Page 13 of Purple Protector

Aaron was fine with that. It had given him more time to watch the dragons and learn more about them.

With that knowledge, he’d started worrying. He’d known something was up when Pearl had confronted him in the dining hall, but he hadn’t realized just how fractured the clan was. He hadn’t been able to dig in too deep because people didn’t trust him, but it was obvious that several factions were fighting.

There was Killian and his people. Killian not only had to lead the clan and keep it thriving, but he had to do that while fighting off the people who wanted his throne. Those included Pearl. From everything Aaron had heard about her, she was the one pushing the hardest. There were a few more factions that followed other half-siblings of Killian, but Pearl was the one with the most support. She was the most dangerous of them all.

Aaron tapped his pen on his notebook. His job was to write articles about the clan, the life within it, and the humans who’d chosen to live there. He could include the infighting and the dangers to Killian, but what would that achieve? It would only make the humans who would read the articles worry that the clan, and dragons in general, were out of control, and that wasn’t true. At the same time, Aaron didn’t want to hide something that big. It didn’t feel right. He had to find a way to mention the different factions while putting Killian in a good light.

Focusing on that meant that he wasn’t obsessing over the fact that he was an easy target to take down Killian. He was only human. He wouldn’t be able to defend himself against a dragon, not even one in their human form. They would tear him apart and chow him down as breakfast, and there would be nothing he could do.

He checked the time and got to his feet. He was meeting Palmer for lunch, something he’d started doing after meeting Palmer and Taylor. Sometimes, he ate his meals with one or both of them, while other times, he had food delivered to his rooms.

Palmer and Taylor were as human as he was, but they’d been here longer, and they were useful to the clan. Palmer was a doctor, while Taylor worked with the security team. He’d been in the military, as Marlin had mentioned, and his knowledge was useful to modernize the security system in the palace and ensure that Killian was even safer.

He got to his feet, left his notebook, pen, and computer as they were, and hurried out of his suite. He’d learned his way through the palace, so he didn’t hesitate anymore. It felt good to know that he was settling down, but at the same time, he wondered why he was doing it. He wouldn’t be staying. He was supposed to go back home eventually, even though there was nothing waiting for him there.

Maybe after the articles came out, things would change for him. He couldn’t help but think that they already had, though. In what world was he supposed to be here, staying with a dragon clan?

Palmer was at their usual table. Aaron waved at him as he got in line to get food, trying to ignore the stares. Most of the dragons didn’t pay that much attention to him anymore, but he knew that the ones who did were either fascinated by him or wanted him dead. It was impossible to say which one just by watching them, so he did his best to be invisible. One would think it would be easy when surrounded by a bunch of enormous dragon shifters, but that wasn’t the case. The clan had welcomed several humans, but humans were a minority, and it was obvious. The fact that Aaron didn’t belong was even more obvious.

“They’re still watching me,” he said as he slid into his seat in front of Palmer.

“They’ll stop eventually. They’ll get used to seeing you around.”

“I don’t know about that. I’m not supposed to stay for much longer.”

Palmer blinked. “That’s right. You haven’t actually moved here.”

“Did you forget that?”

“Kind of. I guess I’ve gotten used to seeing you around.” He leaned forward. “Would it be so bad if you stayed?”

Aaron hadn’t expected that. “What would I even do here?”

“I don’t know. Whatever you’re already doing.”

“I don’t think that Killian would want me to stay so I can continue writing articles on him and his people.”

“I don’t know. He allowed me and Taylor to stay.”

“But you’re a doctor, and he’s helping the security team. What would I do? I wouldn’t be useful to the clan.”

“Would you have to be?”

“I don’t see why Killian would want me to stay if I weren’t.”

“Maybe because he wants one of his best friends to be happy?”

Aaron knew what Palmer was insinuating, but he refused to believe it. “Birch doesn’t see me as anything but an annoying human who he has to keep an eye on. I’ve talked to Marlin more.” And Aaron was sure that there was nothing there. He liked Marlin, but that was all there was to it. Birch, on the other hand? Aaron would beg for a chance with him.

He wanted to bite Birch’s biceps. He wanted to find out how hard his chest was. Hell, that wasn’t the only hard thing he wanted to experience when it came to Birch. In theory, Aaron knew how everything under the belt worked for dragons, but he would die if he was given a chance to experience it for himself.

That wasn’t why he was here. He wasn’t supposed to get a crush on anyone, let alone a dragon so close to the king. He was already giving Killian enough problems. He wouldn’t make things worse.

Palmer sighed. “I can see your brain going. Just think about it, all right?”

“There’s no way Birch is interested in me.”

“Keep telling yourself that. Eventually, Birch will make his move, and I can’t wait to see what happens.”

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