“Suzie knows I have the girls, I’m sure of it.” Fiona sipped her wine. “She’s given me some breathing room. But I will have to figure this out, and figure it out soon.”
“Can we adopt them?” Harlan asked.
“We still have to go through the same process as everyone else. The same with fostering. It means the girls may have to go and live somewhere else for a while,” Fiona said.
“No,” Harlan shook his head. “They belong here.”
“They don’t belong to us.” Fiona’s expression was pained. “People, not even me, can’t just decide to take a child home. The law is there to protect the child. Isn’t that what you said before, about Roxanne? We have to play by modern rules.”
Harlan sighed. “Whatever you need, just ask.”
“You,” Fiona said.
“Always.” He came to her across the room, and picked her up in his arms, carrying her upstairs to bed.
He laid her down gently, raking his eyes over her body. Which needed to be naked. Stripping his own clothes off, he then knelt on the bed and undressed his mate, while her hand cupped his balls, and fondled them, before curling around his cock and stroking it. Damn, talk about distracting.
He fumbled with the buttons of her blouse, at least one of them pinging off into oblivion when he lost his patience. But at last, he pushed it off her shoulders, and unclasped her bra, freeing her breasts to his hands and mouth.
He feasted on them, his tongue flicking out over the taut buds until she writhed beneath him. Knowing her need to be touched, he slipped his hand under the waistband of her skirt and inside her panties, rubbing his fingertips lightly over her clit.
Fiona spread her legs wider, and he slipped his fingers inside her sex: she was so wet, so ready for him. Moving down the bed, he dragged her skirt down over her hips, leaving her naked before him. She was no young, nubile woman, but to him she was perfect.
Spreading her thighs apart, he dipped his head, tasting her intimately. Fiona tossed her head from side to side, her fingers plunging into his hair as he licked her clit, bringing her to her first climax. Harlan prided himself on being able to read her body and give her what she wanted. And now, she wanted to be made love to, slowly and deliberately.
He hovered above her, guiding his cock into her sex. He paused, with only the head of his cock inside her. She reached for him, urging him deeper, but he made her wait; he needed to stay in control.
At last he thrust forward, deeper, before pulling out. A harder thrust, and she raised her knees, tilting her pelvis as she changed the angle of her body. In and out, he moved in a steady rhythm that drove her wild. Fiona’s inhibitions crumbled and she kissed him, nipped his skin, and begged him to make her come, as he drove her to the edge of her climax and then brought her back.
Sweat slicked their bodies, and the night grew late, when finally he let her reach her climax and followed her over the edge into a world where they flew together, up above the clouds, to the moon and back. Fiona wrapped her legs around him, and he jerked his seed deep into her womb, hoping he would one day put a child in the belly of the woman he loved.
Chapter Fifteen – Fiona
“What’s the plan for today?” Fiona asked Harlan as they sat eating breakfast together. The girls had grabbed some toast and taken Muffin for a run.
“I am going to call my lawyer again. I think we should put our plans to adopt Ruby and Sapphi on a fast track,” Harlan said pragmatically.
“You want to talk to your lawyer about adoption?” Fiona asked.
“If we adopt them, no one can take them away from us,” Harlan said, sipping his coffee. “Are you OK?”
“Yes. It makes it all more real, that’s all.”
“We’ll have to get married, of course.”
Fiona nearly sprayed her tea across the room. “Married?”
“Yes.” He smiled at the shocked expression on her face. Placing his coffee cup down on the table, he moved to her side and dropped down on one knee. Out of his pocket, he pulled a ring. “No fancy box, I’m afraid. It was my mother’s.”
“Harlan, you don’t have to…”
“Yes, I do.” He took hold of Fiona’s hand. “Fiona, I have searched for you until I had nearly given up hope. Will you do me the tremendous honor of marrying me? Soon.”
“I will.” She kissed his face, and then his lips, and then hugged him before kissing him again. She would have squealed in delight, but Fiona was not a squeal-in-delight kind of a woman.
