The Dragon Finds Forever (Nocturne Falls Book 7)

by Kristen Painter

  What had she been thinking? Telling Van was a bad idea. Bad. She didn’t think he’d physically hurt her. He wasn’t the kind of guy to lay a hand on a woman, that seemed pretty clear. But one of his friends might. Bridget, for example.

  She looked like the kind of woman who wouldn’t shy away from backhanding someone she thought deserved it. Or did werewolves just bite?

  Either way, Monalisa didn’t want to find out.

  She needed to remember that this was all temporary. This wasn’t some new life she was living, being shown the town and treated to lunch. And a hat. This was all part of the game she was playing. This was what Lisa Devers, rehab therapist, got to do.

  Because Monalisa Devlin, pawn of the leprechaun king, had to earn her freedom before she could even think about living this kind of life.

  This wonderful, peaceful, do-whatever-you-want kind of life. She stabbed a hunk of chicken. Where you could date someone and spend an afternoon with him doing normal things, like eating chicken pot pie and having the best time you’d ever had.

  She had a long way to go to get there. Which was also why she needed to stop falling for Van.

  She could already tell her feelings for him were developing into something more than just friends. He was sweet and kind and clearly generous. But that was because he didn’t know who she really was, or what she was here to do. He would change the instant he found out. There was no way he’d feel the same way about Monalisa once the truth surfaced.

  It killed her inside. She’d never known a guy like him. Never had the chance, really, with the way her father kept men away from her. And whatever was happening between them would be utterly destroyed when her real purpose here came to light.

  Maybe she’d write him a long letter and leave it behind for him to find. Explain everything that way. Because she couldn’t bear the thought of him not knowing that she’d had no choice.

  “You okay?”

  She jerked her head up. “What?”

  Van pointed a French fry at her food. “Is something wrong with your meal?”

  “Oh, no. It’s just…hot.” She blew on the hunk of chicken stuck to the end of her fork, then popped it into her mouth. So much for making small talk. She launched into a series of questions then, old standbys that always worked at parties. Seen any good movies lately? What are you reading? Where did you go to college? How are the kids? Your wife? Your dog? Can you believe the weather? Who does your hair? Where did you get that dress? That suit? That glass of wine?

  Not all of them worked in this situation, obviously, but there were enough to start a conversation and keep it going.

  And she did. All the way back to the house.

  They stood on the porch, watching Grom race around since he’d been let out. She leaned against one of the railings, sad but happy at the same time. Even if she never got free from her father, a real possibility considering his history, she would always have this day as an example of what life could be like. It might be enough to get her through. A sliver of happiness to cling to when all else was bleak.

  She smiled at Van from under the brim of her hat. How easy would it be to fall crazy in love with a guy like him? Too easy. Her heart ached a little at the thought, and her smile wavered. She forced herself to snap out of the melancholy she was quickly sinking into.

  “That was so much fun today. Thank you for lunch and the hat and the walk around town. I know that had to be a long day for you. Especially after you were on the bike this morning. How’s your leg?”

  “You are welcome. I enjoyed it too.” He glanced toward the brace. “My leg, not so much.”

  “You should get some rest. Take a nap. Sleep is great for healing, you know.”

  He smiled. “I know. I think I will.”

  “Good. I might take one too. After I write up a few reports.” She pulled her jacket tighter. The sun was going down, the temperature was dropping, and the clouds definitely looked like snow.

  His eyes narrowed. “Telling the League how I am doing?”

  “Something like that.” She pointed. “I think Grom got you a present.”

  Grom trotted toward the porch carrying what looked like a small tree in his mouth.

  Van snorted and shook his head. “Drop it.”

  Grom growled playfully but held on to his treasure.

  “Van, I have the b-o-n-e you bought at the pet shop. You think he’d make a trade?”

  “Good idea. Show it to him.”

  She pulled the big rawhide treat out of the bag and wiggled it at Grom. “Hey, puppy, you want this instead?”

