Page 28 of Legends and Longing

Was he praising us to push us to continue to change the subject?

“Thank you.” Zorin was what the humans termed a pushover. “If our words are ever not clear, you must let us know.”

“The spell is amazing. It’s very easy to understand what you mean.” Feeling more comfortable, Shiloh began eating again as he glanced around Zorin’s home. “It’s fascinating to see what things you do with magic that we’ve shifted to doing the human way.”

If our bond was stronger, I thought I would’ve been able to feel the deception in his conversation choice, but at the moment, I could not prove manipulation. Instead of taking our mate at his word, this time Zorin studied him for a moment. “We should devise a panel to look into that in more detail. Would you help me put together an outline of how it would look?”

It was technically one way to get to know our mate but it felt fake or somehow dishonest. Zorin was easy to read in some aspects and hard in others. As he watched our Earth mate, I knew he was pleased to have a project they could work on together. But there was also something like disappointment that faded quickly.

He had lowered our bond down to a faint thread barely binding us together.

No.

It was not just me.

Shiloh blinked and took an unsteady breath before sitting straighter. “Where do you think we should start?”

With honesty and personal conversations, but the choice did not seem to be up to me.

****

Nothing in our mating was my decision.

“You…you invited…” Shiloh stumbled over the words but did not go completely silent. In the two days we had been slowly strengthening our bond, he still could not explain his desires but speaking had become easier. “Agent Murphy and…and Klynn…to…to dinner?”

Since I was shocked as well, I did the Earth movement of raising my eyebrow and practiced glaring at Zorin. Shiloh said I did those very well but that may have been because I had been given many situations to practice them.

Zorin went still before doing a small shrug. “Experts are required and they seem to be mates, although they are unusually private about it.”

I was not opposed to his idea but I was not pleased at the manner in which he handled it. “Did you consider asking us our opinion?”

Glancing between us, Zorin nodded. “Yes.”

But he had discounted the idea?

Ugh.

The faint emotions I could feel coming through my bond with Shiloh made it easier to understand Zorin’s decision. “Do we need to have the equal mates discussion again?”

It was Zorin’s turn to practice glaring at me. “No.”

Shiloh was projecting confusion but the signal from the door of Zorin’s home prevented him from asking additional questions.

“They are not open about their relationship but they are both knowledgeable about Earth-based relationships and should be able to help us gain information.” Zorin did not look at Shiloh as he explained his thoughts, but I did not appreciate the way he was watching me as if I were a problem. “I am sure they will be polite.”

Shiloh was surprised but a soft huff before he quietly grumbled said he was not too shocked. “I think…I think we need rules on springing this kind of stuff on mates.”

Before I could agree with him, Agent Murphy and Klynn were ushered into the room and Zorin started to speak. “Let me introduce you to the others who are having dinner with us this evening. The human Shiloh that came through the portal with you. The local Raxius who is a dragon.”

Zorin pretended everything was normal as he continued to almost lecture the human. “I have been told you appreciate that information even if it is not necessary.”

Agent Murphy was doing his best to look neutral, which I appreciated, but showing more of his thoughts as humans usually did would have been helpful. “Humans in general don’t seem to be able to automatically sense that in your people, so thank you for clarifying it. The people of Earth classify ourselves in a variety of ways, so it seems to be almost an instinct with us to search for how to classify others that we meet.”

Looking as if he were addressing students, Zorin indicated he took the information thoughtfully. “As you would say, right off the bat I know we classify based on dragon or mage, and mated or unmated.”

A fleeting emotion of consideration or something close came through the bond before he turned to Klynn. “Can you think of other ways we classify ourselves?”

Was he attempting to be polite or did he want something from the dragon?