Finn’s dragon growled. No. I don’t like that.
Rather than answer his dragon, Finn merely replied, “If she seeks me out, I won’t turn her away.”
Bram searched his eyes. “While not quite the answer I was looking for, it’s better than nothing. You hurt her, and I will cut off your bollocks.
His inner beast said, We would never hurt her.
I know, but he’s blind to what Arabella needs. Let’s humor him for now.
His dragon conceded. Finn put out a hand. “So the alliance remains?”
Bram took his hand and shook. “Aye, but you’ve yet to earn my full trust.”
“Good, because you have yet to earn mine.”
Chapter Nine
Evie halfway closed the door to the spare room off the main living area. Melanie had brought a bassinet for Murray to sleep in and Evie had just managed to get Murray back to sleep after feeding him. She was glad the little boy wasn’t fussy. Her exhaustion was setting in and it had taken every bit of strength she had left to coo Murray to sleep without crashing herself.
She stood outside the door for a few more seconds to make sure he was truly asleep before heading into the living area. Melanie and Tristan sat together on the sofa. Each of them held a sleeping baby in their arms as they leaned against one another. The thought of her and Bram doing the same thing, albeit with some argument or another filling the room, made her smile.
Melanie grinned. “You have the new mother glow. I imagine not having to recover from birthing two stubborn dragon-shifter babies and nearly dying makes it all a bit more fun.”
Tristan growled. “I thought we agreed you couldn’t use that against me anymore.”
Mel looked at her mate. “Two days of labor and me dying for a few seconds means I can use it whenever I want.”
Tristan grunted and Evie pounced. She didn’t have the strength to listen to them argue. “Thanks for coming over. I never would’ve known to mix a little soy milk into the formula to help calm the restless dragon inside Murray.”
Mel waved a hand in dismissal. “No worries. I had no idea, either. Dragonwomen have something similar in their breast milk that we lowly humans don’t. You’ll be surprised at how much even half-dragon babies can eat. Their inner dragons might not be able to talk to their human halves until they’re about six or seven years old, but their energy carries over into the babies’ actions.” Melanie looked up at her mate. “Sometimes, it’s handy to be mated to a dragon-shifter teacher. If you have any questions, I’m sure Tristan will help.”
Tristan grunted which Evie took to mean “if I have to”. She still didn’t understand how the mostly nonverbal dragonman had won Melanie’s heart. At some point in the future, Evie would ask for details.
Evie settled down in the armchair across the room from the pair and released a sigh as she snuggled into the cushions. A shower and some food had done wonders to revitalize her, but exhaustion was too tame a word for the tiredness coursing through her body. On top of that, she was anxious for Bram’s touch.
While this was a prime opportunity to ask questions about dragon babies, Evie’s brain didn’t want to cooperate. With each passing minute, her attention span and intelligence were slipping. Bram had bloody well better come home soon so I can get some sleep. I can’t do anything to help Stonefire with a brain that feels like a bowl of pudding.
Melanie, on the other hand, hadn’t been through hell over the last few days and had no problem saying, “I have an idea I wanted to run by you.”
Evie folded her hands over her belly and resisted a sigh. “What is it?”
Mel shifted the baby in her arm. “I imagine Bram will be mating you soon, am I right?” Evie nodded and Mel continued, “How would you feel about inviting some of the human press to the event?”
Evie rubbed her forehand with her hand. “Care to tell me the bigger reason behind it? Because I have a feeling there is one.”
Mel nodded. “You know how I’m nearly done with my book about Clan Stonefire? Well, I want to test the waters before dumping a large amount of information on the human population.”
Even in her tired state, Evie knew it was a clever move. With herculean effort, she forced her brain to work and said, “That way, if chaos breaks out or incites violence against the dragon-shifters, you know to hold off on releasing the book.”
Mel smiled. “Exactly. So will you do it?”
Sitting up, Evie replied, “You want me to share one of the dearest memories of my life with a bunch of journalists and hope they don’t slander Bram and me the next day?”
Melanie shook her head. “We’d only use the most trusted news outlets and they’d be required to sign a legally binding document between you and them.”
“And since I’m human, the law will hold.”
“Yes. On top of that, no recording devices or mobile phones will be allowed. It’ll be an old-school style reporting job, with pen, paper, and film-only cameras.”