Her dragon spoke up. We need to figure out his secret.
Since when do you care?
Her dragon huffed. When doesn't a dragon want to discover a secret? It's a special kind of treasure, aye?
Her inner beast was right, which could spell trouble for their working relationship with the human if her dragon decided to keep digging until Lachlan revealed his past.
Especially since she sensed it wouldn't be easy coaxing it from him. Her gut said Lachlan's truth was more than merely shouting at someone or getting into a fistfight in his youth. He'll tell us when he's ready.
Her dragon was about to reply when Cat noticed her mum quickly get up from the other end of the table and race from the room.
She saw Layla standing, but Cat jumped to her feet and said to Layla, "I'll check on her, you sit down," and raced out of the room.
She entered the restroom and heard her mother vomit a few seconds before flushing the toilet. "Mum?"
For a few beats, nothing, then her mother emerged from the stall, her face pale and looking more tired than her forty-four years. "Mum?" she said again softly, more a question than anything else. "What's going on?"
Had her illness reached a critical stage? Was her mother dying?
She couldn't be; she just couldn't. Cat couldn't imagine her life without her mother.
But she needed to be strong for her mum, like she'd done right after Cat's father had died. So doing her best to push down her emotions, Cat kept a patient expression on her face and waited for her mother to answer.
Her mum went to the sink, rinsed out her mouth, and then placed her hands on the counter to steady herself. Leaning against it, she sighed. "This isn't how I imagined this conversation going."
She was at her mother's side and met her gaze in the mirror. Something about her mother's tone told her it was big news. She only hoped it wasn't about her illness being worse and that she was dying.
Pushing aside her fear once more, Cat said softly, "Just tell me."
Her mother closed her eyes a few beats, then opened them and said, "Oh, Cat. For better or worse, I'll just say it—you're going to be a big sister again."
Stunned, she merely blinked. Aye, Cat's mother had been barely eighteen when she'd had her and was still fairly young compared to the mothers of most of her friends, but she hadn't even known her mum had been seeing anyone.
Her dragon said softly, You don't have to have a relationship to conceive a child.
Ignoring her beast, she blurted, "How? Who? Is that why you've been so tired?"
Her mother finally turned to face her and gently touched her cheek. "Aye, and only the doctors knew. I made them promise not to tell anyone."
Something still niggled at the back of her mind. "But you've been ill for over a year." She gestured toward her mother's abdomen. "And yet you aren't even showing, so you can't have been pregnant the whole time."
Her mother replied, "I was ill for a while, which made me rather reckless for a few months." She placed a hand over her belly. "Which is how this happened."
More than the father's identity, Cat worried about the long-term consequences. She blurted, "Will the bairn kill you?"
Maybe it was blunt, and she should've been more tactful, but her mother's smile helped to ease her nerves a fraction. "Quite the opposite, love. I've been doing better, both in general, according to my lab results. The doctors are still trying to figure out why, but I don't care. All signs point to this pregnancy saving my life."
"So you won't be ill any longer?" she whispered.
Her mum squeezed her shoulder. "I don't think so, beyond the usual pregnancy things."
Relief washed over her at the news. Cat knew her mother couldn't live forever, but she wanted more time with her. And it seemed she'd have it.
After a beat, she said, "None of the others have guessed, have they?"
Even without mentioning it, her mother knew her meaning. "No, your siblings don't know. And promise me you won't tell them, Cat. I need to figure out a few things first." She looked away a second. "Especially concerning the father."
"Who is it?" she asked quietly.
Her mum looked back at her and smiled slightly. "I want to tell you, I do. But not yet. Please understand, aye?"
She nearly asked if the male in question knew she'd been sick.
Not to mention the lack of any male visitors to see her mother that Cat had noticed, which could mean he truly had abandoned her and the new bairn. If he had known about her mum's illness and had refused to help her with the bairn, he was an arsehole who should be punished.
So many questions, and yet for some reason, anger rolled in her belly. And not just about the mysterious male.
Part of Cat wanted to yell that they'd all been so worried about her and that she should've told them she was doing better instead of letting them think the worse.
To let them think she was dying.
And yet, at the pleading look in her mum's eyes, Cat knew she'd never betray her by telling her siblings without permission.
However, if it was going to keep the secret, she needed to leave and clear her head before she said something she'd regret. Her temper didn't strike often, but she was nearly at the tipping point.
Cat needed time to think. And figure out a way to keep her emotions from showing on her face around her siblings, which wasn't easy for her.
She took a step back. "I won't tell them, but I have to go."
"Cat—"
She put up a hand. "I'll be fine, Mum. Just give my apologies to the others, aye? Provided you're well enough to go back on your own."
Her mother bobbed her head. "Aye, I'll be fine. It's just the scent of the meat that did it."
Cat should be nice, and rational, and caring. Guide her mother back to the table, return to Lachlan, and try to pretend her mother hadn't revealed to Cat how she would have a sibling more than twenty-six years her junior.
But Cat's feet had a mind of their own, and she exited the great hall, headed to a nearby landing area, and shifted into her dragon form.
Once she was in the air, she tried to sort through her thoughts and wondered why her mother's news bothered her so much. Maybe because she still thought her mother would die, or that Cat would have to take care of yet another sibling, especially if her mum fell ill again.
Or maybe, she just had wanted an easy few months with all the other artists, giving her a chance to focus on what fed her soul instead of trying to help keep her siblings in line and take care of everyone but herself.
But for whatever reason, the cool night air, the stars, and the pinpricks of light below from the few houses she passed held her full attention, and she merely focused on memorizing the scenes to use in future paintings.
She would be able to face everyone in the morning. But for now, the stars, the moon, and her dragon were her perfect companions.
Chapter Four
The next morning, Lachlan sat at his desk inside his new office on Lochguard and tried to focus on his laptop.
There was always paperwork and emails to do, more so than normal, given how he was orchestrating a months-long event starting in the autumn. He could spend all morning on them and still not finish everything.