by Liv Rider
“I never noticed.” Shaun wondered how many shifters he’d met without knowing. Were some of the regulars at the bar shifters?
“That’s how we like it,” Dale said. “Lewiston is unusual in that the city is a mix of shifters and humans who know nothing about us.”
“And humans who are aware shifters exist,” Mitchell added. “People like Emily, for instance. Humans who get married to shifters.”
“Yes, we have that in Greenville as well.” Dale looked at Shaun. “Greenville is a small town meant for shifters, or non-shifter family members and partners. It’s easier to live there for a shifter than in a place like Lewiston where you have to watch your every step.”
Mitchell shrugged. “You get used to it. Lewiston’s big enough that we have several bars and coffee shops run by shifters, so I don’t have to keep my guard up all the time. And in a city there’s always something going on.”
“Another downside of living in a city!” Dale laughed. “I’ll take the peace and quiet of Greenville any day.”
“And you’re welcome to it.”
Dale’s smile told Shaun this was a regular friendly argument between the two of them.
“So that’s why you moved to Greenville,” he said to Emily, who nodded.
“No one in Millersburg knows about shifters. It’s easier for me to move to a shifter town than it is for Dale to move somewhere he can’t be himself. We can’t risk people finding out.”
Shaun tried to imagine the people in Millersburg keeping shifters a secret. It wouldn’t last a day. “You’re right.” The amount of trust Dale and Mitchell had placed in him struck him. He’d only just met Mitchell, and now the guy was trusting him with the biggest secret of his life.
Guilt made his stomach churn. No wonder Emily had tried so hard to talk him out of bringing Chris. She knew all about lying and keeping secrets, and how horrible it made you feel.
“It’s such a relief getting to tell you everything.” Dale let out a sigh. “Honesty is more important to a dragon shifter than anything. It’s this whole….” He gestured at himself. “It’s an honor thing. Since you’re Emily’s brother, you’re family. And lying to family is the worst, most dishonorable thing. My dragon’s been insisting I tell you for months, ever since I proposed.”
Dale’s words cut like a knife. He knew the truth about Chris, since he’d been there when Shaun had told Emily everything over the phone. But Shaun didn’t get the feeling Dale was talking about that. The guy genuinely sounded relieved he could tell the truth about himself.
“Your dragon?” Shaun asked, not wanting to think or talk about being honest.
“It sounds kind of ridiculous when I put it like that, but it’s the instincts of my dragon,” Dale explained. “My dragon’s instincts are to be honest with you, since you’re family, and my dragon doesn’t care about practicalities like travel distance or work schedules.”
“It’s like the angel or devil on your shoulder,” Mitchell added. “Except, well, it’s a dragon.”
“And is that more like an angel or a devil?” Shaun asked, watching Mitchell grimace.
“Right now, it’s more a devil.” Mitchell looked down at his shoes.
Shaun wanted to ask more about that. What were Mitchell’s dragon instincts telling him? He didn’t seem thrilled to be talking about this. Maybe it was because Mitchell wasn’t the one marrying Emily, so he didn’t consider Shaun family.
Maybe he didn’t think Shaun should know about any of this.
“Anything else you’d like to ask?” Dale’s voice bright and eager. “You’re taking it very well.”
Shaun shook his head. “Ask me again tomorrow. I know you said you can’t explain to me how it works, but can you tell me what it’s like?”
“Being a shifter?” Dale asked. “Well, I don’t know what it’s like not being a shifter. But the shifting itself, that’s like…. it’s like a nice, big morning stretch.”
“Especially when you haven’t shifted in a while.” Mitchell rubbed his shoulder. “I’m gonna feel that tomorrow.”
“See, another reason not to live in a city! When was the last time you’ve flown?” Dale asked.
“You can fly?” Shaun stared at Mitchell, who was still rubbing his shoulder. Maybe Shaun should offer to help him out with that. It was his fault that Mitchell had had to demonstrate his shifting….
“Yes, and it has been a while.” Mitchell sounded wistful as he looked out at the lake.
