“There is a police force to take care of most of that. And here in Bear Creek, the crime rate is very low.” She got into the car beside him. “I’m certain I’ve gone my whole life without seeing a brigand.”
“You are making fun of me.” Doran sighed. “In my old life, I was a man people looked up to. In your world, I am like the fool.”
“You are not a fool,” Fleur told him firmly. “I don’t know how I would react if our roles were reversed and I ended up back in your time. You have a curious mind and a thirst for knowledge of this new world, in a couple of months you will fit right in.”
“I feel like the explorers of old facing a brave new world.” Doran grinned and slapped her car with the flat of his hand. “Drive this horseless wagon to your parents’ house. I promise not to make a fool of myself.”
“And not to ask my dad for my hand in marriage,” she reminded him.
“I will resist the temptation,” Doran promised.
“Then let’s do this!” Fleur turned the key and started the car. As they drove, Doran bombarded her with questions about how the car worked and what all the components were called. He was particularly impressed when she switched on the headlights and they illuminated the road in front.
“It’s like a magic lantern.” Doran leaned forward in his seat.
“It’s called electricity, and it’s one thing you have to get used to. Going around saying candle-less lights will draw attention to us.” She breathed in deeply and let it out slowly as she turned off the road and drove down a gravel trail toward a small house with welcoming lights at the windows.
Doran was unsure if she was nervous about the meeting, or if she were embarrassed about the size of her house. It was small. But since Fleur had described a happy childhood, he didn’t judge her parents on this fact.
Plus, they do not have dragon gold, his dragon reminded him.
Perhaps this was one thing he could do to impress his future mother and father. He could offer to buy or build them a new house.
Do not make this offer tonight, his dragon advised. They might be offended.
Good idea, Doran agreed.
“This is a quaint house,” Doran said as they got out of the car. His dragon groaned inwardly.
“Quaint?” Fleur asked defensively. “I suppose it’s not a mansion or a castle, but it’s the happiest home. My parents spent their time and love on us. Not on amassing material wealth.”
“I didn’t mean to offend you,” Doran replied.
“Let’s go inside.” Fleur approached her house, but Doran moved faster and caught hold of her arm. She whirled around to face him, her fists clenched at her sides as her fierce eyes met his.
“I apologize.” Doran poured his sincerity into the words in the hope she would believe him.
She let out her breath and relaxed. “It’s okay.” She put her hand over her heart. “I was raised by parents who believed what is in your heart is more important than what’s in your bank account.”
His brow creased. He was going to have wrinkles and look old before his time if he kept frowning. “Bank account?”
Fleur rolled her eyes. “It’s where people keep their money these days. Unsurprisingly, not many people think sitting on your horde of treasure is a secure way to stop people from stealing your stuff.” She let her arms drop to her sides. “Sorry. I know this is difficult for you and I’m not being as sympathetic as I should.”
“But this is difficult for you, too. You have a life here in a world your mate doesn’t understand. You probably dreamed of finding your mate and settling down.” Doran dipped his head and caught her chin between his finger and thumb, and as she tried to look away, he searched her face for answers. “You don’t want a mate, do you?”
Fleur pursed her lips and looked him straight in the eye as she knocked his hand away. “I have a career. A job. One that I love and has good prospects. I don’t want to let go of all that to stay at home and have babies.”
He cracked a smile. “I am not asking you to. We’ve just met. I don’t even know who I am or exactly why I was put to sleep. It’s all a blur.” He waved his hands around his head.
“Okay. That’s good to know.” Her shoulders relaxed and she dragged a hand through her hair. “We both need time. Time to get to know each other. Time to figure out what crazy shit you had going on back in your own time.”
He grinned. “Crazy shit.”
“I guess women didn’t talk like that back in your day.” Color crept across her cheeks. “I’m not a lady.”
“No one talked like that back in my day,” Doran replied. Then he stepped closer, his arm around her waist as he pulled her close, his breath warm on her skin. “And I believe you are every inch a lady. My lady.”
He captured her lips in a searing kiss. She pressed her body closer to his, so close her curves molded to his hard-toned muscles. Fleur slid her arms around his neck and clung to him, her lips moving against his.
They stood together in her parents’ front yard as if they were the only two people in the world. Everything else ceased to exist.
Until the thunderous sound of Jax’s motorbike approaching brought them back to the present.
Breathless, Fleur rested her head on Doran’s broad chest as he turned his head to watch the approaching vehicle. Doran liked Jax, the young man had promise and despite his cavalier exterior, the tenderness, respect, and love he had for his sister shone through.
“I thought you would be inside by now.” Jax removed his helmet and set it on the handlebars of the bike. Slipping one leg behind him, Jax dismounted the bike and took a backpack off his shoulders, handing it to Doran. “Here, these should fit you.”
“Thanks, Jax.” Fleur pulled away from Doran. “Come on, once I’ve introduced you to my parents, you can go and shower.”
“A shower, my friend. I don’t think they had those in your day.” Jax shuddered as he headed toward the house. “I can’t imagine living without indoor plumbing.”
