Page 22 of Klaus

I fought to make sure my smile didn’t slip.

“The most delicious rugby team from the university,” she grinned. “Fresh off a match, on their way to the pub for a celebratory pint or three. They invited Isla and me to join them when we crossed paths.”

“I’m sure they did. And how long did you spend with them?”

She laughed, elbowing me in the ribs. “You know the dragon doesn’t like being in the presence of so much testosterone. She doesn’t know whether to jump them or rip them to pieces.”

“Perhaps both,” I agreed with a chuckle, the hollowness ringing out inside me once again. My best friend, and I couldn’t share with her the bitter truth.

“Yes, like a praying mantis,” she concluded. “Can you imagine what they would’ve done if they knew who they’d tried to chat up?”

“Soiled themselves, most likely. Or dropped dead of shock.”

“Aye, poor lads,” she concluded with a sigh. “But a nice diversion.”

When we talked like that, giggling and lighthearted, I almost felt normal. Perhaps it wouldn’t be so dangerous to spend more time among them. They didn’t have to know. I needed to reconnect in some way, even if I could no longer shift.

“What’s it like outside?” I asked as we left the kitchen, with her moving in the direction of the common room to peruse the stack of magazines stuffed into her shoulder bag. I could see their bright, flashy covers peeking out from the top.

“Lovely. Going for a walk?”

“Yes, a long one. I want to stretch my legs.” Oh, please, don’t offer to come with me. If we were going to spend time together, it would have to be on my terms. There were far too many minefields to sidestep. What if she suggested we fly together after such a lengthy hiatus?

My palms began to sweat, my heart to race.

For no reason, as it turned out. “Take care out there,” she advised, and her voice took on a serious tone which caught my attention.

“What is it?”

“Nothing that I know of, but I did hear Alan talking with Owen this morning about surveillance. Something’s on his mind. You know him, though. He wouldn’t tell me.”

“No, and why would he?” I loved my brother and always had, but I’d be the first to attest to his hardheadedness. Always believing he could handle any challenge on his own. He felt he had something to prove in the wake of Gavin’s passing.

Dear Gavin. I always smiled whenever he came to mind, and did so as I parted ways with Leslie and began the walk to the mouth of the cave. Wise, charming, with a wicked sense of humor. Nothing had ever seemed to shake his humor or his resolve. Only a handful of times across the centuries of his reign over the clan had I ever seen him lose his temper, and the rarity of those instances had only made his anger more chilling.

Had either of his sons been with us, they would naturally have taken over in his stead. But Gate and Fence were of the Appalachian clan now, having sailed off long ago.

It was good to see Gate and Miles in St. Lucia, would that it had been under different circumstances. For the briefest moment, I’d wondered if Gate would come back with us to assume his father’s place. But he had no such aspirations, and he’d built a life for himself in America as we had our lives in Scotland.

Sometimes, it was easy to forget how much time had passed with the two branches of our clan existed on opposite sides of the ocean.

I’d even considered traveling to America with Gate and Miles rather than returning home, a brief idea I’d shared with no one else. There were humans living in the caves there, women I might fit in with if my dragon never returned. Surely, my kin would not shun me if they were open-minded enough to share their home with human women.

We had never accepted humans into our clan, and I was sure we never would. It would make for too many complications, and Alan couldn’t have complications.

Would I be a complication to him?

Leslie had been right; it was a lovely day, sunny and warm. Surely, we were due for a spell of wet weather. I couldn’t remember when I’d seen such a stretch of beautiful days. As though we’d brought back the weather with us from the islands.

The birch trees which swayed in the light breeze were hardly the palms of St. Lucia, I reflected with a rueful grin as I ran my fingers over the bark of one of them while passing by. The idea of wandering the woods alone, without my dragon, sent a shiver up my spine which I ignored.

The woods were my second home. I knew them like the backs of my hands. No harm could come to me there.

Leaves and pinecones crunched underfoot, and I reflected on the fact that it would grow damp and cool soon. I loved that time of year as well. I loved all times of year, really. The crisp color of autumn, the bitter sting of winter, the endless rain in spring prior to nature’s explosion of new life. Each season brought its beauty and its challenges alike.

Looking up, I confirmed that the trees had begun to shed their leaves. It was only a matter of time before my breath would fog around my head as I wandered between the trees, picking my way over fallen logs and admiring the colorful carpet of orange, red, gold…

A twig snapped behind me.

---