“What kind of demon was it?”

“You ask many questions, brown one,” Kachka accused.

“Because I’m interested in her tale. And if you call me brown one again, I’ll rip your arms off.”

Kachka, curious to see if the Southlander could, slid off the table. But as they went at each other, Celyn was there, practically diving between them.

“What’s happening?” he asked, putting his arms around each woman’s shoulders and yanking them close to his sides. “What are we talking about?”

“I was telling them about the time the Northland hags sent a demon to destroy our people.” Elina popped another treat into her mouth, chewed, and wagged a finger at Celyn and the brown one. “You know, Celyn, when that red-haired cousin of yours who tries to dress me like doll said that you two used to fuck, I was not sure I believed her. You do not seem to have much in common,” she noted casually. “But after talking to this one, and seeing how many questions she asks, I now understand it. Of course, like most women, her questions are pointed and short. Unlike yours, which are rambling and endless.”

The one called Izzy pulled away from Celyn, her lips in a tight line of anger. “If you’ll excuse me. I have to go find my aunt Keita and beat her to death.” She started to walk away, stopped, faced Elina. “But before I go . . . demon?”

“They said it was a league high. A purple-scaled, winged She-demon with white horns and cold silver eyes that shot lightning from its maw.”

Celyn and the woman stared at Elina for a long moment, but when the woman opened her mouth to speak, Celyn quickly stopped her.

“No, Izzy.”

“But—”

“No.”

“But Ragnar—”

“No.”

“Are you sure—”

“Positive!” He took the woman by the shoulders and spun her around. “Now I thought you were going to go beat Keita to death. There she is,” he said while shoving her away.

Kachka again sat on the table and grabbed the last treat on the plate. “Did that brown one take you like whore, Celyn the Charming? Or did she pretend you were her first?”

Then Kachka and Elina laughed at the memories of how they’d often treated men when they were growing up, but Celyn merely snarled and stalked away.

“You best go to him, sister, and soothe his hurt feelings.”

“Why should I?”

“You know how men are. If you treat them nice and buy them gifts, they will suck your pussy like champion.”

Elina glanced off. “Well, when you put it like that . . .”

“And if you can, have another plate of these fried dough things sent over. I am still hungry.”

“You have no respect for me at all, do you?” Celyn demanded when Elina caught up with him.

“Of course, I do,” she lied while stroking his hair.

“Elina.”

She dropped her hand to her side. “I respect you more than most men. And every day I learn to respect you more. Of course, you are dragon, so I guess I still do not respect men at all. Just dragons.”

“You do seem to like my father.”

“He is smart and humble and very handsome—”

“All right,” he cut in. “I get your point.”

“You are not jealous of your own father, are you?”

“I am if you’re busy lusting after him.”

“You forget I have met your mother. I have one eye left, Dolt. I plan to keep it in my head. Not around your mother’s thick neck like trophy.”

“She does have a thick neck, but it works for her.” Wrapping his arms around her waist, Celyn pulled Elina around to face him. “I just want to know that even though I’m a male, you don’t think less of me.”

“Of course I don’t. When I think less of you, it is because of you.”

“That’s all I ask.” Celyn grinned and kissed her. His mouth, warm and firm against hers, had Elina wondering if there was some place she could drag him off to for a bit so that he could take care of her needs. But then she heard the cheering and pulled away from Celyn to see that everyone, even Annwyl, was banging their drinking cups on tables and against walls while chanting, “Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!”

Perhaps it was the drink, but they all seemed so happy for them that Elina didn’t know what to make of such enthusiasm. So she gave them what they all demanded.

Gripping Celyn with both hands around his thick neck, she yanked him down and kissed him hard. The cheering around her grew intense and for the first time in her life, Elina felt like she was . . . home.

With their lips still locked together, Celyn slid his hands under Elina’s ass and lifted her until she had to tilt her head down to keep the kiss going. It was a gesture meant to let every dragon in the hall know . . . she was with him.

Possessive, he knew. But Celyn couldn’t help himself. And he wasn’t even sure he wanted to help himself.

Elina finally pulled away, her cheeks bright with color, her lips slightly bruised from their kiss; but her grin was wide and she didn’t seem to mind the cheering crowd of Celyn’s family at all.

In fact, the personalities that made Elina and her sister sometimes off-putting to Southland humans made them fit in perfectly with the Cadwaladrs. And their unwillingness to back down kept them from being pushed around by Rhiannon’s royal offspring.

The music picked up again and Kachka grabbed her sister’s hand and yanked her free from Celyn’s arms. She swung Elina out into the middle of the floor and they clapped their hands as they moved around each other. Kachka gripped Elina’s right hand with her left and the pair crouched, then leapt up, using only the power of their legs to keep them moving.