“Ugh, you two, it’s enough to put me off my breakfast,” Ruby said, coming in through the back door with Muffin in her arms.
“I think we are allowed a kiss on this occasion,” Harlan said, his eyes misted with tears. “I have just asked Fiona to marry me.”
Ruby grinned. “OK, maybe one kiss. But anything else and you really need to get a room.”
“Married? Can I be a bridesmaid? I’ve never been a bridesmaid,” Sapphi said excitedly.
“You can both be bridesmaids,” Fiona said happily as Harlan put his ring on her finger. She ignored the look on Ruby’s face.
“I am not wearing a frilly dress,” Ruby said quickly. “No way.”
“I won’t ask you to wear frills or lace,” Fiona said. “But I would really like my two dragon princesses to be there for me.”
“Do we get tiaras?” Sapphi asked. “You know, if we are princesses.”
“She didn’t mean real princesses,” Ruby told her sister.
“I know,” Sapphi said. “But all the same. There were some in our treasure. Do you remember? We used to wear them when we played dress-up.”
“We don’t have our treasure, do we, idiot.” Ruby’s temper quickly flared, but Muffin lifted his head and licked her face, defusing the argument.
Maybe he would earn his keep after all. “OK. I have to go to work. I have to catch up on appointments. I am sure Harlan can keep you occupied. And I like your hair, Ruby,” Fiona commented.
“Thanks.” Ruby ran her hand over her straightened hair. “For everything,” she added in a serious tone. “And I guess if you really wanted frills, I would wear them.”
“Thank you.” It was probably the sweetest thing anyone had ever said to Fiona. As she headed to her car, she figured this was the happiest day of her long life so far. Certainly happier than she had experienced for a couple of centuries or more.
As she drove to her first appointment, she placed her hand on the steering wheel and admired her ring. It was perfect, a large, exquisitely cut diamond, flanked by an emerald on either side. They reminded her of Harlan’s eyes. She laughed to herself, giddy with joy. Something she would have to contain if the children she was about to visit weren’t going to think she was half crazy.
Somehow she got through to lunchtime without bursting into song. But it was in her heart, and she hummed to herself as she drove. Deciding she didn’t want to make an appearance at the office, and so letting Suzie off the hook—since you couldn’t ask questions if a person wasn’t there—Fiona bought a sandwich from a convenience store in Bear Bluff, and sat and ate it by the side of the pond in the park, watching the mothers playing with their children.
A wave of longing swept over her. She wanted a child of her own. She always had. Admitting it was difficult, since the chances of her conceiving and carrying a healthy baby to term were so small, but she found her courage. In truth, in a bid to cover over her sadness at not finding her mate, she had convinced herself she didn’t want children. She now freely admitted this was why she had helped so many children in foster care. Her maternal instinct had found its way out into the world.
Mulling this over, she ate her sandwich. The sun was on her face, the breeze ruffling her hair, which she wore half down, using a hair clip to keep it off her face. If only she could figure out what to do with Ruby and Sapphi, she would be the happiest person ever.
Her phone vibrated in her pocket. She pulled it out and nearly hit the ignore button, but she couldn’t run from Suzie
forever. She could not let Suzie take any blame for what Fiona had done.
“Hello, Suzie,” Fiona said.
Suzie’s voice was quiet as if she didn’t want to be overheard. “Fiona, you have to get back here.”
“Why? What’s wrong?” Fiona asked, sensing the urgency in Suzie’s voice.
“Ruby and Sapphire’s stepmom is here.”
Fiona nearly fell off the bench. “What do you mean she’s there?”
“She wants them back,” Suzie said.
“Well, she can’t have them.” Fiona made this quite clear in her tone.
“We don’t have a choice,” Suzie said.
“Yes, we do.”
“The paperwork is not complete. If she gets a lawyer, we are in trouble.” Suzie sighed. “She has a right to have them back, as long as Ruby and Sapphire agree.”
“They won’t agree,” Fiona said. “They don’t like her.” But they did want their treasure. Would they risk going back to Roxanne as a way of getting what was theirs? “Come to think of it, why does she want them back at all? She has the money, she has the house, she has everything. Including a new man in her bed.”
