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Thanks to my new dragon shifter abilities, I was able to hear the whispers around the store as we finished up. Murmurs of how I seemed "different" now, talk of my pregnancy. I wasn’t sure how Evan would feel about that getting out, but there was no way to take it back now. How would they all feel then when they found out about my transformation into a dragon shifter?
“Do you think they'll ever accept me?” I asked when we were finally alone in the car again.
“First of all, don't worry about what the others think. You are Evan's mate and the lady of the clan. Their opinions don't matter.”
“I feel like an outsider. You heard what that woman said about the baby.” I rested my hand over my stomach.
Abi turned to face me. “Listen. You must never let them see you sweat. In Evan's absence, you are the lady of the clan, and it’s your duty to defend him. If you show them you're strong and capable, they’ll have no choice but to respect you.”
Her words made sense, but I couldn't shake the heavy feeling in my chest. Did I have what it took to be like Abi? The way she’d been so strong and confident in the store wasn’t something that came naturally to me.
I’d never asked to be a leader or lady of a clan—yet another thing I hadn’t signed up for when I’d agreed to be Evan’s nanny. Regardless, this was the life I was living now. It was so foreign, so surreal. I was a dragon shifter, and the mate of the alpha. How was it possible that my life had changed so completely since Evan came into it? And would I ever feel like my life was truly mine again?
Chapter 11
Evan
I stretched when I stood up from my desk and moved to one of the floor-to-ceiling windows of my office. It’d been a busy day, but that was nothing unusual. Mason was handling most of the day-to-day at the clubs back in New York, and I still had work to do on the back end. Then there was pack business on top of it.
Mariah had told me not to feel guilty about Sofia’s birthday, but it weighed heavily on me. She was my daughter. She meant everything to me—just as much as Mariah and the new baby—but in the chaos that’d become our lives, I’d nearly overlooked a monumental event.
It was hard not to berate myself, especially since, despite our best efforts, Tomas still eluded us. Impatience coursed through me as I stared out at the multi-hued leaves in the trees, the wind tugging at them while I wondered if it’d always be like this. Surely things would feel more manageable once Tomas was out of the picture.
My phone vibrated in my pocket. I pulled it out and I glanced down at the screen, confused when I saw the name of the elderly grocery store owner, Mr. Thompson. Why would he be calling?
I tapped the screen and brought it to my ear. “This is Evan.”
“Evan. Hello there, my boy.” Mr. Thompson cleared his throat. “I mean, Alpha,” he said quickly. I’d known Mr. Thompson since I was a boy, though, so I thought nothing of it.
There was a smile in my voice now. “How can I help you, Mr. Thompson?”
He released a heavy sigh, hesitating before saying, “There was an… incident at the store today.”
My heart lurched, my smile vanishing as my body froze. Mariah and Abi had gone to the store this morning. I gripped the phone, my voice tight. “What happened? Is everyone okay?”
“Yes, of course. No one is hurt. It’s just that…” Mr. Thompson paused, and my whole body vibrated as I barely restrained myself from demanding he spit it out. This must have something to do with my mate.
“Abi and your new mate were at the store today. There was a woman who said some nasty things to her. I just want you to know that I don’t approve of what she said, and I don’t support that behavior, sir.” It felt weird for this old man to call me sir. “We love and respect your family, and I just don’t want you to think that we’re anything but…”
“Don’t worry about that.” The man was worried my wrath might cost him his business. “I need to know what was said to my mate.”
He sighed with relief, then gave me what details he knew. By the time he was done, I was simultaneously enraged at the woman for being so cruel while worrying about how her words had affected Mariah.
I ended the call, managing to keep my voice steady when I thanked Mr. Thompson for letting me know, then raked my hands through my hair. Yet another area where I’d dropped the ball. I’d let the matter of telling the clan about Mariah fall to the wayside, hoping we wouldn’t have to deal with it for some time, but clearly I couldn't ignore this any longer.
The clan wasn’t around Mariah too much, but it wasn’t like we could keep her hidden away from them. She was the mate of the alpha, after all. Even if she hadn’t had the chance to really step into that role yet, she’d be at clan gatherings and become more immersed in clan life.
But this woman at the grocery store had sensed Mariah was pregnant. There were bound to be questions about how a dragon shifter managed to get a human pregnant. We were lucky she hadn’t been able to tell Mariah was a shifter, but it was only a matter of time before the dragons in the clan would recognize it. Now that her dragon was awake, it would be nearly impossible to hide the fact that she was no longer human.
I was going to have to tell them sooner than later, because continuing to hide it would only make things worse. I needed to address the clan.
While I paced back and forth, I weighed my options. How could I speak to the clan without causing panic or unrest? They trusted me as their leader, but Mariah's unique situation might be difficult for some to accept.
What would Sebastian do? He always knew the right thing to say, the right way to handle every situation with the clan. I sank down in my chair with my head in my hands. I was trying so hard to hold it all together, to keep the clan united after Sebastian’s death, but it seemed like no matter how hard I tried, there was always another challenge to face.
One thing was certain: I needed some help figuring out how to handle this. I sent a quick text to Abi, asking her to come see me the moment they got back. It wasn’t long until I heard her walking up the stairs, talking in hushed tones with Lucas.
“Evan?” Abi asked when she entered the office and walked toward me, concern etched on her features. “Is this about what happened at the store?”
