Page 17 of Must Love Dragons (Sable Cove #4)

After spending the day in Ashwood Hollow, showing Kinsley the town, and hanging out in the bookstore as Nysa went out of her way to knock everything that wasn’t bolted down off the shelves, Zay could definitely say that he was falling hard for Kinsley.

She was just so freaking gorgeous, but she was also incredibly kind and sweet, and his clan adored her already.

He stood in front of the mirror in his bathroom, adjusting the collar of his shirt for the third time.

He wasn’t nervous. Not really. They both knew they were truemates and that meant whatever happened in the future, they were in it together.

But there was something about the night ahead that felt important.

He was taking her on a proper date.

Their first date.

Something normal that had nothing to do with warlocks, fire, or near-death experiences.

Behind him, Rorik leaned against the door jamb, arms crossed and an amused expression on his face. “You know she already likes you, right?”

“I know,” he said with a huff.

“I just mean you don’t have to keep fussing with yourself.

You look great. You remind me so much of your dad at your age.

I remember him being really nervous when he and your mom first got together.

Hell, I felt the same way when I met Matilda.

There’s something familiar but also new at the same time. ”

“I just want it to go well. I want her to know that I care about her and I’m not taking anything for granted.”

“I get it,” Rorik said. “But it’s clear she’s already all-in. From what I’ve heard about how you two first got together, if she didn’t care about you, she would have just left your butt on the side of the road and gone on with her life.”

That was a hell that Zay didn’t want to contemplate.

He left the bathroom and Rorik followed. Zay picked up his phone from the dresser and checked the time. Kinsley was getting ready with Lyra in her room. They’d agreed to meet in the kitchen at six, so he had a few more minutes before he needed to head downstairs.

A chance to let his nerves settle.

“So where are you taking her?”

“That little diner near the park.”

“Romantic. Very nice.”

Zay smiled. He tapped his fingers on the dresser and resisted the urge to fiddle with his tie again.

Rorik gave his shoulder a squeeze. “Your parents are looking down on you two tonight. Our whole clan is, my Matilda included. You’re the leader of the clan for a reason, and every step you’ve taken since you took over has kept us safe. Now you’re starting a new chapter for yourself and the clan.”

The words hit Zay harder than he expected, an ache settling in his chest. If his parents were alive, his mom would be fussing over Kinsley as she got ready for their date, and his dad would be with him, giving him the same pep talk Rorik was.

“Thank you,” Zay said, giving his uncle a quick hug.

“I’ll see you later,” Rorik said. “Ronan and I are going to see a movie.”

“Have fun.”

“You, too.”

Zay headed downstairs to wait for his mate. Wherever the night took them, he knew one thing for sure—he was falling hard and fast for Kinsley.

And this time, he wasn’t going to fight it.

* * *

“Okay, so wait, tell me again,” Kinsley said as she sat on Lyra’s bed after getting ready for her date.

“Female dragons initiate the permanent mating bond, not the males.” Lyra leaned against her dresser and folded her arms. “You said you felt strange all day like Zay wanted to talk about the future but didn’t. I think it’s probably because he’s waiting for you to claim him.”

“But we’re already truemates.”

“Yeah, but that’s not the same thing. Not to our dragons.”

Kinsley mused on that. When Lyra asked if Kinsley had decided to initiate the mating bond with Zay, Kinsley didn’t know what she was talking about. Zay hadn’t mentioned anything about mating to her. She’d assumed that since dragons had fangs, he’d bite her at some point.

She’d been wrong.

Dragons claimed with jewelry and tattoos.

“Okay, so here’s the deal,” Lyra said. She opened a wooden jewelry box and pulled out two bracelets.

“These belonged to our grandparents. They died before the warlock battle that took our parents. They’re made from silver with dragonstone gems. The gems look the way they do because after they’re cut into shape by dragon artisans, they’re dusted with the ash from a cedar tree and then the dragon female uses her fire to burn the ash into the stones. ”

She handed the bracelets to Kinsley. They were beautiful. The cuffs were pounded from an inch-wide piece of silver and the dragonstone gems were a deep onyx with red and green highlights. The bracelets had a hinge that allowed them to be put onto the wrist and then closed so they didn’t fall off.

