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However, he noticed the change in Dawn's reaction to his flashing eyes. The fact Dawn didn't so much as blink now told him how much she'd overcome her fear already.
Maybe, just maybe, if he took things slow, he might try to know her better.
His dragon hummed. Yes, yes, I like that idea. And now I won't let you run away from her, either.
Just as he was about to reply, one of the dragon teachers—Ella Lawson—walked up to them and asked, "Is everything set for the play? We'll be starting in half an hour."
Blake cleared his throat. "Nearly there. We're just on our way to load the special effects items and go to the control room."
Ella nodded. "Good." She handed him a walkie-talkie. "We'll communicate this way. Now, excuse me, I need to make sure the children aren't swapping costumes and doing who knows what with the props. Tristan may think he sees all, but I doubt it when that many kids are in one room together."
As the dragonwoman walked away, Blake handed Dawn the walkie-talkie. When his fingers brushed hers, electricity rushed up his arm and he sucked in a breath.
He heard Dawn do the same.
They stared at one another for a few beats, and for the first time in his adult life, Blake nearly lost control and kissed the human.
Good. Just try to kiss her. Look, she just bit her bottom lip. She's probably thinking about it, too.
No, dragon, no kissing. She doesn't know all the facts, and I won't hide what could happen from her. If flashing eyes startled her, then a mate-claim frenzy would send her running away for good.
Before his beast could reply, he removed his hand and motioned for Dawn to follow. "Come on. We don't have a lot of time to finish setting everything up."
And once they reached the stage to place the final few things for the show, Blake was attuned to Dawn as she moved about the area.
There were so many reasons he should end the night and pretend he'd never met her. After all, the clan was counting on him to help crack some of the Dragon Knight data they'd received, data that would help Stonefire defend themselves against one of their main human enemies.
And yet, part of him wondered if he could handle his work as well as a mate, a child, and another on the way since a frenzy always resulted in pregnancy.
Maybe if he solved the last of the puzzles to defeat the Dragon Knights, he'd have enough time.
Despite his intentions for the evening, it seemed like his life had changed after all. The only question was how he could handle it going forward.
Chapter Three
As Dawn stood behind the curtain at the side of the stage and watched the closing scenes of the play—her daughter playing the part of an old dragon-shifter queen of Britain—she couldn't stop smiling.
Daisy had done much better than she could've anticipated. Maybe acting was something she was destined to do. The fact Daisy had only forgotten maybe two lines was a massive deal for her daughter since her attention wavered a lot.
As the lights dimmed, Dawn clapped as loud as she could, loving how the children bowed to the crowd.
True, she'd hoped to sit in the audience, but Blake had needed her help to move things around as the play progressed. And considering she'd wanted it to be the best it could be for Daisy's debut, she'd merely ensured that Sasha recorded it all for her.
As the kids dragged out the teachers so they could also bow
to the audience, Dawn hurried back toward the small control room where Blake would be. Even though her night was over, and she still needed to congratulate Daisy, she wanted to see him one more time. Given that all the teachers wanted the kids out of their costumes before being reunited with their parents—some of the fake dragon wings were pointy, and no one wanted to take chances—she should have enough time to say goodbye to him.
Dawn weaved through the maze of props and other adults moving about. She reached the outer door to the room divided in two, and paused to smooth her hair. It was silly, really, to worry about her appearance. But something about Blake made her feel like the nineteen-year-old version of herself, back when boys had made her belly flip and cheeks heat up.
Taking a deep breath, she entered the outer room and then the inner one. Blake turned toward her and smiled. She loved how his eyes crinkled at the corners. It was so much better than when he tried to be solemn and quiet.
She shut the door and went over to him. "It all went brilliantly, Blake. Nothing caught fire and everything went off when it was supposed to."
He said dryly, "Those are some pretty low standards."
Snorting, she playfully touched his arm. "In my book, not starting a fire is a pretty important deal. Especially with a stage full of children, half of whom were wearing flammable wings."
Blake's pupils flashed a few times between round and slitted. But Dawn didn't pay much attention to them since it was almost normal to her now.
