“She’s a horrible female. Don’t spend time with her. She’ll sap your will to live.”

“That could explain why Auntie Rhiannon sent her and her daughters—your sisters—to Garbhán Isle and ordered Dagmar Reinholdt to manage them.”

“That was the word she used,” the first added. “Manage.”

Aidan couldn’t help but smile at that. If his mother thought she could run roughshod over the human Dagmar Reinholdt, who was known in the harsh Northlands as The Beast . . . well . . . heh.

“You were staring at our Brannie’s ass,” noted the third.

“She has a very nice ass. Very firm.”

“Do you like her?” asked the second.

“I don’t dislike her.”

“You should like her,” said the third.

“Your cousin’s a heartbreaker. And I’m very sensitive and beautiful.”

“She could use a sensitive male in her life.”

“And beautiful. Don’t forget beautiful.”

The first shook her head. “He thinks we’re joking, Nesta.”

“He’ll learn, Breena.” She patted his shoulder. “Because when it comes to our favorite cousins—”

“And few are our favorites.”

“—we are very serious.”

“Favorite cousin?” Aidan asked. “You were just trying to throttle her not fifteen minutes ago.”

“Not throttling. Showing her how far we’ve come since she used to train us how to throw knives when we were just little hatchlings.”

“I do love Cadwaladr family stories,” Aidan noted wistfully. “And how far you’ve come? It was like she was being attacked by screeching fleas.”

“Hmmm,” the first one said before turning and walking off.

“Huh,” the second said before following her sister.

And the third just sort of wandered away after staring at him for several silent seconds.

Caswyn joined him, punching his arm. “That whole clan is a bit . . . touched, yeah?” he asked.

Aidan glanced at his friend and pointed out, “You still have headless horse stuck between your teeth.”

“Damn.” Caswyn covered his mouth and quickly walked off before Brannie could see him and start threatening him again.

Chapter Nine

The sorting of weapons and armor took longer than Brannie thought it would. Took so long, in fact, it was decided they would camp in the nearby forest for the night. As soon as a fire was started, Brannie dove headfirst into all the wonderful weapons and armor her cousin and uncle had created. Eventually, though, she had to borrow Aidan’s surcoat to cover her nakedness so that Uther and Caswyn would stop staring.

Idiots.

Like she didn’t know how those two really felt about her as a dragoness. Apparently her tail was “too short.” Uther used to call her “Stubby” behind her back. And if they didn’t enjoy looking at her true form, what did she care if they lusted for her human one? They both went together and she loved every part of herself.

Why shouldn’t she? As she always told her brother Celyn . . . she was adorable!

What Brannie didn’t know . . . ? How Aidan felt about her. She’d never heard that Aidan had said anything about her one way or another. But when she’d suggested they’d have sex for a little stress relief, he hadn’t been remotely interested.