“No! Already? Poor Ruby and Sapphire,” Suzie said, enraged, before she dropped her voice once more. “I’ll try to find out.”
“No, I’ll be there in ten minutes. I’ll talk to her.” Fiona hung up the phone and got up from the bench, brushing the crumbs off her skirt before walking back to her car. Her happy day was taking a turn for the worse, and she sure as hell was not going to let that woman spoil it. Nor was she going to let her get her hands on the girls.
The question really was, why did she want them back? There had to be an ulterior motive.
As she drove, she used her hands-free to call Harlan and tell him what was happening. “Any ideas?” she asked him once she had explained.
“No.” He paused. “But there has to be a reason. Do you want me to be there when you talk to her? I’m good at reading people.”
“You forget I am a dragon too,” Fiona retorted.
“Two heads are better than one,” Harlan replied.
“I’d rather you stay there.”
“The girls will be OK, I can drop them off at Chrysi’s.”
“You misunderstood, I would rather you stayed out of Roxanne’s way. If she gets a sniff of your treasure, who knows what she might do,” Fiona replied.
“How can she know?” Harlan asked.
Fiona frowned. “I don’t know. Hey, that is one thing we never asked the girls. Does Roxanne know about dragons?”
“I’ll ask.” The phone went quiet, and then she heard the mumbling of voices before Harlan answered. “No. As far as the girls know, she doesn’t have any idea.”
“Interesting,” Fiona said. “OK, stay put, I’ll talk to you later.”
Fiona drove to her office, still trying to figure out what Roxanne’s angle was. If, as her actions had proven, she didn’t want Ruby and Sapphi in her life, why was she trying to get them to come home?
As she pulled into the parking lot, Fiona sat for a moment to compose herself, not wanting to give anything away, particularly not wanting to give away the fact that she herself had taken the girls in. If she did, she would lay herself open to all kinds of trouble. If Roxanne was the conspiring woman Fiona figured her to be, then she would be only too willing to blackmail Fiona, and by association, Harlan. That was never going to happen.
I could bite her head off. Then I could dump her body in the deepest ocean, her dragon offered helpfully.
Don’t tempt me, Fiona replied. But let’s hope it does not resort to such extreme measures.
Fiona got out of the car and headed inside, pulling on her rather tattered cloak of abrasiveness. Two days of being part of her new family had smoothed the edges of her moods and mellowed her. Still, she had kept up the act for some years; she just had to try to slip back into the role now.
“Hello, Suzie,” Fiona said, making her supervisor jump.
“Fiona, I didn’t hear you come in.”
“Where is she?” Fiona asked, dismissing any pleasantries in one look.
“In the waiting room. She’s very…” Suzie hesitated.
“Very what, Suzy?” Fiona asked.
“Not like you.” Suzie raised her eyebrows hoping she had not offended Fiona.
“Not like me,” Fiona repeated. “Excellent.” Fiona had met a lot of people not like her in the past. Just as Harlan had studied people, so had Fiona, only not in such detail. What she did know was that people got what they wanted in two ways. They demanded it, which was the Fiona way. Their manner left other people believing there was always an or else hanging in the air. Or they simpered.
Simpered, and fawned, and flattered, all the while trying to get their own way.
“Hello, Mrs. Cunningham.” Fiona held out her hand.
Roxanne’s eyes narrowed. “That’s my maiden name,” she said with a light laugh, trying to cover her suspicions.
“Sorry,” Fiona said, cursing herself. “Mrs. Rochester.”
“Yes.” She dabbed her eyes theatrically. “I am not myself. But I am still Mrs. Rochester.”
“And what can I do for you, Mrs. Rochester?” Fiona said. “Or shall we go to my office?”
“Your office, it would be more private.” She sniffed loudly. “I hate crying in front of people.”
“Then don’t,” Fiona said sweetly, before adding, “Until we get to my office.”
Roxanne smiled sadly. “I’ll try to be brave.”
