as an adult just because it didn’t sit well immediately.
Making a quick decision, he turned to look at Baldewin. “Tell Alric to come pick me up at nine a.m. And don’t be late.”
A smile bloomed over Baldewin’s face. “I’ll do that. Here, exchange numbers with me. Just in case.”
With a nod, he paused long enough to give his number to Baldewin and to program both Baldewin’s and Alric’s in return. Cameron got out, closing the door behind him, and immediately questioned himself. Did he seriously just tell a dragon king to not be late? Muttering to himself, he headed for the front lobby doors of the hotel. “I’ve either got bigger balls than I gave myself credit for or I’m crazy. The man can roast me if I piss him off. Suck in a breath and bam, charcoal.”
His phone rang, and he lifted it to see the caller. Halmeoni. Of course, it was. It figured she was still awake. He answered it with resignation. “What, did Cassie call you before going back to sleep?”
“Yes, because she’s a good grandchild,” Halmeoni answered in her cute, accented English. She sounded pissed enough to broil him over a spit right now, though. Her accent always got thicker when she was mad. “What’s this I hear about you meeting dragons?”
“Yeah…that just happened. I, uh, didn’t know they still were around?” Cameron picked his words carefully, as he was still passing people in the halls, and he didn’t want to speak carelessly. He sped up a little, trying to get to his room so he could talk freely.
Halmeoni sounded beyond excited. If she wasn’t bouncing in her favorite chair, he’d be surprised. “Which clan?”
“Hang on just one sec, I’m in the hallway and getting into my room.” He juggled phone and wallet, pulled out the electronic pass key, and let himself into the room. With the door closed behind him, he let out a breath of relief. “Fire Clan.”
Halmeoni made a sound only dogs could hear. “Fire Clan! You’re sure?”
“Veeery sure, trust me on that. One of them went dragon form to prove it to me. Good god, Halmeoni, but they’re huge in dragon form!”
She cackled like a mad witch. “I’m so glad you finally believe me.”
Cameron really had no good defense there. So he chose not to comment. “Thing is, Halmeoni, they haven’t seen another mage in five hundred years.”
“WHAT!”
“Seriously. They’ve been looking this whole time, and right now their clan is in bad shape because no new mages. So they’re latching onto me pretty hard right now because apparently I smell strongly of magic?”
Her excitement somehow impossibly tripled. “So, you are a mage!”
“No,” he protested, exasperated as he dropped down to sit on the edge of the queen-sized bed. “I—”
“I always suspected you were. You and your sister. So analytical in how you think, and the way you see the world and can put the pieces together. A mage’s mind.”
“Will you please focus? The point is, the Noh Clan was known for magic, and once they put it together that I’m a descendent of that clan, and that I have family, they’re now very interested in meeting the rest of you.”
She sucked in a sharp breath. When Halmeoni spoke again, it was with all the wonder and joy of a small child. “They want to meet me too?”
Cameron smiled, a little helplessly, because it was cute how excited she was by all of this. And really, he felt like he was helping to make a dream come true for her. “They are literally on the edge of their seats, dying to meet you. They have so many questions for you.”
“Tell them I’ll look at flights. Damn, I need to get my hair redone first. The purple’s fading.”
Cameron felt like he needed to give the dragons here a head’s up.
Brace yourself. Halmeoni is coming.
Alric drove up to Cameron’s hotel promptly at nine o’clock the next day, simply grateful that the man was willing to give him a second chance. He was going to take it a little slower this time. Move at a pace Cameron was comfortable with. He couldn’t afford to scare him off.
He touched his tie, making sure it was still perfectly in place. He was dreadfully overdressed for the final day of the festival, but Alric didn’t possess much in the way of casual wear. It was expected that he always appear pulled together. A show of strength. He wanted to at least present as someone his people could have confidence