Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 76887 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76887 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Neither of us needed to be distracted and my body seemed to think wrestling with the sheet had also been wrestling with Daddy.
“That’s better.” He looked down at my lap and snickered. “You think so too.”
“You’re going to distract us.” Somehow, Daddy being nervous made me feel more confident. “It’s okay. My beetles disappear. I know something is weird and I’m actually glad to be able to talk about it.”
Even I’d started getting tired of saying they were just well-camouflaged.
“I can see that.” Finally back to looking more relaxed, Daddy settled back against the head of the bed and did a very good job of pretending to be confident. “Okay, so the reason the bugs keep disappearing is that they’re magic.”
I’d thought he’d say that, but I really hadn’t thought he’d say it.
“Okay, well, is it an evolutionary process?” How did we get insects that disappeared? Was calling it magic a colloquial term for some kind of evolutionary process? The local language was weird enough that nothing would’ve surprised me at that point.
“No.” Daddy sighed and rolled his eyes.
I knew that look. “It was one of the men in the diner?”
Daddy should’ve laughed but he didn’t.
He sighed again and nodded, giving me the same the locals are weird expression that I’d come to associate with all their strange questions. “More than likely. My best guess at the moment is that one of the local mages did something to one generation of beetles and then they spread. It was probably intended to be harmless, but dragons above, they’re just kind of stupid.”
After meeting the locals, I decided not to tell Daddy that was rude because he was right.
“Dragons?” Oh. “Someone at the bakery said I had the appetite of a dragon. I think he was being offensive, though? Is that…is it a slur?”
Had I been rude just quoting him?
Daddy laughed, shaking his head. “No, but a mage will use it that way sometimes. They’re dramatic and judgmental.”
I didn’t know what to say to that description, so I just skipped over it. “What are…what are dragons?”
That was the strangest question ever.
Daddy’s eyes sparkled again, though…oh, they actually sparkled. I had to push all the odd things that were falling into place to the back of my head as he grinned. “We’re impulsive and playful and have a thing about making the mages insane.”
“That…that would be interesting to see if it’s based on exposure or genetics.” Yes, some of their behavior could be species-based.
Oh, Daddy was another species.
Chapter 14
Fraser
“Are you a dinosaur?” He looked down at me and I could see his scientific mind trying to classify me by what he already understood. “Did they not go extinct like everyone thought?”
“First of all, don’t ask that in the diner. It makes the old men nuts. Secondly, though, there is some discussion on what we are, so it’s not a bad question.” My answer was definitely confusing, so I was prepared for an odd reaction.
But Paxton just sighed and nodded. “People don’t like it when you question their assumptions.”
He was taking the whole thing better than I’d expected.
“Yeah, I’ll explain all the biology and information that we know, but we fly and we look like dragons in a cartoon or a coloring book. So not dinosaurs in the way you mean and there is magic involved.” I figured I’d just treat it as normally as possible until he freaked out or panicked, but he just poked my chest.
“How are you magic?” His frown was adorable and made me want to laugh. “I can see you’re human.”
“I look human now, but I can be a dragon whenever I want and I have at least one great-grandfather who was a mage because he slept with everybody. So I’ve got a few mage-ish characteristics too.” It wasn’t exactly a deep dark secret, but most people seemed to have forgotten that our ancestors used to be flexible with who they slept with.
My grandma said her parents were hos but I wasn’t sure that was a good way to explain it anymore.
“That’s fascinating.” More pokes and frowns said he was still working on it, so I was surprised when he climbed off my lap and nodded. “Okay. I’m ready.”
It took me a few seconds too long to get it. “You want to see me shift?”
“Yes.” Paxton gave me a look like he thought I was stupid but it was gone in a blink. “Thank you very much for this opportunity.”
I was pretty sure I was one of his bugs now…and he thought his new bug was kind of dumb.
“You’re welcome.” Okay, manners were still in place but did he really want to see me shift this quickly? “I have two other forms, a smaller dragon and a larger form. Which would you like to see? Oh, but for my full form, we have to go outside.”