Page 115 of His Greatest Treasure

I smiled to myself at my sweet mate.

Glimmer slid over to his mate and stood casually beside him. He smiled in the coldly disturbing way I’d come to recognise was deliberate. It was half a threat.

“Kingsley is my mate.”

He said it as though it meant so much more, and I understood, I really did. He meant that Kingsley wasn’t a danger to anyone, that he deserved respect and trust, and that there would be serious and bloody retribution if anyone tried to harm him.

Again, Alfie spoke. “He’s clan.”

Glimmer nodded.

And, slowly, the rest nodded as well.

I only just heard Glimmer murmur into Kingsley’s ear, “My treasure.”

Morgan peeped out at me from inside his mate’s arms.

“I don’t think Nana knows about Kingsley. Are you really going to create an alliance with the Hoskins clan?”

I might have been imagining it but I thought I saw the same longing in Morgan’s eyes that had been in Alfie’s when he talked about his brother. They’d missed eachother so much. They’d spent their lives together until a year ago, and then Morgan had been snatched away from Alfie.

Lew leaned down and whispered, “Ourclan, Morgan. You’re a Hoskins now.”

Alfie held me tighter but his voice was steady. “I want to. I’d like an alliance.”

Glimmer spoke, from where he was leaning against Kingsley. He looked content and smug.

“We already have an alliance. Once you officially reinstate Morgan and Seren into our clan, it means our clans are allied through those matings. Two matings. A doubly-strong alliance. And Lady Hoskins has already consented to the alliance, too, or she wouldn’t have allowed four of her clan to enter our territory without her protection. She entrusted them to our care.”

Lew said, “Nana said to call her when you’re ready to discuss it. She wants to invite you to our territory, too. To cement the alliance. Having the clan elder visit will make it clear to everyone that the alliance is strong.”

I frowned as I thought that through. “Why didn’t she come here, then?”

Dane gave a cut-off laugh that he tried to turn into a cough. “Well, uh, dragon elders are… territorial.They need to be to protect their clan. If she’d come here with Alfie so new to his role, his dragon might… see that as a threat. An invasion.”

“Oh.”

Alfie asked, “Will I be alright to visit her? She won’t see me as a threat?”

“No, she’s been elder a long time. She’s imprinted on her clan and her territory and is content with her protections.”

“I’d like to stay here for a while and make sure everyone is fine before I leave. Besides, I can’t go yet. Rhod and Glenwise haven’t come back yet.”

Seren pulled a face. “Where didtheygo?”

Alfie shrugged, but there was tension in the movement. It was bothering him more than he let on. “We don’t know.”

“Huh. Maybe Nana can help you look for them. She knows loads of people.”

“Will she? That would be great!”

Seren nodded. “I’ll ask. If you’re sure you want them back.”

Alfie growled suddenly, and it startled me so much that I looked round at him.Seren held up his hands.

“Alright, alright, if you’re sure. I’ll ask her when we get back. Okay, tomorrow. Okay, okay, today,” he said, as Alfie kept growling. “I suppose the faster they’re back, the faster you’ll visit our castle.”

Morgan peeped out again and said, “I can’t wait to show you the beach.”

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