“Indoor plumbing?” Doran asked as he and Fleur followed Jax toward the house. As a fierce, strong dragon, he was surprisingly nervous about meeting Fleur’s parents. Perhaps it was because he was no longer as physically fit as he was before Ancient Slumber had stolen hundreds of years from him. Or perhaps it was because he was so out of touch with this new world with its indoor plumbing. Whatever that was.
“When you were awake before, you had to fetch water from a well, or a stream, didn’t you?” Fleur asked.
“Not me, personally. We had servants for menial tasks.” Doran cursed his own words as Fleur’s jaw tightened. “But yes. We would fetch water in a pail.”
“Well, thankfully, we don’t need servants to fetch water. It’s piped directly into the house. And we have a water heater to heat the water so we can have hot water from the faucet.” A mischievous smile crept across her face. “Just think, no more servants lighting fires to heat their masters’ water for them when they could heat it themselves with a single dragon’s breath.”
Doran caught hold of her arm and turned her to face him. “I know you think lowly of me. But how I lived is in the past. I am sorry it offends you.” He bowed his head. “I was never cruel.”
“Well, that’s okay then,” she replied sarcastically. Some things did traverse long periods of time, sarcasm, it appeared, was one of them.
“Are you purposely trying to make me into a bad person?” Doran asked.
She shook her head and turned to face him. “It just pushes my buttons. If I were alive then, I would probably have been one of your servants.”
“But you would still have been my mate.” He brushed his lips against hers. “And that is the most important thing. I would give up all of my treasure for you.”
She grinned. “That’s the nicest thing a dragon shifter has ever said to me.” Fleur caught hold of his hand. “Come on, I’m sure my Mom will have seen us out of the kitchen window by now.”
“I hope your family likes me.” They ran to
catch up with Jax who was climbing the steps onto the front porch.
“How could they not, my lord?” Fleur made an attempt at a mock curtsey, as the door opened and a pretty woman, who could only be Fleur’s mom, stood with a flush of excitement on her face. “Mom, this is Doran. He is my mate.”
Chapter Eight – Fleur
The words sounded strange on her lips. Her mate. She’d need some time to get used to that.
He is the man we’re going to spend the rest of our lives with. You will get used to it fast, her bear told her.
But what if she didn’t? They were such opposites. He was rich and used to having people wait on him. While Fleur wasn’t exactly poor, but she was independent.
If he expects us to pick up his dirty laundry off the floor, he has another thing coming.
So you think you are a match for a dragon? Fleur asked before she was swept into her mom’s arms.
More than a match, her bear replied.
“I’m so happy for you, Fleur.” Tansy kissed her cheek and hugged her so tight Fleur could hardly breathe.
“Thanks, Mom.” Fleur caught Doran’s eye and his pained expression took away all her reservations. Was he remembering his own mom? A woman who was nothing more than dust in the ground after so many years had passed.
“Doran needs food and then a shower and a change of clothes,” Jax said, putting his hand on his mom’s shoulder. “He’s been asleep for a few hundred years.”
“What?” Tansy asked, releasing her daughter from her embrace. “You’re joking, right?”
Fleur shook her head. “No, Mom. Doran was put under a sleeping spell. We’re not exactly sure why, because he hasn’t gotten all his memories back.”
“Doran, I’m so sorry.” Tansy took hold of Doran’s hand. “Welcome to the family. I’ll find you some food. Jax, you go and find your dad. He’s in the garden planting the beans.”
Jax nodded and went back outside and around the side to the large vegetable garden which was their father’s second home. He loved digging in the dirt and planting vegetables. In another life, he’d have been a farmer. But the small house, where Tansy and Joe had raised their brood of children, didn’t have enough acreage and they had never managed to save enough money to buy more land.
“I have a nice beef casserole on the stove. I can dish you some up now. I made fresh bread, too.” Tansy went into Mom mode. Whenever her children needed an extra dose of love and attention, Tansy would feed them and talk to them until they felt better. There was no ill that could not be cured by a mother’s love, according to Tansy.
So far, her children had never proved her wrong.
“My stomach is aching in anticipation,” Doran said as he was ushered into the warm kitchen, filled with incredible smells.
“Your anticipation will be exceeded when you taste my mom’s cooking,” Fleur assured her mate. “Is there anything I can do?”
“Oh, yes,” Tansy said as she grabbed a plate from the rack and set it down on the counter. “Why not get a bottle of your dad’s homemade ginger wine? I think this is cause for a celebration.”
“Okay.” A thrill of excitement coursed through Fleur. This was cause for a celebration. Everything might be a little off-kilter, but she’d still found her mate.
No family curse for us, her bear added.
Fleur grinned. I’m the third one to find their mate. I think the family curse is well and truly broken.
Fleur had forgotten that Joe and Tansy used to joke about the family being cursed because none of their children had found their mate. But Cal had a mate and a child, and her sister Ronni had recently found her mate and was expecting her first child. Their family was growing and changing, and Fleur was a part of that now. It was only a matter of time until her younger brothers, Jax and Davy, also found their mates.
