“I work with him. Would you like me to call him and invite him over?”
Rory grinned. “I’m afraid we beat you to it. He said he’s having dinner with the Mrs. and he’ll be over directly.”
Conlan reseated himself in the armchair next to the couch and gazed at Amy, who sat adjacent. It was hard to miss the chemistry between them. Kristine wanted to be happy for her mother, if she had finally found someone special, and another dragon meant they wouldn’t have to explain themselves. That was always a big problem when a relationship with a human reached a serious point.
“So, tell us about yourselves,” Conlan said.
Kristine took a deep breath and sighed. “I wouldn’t know where to begin.”
“Maybe we could start at the present and work backward,” Amy suggested. “I’ve already told them we’re from New York and that you’re a firefighter and I’m an actress…perhaps a former actress,” she said sadly.
“I understand you’re in a spot of trouble,” Conlan said. “But you never elaborated on what that might be. Mayhaps I can help.”
Amy leaned back and gazed at the ceiling. “You don’t ask easy questions, do you?”
“Forgive me. I don’t mean to pry, but if there’s anythin’ I can do…” Conlan seemed genuinely concerned for their well-being.
Amy smiled. “That’s very kind of you. But I think we’ve done what we had to do, mainly getting out of New York and finding a safe place to stay for a while.”
“And how long is a while?” he asked.
Amy shrugged. She looked over to Kristine, who also shrugged.
Jayce cleared his throat. “I wasn’t going to bring this up right away, but I was thinking perhaps Boston would be your home from now on.”
Kristine leaned away from him, shocked. “That’s quite an assumption on your part. Our lives are back in New York. My mother acts on Broadway and teaches at an acting school, and I don’t think you have a branch here. After all that’s happened, it’s tempting to want to relocate, but I won’t be run out of my city, and my firehouse, which I’m also quite attached to.”
Jayce let out what sounded like a frustrated breath. “I knew I shouldn’t have said anything yet.” When the doorbell rang, he mumbled, “Saved by the bell, literally.”
Amber jumped up off Rory’s lap. “I’ll get it.”
Everyone waited quietly until they heard Amber welcome Drake. She escorted him into the living room, and he began shaking hands.
“I think you know most everyone here,” Rory said. “But let me introduce you to our newest guests, Amy and Kristine Scott.”
They both jumped to their feet. Drake walked over to Amy and shook her hand and then crossed to Kristine and shook hers as well. The usual pleasantries were exchanged but with a bit more animation. He did indeed sport the yellow streak in his widow’s peak that matched their own.
“Kristine and I conceal our marks with dye, but if we didn’t, we’d have the very same mark you do!”
“This is exciting,” Drake said. “I thought I was the last of my clan so kept the mark visible, just in case. I thought I had lost every family member I had, and now, if I heard right, it looks like I may have found some again.”
Amy pulled him over to the couch, gesturing for him to sit down next to Jayce, and she sat on the arm next to him…even closer to Conlan.
Amber said, “I’ll get you another chair.”
“I’ll get it,” Drake said.
A moment later he returned with two chairs from the dining room. Drake sat in one, and Amber settled in the other, while Amy returned to her spot on the couch.
Kristine leaned across Jayce, focusing on her mother. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” she whispered. “We may not be related—”
“Aye. You’re quite right,” Drake said with a very slight Scottish accent. “We should compare facts first. My family came from Scotland many years ago and settled in Nova Scotia, Canada.”
Amy’s eyes widened, and she slapped a hand over her heart. “I was born in Scotland, and later I went to Nova Scotia before settling in New York. When did you go to Nova Scotia?”
Drake smiled broadly. “About four hundred years ago.”
“And what is your last name?”