  Grom dropped the dead tree instantly, effectively blocking the stairs with it. He climbed over it to sit in front of Monalisa.

  “Okay to give it to him?” she asked Van.

  He nodded. She held it out to Grom, who took it gently but eagerly. Then he whined to go inside. She opened the door. “What are you going to do about that tree?”

  “Toss it into the yard.” Van froze. “Unless that is not respectful.”

  She squinted. “Respectful?”

  “To your…kind. I have never known a dryad before. But I know that trees are sacred to your people. Is that not true?”

  Bollocks. She’d told him she was a dryad and completely forgotten about it. Of all the… “Not sacred, exactly.” Like she had an actual clue. Think fast. “And this one was clearly dead already, so there’s no disrespect. In fact, the best thing you could do would be to put it to good use now.”

  “Good use?”

  “You know, use it for kindling or something like that. Maybe build us a fire with it tonight.” Please let him buy that.

  “That does sound like a purposeful end.”

  Thank the heavens.

  Van used his crutch for support and bent, picking up the enormous length of wood in one hand. He straightened and leaned back on the railing so he could put both hands on the tree. Then he snapped it in half like it was a twig. He kept going until it was in small, manageable pieces stacked beside the door. “There. Now we have kindling.”

  Seeing his strength demonstrated like that was impressive. “Excellent. A fire will be nice this evening.”

  “And I will build you one.”

  “After a nap. Or maybe we should just go to bed early.” She went halfway inside, then looked back to see Van’s eyes twinkling. “You know what I mean.”

  “Da.” He chuckled to himself.

  “Oh, behave. You’re like a teenage boy.” She walked into the house, smirking.

  He followed her. “Perhaps that is the effect you have on me.”

  She took her hat off, suddenly feeling shy. She finger-combed her hair. “So, maybe we could watch a movie or something tonight?”

  “Sounds good. Norma left meatloaf and mashed potatoes in the refrigerator. And some green thing for you.”

  She laughed. “Okay, I’ll take care of heating dinner up after we rest.” She backed toward the stairs. “See you in an hour?”

  “An hour is plenty.”

  “Perfect.” She jogged up the steps. She hung the hat on one of the bedposts, then sat and pulled out her phone. She’d heard it going off all day but had ignored it. She knew who’d been calling. Her father.

  The screen showed five missed calls and three text messages, all the same. Call me. Call me. Call me.

  She didn’t want to. He would only threaten her again, and she’d heard all his threats a thousand times. Why should she subject herself to that?

  Instead, she sent him a text back. No need. I’m doing what you want. Leave me alone.

  His response was almost instant. All I needed to know.

  She rolled her eyes. If he didn’t give her the coin after all this, she might end up in jail on assault charges. Or attempted murder. And real jail, not the familial one she was in now. How much worse could it be? With a sigh, she set her alarm for forty-five minutes, then lay down and closed her eyes.

  She woke up to the soft chirp of the timer she’d set. She hadn’t exp
ected to sleep, but the day out had definitely tired her a bit. She got up, stretched, and went down to see about heating up dinner.

  No sign of Van, but if he was still sleeping, she’d let him. He needed the rest. She quietly opened the fridge.

  Norma had left an assortment of containers, each one labeled with clear instructions about how to reheat it. The woman was kind of amazing. Monalisa set the oven temp, then put everything in except for the green beans and gravy, which Norma’s directions said to microwave.

  “Did you sleep?”

  She yelped and turned to see Van standing on the other side of the counter. “You startled me. Yes, I did. You?”

  “Yes.” He was on his crutches again and back in sweats and T-shirt. The man could make anything look good. “I feel better. Ready to eat.”

  He also had an insane appetite. “That’s great. Dinner will be warmed up in about half an hour if Norma’s instructions are right, which I’m sure they are.”

  “I will find us a movie. What kind?”

