Page 18 of The Dragon's Emberlinked Mate
Emmen
I stood in the middle of the ballroom, the same as I had a billion times before. These fundraiser events were all about getting the members of the clan in the same room as our dragon flight team members, so they could shake hands and take pictures. Once upon a time they’d tried to get fancy and do something outside the box. That always resulted in a lot of extra work to bring in either the same money or less than this.
The flight team were like our own personal celebrities, not unlike the professional football teams the humans had. Havingthem be front and center was the tried and true way to success, no matter how boring I found these events to be.
The funds that we raised were for the teams themselves, but also the school’s general fund. It wasn’t as essential as it had once been. Being as long-lived as we were, most of the fundraising wasn’t really necessary since we had long since learned how to work the human system to earn money, lots of money.
That was how we got the reputation for having hoards of cash instead of our greatest treasures, which were often financially worthless. It wasn’t that we hoarded away our finances, it was that we were good at replenishing them. But regardless of that, this was a long-standing tradition, and the money was helpful. And when we had surplus, we were able to give to charities, both dragon and human alike. It was a win-win.
Tonight was special. I had a mate at my side, for the first time ever. I couldn’t be more excited about it. I wanted to show him off.
My mate, however, seemed to be shaking with anxiety. He wasn’t new to big events, but this was his first time attending one as someone who would be front and center. I understood why he was stressed and hated it for him. I even offered for him to stay home, but he insisted on coming. He said his place was by my side, and I had to agree with him there. It was.
I held his hand as his gaze bounced between me and every other person in the room, as if constantly looking for an attack.
“Rhythe, are you sure that you are all right?” I’d leave in a second if he so much as hinted at needing me to. This was my job, nothing more. Rhythe came first… always.
“I’m fine,” he said with a big smile. “Perfect.”
Fine was always a lie, in my experience. And perfect? That was never true. I appreciated his desire not to make me worry, but it was only making me worry more.
“You seem stressed,” I whispered low and close to his ear for only him to hear.
“I’m not… I mean, I can handle this. Everything’s fine.”
I wasn’t sure if he was trying to convince himself or me. In either case, it wasn’t convincing at all.
I pulled him closer to me, tugging us so that we were on the dance floor and I could finally have him in my arms. It also allowed me to speak to him without fear of someone overhearing and give him the comfort of my scent and warmth and touch in a way that wouldn’t stand out. The last thing he needed was attention being brought on him for being uncomfortable. That would only make matters worse.
“Can you be honest with me?” I kissed his cheek.
He relaxed at my words. “I’m very nervous.” His gaze darted around the room, and I held him tighter against me.
“Really? I couldn’t tell,” I said, and he glared. Fair. I deserved that.
“It’s not funny, Emmen. I am not used to being the center of attention. This is a lot.”
“I know, sweetheart, you’re doing wonderful.” Even if others noticed the nerves pouring off of him, he was still shining brightly. He belonged in this world, even if he hadn’t realized it yet.
I’d seen him with the math department, a group of dragons of all ages, all experts in their field, one he didn’t know anything about. He had owned that discussion and earned all of their respect. He might not see his gifts, but I did, as did those who met him.
“I’m not doing anything.”
“There’s nothing to do. We just stand around. Everyone will get the pictures with the people they want to get their pictures with. I’ll shake a few hands. People will ask me a few questions. Mostly they’ll want to set up meetings.” Most of which would be canceled. “And I will jot it down so that way Emily can put it in my calendar. It’s really not that exciting. What is exciting is finally having you at my side.”
I felt him relax ever so slightly. It wasn’t near enough, but I would take it.
“Everyone is in a higher class than me, everyone’s so much older than me.”
Not for the first time, I wondered how much his parents had sheltered him growing up. It wasn’t uncommon with final clutches. But he came from a family with deep roots in the community, so it was surprising how new most of this seemed to him
“Older does not always equal wiser, my love. You’ll learn that with time.” It was embarrassing how true this was.
“You mean that I won’t get wiser as I get older? Is that what happened to you?”
A joke. He made a joke. Whatever I was doing was working, thank goddess. I hated seeing him struggle.
I pinched his side, making him laugh. “Careful, there you little minx.”
