“Thebeithirare snakelike creatures with no wings.You most definitely have wings.”
“What of the Beast of the Black Firs, also known as the Highland Dragon?”
“That particular story came about because of the Vikings who burned large swaths of forest.Rather than blame the invaders, the superstitious folks of the time created an imaginary dragon.”
While I would have liked to argue, she was actually correct.There’d been no dragon, as I didn’t relocate here until much later.“Ever thought I’m just good at hiding?”
“You’re the size of a house.I find that hard to believe.And you weren’t exactly discreet when you saved me.Anyone coming up the path could have seen you.”
“No one was near enough to spot me, and before you ask, I would have known.Given the direction of the breeze, I’d have scented them.”Unlike the Red Cap, who’d stayed downwind and avoided notice.
“Your sense of smell is that good?”Her lips twisted.“Here’s to hoping my antiperspirant hasn’t given up yet.”
“You’re fine.”More than fine.Her aroma made me hunger—and not for food.
“You’re not Scottish,” she pointed out next.
This woman just couldn’t stop talking, and for some reason, I kept replying.“What makes you say that?”
“No accent, for one.”
“I was educated abroad.”
“You have a Mediterranean look about you.”
“My skin is tan from being outside a lot.As for my hair, not all Scots have red locks.”
She hit me from a different angle.“How old are you?”
“How old areyou?”I countered.
“Thirty-nine.”
A lady of mature age, past most childish tendencies.
“Well?”She planted a hand on her hip.
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” I murmured, having lived more human lifetimes than their minds could grasp.
“You didn’t inherit your name or fortune from your father, or his father before him, did you?”Before I could reply, she kept going.“You’ve been playing a game of pretend, where every so often you reinvent yourself as an heir to ensure nobody notices a man who should be dead is very much alive.”
“You researched me.”
“I wanted to know who I would be dealing with.Not that I discovered much.You lead a very private life.”
“With good reason, don’t you think?”
“Is it easy to become the dragon?”
Once more she flitted to a new subject, and my dumb ass answered.“Like breathing in.”
“It has to be magic,” she mused aloud, more for her own benefit than mine, I suspected.
“Magic is the catch-all term for things scientists have yet to explain.”
For some reason, my statement made her smile.“Indeed, it is.Have you ever allowed yourself to be studied by a scientist or doctor?”
“Why?”
