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Bronx stated, “Then we’ll have no choice but to keep her silent.”
At the thought of finally being reunited with her beast and then losing her all over again, Percy’s heart squeezed. There was no bloody way she would let that happen. For as long as she could manage her beast, she’d keep it a secret, like she had at the orphanage.
Unlike back then, she was older and was learning more about what to do and how to handle an inner dragon. So she would do like always—sort things out herself.
For a second, she didn’t like the idea of keeping something from Bronx and Violet. They’d done so much for her.
And yet, her dragon was everything. Percy would rather die than lose her again.
The two males watched her as she walked quietly, lost in her thoughts. However, as soon as they reached the outdoor class, a familiar little dark-haired boy rushed up to her—Joey.
He stopped a few inches away from her, took her hand, and blurted, “Thank you, Percy, for helping me get out of that place. My mum explained why you had to lie to me, and it’s okay. She said sometimes, once in a while, lying might be better. But in general, we need to tell the truth.”
Guilt crept over Percy at her recently made plans to hide any dragon-related activity from Bronx and Violet. But then she dismissed it. As nice as people were being to her, they could turn in an instant, and Percy had to protect herself.
She murmured, “No worries.”
Tristan said to Joey, “Go back to your class, Joey.”
“Yes, Mr. MacLeod.” He dashed off to the group of younger children.
Not wanting to think of her deceptive plans, she asked, “Why is he here? Isn’t he human?”
Tristan nodded. “Yes. But when Daisy, the first human child, moved to Stonefire, we decided it was best for the human kids to also come to these lessons. Even if they don’t have inner dragons, it’s important to understand how it all works, especially if they plan on eventually staying with a dragon clan and mating a dragon-shifter.”
She blinked. “Wait. How many other human children live here?”
“Three so far.” Bronx gestured toward the slightly older kids nearer to them. “Joey’s brother, Mark, is in the class we’re going to watch today. Daisy’s on holiday with her family, but she’s in a class above Mark.” He waved toward a man in the distance, one who had the same dark hair and gray eyes as Bronx. “And my younger brother, Hudson, is stepfather to the two human boys. This is their first day back after the ordeal.” He glanced at Tristan. “Is it okay if I quickly introduce Percy to my brother? Once we’re done, we’ll sneak to the back of the class and try not to be disruptive.”
Tristan grunted. “Let me know if Percy wants to be introduced.”
They both looked at her, and she shook her head. “No, I don’t want the attention.”
Tristan bobbed his head, waved goodbye, and went to the group of children waiting for him.
Bronx looked at her and searched her face. “If you want to meet my brother, that is. He just wants to thank you properly for saving his new stepson. But if it’s too much, just tell me, and it can wait.”
Percy felt eyes on her—way too many eyes—but she focused on Bronx’s face. Otherwise, she might get overwhelmed. She hadn’t been around this many people at once since she was at the orphanage, taking meals, all those years ago.
Looking into Bronx’s familiar gray eyes and flashing pupils, she noticed an almost eagerness to his gaze, as if her meeting his brother would make him happy. That might make him smile again and show his dimple.
Not that it should matter. Pleasing Bronx wasn’t her job.
And yet, before she could convince herself otherwise, she nodded. “Okay.”
He smiled, that dimple on full display, and her belly flipped. Not like when she’d felt dread back in the facility, but in a sort of nice way.
What the fuck is happening to me?
Bronx waved for his brother to come over, and Percy forced herself to look away. She most definitely didn’t want to have flushed cheeks when his brother walked up.
As she took a few deep breaths, Percy watched the slightly younger dragonman head toward them. They did look a lot alike—obviously, they were related—but Bronx’s nose was a little bigger than his brother’s. Plus, the brother had a slightly smoother walk, probably because he hadn’t lost part of a limb.
When the brother stopped a few feet away, Percy also noted how he was a little shorter than Bronx.
Bronx clapped his brother on the shoulder and then gestured toward Percy. “Hudson, this is Percy Smith. Percy, this is my youngest brother, Hudson. He’s mated to Sarah, the mother of the two human boys, one of whom is Joey.”
Hudson smiled at her, but he didn’t have a dimple. And while he seemed nice enough, she didn’t feel as safe around him as Bronx.