  “Whatever. I’m easy. You pick.”

  He narrowed his eyes. “Is this a test?”

  She laughed. “Maybe.”

  He made his way back to the living room, Grom happily accompanying him, and fired up the television.

  A wave of intense longing came over her. This was all so perfect. This house, this man, this happy life. She wanted it to be hers for real, but there was no way on earth to make that happen. Playing house was the best she was going to get.

  Maybe she should stop holding back and give herself entirely over to the fantasy. See what it was like to be loved by a man like Van.

  They were both going to get hurt when the truth came out anyway. But that wouldn’t be fair to him.

  No, she would just enjoy the few days she had left here and hold on to the sweet memories she was making and pray that Van didn’t hate her too much when this was all said and done.

  She wasn’t sure she could bear that.

  Van flipped through the On Demand selections looking for a movie he thought Lisa would like. His interests, which typically ran to action flicks or moody thrillers, weren’t important. He wanted something that would make her laugh. Too many times today, when she hadn’t realized he’d been looking, he’d seen sadness in her eyes.

  It hurt him to see such pain in her. Especially now that he was coming to care for her. It was his instinct, he knew, his inborn urge to protect. And it was especially strong around her.

  He understood what that meant. His dragon wanted her. Hell, his dragon had already pretty much decided she was his. Didn’t matter that they’d only known each other a few days. His dragon side didn’t need a lot of time to make those kinds of decisions. It wanted what it wanted. So while his human side might be uncertain, his dragon side was already wondering what kind of ring she’d like.

  He shook his head. A dragon and a dryad. Had there ever been such a pairing?

  He laughed. Despite what his dragon side was planning for, he was getting ahead of himself. There was no telling where things would go between Lisa and himself. He was assuming a lot. Such as her liking him as much as he liked her. That she’d be willing to give up working for the League just like he was. That she’d want to live here in Nocturne Falls.

  Maybe he should take her back into town again tomorrow. Really make her fall in love with the place. That should be easy.

  He stared at the remote in his hands. If only he could make her fall in love with him the same way. But she had reservations about him, he could tell.

  Maybe once this last fight was over and she saw that he really was ready to retire and settle down, maybe then they could make a go of things.

  “Find anything?”

  He glanced up to see her standing next to him. “Have you seen Choir Life?”

  She snorted and popped one hip to the side. “You really want to watch a movie about college girls trying to find themselves through an a cappella group?”

  He shrugged. “It might be good.”

  “Pretty sure you would hate it.” She tipped her chin toward the screen. “Scroll a little.”

  He did as she asked, paging through the selections.

  “Ooh, there. That one. Red Widow. Helen Mirren and Tom Hardy take on the Russian spy world as a mother-son team.” She pursed her lips. “Or maybe that’s not your thing, seeing as how I’m pretty sure the Russians are the bad guys.”

  He smirked. He’d already seen it twice. It was a great flick. “I am American now. This is a good choice.”

  “You’re sure?”

  “Positive.”

  Something beeped in the kitchen. She jerked her thumb in that direction. “Cool. I’ll go get the food and be right back.”

  He put his hands on the arms of the chair to push himself up. “I will help.”

  “You’ll do no such thing. Sit there and rest. I’ve got this.” She took a few steps toward the kitchen, then stopped and looked at him again. “What do you want to drink? I saw beer in the fridge.”

  He nodded. “Yes, that.”

  “Okay, be right back.”

  He watched her, smiling and feeling like this was the most perfect moment of his life. He wanted things to be like this all the time. This easy. This comfortable. This contented.

  Whatever it took to keep Lisa around, he would do it. And whatever it took to make her happy, he would work on that too.

  How hard could that be?

  She returned with a cold beer, a plate of food, and utensils. “Dinner is served.”

  He took the plate and utensils from her, then the beer, setting it on the side table. “Thank you.”

  She hesitated. “Say it in Russian.”

  “Spasibo.”