“What else can you do? Breathe fire?” Shaun asked.
“Definitely,” Mitchell replied.
“It comes in handy for barbecues,” Dale added.
Shaun wasn’t sure if they were joking or not. “What about when you’re human? Is that different?”
Dale looked at Emily, putting his arm around her. “You’re better qualified to say than I am.”
She smiled, resting her head against his shoulder. “One hundred percent normal human. Well, mostly.”
“Mostly?” That sounded worrying, and Shaun eyed Mitchell.
“Dale has way better senses than I do. Scent, sight, sound…he can tell it’s my car when I’m still miles away!”
“Seriously?” Shaun frowned at that.
Dale shrugged. “Maybe that says more about your car than my hearing, darling.”
“Hey!” Emily laughed. “There’s nothing wrong with my car.”
“They’re telling the truth?” He turned to Mitchell, feeling like he could trust Mitchell’s answer more than Dale’s and Emily’s. “You have better senses too?”
Mitchell nodded. “It took me a while to get used to Lewiston and learn how to filter everything out.”
Shaun could imagine. He thought the city was noisy sometimes. The smell had to be even worse. “Another downside of the city, huh?”
“I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else.” Mitchell’s smile was warm as he looked at Shaun.
Shaun’s stomach squirmed with guilt and butterflies.
“Every shifter has more sensitive senses,” Dale said. “It also depends on what kind of shifter you are, but it’s true for all of us. With dragons, it’s sight more than anything.”
“Really? How?” Shaun asked. “You can see further away?”
“Yes, and in more detail,” Dale explained. “Which makes cleaning around the house fun, let me tell you.”
“It also makes it impossible to keep things a surprise from him,” Emily added. “He can tell I’m lying before I’ve even opened my mouth, just from the way I look at him.”
Dale shrugged. “That’s also because I know you so well.”
Shaun tried not to let his rising panic show. If Dale had such good eyesight that he could tell from Emily’s facial expression she was lying, did Mitchell have that too? “You know her tells.”
“Pretty much.” Dale smiled at him. “The better we know someone, the easier it is to tell how they’re feeling because of body language, expressions…tiny details humans might miss unless they’re looking for them.”
Shaun eyed Mitchell, who remained quiet. What had Mitchell noticed about him? They’d only met that day, so there was no way Mitchell could tell Shaun was lying. Right?
“In fact,” Dale continued, “our senses are so good, we know when we’ve met the one.”
“The one what?” Shaun asked. Mitchell was glaring at Dale, which told Shaun exactly nothing.
“The one,” Dale repeated. “As in, the love of your life. Your fated mate.”
“Your soul mate,” Emily added.
Shaun frowned. “And you’re telling me because…?”
“The two of us are fated mates.” Dale pulled Emily closer. “I knew it when I met her.”
“It took me some time,” Emily admitted.
“You just knew?” Shaun asked.
Dale nodded. “Because my senses are better than Emily’s. I wanted to tell her immediately.”
“And he did.” Emily’s smile was fond. “Hence why it took me some time.”
<
br /> Shaun tried to imagine how it worked. “You smelled her and knew she was the love of your life? What if she’d worn a strong perfume?”
Dale shook his head. “No, I knew it the moment I looked into her eyes.”
“Just like that?” Shaun was all too familiar with crushes—hell, he was all too familiar with one right now—but this seemed to be on a whole other level.
“Maybe some shifters rely more on scent, I’m not entirely sure,” Dale said. “Mitchell, what do you think about fated mates?”
Mitchell gave his brother another glare. “I think it’s time we head back to the Inn. The sun is setting, and we should be there before it gets dark.”
“You don’t have excellent night vision?” From what Dale and Mitchell had just explained, Shaun would have expected that. And why was Mitchell so annoyed? Did he think Dale was telling Shaun too much about shifters?
“We do,” Dale replied, “but I think Mitchell is more worried about you, since you have regular night vision.”
