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The shifters notice us immediately. A dragon coming down his porch steps sees Ezra and straightens. He lifts a fist over his heart and bows. Others do the same farther up the path. But when they see me, they eye my neck and look away fast. They smell wary.

I was accepted back when I was the wolf girl their alpha’s heir was chasing with his poems and his stubbornness. They were charmed by the romance of it.

But now I’m mated, and the dragons are processing what that means. A wolf is going to be their luna.

More of the males pass and give Ezra the same fist and bow. They’re polite to me and keep their distance. A group on a porch quits talking as we walk by and watches me instead. The closest one checks out my mark and turns his back on me. Heat crawls up my neck with all of them staring. Well, damn, he didn’t even bother hiding it.

My wolf wants to snarl at him, but I only frown. I shouldn’t have come today. When I try to pull my hand free, Ezra tightens his grip until I wince. “Ouch!”

“Stop worrying, baby.” He keeps crushing my throbbing fingers. Smoke is creeping into his scent now.

The ease is gone from his face. He tracks every shifter who snubs me. My wolf shrinks from him.

I tug at his hand. “No,” I say. “Let’s just go. I get it.”

“But I don’t.” He stops to face me and spreads his warm hand over my belly. “You said you wanted this to be where we raise our hatchling-pups. So that’s what you’re getting.”

I go to argue, but a roar rips through the village and sets my ears ringing.

“ASH CLAN!” Valek descends the stairs of the largest cabin with a fist to his chest. He’s a big dragon with his black hair cut close. His shadow stretches the length of the path. Smoke thickens on him with each step he takes toward us.

“ASH CLAN!” he bellows again. Every male shifter in earshot roars back in unison and slams a fist against his chest. Their voices boom off the cabins and raise the hair on my arms.

Nothing in House of Zorah compares to this. We submit, we respect our alpha, but it’s never been this absolute. My wolf paces and keeps watching.

Valek stops in front of us and stares from Ezra to me. I keep my chin up and try not to fidget while he takes his sweet time giving Ezra a nod. When he lifts his head, his orange eyes are burning. Beside me, my mate growls at him with smoke curling from his nostrils.

“Ezra, stop.” I squeeze his hand.

I snap my mouth shut when he turns his glare on me. He clamps down harder until his skin goes hot against mine.

“You really think I’m going to allow him to disrespect you any chance he gets?” He doesn’t raise his voice, and that’s so much worse. “I’ve dealt with this with my father. I’m not doing it again.”

“Calm yourself, nephew,” Valek rumbles. Ezra stiffens and won’t give back an inch.

Every male dragon in sight drops to a knee. I follow their gaze.

Lauren comes down from her cabin in a long shirt and leggings with her thick dark curls pulled up in a high ponytail. She has a pair of comfortable slippers on her feet and no rush in her at all. She takes in the scene below with her light brown eyes and stops beside Valek without a word.

She considers Ezra and me before she calls across the open ground. “Ash Clan! Rise!”

They rise and go back to their business. I can’t stop gaping at her. A human woman in slippers just gave fifty dragon shifters an order, and they jumped. In the pack, our luna earns respect the long way, through years of dinners and arguments, plus every baby she helped deliver. Here it’s built into how the clan runs, with no questions asked. How am I supposed to follow that?

“Well, look at you two,” Lauren says with a grin. “All grown up.”

I slip my hand out of Ezra’s to bow my head. She laughs and reaches for me instead. “Silly little wolf, come here, girl.”

Her jasmine hits my nose as she pulls me in. Her arms are strong for a human. I hug her tight before she steps back to study my mark, then Ezra.

Valek says nothing. Lauren leaves her hand on my arm and turns to my mate. “Welcome home, nephew,” she says.

He bows his head immediately. “Aunt Lauren.”

“Are you staying?” she asks.

He shrugs. I glare at him, but he’s already doing the thing where he clams up and stares at the tree line, the same as his uncle. Stubbornness must run in their blood. It would be funny if it weren’t pissing me off.

I step out from beside Ezra. “I’m here to see the village.” I rest my hand against my belly. “I’ll be carrying soon.”