Page 2 of Purple Protector

Aaron blinked at the bright red color of their skin. It took him a moment to make his mouth work, but the dragon didn’t seem offended. They watched him with a smile curling their lips, clearly amused.

Aaron cleared his throat. “I’m fine, thank you.”

“It looks like you have a phone call to make. You can wait for the person who will take you to your room in the hallway.”

Aaron thanked them with a smile and quickly headed in the direction they’d indicated. He was typing in Lucy’s number before he cleared the landing pad. He already had so much to tell her, and he hadn’t even stepped foot inside the palace yet.

He hiked his backpack higher on his shoulder with the hand holding his phone, clutched his second bag in his free hand, and raised the phone to his ear. He turned the corner into the hallway as he did all of that and slammed against a wall.

Well, it wasn’t a wall. Walls didn’t have hands, but this person did because they reached out to steady Aaron. He dropped his bag and his phone, and his backpack slid down his shoulder.

“Everything all right?” a deep voice rumbled.

Aaron looked up—and up—at the dragon. This wasn’t the first dragon he’d met since he’d arrived on dragon-back, but it was the first dragon who left him speechless.

The dragon was dark purple all over, including their hair and eyes. It was startling, but also beautiful. Aaron had to resist the urge to reach out and touch the dragon’s skin. His fingers itched for it, but he didn’t want to create a diplomatic incident before he even started working.

“You’re tall,” he blurted out.

He groaned. There went the diplomatic incident.

But instead of getting angry or wary, the dragon laughed. “Next to a human, I sure am.”

He still hadn’t let go of Aaron’s arms. Aaron looked down, wondering what the dragon’s hands would look like on his body. It was easy to imagine it, and he felt his cheeks flush.

He took a step back and promptly tripped over the things he’d forgotten he dropped. The dragon had to reach for him a second time, and Aaron wondered if he could run back to the landing pad and beg the dragon who’d flown them here to fly him back. Why did he have to be so embarrassing?

“Are you sure you’re all right?” the dragon asked.

Aaron hadn’t noticed there was a second dragon standing there. The only reason he noticed was that the second dragon leaned forward to pick up Aaron’s phone.

Aaron had wanted to make a good first impression.

He’d already failed.

THE HUMAN WAS CUTE. He had brown hair and eyes, a pair of glasses that sat crooked on his nose, and red cheeks that Birch wanted to poke at. The only reason he didn’t was that he’d never spoken to this human—Aaron, from the file Birch had read—before and that he was pretty sure the man was the journalist Killian had told him and Marlin about.

He was why they were here. He and Marlin’s job was to protect the king and his family, and they’d agreed that part of that was to talk to the newcomer. Birch still wasn’t sure it was a good idea to welcome unknown humans into their clan, but Killian felt that the clan had to be closer to humans.

He wasn’t the only one who felt that way. The Ogorth clan queen agreed, but then, the Ogorth clan had taken in more humans than any other clan in the area. Apparently, it was the Eiloren clan’s turn.

Marlin had already bent down to pick up the things Aaron had dropped. Birch stayed where he was and continued watching the man. There had been a last-second change, and instead of the lady who was supposed to interview Killian and Hedley, this cute guy was here.

“I’m really sorry,” Aaron said.

Birch smiled at him. “You have nothing to be sorry about. I’m Birch.”

The man blinked. “Aaron.”

“Well, welcome to the Eiloren clan, Aaron. I’ll see you around.”

Aaron blinked again. Marlin pushed Aaron’s stuff into Aaron’s hands, then grabbed Birch’s elbow and pulled him away. Birch wanted to stay, but Killian would find out about this, and he’d be annoyed.

Killian had told them that they didn’t need to investigate the newcomer. He’d told them that the human government had already looked into him and had agreed that he was a good replacement for the original journalist who couldn’t come. Marlin and Birch had wanted to see for themselves, though, and Birch was glad they had.

“Stop looking at him like you want to eat him,” Marlin hissed as they walked away.

“I did no such thing.”

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