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“I know that Brayden likes the pastries that Samra sells,” Cade offered, and he nodded.

Harden didn’t know any dragon who didn’t like those, to be honest They were sweet and rich, with honeyed glazes on the top that no one but she could manage. It was an amazing thing.

“I will order two dozen and bring them.” He had milk to barter, and Samra would find it well-traded.

“I shall tell Poe that is what you’re bringing. Thank you, my friend. It means a lot that you’re willing to do this.”

He could not help but be a bit offended by the idea that he would be so rude as to say no. He liked Brayden; in fact, he probably liked Brayden more than he should, even if he was incapable of showing it. “Have I become so hidebound and awful that you all worry about me in social settings?”

Cade’s expression crumpled. “No, my friend, no, of course not. I just hate putting you in uncomfortable situations.”

“I will be there with pastries, and I swear to be on my best behavior.”

They finished their mead, and it was a blessing when Harden could wave to Cade as he left.

Then he could go into his cabin and close the door.

He would go to the party and stay for only a moment, long enough to be seen, and then he would take himself away from the crowd because obviously he was…ill-tempered.

Perhaps he should remove himself from dragon society and focus on what he did best.

His animals never disappointed him. They never treated him as though he was other. And they never accused him of having a bad mood.

So he would just tend to them and provide the village with the products of their living.

And he would leave the rest to the other dragons who were better suited for it.

Chapter

Two

Brayden figured maybe he needed to leave the village for a couple of weeks.

Of the three of them, he and his brothers, he was considered the calm one, the studious one, the cautious one, and the one who was the peacemaker. He could talk either one of his brothers into pretty much anything, and he could usually —quietly— talk trees into moving their roots somewhere else.

But in this case he hadn’t been able to talk his brothers and their dear friends out of throwing him a birthday party.

Oh, they had changed it to a surprise party, thinking he didn’t know about it, but he did. He always knew when his brothers were up to something. Cade and Tyr were even worse at hiding things. Both of them were so honest it hurt, and they kept not meeting his eyes. Tyr would flush bright gold, his beekeeper colors coming out deeply in his scales when things escalated to where Brayden was questioning him deeply.

Cade would just turn around and walk away. He was pretty blunt about things.

At any rate Brayden didn’t really want a birthday party. He was too old for the damn things. He’d lost count of how many birthdays he’d had, in fact and, while he wasn’t as old as Hawk, he was beyond the point of presents and cake. Presents and cake were for other people for their birthdays, for baby showers, weddings… for all of those occasions.

But not for him. He would rather not be the center of attention that way.

Their little brother Riley, now he⁠—

As if he’d conjured Riley from thin air by thinking about him, his brother knocked on his bedroom door before popping inside. They really needed to get some sort of locking mechanism for that door. Even a simple rope and hook latch would keep Riley out.

“What do you want?” he barked, even though he was really pretty pleased Riley was back in town, his brother left Joffin to see his friends playing this crazy dragon sport he loved to play. He also went down to the seaside where Tyr’s sister lived with her little girl.

“I could hear you thinking really hard. I could smell smoke too. I couldn’t hear what you were thinking so it was driving me crazy. I figured I’d come find out.” Riley’s bright grin made him want to punch his brother right between his one blue eye and one green eye. They all had those eyes, all three of them, and they all had auburn hair, but that was pretty much where the similarities stopped. Oh, and they were all large guys.

But personality-wise they were all very different.

“I was actually contemplating leaving town, maybe going up towards the mountains for a little while.”

Comprehension lit in Riley’s eyes. “Ah, it’s your birthday.”