Treasured by the Dragon (Stonefire Dragons #10) - Jessie Donovan Page 0,39

ceremony. I want Dawn as our mate. Now.

Since Blake was just as eager, he waited for Bram to descend the steps before he spoke up first. "Dawn Chadwick, our beginning was accidental and a surprise. However, you agreeing to be my mate is the best thing to ever happen to me. I always thought isolating myself would make me happy. Little did I know it only took the right female to make me realize I'd been hiding away from everything. But no longer. With you at my side, I can face anything. And whilst being a parent will be all new to me, I hope I can help with Daisy, too, and tell her all she wants to know about dragon-shifters. I love you, Dawn. Will you accept my mate claim?"

Blake had gone back and forth about saying I love you, but he meant it and didn't want to leave it out of such an important occasion.

Dawn replied, "I do."

He nearly exhaled in relief at her answer. Picking up the silver arm cuff engraved with his name in the old language, he slid it around her upper bicep.

She smiled at him and said, "Blake Whitby, you're right—our beginning was a little bit of a surprise. However, I'm glad it happened. You're smart, kind, and a very loving man. While I know our future is just starting, I truly believe it will be a good one. I care so much for you already and can't wait to write the rest of our story in the coming years. Will you accept my mate claim?"

He hid his disappointment at her lack of a love declaration, yet he respected her for being true to herself. It only made him more determined to win her heart completely.

"I do," he stated and offered the bicep without his dragon-shifter tattoo. As she slid the cool metal around his arm, he couldn't tear his gaze away from Dawn's. Once the band was in place, he pulled her close, cupped her cheek, and whispered for her ears only, "You're mine now, human," and kissed her.

He barely heard the cheers as he explored Dawn's mouth and reveled in the feel of her body against his.

She finally pulled back and murmured, "I'm sure Daisy will have some questions about that now."

He grinned. "Good."

And as he led his mate down the stairs toward the floor, where clan members were already lining up to congratulate them, he didn't think twice about the crowd of people. With his mate at his side and his new daughter racing toward them, Blake felt as if he could take on anything.

Funny how finding his true mate had changed his world so completely.

Chapter Fourteen

Two days later, Blake stared out the car window as Dawn turned off the motorway into a section of Manchester.

Ever since they'd left Stonefire, he'd watched as villages, towns, and cities grew larger the closer they got to the big metropolitan area.

But as his mate easily drove down the street through an area crowded cheek and jowl with buildings, he wondered how people could live this way.

His dragon spoke up. Humans don't need areas to shift or fly. They can pack a lot of people in here. Besides, it's better than what it once was.

Blake was no history teacher, but even he knew that the industrial revolution had dramatically transformed Manchester and the surrounding areas with factories and all sorts of new buildings. Not to mention the living conditions of the poor back then had been beyond his comprehension, and bad wasn't a strong enough word to describe the squalor. Well, I'm just glad I don't have to live here. I can already hear a half-dozen conversations through the car window. Not to mention smells I don't even want to think about.

His dragon snorted. I'm sure once the tens of thousands of university students go home in the summer, it'll smell a lot better.

Before he could debate that point, Daisy must've woken up from her nap because she shouted, "Look! There's my old school! We're nearly at our old flat, Blake."

The school building wasn't anything special, although truth be told, Blake didn't really pay attention to things such as architecture. He was more interested in the materials used to construct it.

Dawn soon parked on the street in front of a two-story house just as Daisy shouted, "We're here!"

It looked like a house, not a flat. "It's bigger than I thought it would be."

Dawn smiled and explained, "It's divided into four flats. Thankfully I was able