  She grinned. “I like that.”

  He smiled, so charmed by her in that moment. “Get your dinner and join me.” He wanted her close to him.

  “On my way.” She sauntered off, returning a few seconds later with her own plate and beer. She settled onto the couch and lifted her beer, leaning toward him. “Cheers.”

  “Cheers.” He met her halfway, clinking his bottle against hers. “Thank you for heating this up.”

  “No problem. Norma did the hard part.”

  He sipped his beer before putting it back on the table. “You’re not going to have a very good view of the screen from there.”

  She shrugged as she forked up a piece of meatloaf. “I can see okay.”

  “Is not good enough.”

  “It’s fine, really.”

  It wasn’t. He lifted his plate, then scooted over. “This chair is big enough for both of us.”

  “It’s not that big.” She laughed. “And I’m not sitting on your lap to eat my dinner.”

  “Not on my lap. Next to me.”

  She seemed to be considering it. “We’ll be squished in.”

  “You do not want to be squished with me?”

  She grinned. “There are worse things.” She thought a moment. “How about I join you after dinner?”

  “Good.” Then maybe he could talk her into sitting on his lap. Or at least across it. He dug into his meal. The thought of having her that close to him, touching him, was very appealing. He put his fork down to click back to a channel. He picked the first neutral thing he saw, a game show.

  “Aren’t you going to start the movie?”

  “After we eat. You cannot see it.”

  She took a sip of her beer, which she had on the floor by her feet. “You’re a stubborn guy, you know that? But sweet.”

  “Like candy.”

  She laughed, slapping a hand over her mouth. “I almost snorted beer through my nose, thank you very much.”

  He preened a little. “Also funny.”

  She nodded. “You’re a whole wealth of things, that’s for sure.”

  But was it enough to keep her interest? To make her happy? He wished he knew.

  Grom sighed and rolled over on his back, looking longingly at Van.

  “Nyet.�
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  Grom huffed, making Lisa laugh again. “It’s not hard to figure out what he wants, is it?”

  “No. But he has kibble in his bowl, and too much people food is not good for him. And he knows it. Don’t you, Grom?”

  With a whiny, growly noise, Grom got up and went to lie by Lisa. Van laughed. She reached down to pet him. “Poor doggy. Such a hard life.”

  Grom finally gave up and went to lie near the fireplace. They finished their dinner, and then Lisa took the dishes back into the kitchen.

  “Leave them in the sink,” Van called. “I will do them later.” He used his crutch to get up and went over to the fireplace. Grom stretched out as if anticipating. There was still kindling and logs in the basket, but Van would need what was stacked by the door if they kept the fire going longer than a few hours. He started arranging the small kindling, then larger pieces on top and finally a hefty log.

  “You want another beer while I’m in here?” Lisa called out.

  “Da. Yes.” He really needed to get better about that. He shoved a starter stick into the kindling. If he’d been able to shift, even into his half form, he could have breathed the fire into being, but shifting was impossible with the venom in his system. He clicked the lighter and set the end of the starter stick ablaze. Blue flame licked the end, traveling quickly into the smaller twigs.

  She padded in behind him, her shoes long gone. “Oh, that’s going to be so nice.” She stood next to him and handed him the beer.

  He knocked his bottle against hers, happy she was having another one too. “This is a good day.”

  She stared into the growing fire. “Yes, it is.”

  He tucked his crutch under his arm, then shifted the bottle into that hand so he could put his other arm around her. She leaned into him a little, and he bent to kiss the top of her head. Her hair smelled nice. Floral and herby. Her shampoo, no doubt. It suited her. Feminine but a little wild too. “What are you thinking about?”

  She shook her head. “Nothing.”

  He knew that wasn’t true, but he didn’t want to ruin the moment by trying to get more than that out of her. “Movie?”

  “Da.” She looked up at him and winked.

  One word. One small gesture. And just like that, he knew this was the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.