The Dragon Warrior (Lochguard Highland Dragons 4)

Faye’s cheeks heated. “Well, then you don’t need to ask me what happened.”

“Oh, come on. Dragon-shifter Etiquette 101 requires me to ask you rather than just go off what I overheard.”

Faye swiped a triangle of toast from the holder in the center of the table and took a bite. “And since when do you follow etiquette? You eavesdropped on your siblings as much as possible growing up.”

Cat sighed. “Fine. Then I’ll just make a mental note of you flirting with Grant, and Iris coming to watch Max. I’ll seek out Iris later for details. I’d say the same about Grant, but that one can stonewall better than you.”

“I’m not stonewalling you, Cat. You heard everything in the hall. You know as much as I do.”

Cat studied her a second before replying, “I think there’s more to it, but it’s Protector business and therefore you can’t share it. Just make sure that if it’s going to affect me, you tell me about it.”

Faye swallowed another bite. “Fine. I’m much more interested in tonight’s event. Speaking of which”—Faye turned toward the Welsh dragonwoman—“if your clan’s Protectors ever wish to team up with us, then let them know they just have to ask. Can you tell them that, Nia?”

“I will. But I should probably go meet with them now.” Nia nodded to Cat. “I’ll catch up with you later, dear.”

Once Nia was gone, Faye moved over a seat closer to Cat. “So, has Lachlan changed his plans because of Max’s antics? I never did find him last night to ask.”

“Not as far as I can tell. Only that if we use the toilet, we have to have an escort.” Cat scrunched her nose. “Since I’m the oldest sibling and used to doing things my way, it’s going to take some getting used to. I never thought I’d need a babysitter in my mid-twenties.”

“You probably wouldn’t make such a fuss if it were that Lachlan bloke escorting you.”

“Having a male follow me into the toilet is just wrong.”

“Not that. You keep staring at him when he’s in the room. Care to tell me why?”

Cat lowered her voice. “He’s an interesting subject for my next series of paintings. I’m not about to ask him to sit for me, so I need to memorize the details of his face and hands. Those are the two hardest areas for me to get right.”

Faye snatched a piece of bacon. “On the last day of the exhibition, I can tie him to a chair for you. He won’t want anyone to know about his humiliation, so we should be safe from him reporting to the DDA.”

Cat moved her plate out of Faye’s reach and scooped up a bite of baked beans with her fork. “Yes, because Finn and Grant are known for looking the other way.”

“Perhaps,” Faye answered with her mouth full of bacon. “I have dirt on my cousin. And Grant, well, I’m sure I can convince him, too.”

Cat looked like she wanted to ask a question, but went back to eating her breakfast. Since it probably had to do with Grant, Faye changed the subject. “At any rate, I need to find Iris and Max. Do you want to come with me? Not only will it save you a trip from seeking her out yourself, but Max seems to listen to you, so maybe if you tell him to stay put, he will.”

“He only listens to me because I’m nice to him. He may be eccentric, but he’s interesting. He also has some fascinating stories about history. I’ve been trying to convince him to write a book for secondary school students. His flair might encourage some of them to pursue history, archaeology, or something along those lines.”

Faye laid her head on the table. “Please don’t encourage him. At least, not until the exhibition is finished. Otherwise, he might run off to every nearby archaeological site he can find and claim it’s all in the name of research for a new book.”

“From what I gather, he only went to Craig Phadrig because thieves are supposed to ransack it soon,” Cat answered. “I would do the same thing if a precious painting was rumored to be a target. Surely you have something that you would risk your life for.”

“My family, of course. And the clan. Other than that, I don’t have many hobbies or interests.”

Cat raised an eyebrow. “And that is your problem. We need to find you one.” She changed her voice to a whisper. “And one that doesn’t necessarily involve a man.”

“Maybe. Just don’t suggest painting. I’m sure my months’ old nephew could do a better job than me.”

Amusement danced in Cat’s eyes. “Oh, I don’t know. We could always start you out with finger painting.”

Faye tore off a bit of toast and tossed it at Cat. The bloody woman caught it. Faye gave her best glare, but all Cat did was toss the piece of bread back.

As it bounced off Faye’s head, they both started laughing. Faye was the first one to catch her breath. “Maybe if we toss some bits of toast at the others, it’ll lighten the mood. Everyone seems so serious this morning.”

Lachlan’s voice filled their ears. “I’ll thank you not to turn the breakfast room into a war zone, Ms. MacKenzie. We don’t need the negative publicity.”

Faye glanced at Lachlan. “What? That dragon-shifters enjoy having fun and aren’t different from humans in that respect? How is that negative?”

Lachlan smoothed his shirt. “It would turn into a destruction of property story in the papers and online. I’m sure the Dragon Knights would use anything as an excuse to launch another attack.”