I’d decided to tell Bethany about Artemis with my family around, so she’d have support from people who had already been through this. It was one hell of a shock when I found out, and I had Artemis inside me to help me. It had to be beyond difficult for the mates of dragons.
Tiffany was totally wiped. “She didn’t nap today,” Bethany said. “She was too excited.”
I tapped on the door, then opened it and stuck my head in. My mother pulled the door open the rest of the way. “Hello,” she cried, then clapped her hand over her mouth when she spotted Tiffany. “Take her to the guest room,” she whispered. “You and your father can listen for her.”
But I was already heading up the stairs. That was exactly what I’d planned to do, anyway.
Tiffany fluttered her eyes when I laid her down, but she muttered my name and rolled onto her side. After covering her with a blanket, I turned to see Bethany had followed me. “Hey,” I whispered.
“Hey.” She looked at me with big, vulnerable eyes. This wasn’t going to be an easy night for her.
“Can we pretend we didn’t fight and have a good night?” I asked. “We’ll find a balance where you let me help you some, but I don’t overstep.”
She nodded and stepped forward. I took that as a cue to gather her into my arms and press a kiss to the top of her head. “Starting a relationship isn’t easy,” she said into my shoulder.
“No, it’s not. And I don’t have any experience with committed relationships. I’ve only ever dated casually.” That was something I’d been embarrassed to admit before.
But she chuckled. “Same here. Kyle was my most committed relationship, but he was my best friend who I only had sex with once. I’m not exactly what you’d call a relationship expert.”
“At least we’re newbs together,” I joked. “Come on. Let’s go eat.”
As we headed down the stairs, she stopped suddenly. “With our argument, I forgot the wine. I told your mom I’d bring the wine.”
With a chuckle, I tugged on her arm. “If I know my mom, she forgot all about that.”
We walked down the hall and entered the kitchen to find Mom placing dishes on the table and Dad setting out silverware. “We thought we’d eat in here,” Mom said. “It’s more intimate and casual.”
Bethany nodded, but then turned to my mom. “Ava, I’m so sorry. Maddox and I were talking when we left, and I walked right out without the wine.”
My mother touched Bethany’s arm. “Honey, it’s fine. I’ve got plenty. I prefer if my guests don’t bring anything, anyway.” She squeezed her arm, then hurried away to get the rest of the food on the table.
“Hello,” Hailey said brightly from the table. “I can’t wait for Tiffany to wake up!”
“You’ll wait just fine,” Mom said. “Boys, if you want to go out back and make sure the steaks are ready. They should be about done.”
“Can I help?” Bethany asked.
Mom didn’t want anyone to bring anything, but she wasn’t afraid to put us to work. “Sure,” she said. “Here, cut up this tomato for the salad.”
I followed Dad out onto the deck and the smell of the steaks hit me. “Bethany likes hers medium well,” I said.
“We’ll have to leave it on a bit longer with Hailey’s and your mother’s,” he said. “Ours should be done. Rare.”
Rare meat was a particular favorite of any dragon shifter. The dragons loved to hunt game for themselves, but as humans, we had a real preference for rare meat and never got an upset stomach.
“Are you ready for this?” Dad asked as he took our seared pieces of meat off the grill.
“It’s time. I love her and I plan on keeping her in my life, so it has to be done, doesn’t it? I mean, I’m not looking forward to it, but what choice do I have?” I held out the plate for the steaks.
Dad closed the grill to cook the ladies’ steaks longer, then patted me on the shoulder. “It’ll work out. I’m proud of you.”
“Thanks, Dad.”
We hung out on the deck a few more minutes until all the meat was done, then took it inside to rest.
Mom took over as soon as we came in, bustling around and making everyone sit. Before I knew it, I was crammed next to a blinking Tiffany, who had just woken up from her impromptu nap. Hailey sat on her other side, cutting up tiny bits of steak for her. Bethany kept looking around me to make sure Hailey did it right. “She’s fine,” I said, and winked to let her know I was teasing. “Relax and enjoy yourself.”
I waited through the entire dinner. The more time went by, the more Bethany relaxed. I wanted her to be as at ease as possible before springing the news on her.
My parents were lifesavers. They kept her talking and laughing and by the time Mom brought out the pies, she was totally at ease. Too bad I was about to rip her right out of that comfort zone.
“Hailey, would you care to take Tiffany to your room and play?” I asked.
Hailey’s face lit up. She knew what was going to happen, but she didn’t care about seeing me shift. She’d seen it before, repeatedly. She cared more about getting to be a babysitter. “Sure!” she chirped. “Come on, Tiffany, do you want to play makeup?”
I glanced at Bethany, worried she’d disapprove of a thirteen-year-old putting makeup on a three-year-old, but she laughed. “She loves to play makeup.”
One problem down. Now the big one. “Let’s go onto the deck,” Dad said. “Have a glass of wine.”
We’d all had one with dinner, though Mom had filled Bethany’s up every time she took a sip. It was a little obvious she was trying to get her tipsy, but I didn’t think Beth had noticed.
Mom nodded eagerly. “That sounds lovely.”
Bethany looked at me, but I grabbed both
