Arabella picked up her laptop. “I don’t know why I bother to argue with you. This is my house.” She looked at Tristan. “I want you two to leave.”
While he was her brother, he had to admire how Melanie was handling the situation. Hell, the human had shown him that Ara’s dragon-half was still there. Maybe it was time to try to push her. After all, Tristan had coddled his sister for too long out of guilt.
Two days ago, he never would’ve believed it, but he was going to side with the human. “No, Ara, unless you agree to come over to my house for dinner in the next few days, and stay for at least two hours, we’re staying the night and will continue to stay the night until you give in.”
He sensed the human’s eyes on him, but he focused one hundred percent on his sister. Ara blinked and said, “What?”
“I’ve recently been told, by more than one person I might add, that I’ve let what happened to Mum take over my life. And I’m finally starting to see how that hatred and pain has damaged far more than me. I’ve tiptoed around you for too long, not wanting to take your issues head on because of guilt. Am I sorry for what happened? Of course. Do I think you should hide away here for the rest of your life? No.” He took a step toward his sister. “While you were arguing with Melanie, I saw your dragon-side surface. Twice.” He took another step toward his sister. “I need to know—have you been lying to me all these years about your beast being silent?”
Ara’s confidence faltered a fraction. “Don’t ask me about that, Tristan.”
He walked until he was standing in front of his sister. Luckily, she didn’t try to run away from him. “It’s all right, Ara. If you have, I forgive you. But if you keep trying to hide your beast, I fear that you’ll go insane. Have you ever shifted because you couldn’t control it over the last decade?”
Fear flashed across his sister’s face. “Yes.”
He put an arm around Ara’s shoulders. “It’s all right, love. We’re part dragon, and it’s only natural.”
Ara shook her head. “No. No, no, no. If I’m in dragon form, then the dragon hunters will find me. I need to stay in human form so I can keep hidden from them.” She looked up at Tristan, her eyes wild and lost to decade-old memories. “I need to push the beast back, deep, deep into my mind. It’s the only way to stay safe.”
Tristan hugged his sister and stroked her hair, trying to decide what to do. Despite his, and others’, recommendations to see Stonefire’s equivalent of a therapist, Ara had always refused.
He glanced over and saw Melanie staring at them. Her eyes were honest and open, and he could swear they mirrored the pain he felt right now for his sister. Recalling how Melanie hadn’t been afraid to address the issue head on, gave Tristan an idea.
Never releasing his hold on his sister, he pulled out his phone with one hand and dialed Bram’s number. When his clan leader picked up, he said, “Bram, Arabella’s on the verge of a breakdown. Because of your dragon’s dominance, you’re the only one she can’t refuse to listen to right now. Will you come to her cottage and see what you can do for her?”
The line was quiet a second and then Bram answered, “I wondered when you would ask me, Tristan. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
The line clicked off and Tristan guided his sister to the couch.
Chapter Four
Watching Arabella go from the fiery, confident dragonwoman she’d been with her to the barely functioning individual with Tristan made Melanie’s heart ache. To hear that the woman had resisted her dragon-half for nearly a decade made her sadness for Arabella only grow larger.
She wanted to help the dragonwoman, but she knew her intrusion right now would only make matters worse. So, Mel decided to do what her dad always did when there was trouble that required waiting around to solve—she would make some tea.
Since Tristan was preoccupied with holding his sister, Mel went to the room opposite she assumed was the kitchen, opened the door, and discovered she was right. As she put the kettle on and searched through the cupboards for teacups and a teapot, she wondered if Bram could help Tristan’s sister. If Arabella could only get over her trauma and act like she’d done with Mel, the dragonwoman’s personality—especially her stubbornness—would turn everyone’s head in no time. Before long, no one would blink twice at her scars or treat her differently because of them. The question was how to convince Tristan’s sister that it was not only possible, but also easy to let people in to look beyond the surface.
In that moment, Mel decided she would visit Arabella again whether she wanted it or not and work on convincing the other woman of her self-worth. Who knew, maybe someday Tristan’s sister would welcome her into her home as a friend.