Her mood lightened a fraction. "And now whose reading me so well after such a short time?"
"Tori," he growled.
If there was to be anything between them—and Victoria hoped there would be—then she wouldn't hold back. "I was just thinking about our child shifting and flying away. How am I supposed to raise someone like that? It's not like I could catch them or play with them in the sky."
He cupped her cheek and stroked it slowly with his thumb. "It will take some strategic planning and help from others, but humans do it with half dragon-shifter children all over the world. Just like Melanie Hall-MacLeod."
The author of the book, the one she'd love nothing better than to read a million times and then call up the woman to ask some questions.
Not that she would be able to do the latter. The woman was off trying to change laws and perceptions of dragons in her own country and beyond.
Maybe someday she'd find someone closer to her new home.
Jose pressed gently against her lower back, and she replied, "It's silly, I know. Don't worry about me. I'll be fine."
"No, it's not silly—it's going to be a huge challenge, I won't deny it. However, my family and I will be there. And if I have to barge into Wes's office and demand he contact every clan within an easy flying distance to find a human mated to a dragon-shifter, so you can have someone to talk to, then I'll do it."
As she stared at the determination in Jose's eyes, she knew he would, too. He really was unlike any man she'd known before.
And if he kept it up, she'd fall for him completely without even learning one embarrassing childhood story.
Chapter Nine
Victoria survived Cris's extensive lecture about clan rules—she even had a thick tome to read through—as well as Dr. Carter's exhaustive questions about her health. While she didn't know either one well enough to judge if they'd merely tolerate her or actually warm up to her, they at least treated her respectfully and not with disdain—she'd read online that some dragon-shifters didn't like humans at all—which she'd take for now.
Once done with both appointments, Jose insisted she take a quick nap, but now she walked next to her dragonman, trying to dredge up the strength to be nice and charming for his family.
Since being charming didn't come naturally, Victoria had to work at it. She always asked herself if the effort was worth the emotional and mental toll. And in this case, it was. Not just for her unborn child, but for her place in the clan, too.
At least the brief meeting with his sister gave Victoria hope that Jose’s family would all accept her eventually.
Maybe.
Jose squeezed her hand in his and said, "It'll be fine, love, you'll see. A dragon-shifter finding his true mate is a huge deal on PineRock, especially since it hasn't been happening as much in the last decade or two."
She glanced at him. "So you mean they'll accept me, even if I am a lowly human?"
He grunted. "You're not lowly."
She'd been half-joking, but his grunt and words made her smile a little. "Thanks. But what I meant was that you didn't exactly seem thrilled when you first entered that ballroom, back in South Lake Tahoe. I had no idea if it was because we were all human or because of the situation."
"Most definitely the situation. I was dragging my feet for the sake of my sister." He brought her hand to his lips and kissed the back of it. "But then I saw you."
There went her belly doing summersaults again.
However, she wanted to know more than just how he felt about one human, so she asked, "Do you interact with many humans, then?"
He shrugged. "My dad and I both work with humans almost every day in the Forest Service. So I've met my fair share. Not all of them are bad."
Realizing how little she knew of her baby daddy, she jumped at the chance to learn more. "What do you do with the Forest Service?"
He shrugged. "Mostly help clear downed or dangerously teetering trees, clean up avalanches or mudslides, and keep an eye out for trespassers or other criminal activity."
"And they trust you and other dragon-shifters to do those things?"
He sighed. "Don't listen to all the rumors, Tori. In most areas, in the US at least, the dragons and humans work together for their community. If nothing else, the economy depends on a good relationship between the two."
Maybe the clan accepting her wouldn't be as insurmountable as she'd first thought. "I had no idea. Dragon-shifters aren't allowed anywhere near Vegas or its suburbs. Something about it scaring away the tourists."