned toward Samira. "I don't want fifty bobby pins in my hair with enough hairspray to coat an entire room. Do something simple."

Nodding with an evil glint in her eye, Samira replied, "Simple. Yes, Bram will like that."

She sighed. While she'd had a few boyfriends over the years, she'd never taken hours to get ready. Make-up made her face itch, for one, and heels made her trip.

Before she could tell them Bram preferred her natural, Samira and Mel discussed all the ways they could do her hair with less than ten bobby pins. The style names went over her head.

Still, as the two other women talked, a sense of peace came over Evie. She wasn't naive enough to believe these two women were now her best friends, but just spending time with other humans was nice. At the rate she'd been making tentative friendships, Evie would soon have more friends than she'd made during her entire life. Being dragon-obsessed was starting to pay off.

Chapter Two.

Arabella MacLeod took one last look in the mirror and wished breaking it would erase the image in the reflection. While she'd had ten years to grow accustomed to the scars on her face or the pink, crinkly healed burns along her neck, shoulder, and arm, most of the clan had barely learned to stomach her face.

Yet Bram was making her attend the fucking gathering despite her wishes. Any excuses she'd thought of had been shot down. If she wouldn't meet the Scottish leader in private, then she'd have to do it during the gathering. She was Stonefire's best tech expert, and Bram wanted things to run smoothly, as well as securely, with their fragile new alliance with Lochguard.

Fine. She could meet with the leader at a gathering. A room full of people would help stave off her memories. They might even help keep her episodes at bay. But the gathering was formal attire, which meant wearing half a bloody dress.

As a teenager, she had loved the traditional dresses which fastened over one shoulder, hugged her breasts, and flared out at her hips, but no longer. Her tattooed arm was burn-free, but even with the strip of material over the shoulder of her healed burns, her other upper arm was pink and wrinkly.

In other words, ugly.

She shouldn't care, but this was the first formal gathering she would attend in nearly a decade. At that moment, her heart thumped in her chest as her stomach churned. Unless the Scottish leader decided to dance around the great hall naked, everyone would be staring at her and talking about her. She was "poor Arabella".

She narrowed her eyes. Well, fuck them. Putting her shoulder back, Ara turned from the mirror and headed toward her front door. She may still be afraid of her inner dragon and have flashbacks of her time with the dragon hunters, but she could take care of herself. She would prove it at the gathering.

Snagging her cloak and tossing it over her shoulders, Ara exited her house and into the brisk April evening air. Her cottage was quite far from the main living community, but she loved to walk. The silence always brought a sense of peace.

Within ten minutes, she could see the outline of the great hall.

She arrived early, just as Bram had requested, so as she approached the giant brick building, the area was mostly empty. Five or six dragon-shifters raced in and out of the hall with the meal preparations, but they were so preoccupied, they didn't even notice her.

Tugging her cloak tighter around her shoulders, she entered the great hall and looked around the long, rectangular space for Bram. She spotted him in a corner talking with a tall, blond dragonman she didn't recognize. His hair was short, yet his face was covered in a blond scruff, which was an odd contrast to his formal, kilt-like attire. While his dragon-shifter tattoo was on the arm turned away from her, she knew every dragon-shifter in Stonefire by sight and he wasn't one of them. The unfamiliar male had to be from Lochguard.

Her stomach churned even more. As her heart rate kicked up, a small sense of panic crept upon her. Why would Bram ask her to meet alone with the other male? The blond was tall, muscled, and could pin her down without breaking a sweat.

Much like how the dragon hunters had pinned her down as a teenager before torturing her.

Closing her eyes, Ara breathed in through her nose and out her mouth. Bram was in the same room. He would never allow anyone to hurt her. As long as he remained, she could handle meeting the other male.

Her distress brought out her inner dragon. The beast rarely spoke to her, but it sent wary thoughts of calm. A year ago, Ara would have run from the room and tried to banish the beast from her mind. Yet after nearly nine months of counseling and encouragement from her brother and his mate, she had the strength to say, It will be okay. Go back to sleep.

Her dragon gave a soft roar before retreating. Maybe one day, Ara would be able to converse and work with her inner beast like every other dragon-shifter, but it was not that day.

"Ara."

As soon as she heard Bram's voice, she opened her eyes. An apologetic expression was written all over her leader's face as he continued, "Finn came early. I told him to wait over there, but if you're up to it, we can talk to him now. I'll be right there beside you, so you won't have anything to worry about."

While a part of her was relieved Bram would protect her, another part was embarrassed. The Scottish leader didn't need to know how broken she was. Deep down, she wanted to experience a fresh start with someone who hadn't coddled her over the past decade. That was part of the reason why she'd agreed to be in charge of tech security with the Scottish clan.

