Her dragon chimed in. I like his alpha side. I can’t wait until he shows it to us in bed.
Mentally sighing at her dragon’s one-track mind, Arabella’s thoughts were cut off by Finn’s voice. “Now I’ve gotten that out of the way and the other males have been warned, tonight is a time to celebrate and get to know the soon-to-be newest member of the clan. The First Kiss ceremony will happen in about an hour. Until then, we’ll make our way around the hall before gracing everyone with the gift of our marvelous dancing skills.” As some of the crowd cheered, Arabella bit the inside of her lip to keep from scowling. She would give the bastard an earful as soon as she could for volunteering her. Then Finn pointed to a dragonwoman standing amongst a lot of equipment. “Let’s get this party started.”
As the latest human pop music blared, Arabella turned her face to the side and rolled her eyes. Keeping her voice low, she muttered, “You are a lot less hip than you think you are.”
He leaned close, but was careful not to touch her apart from the hand in his. How they were going to dance without even more touching, Arabella had no idea. Finn whispered, “The half-arse jokes help everyone to relax.” He winked. “You might find it irritating, but my clan loves it.”
“So you’re not alpha all the time and they accept that?”
“They don’t have a choice. Besides, if they cross my path and act like dicks, then they have to deal with me. After a year, they know what to expect—I’m firm but fair.”
Looking to make sure no one was close enough to hear, Arabella whispered, “Then why hasn’t it worked with Duncan?”
Finn shook his head. “That male is a special kind of arsehole. Dying doesn’t scare him, nor does exile. He’d use the exile to start his own clan of followers and dying would only turn him into a martyr amongst his followers. I don’t want either option to come true.”
Arabella put it all together. “That’s why he’s still here, then. You’re keeping your enemy close.”
“Aye, lass. Although after that warning, I may have to deal with him sooner than I wish, unless I can think of a way to discredit his ideas first.” Finn nodded toward the stairs. “But enough about Duncan for now. The clan is waiting to meet you, Arabella. Let’s not keep them waiting.”
As Finn tugged her toward the stairs, Arabella took a few deep breaths. Some of the clan were bound to ask questions about her past. So far, whenever Finn was near, she’d been able to remain in control. She only hoped that held true for the rest of the evening because if she had a breakdown in front of the clan, it would tarnish Finn’s reputation. And she couldn’t allow that to happen. While there were many details she didn’t know about Duncan or his followers, Arabella knew she could be used as a weakness against her male.
Remember to be the dragonwoman you can be. You are to be a clan leader’s mate; act like it.
I’ll try, she answered her dragon.
Don’t try. Do it.
With one last deep breath, Arabella straightened her shoulders and raised her chin a fraction. It was time to show both Finn and Clan Lochguard what she was capable of and erase the image of her being a timid lamb who ran at the first sign of humans.
~~~
Finn usually didn’t mind public events, but after discussing Duncan and seeing a bit more of his female’s cleverness, he wanted to discuss other clan issues with her. Maybe Arabella could think of new ways to tackle some long-standing issues on Lochguard.
His dragon grunted. It can wait. Show her off, dance, and then we can kiss her.
Usually, you drag your feet when it comes to dancing.
It brings me one step closer to fucking our mate, so I want to dance this time.
Sensing his beast was barely keeping his mating need in check, Finn pushed him to the back of his mind and focused on the Boyd family at the foot of the stairs. They
were one of the families who would welcome whomever he chose as a mate; his father and Meg Boyd had been cousins. Smiling at the middle-aged dragonwoman, Finn bowed his head. “If I didn’t already have a beauty at my side, I would whisk you away to dance, Meg.”
The gray-haired dragonwoman clicked her tongue. “Stop with the flirting, Finlay, or your lass might get jealous.” Meg gave Arabella a once-over and nodded. “Aye, you’ll do.” She put out her hand. “The name is Meg Boyd, hen. Humor an old lady and give me a proper introduction.”
When Arabella took Meg’s hand without hesitation, Finn wanted to cheer. Arabella answered, “I’m Arabella MacLeod, Mrs. Boyd. Nice to meet you.”
Meg leaned closer toward Arabella, but Finn knew the woman wasn’t a threat, so he allowed it. Meg replied, “You’re all but family, now. Call me Meg.” Leaning back, Meg released Arabella’s hand and motioned to her sons. “These are my sons, Hamish and Graham. I have another son, Alistair, but he’s unmated and didn’t want to stir Finn’s dragon, so he’s off in some corner reading a book.”
Sensing Arabella didn’t know how to reply to that, Finn jumped in. “At least the lad has developed some sense. Two years ago, he would’ve tried kissing Arabella just to rile me up.”
Meg nodded. “Aye, but he’s a changed dragonman these days. If only he’d focus on something besides his work.”
Arabella frowned, “Why? What does he do?”
Meg answered, “Some sort of scientist. I don’t ask him that many questions.”
One of her sons, Hamish, said dryly, “Except if he’s found a female yet.”