“This way,” Fiona said. She left the room, striding down the corridor, opening the door, and going inside to sit at her desk. Pulling the file out of her purse, she set it down on the table in front of them.
Roxanne took a moment to sit down and compose herself, ready for the next round of give-me-your-sympathy. While Fiona tried to judge how best to play this game, Roxanne gave her opening shot. “I have made a terrible mistake.”
Fiona sat still, eyes on Roxanne, offering no comment.
“I was hasty in my decision.” She dabbed her eyes again. “Stricken by grief.” Her eyes flicked up to Fiona’s and read a blank expression. She tried again. “I loved Joe Rochester too much. It was a fast and furious romance, the man swept me off my feet, and into his bed…”
Fiona sighed. “I read in the file you and Joe had not known each other long.”
“Yes, but who can deny love when it knocks at your door?”
“Who indeed?” Fiona nodded.
“Have you ever felt such love, Mrs…?
“No, I have not.” She wasn’t lying. Fiona had experienced fast and furious love, but it was real, not fake like Roxanne’s.
“But you have experienced love.” Roxanne indicated the engagement ring on Fiona’s finger.
“I have.”
“So you understand me. You understand how a woman so consumed by grief could try to rid herself of everything that reminded her of the man she loved, the man she married.”
“Ruby and Sapphire.”
“Ruby and Sapphire.” Roxanne turned the tears on fully. “But I made a terrible mistake. As soon as I went back to the house, I realized it was too empty. I need them.” This last sentence came out as a wail. Fiona was left asking herself if any person actually fell for this kind of thing. Joe Rochester obviously had. Hook. Line. And sinker. Fool.
“Why are you here?” Fiona asked again.
“To get them back. To bring them home.”
“I don’t think that is such a good idea, Mrs. Rochester. They are settled where they are, and I do not think they should be subjected to the ups and downs of a woman on the verge of hysterics. May I advise you to seek out your doctor and ask him to give you something to help you control your… urges.”
“Urges?” Roxanne looked at Fiona as if she came from another planet. “What do you know about urges?” They were the truest words Roxanne had spoken since they entered the room.
“I have met a lot of people over the
years. Parents, children, stepparents. I believe I can say with certainty, you will get over these urges.”
“No, I want to be a parent. I want to honor the memory of my husband, Joe, and look after his children.” Roxanne’s expression hardened. “I want to see them.”
“I don’t think that is a good idea.”
“But you can’t stop me. If you do, I will take this over your head.” All niceties were gone, Roxanne was flexing her claws.
“I think that in your present emotional state, it would be best if you don’t see them.”
“I don’t much care what you think, Miss… What was your name again?”
“Fiona.”
“I want to see Ruby and Sapphire. And if you could relay a message to them, I am sure they will want to see me.”
Intrigued, Fiona asked, “What message?”
“Muffin. If you tell them I have their favorite muffin,” Roxanne finished. “Or will have.”
“I’ll tell them.” Fiona kept her face neutral as Roxanne left the room, only allowing herself to curse the woman once she had gone. Did she intend to go to the pound and get Muffin back to use as leverage? Or was she willing to lie to Ruby and Sapphire’s faces to get her own way?
As she gathered her things together ready to leave, she still could not decide why Roxanne would want the girls back.
She pulled out her phone and called Harlan. “Get that PI of yours over to the house. I want to know what Roxanne Cunningham is up to, and I don’t care what it takes.”
Chapter Sixteen – Harlan
“I wish I’d held on to my treasure. Or at least spent my time making money like you have.” Fiona paced the room. She had come home agitated, and despite her best efforts to cover it up, it leaked out into her body language.
“I have enough treasure for both of us,” Harlan reminded her.
“And so I am beholden to my mate.” Nothing seemed to soothe her.
Harlan left his chair, where he had been watching her pace the room. He didn’t really care what she was doing, he loved watching her, learning about her, and understanding her. “When I phoned Sam, he said he had some news.”
Silverback Dragon (Return to Bear Creek Book 6) Page 10