Curious to see how the Lochguard male reacted to her, she glanced over at the blond Scottish dragonman. She steeled herself for pity, but was surprised to see only curiosity.

His look solidified her decision. Looking back to Bram, she said, "You have a lot to do. Introduce us, and as long as we stay in this main hall, I should be able to survive answering his tech questions and requirements."

"Are you sure?"

She nodded. "Setting up the future teleconferences is part of my job for the clan. I'll find a way to make it work." Her clan leader studied her and she resisted the urge to lash out. She wouldn't make Bram appear weak in front of the other leader. "I can handle it."

With a nod, Bram ushered her over to the Scottish leader. Up close, he was taller than she'd thought. She had to look up to see his eyes, which were an interesting mixture of brown with gold flecks. The curiosity from before lingered, and she couldn't make out an ounce of pity, making her uneasy.

Then he grinned and Ara drew in a breath. It took everything she had to focus on his words as he said, "Bram said his tech expert was a female, but he forgot to mention she had beautiful brown eyes, the exact color of dark chocolate."

Bram growled at her side. "Finlay."

Finn grinned wider. "You said honesty was the best policy. I won't lie about her eyes."

Arabella blinked. She couldn't remember the last time a male had praised her. She knew she should scowl and tell him to stop it, but she resisted.

Instead, she said, "My eyes have little to do with my brain. The sooner you ask your questions and tell me your requirements, the sooner you can go flirt with the 'lasses' as you Scots say."

The Scot winked at her. "I like a lass with bite."

Ara felt a flush coming on. Fuck, I won't let this flirt affect me. Think of your work.

Her mind filled with security protocols and encryption sequences, and her mind calmed once more. Right, now stop acting like a schoolgirl and carry on.

She arched an eyebrow. "If listing all of your female preferences in one go will help you focus, you have thirty seconds. Go."

Finn laughed. "Direct and to the point, I like it." Crossing her arms over her chest, she raised her other eyebrow. Finally, Finn put his hands up. "Okay, okay, I'll stop." He leaned in a few inches closer. "For now."

Standing so close, she could see even more gold flecks in his eyes. His spicy male scent also surrounded her; woods with a hint of peat.

With any other strange male, she had little doubt she would be in a complete panic. However, one second ticked by and then another, but if anything, she felt a sense of peace.

Bram cleared his throat and pushed Finn away from her. "Talk, Stewart, or be on your way. Our alliance agreement doesn't include you flirting with every female on my land."

The Scot held her eyes for a few more seconds before looking to Bram. "Aye, well, I've always found humor makes everyone feel better. They say it's the best medicine."

Ara raised her chin a fraction. "Right, then. The thirty seconds I offered you have more than passed. Start talking business or I will insist Bram find someone else in your clan to reach out to me."

Amusement flashed in Finn's eyes. "Oh, aye? And here I thought Bram was the clan leader."

Shit. She hadn't meant to overstep her bounds. Because Bram had been friends with her brother since childhood, Bram often let her get away with more than he'd allow other clan members. She needed to fix this situation. "Bram is the leader. He and I discussed the terms earlier. I'm sure with all your flirting, he didn't have a chance to go over the finer points of meeting with me."

She knew Bram's eyes were on her, but she refused to look over at him. For some reason, the Lochguard leader provoked her. No doubt, Bram would have questions. Questions she really didn't want to answer.

After one last look, Finn's eyes became serious. "Right, then, lassie, tell me what sort of encryption you plan to use. The dragon hunters are becoming tech savvy and the more barriers we have in place, the better."

Ara blinked. "Do you understand the different types of encryption or shall I explain it in laymen's terms."

"Before becoming clan leader, I earned a degree in computer science and worked part-time with our own tech expert as a sort of apprentice. Only when the leadership position became open, did I give it up. This is more an interview for your skills than a question and answer meeting for me."

Bram interjected, "Arabella is the finest we have. She can do whatever you ask."

Warmth from Bram's praised filled her, but Ara focused on Finn. "No, it's okay, Bram. Maybe I can teach him a thing or two and knock down his ego a notch."

Finn's smile was back. "I'd like to see that, Arabella MacLeod."

His words were a challenge, a challenge she wanted to tackle. Any uneasiness or worry she'd felt upon first seeing the Lochguard leader vanished. Instead, she was determined to knock the cocky grin from his face.

Looking to Bram, she said, "I can handle it from here, Bram. I'm sure there's lots to do before the dinner officially begins."