Mitchell was silent, which Shaun wasn’t sure how to take. “Going back sounds like an excellent plan.” He didn’t want to be stumbling around the woods in the dark and risk tripping over anything.
“It’s a shame to head back already.” Dale looked up at the red and orange sky. “It’s a good night for flying.” He tugged Emily closer. “How about it?”
Emily hugged him in excitement. “You want to take me flying? Now?”
“Always.”
“What are they—” Shaun fell silent when Dale shifted again. Emily jumped out of the way, used to how big her fiancé was as a dragon.
Dale lowered himself down until he was lying on the ground, and Emily clambered up on his back with only a little difficulty.
“She’s done that before.” Shaun stared as his sister settled on top of the dragon as if she did it every day.
“He’s done that before too,” Mitchell commented, when Dale carefully got up on and spread his wings.
Dale beat his wings and took off. The resulting gust of wind nearly sent Shaun crashing into Mitchell. “Not with other people around!”
“Definitely not!” Mitchell grabbed Shaun’s arms, pulling him closer. “Careful, Dale!”
Shaun’s heart was racing as he watched the dragon fly higher and higher. He heard Emily whoop as Dale veered off to the left, away from the Inn. Mitchell’s touch burned against his skin, and Shaun had to resist the urge to press even closer.
“Are you okay?” Mitchell pulled back so he could look Shaun in the eye.
He’d never been more okay. “Yeah.” They were so close. Close enough to kiss.
But he couldn’t. Not with Chris around.
Shaun moved away from Mitchell, missing his touch immediately. He looked at the dragon flying over the treetops instead. “I should be more worried that a dragon is carrying off my sister, shouldn’t I?”
Mitchell laughed at that. “I’m sure Dale’s intentions are all good.”
“I don’t know about hers.” Shaun smiled at Mitchell, his stomach fluttering again at that soft smile.
“We’d better head back.” Mitchell gestured at the path. “Before it gets too dark for you to see.”
“It’s a clear night.” Shaun looked up at the sky. “The stars’ll be out.” He wanted to kick himself for saying it. Ah yes, strolling along a lake under a starry sky, just the two of them. The perfect romantic scenario if Shaun hadn’t lied about everything and brought Chris along.
Karma was definitely biting him in the ass.
“Still, we should head back. But yes, it is nice to see the stars for a change.”
It took Shaun a moment to realize what Mitchell meant. “Light pollution. Another downside of city life.”
They set off at a stroll. “Is there anywhere in the world you’d rather live?”
Shaun shrugged. He’d ended up in Lewiston by chance, but he didn’t regret his choice. “Between Lewiston and Millersburg, Lewiston every time.” It was strange to realize that the city he thought he knew so well had such a big secret side to it. “How long have you and other shifters lived there?”
“Shifters in general?” Mitchell shook his head. “No idea. Decades, probably. I only moved there five years ago.”
“Why did you move there? Did you move from Greenville?”
“Yes, I grew up there. I always knew I’d move out at some point, but not where to.”
That sounded odd. “Why?”
Mitchell threw him a surprised look, then smiled. “Right, that’s a dragon shifter thing you don’t know about.” He was silent for a moment. “Sorry, I’m not used to having to explain this, so I don’t know if I’m going to do it well.”
It surprised him that Mitchell put it like that. He was used to people expecting him to keep up and understand. “Well, I’ve never had dragon shifter things explain to me, so I can’t judge.”
“That’s a relief.” Mitchell fell silent again as they walked. “Since shifters are such a big secret, there are certain things we’ve had to set up on our own. Rules, for example. The law only covers so much.”
Shaun could imagine that. “What, there are no laws against drunk-flying?” He looked over at where Dale had flown off with his sister. He thought he could see a tiny speck against the horizon.
Mitchell laughed. “Oddly enough, no. I’ve never tried it, though. I don’t know how much it takes to get a dragon drunk.”
“It’d have to be very strong,” Shaun mused. “And you’d need an enormous bowl, or you’d never be able to drink from it.” A very strong vodka, maybe?
“This is not about trying to get me drunk!” Mitchell laughed. “I was explaining shifters to you.”
