“Great Gods,” I whispered.
“I'm so sorry,” Sebastian added. “I didn't know my comment would incite such a brawl.”
“They do this all the time,” Rian said to him. “You simply offered them an excuse. Don't fret.”
I lifted a brow at him. Don't fret was what he always said to me, and it sounded too intimate to be used with another man. Rian looked at me and frowned at my expression. I just shook my head. There I went, being silly again. Love was the culprit. It drove me mad, even when it was going well.
“Go ahead and push me, Emmavane,” Mila went on. “I'll drag you out of this house myself and cast you into those rotting woods. You can live with the bugs.”
“You ungrateful little—”
“All right, love,” Adler finally stepped in. “This is going too far. We're family, but we're still Dragons, and we've spent too much of the day together. Our beasts are getting restless. I think we should finish our meal in our suite.”
Emmavane huffed a breath out of her nose and smoke came with it. She glared at Mila, then turned and strode out of the room.
Adler got up and shrugged. “I don't know how much you know about Dragons, Galin, but this is actually an improvement. Before the Dragon God's return and the return of our Water Magic, we were so imbalanced that we wouldn't get through a single hour without a scene like that one. Now, we can make it through most of the day.”
“Thatwas an improvement?” I asked.
“Yes,” Rian said. “Dragons have become less volatile. Our Fire now has Water to balance it. But if you put two female Dragons in one house, this will always happen. One female must dominate.”
“And that female is me,” Mila said sweetly, back to being the gracious hostess. She sat down and added, “Sorry, Dad. I couldn't stand to hear her insult our guests one more time.”
“It's all right, darling,” Adler said. “But I'd best be off or I'll be the one paying the price.” He grabbed a piece of buttered bread and lifted it. “For the walk.” Then he looked at Sebastian.“You've impressed me, boy. Just ignore my mate. She's not as generous as I am.” He winked at Sebastian, then left the dining hall.
Rian sighed. “And this is my family.” He took my hand and kissed it. “I hope they haven't scared you away.”
I snorted. “Scared me? They're fascinating. My mother feels just as strongly about propriety and hospitality, but I can't imagine her ever roaring to defend a guest. I'd pay a lot of coin to see that.”
“I would like to meet her. Are both of your parents alive?” Rian asked.
“Yes. And I have two sisters.”
“Two?” Mila asked. “Are they twins? Twins are blessed in our culture.”
“No, Your Grace. They are fifty-six years apart.”
“Definitely not twins then,” she said with a laugh.
“That would be something indeed.” I grinned, then said, “I'm so sorry. I don't mean to be rude, but I'd like to get back to the subject of the beetles.”
“Oh, of course,” Mila said. “And I'm not squeamish. If you need to bring your specimens out, feel free.”
“Thank you, Your Grace.”
“Do stop with the titles, Galin. You're nearly family.”
I cleared my throat.
“Mila, they are not mated yet,” Ravand said. “You're making him uncomfortable.”
“Am I? I meant to do the opposite.”
I glanced at Geris, who'd sat silently through most of the meal, even the battle, and thought to myself,I'm not the only one who's uncomfortable.
As if he read my mind, Geris asked, “So, has the great inventor come up with a solution yet?”
“I need a bit more information before I know what to create.” I looked back at Sebastian. “The beetles prefer sweet trees. Anything else?”
