The Dragon's Discovery (Lochguard Highland Dragons 6)

His dragon would've said it didn't matter if someone walked in or not. They should claim Kiyana and not worry about anyone else.

Of course, his mind was silent and his beast said nothing.

During the brief absence, Alistair had slowly realized how much he relied on his dragon for acting rather than merely thinking things to death.

Soon. He'd have his dragon back soon, and then he could finally have Kiyana all to himself.

For the present, however, he focused on guiding her off Lochguard and along the shores of Loch Naver. Even though there was a human camper van site on the opposite, far side of the loch, no one was there this evening. He'd made sure to check with the Protectors earlier.

While the humans in Sutherland tended to view Lochguard as more friend than enemy, tourists from other parts didn't always do so. And he wouldn't risk Kiyana's safety, no matter how much he wanted to surprise her.

They'd made it nearly a mile, talking about minor things, before Kiyana asked, "Are you sure Finn won't have someone trailing us? Another dragon just flew overhead."

The dragon had been Cat MacAllister, probably coming back from yet another artist meeting or some such. "No, it wasn't a Protector. I have a mobile phone

, as well as a special clan tracking device. If we go more than a few miles from Lochguard, everyone will know and then we'll be monitored closely."

Kiyana climbed onto a low tree stump and then jumped down. It was such an innocent action, but it made him wonder if she was also the sort of person to jump in mud puddles for the sake of it.

But she replied and he had to focus on her words. "Is that normal? I know Lochguard sometimes has dragon hunter and Dragon Knight problems, but I thought both were better under control now?"

"Aye, they are. But until we can take out the leader of the dragon hunters, they'll always be a risk."

"Then why haven't you done that?"

Her tone was merely curious. He suspected she'd always ask questions, to find out as much information as possible.

Truly, a female after his own heart. "Well, Finn has tried. So has Stonefire's leader, too. But personally, I think it's going to take every clan in the UK and Ireland working together to accomplish it."

"What about the rest of the world? I know they have dragon hunters in most countries as well, and the dragons there probably also want to get rid of them, too."

He shrugged. "They'll have to figure it out for their own countries, I suppose."

"But why? Your big project was to foster better communication between the clans, right? Why stop at medical information? You were reading a book about treaties from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, ones that united various dragon clans from around the world. Why can't you strive for something similar? That way, you could also work together on mutual enemies. Maybe then you can eradicate the dragon hunters once and for all."

Alistair stopped in his track and turned toward Kiyana. "That would be…difficult."

She raised her brows. "But do you think it'd be that much more difficult than taking care of the hunters in the UK, though? Besides, there are resources that could help. I'm usually based near London, so I've heard a lot about Clan Skyhunter lately. And one of their new co-leaders, Honoria Wakeham, helped improve communications in western America with great success. Why not have Finn work with her and the other Skyhunter leader, too? They might have the knowledge and technology to help reach the bigger overall goal."

He opened his mouth and promptly closed it. Kiyana Barnes may be a human, but she knew more about dragon-shifter affairs than most. Add in how bloody smart she was, and she might be able to help solve more problems than anyone could've imagined.

She tilted her head. "What? You're looking at me strangely."

Shaking his head to clear his stupor, he said, "Sorry. It's just, you lay things out so easily. And yet, I haven't heard anyone else think of something like that, something so obvious on the surface."

She smiled. "Well, to be fair, it sometimes takes an outsider to add a new perspective."

They were close to his surprise, but he couldn't help but pull her up against his body and kiss her. Each nibble, lick, and caress let her know with actions how much he thought of her.

Once he finally moved his head back a few inches, her hot breath against his lips nearly made him find some sort of cover and maybe do more than kiss his brilliant human.

Kiyana whispered, "So I guess this means you like me spouting off ideas?"

"Most definitely." He kissed her quickly again. "Don't ever hold them back."

She grinned. "What if they're ones I team up with your mother to achieve?"

He raised an eyebrow. "What, worse than when you and her thought about the pretend mate scheme?"