“Sorry, carry on.” It was surprising how easy it was to talk to Mitchell. There’d been some awkward moments earlier, but Mitchell seemed more at ease now that it was the two of them.
“Anyway, we’ve had to set up some of our own rules. Partly because a lot of shifters live in shifter-only towns, where there is no human-run government, and partly because it’s convenient and necessary when living somewhere with humans. And when there are rules, there are people who have to make sure everyone obeys those rules. That’s where dragon shifters come in. You’ve seen how big we get.”
“So, if some shifter breaks a rule, you sit on them? Set them on fire?” Shaun was only half-joking.
“I wish.” Mitchell laughed with him. “But because dragon shifters are so powerful, we are the only shifters who can be Keepers of the Peace. We, um, keep the peace in a shifter district. If a shifter in my part of Lewiston has a problem, I have to solve it.”
“That sounds….” Shaun tried to find the right word. Difficult? Annoying? “Challenging.”
“It is.” Mitchell’s voice was cheerful. “But I don’t have to do it all by myself. There’s a council of elected shifters too. And there’s nothing I’d rather do. Remember what Dale said earlier about honor and dragon shifters?”
“When he mentioned how difficult it had been to keep things from me.” Shaun’s stomach felt like lead. Dale had sounded so relieved, and it was obvious Mitchell was happy to tell him everything he wanted to know about dragon shifters. They were so open, so honest, while Shaun had done nothing but lie all day.
“Yes, he hated not being honest with you. All shifter types have their own little quirks, some stronger than others. Wolf shifters, for example, value loyalty to their friends and family over everything. They also can’t stand being alone. It varies from wolf shifter to wolf shifter, and it’s not like other shifters aren’t loyal, but it’s more of a thing for wolf shifters.”
Shaun nodded along. “And dragon shifters have their own quirks?” He got a sinking suspicion of the quirk dragon shifters had.
“Exactly!” Mitchell sounded pleased. “We value honesty, and can’t stand disagreements. When two people are in a room and they’ve just had a big fight or they don’t like each other, there’s a tension in the air. You can sense it.”
/> “Oh, definitely.” Shaun could list plenty of examples he’d seen in the bar. Exes running into each other while dating someone new. Former friends. He’d gotten good at recognizing the signs of whether that tension would escalate into a fight or if it would be mutual ignoring.
“And I can’t stand that tension. It’s like an itch I need to scratch.”
“The rehearsal dinner must have been fun for you, then.” Shaun couldn’t keep a note of bitterness out of his voice. He still couldn’t believe Natalie had pushed it like that.
Mitchell was silent for a long moment, and Shaun worried if he had ruined the friendly mood between them. He wanted to keep talking to Mitchell and learn more about dragon shifters. He wanted to keep talking to Mitchell, period. “It was hard not to notice, if I’m honest. But,” he added, “it’s none of my concern and I won’t get involved.”
Shaun smiled. Mitchell sounded like he was desperate to get involved. “But that’s another thing you do. You want to resolve fights and disagreements. That’s why you’re a—what did you call it?”
“Keeper of the Peace. And yes. There’s nothing better than figuring out a solution for someone’s problem, and watching the relief when they realize there’s a way ahead. That’s why I love my job. I get to help people. It’s where what Dale mentioned about body language comes in handy too. Is someone scared? Frustrated?”
He could see how that was useful when helping someone, but right now it worried him. “You must be fantastic at reading people, then.”
Mitchell shrugged. “Like my brother already said, the better you know someone, the easier it gets. Some people I only meet once or twice, so I miss things even when I’m looking for it. But with close friends it only takes a quick glance.”
“That makes sense,” Shaun replied, relieved. Hopefully Mitchell wouldn’t be paying close attention to him, and things would be fine. But he and Chris would have to be careful so Mitchell wouldn’t realize what was going on.
He tried to tell himself it was to avoid drama and scandal at the wedding, but deep down the thought of Mitchell being disappointed or annoyed with him just made him queasy.