A heavier bracelet for the male and a lighter, identical one for the female.

On the inside of the bracelets were symbols that meant love, honor, and loyalty, the creed of the Vohn Clan.

Kinsley attempted to hand the bracelets back to Lyra, but she put her hand up. “If you care for my brother, and I believe that you do, I think you should give them to him.”

“But they’re your family heirlooms.”

“He’s the oldest. And I want to make bracelets for my truemate myself. You don’t have dragon fire, and while you do have fire magic, you wouldn’t be able to make the dragonstone look like this. Dragon fire is unique.”

“I’ll say,” Kinsley said, thinking about Zay torching the warehouse. She looked at the bracelets. She’d been falling for him since day one, even though he’d been bucking her at every opportunity. Until he’d finally figured out she wasn’t the enemy and they were meant to be together.

Her earlier thought that he’d been holding back talking about the future made sense because he’d been waiting for her to claim him, even though she’d had no clue she should.

“Tell me about the tattoos.”

“So after you claim him, he’ll get our family creed tattooed on his back along with your name. Then once you have children, he’ll add their names to the tattoo.”

“Do the females get tattoos?”

“You could, I suppose, but it’s not part of the tradition.

Permanent claiming works in two parts: the jewelry given by the female kicks off the claim and the tattoo solidifies it.

Then the clan will get together for what would amount to a wedding reception to celebrate the mating.

You could get married at some point as well, but once you put the bracelet on him, that’s it. He’s yours and you’re his, forever.”

“Does he put the bracelet on me?”

“No, you put it on yourself first, and then you put the other one on him. When the bracelets are worn by a couple, they warm when the couple is near each other. It’s the dragonstone.”

“That’s pretty damn cool.”

“Yep.” Lyra smiled and then continued, “Our parents are looking down on you two and so happy, I know it. And the rest of our clan as well. The warlocks weren’t the end of us, we’re carving out a new beginning.

And wherever that happens, wherever you and Zay decide to settle down, our clan will follow. ”

“We haven’t talked about the logistics of our relationship yet.”

Lyra leaned over and tapped the bracelets. “He’s waiting.”

“He could have told me about it, though. I’m a witch, I don’t know dragon traditions.”

“I think it’s subconscious. He might not even be thinking about you claiming him because you’re not a dragon, but his dragon is definitely waiting for this. Everything will fall into place once you do this.”

“Thanks, Lyra.”

“You bet. Now I’m going to take little Miss Nysa downstairs for some dinner and a rousing game of chase the catnip-filled mouse while you two are gone. Have fun tonight, and good luck.”

She smiled and watched as Nysa pranced out of the door after Lyra, her purr loud like an old truck engine.

How quickly they’d become close, her familiar and her new family.

The whole clan had welcomed her and Nysa with open arms. It was funny how easy it had been for them, and how difficult it had been for Zay, but that was probably because he’d been carrying the burden of not only the grief and loss of his family and clan but leading the survivors and keeping them safe.

Heavy was the head, right?

She stared at the bracelets, her chest tight with emotion.

Before she met Zay, her family had been her friends. Now she had a sister, an uncle, and two dragons who’d fought with everything they had to rescue her. She couldn’t ask for a better family than the Vohn Clan or a better mate in Zay.

And she was going to make sure he knew she was ready to move forward with their relationship. Tonight.

She slipped her bracelet on her right wrist and snapped it closed, feeling a pulse of warmth up her arm.

Putting the other bracelet in the pocket of her dress, she walked out of Lyra’s room and headed down the back stairs and outside instead of meeting him in the kitchen as they’d planned.

She wouldn’t make him wait any longer.

Tonight she was going to claim her dragon.