She opened the door of the cool room where her mom stored provisions and her dad stored his wine that was ready to drink. Joe also had a warm room, where his wine bubbled away as it fermented. Or as Joe liked to say, where the magic happened.
Running her eyes along the shelves filled with wine, all labeled with a date and flavor, she found his prized ginger wine and took one of the oldest bottles. Carefully closing the door, she returned to the kitchen, where Jax and her father were seated at the table, eating her mom’s casserole and talking to Doran.
About beans.
“I’m pleased you have found common ground already,” Fleur said as she placed the bottle of ginger wine on the table. She fetched the wine glasses from the dresser and set them down beside it as her dad opened the bottle of wine.
“Doran here used to grow crops down by the creek. His family owned a large amount of land in Bear Creek.” Joe popped open the wine and sniffed it. “Good choice. The ginger is special. Aids digestion.”
Tansy cleared her throat from behind her husband. “I hope you are not insinuating my cooking needs wine to aid its digestion.”
“No!” Joe half turned in his seat and hugged his wife. “Although since Doran hasn’t eaten for a few hundred years, it might be a precaution.”
“Yes, you should slow down,” Fleur warned Doran as he ate the casserole.
“It’s so good,” he said in between forkfuls of juicy meat and plump homegrown vegetables.
“I’m glad you like it and there is plenty more. But Fleur is right. Why not slow down a little?” Tansy warned.
“Yes, I don’t think puking is very becoming to a dragon shifter,” Jax said as he ate his own food.
Joe nearly spilled the ginger wine as he poured it into the glasses. “A what?”
“Doran is a dragon shifter,” Fleur confirmed.
“I didn’t think there were any more dragons,” Joe said as he finished pouring the wine and set the bottle down on the table.
“Well, Fleur managed to find one.” Jax grinned at his sister. “We all knew she was special. It seems fate thought so, too.”
“He was put under a spell to make him sleep.” Fleur ignored Jax’s comment as she glanced from one shocked parent to another. She could never tell if Jax was joking or being serious. “Doran is quite docile.”
This earned her a hard stare from Doran, but her mate soon relaxed as he realized the bombshell that had just been dropped and went along with the light mood. “I am also house-trained. Although in my day we had no indoor plumbing.”
Joe laughed. “I like you.” Although his expression remained guarded.
“You’d better like him,” Jax said. “Since he’s the newest member of our family.”
“Jax is right. You’re a lucky man.” Joe glanced sideways at Fleur, who looked down at the plate of food her mom had set down in front of her, hoping her dad wouldn’t embarrass her too much.
“I am a very lucky man,” Doran conceded. “You have raised a wonderful daughter.”
Jax nearly choked on his food. “Are we talking about Fleur, my sister, who once got me to believe that frogspawn was good to eat? Like Jell-Ouch,” he tried to mimic her voice, but she kicked him under the table, and it came out too high-pitched.
“You’ll soon learn that we’re a very close family and our children are very fond of each other. Even if it’s hard to tell by the way they act.” Tansy glared at Jax.
“Do you have any family?” Joe asked tactfully. Then rolled his eyes. “Of course, if you did…”
“I can recall my brother. Not a lot of details. And yes, as far as I know, they are all gone.” Doran finished his food, put his knife and fork down on his plate and then said, “I would like to get out of these old clothes and sample your indoor plumbing.”
“Sure.” Joe jumped to his feet, casting an apologetic glance in Fleur’s direction.
“It’s okay, Dad.” She got up from the table and placed her hand on his arm and a kiss on his cheek. “I’ll show Doran where the bathroom is.”
“Help yourself to whatever you need,” Tansy called out as they left the kitchen.
“Yes, anything. If you need a c
hange of clothes, I can find you something to wear,” Joe offered.
“I went home and got Doran a change of clothes,” Jax told them as he started clearing the table. “That was wonderful, Mom.”
Fleur listened to her family talking about dinner and food as she climbed the stairs with Doran behind her. “This is my room.” She opened the door of the room she’d occupied her whole life. It was in desperate need of redecorating, if for no other reason than it was like walking into a teenager’s room. Luckily, Doran didn’t know this.
“Amazing.” He walked across to the window and looked out on her dad’s vegetable garden. “The view is just how I remember it.”
She hid a smile. “All those years asleep, and it’s the view you care about.” Fleur joined him at the window. “From here you can’t see the town. Which I’m certain has expanded since you were here before.”
Doran stared at the mountains for a long while. “Can we visit the town? I’d like to take a look around.”
“Sure, tomorrow. For now, you should shower and rest.” Fleur turned away from the window and scanned the room for any embarrassing dirt clothes. She was usually meticulous about keeping her room neat, but she’d been so busy at work, there was a chance she might have missed something.
“I wonder if I go to sleep, I’ll wake up and this will all have been a dream,” Doran said sadly.
“You mean you’ll wake up back in your own time.” She went to the bed and sat down, running her hand over the clean sheets. “I’m pretty sure I’m real, but maybe all dream mates think that.”
Doran crossed the room to the bed but didn’t sit down. Instead, he knelt before her and took hold of her hand. “I didn’t mean I wish you were a dream.” He took a deep shuddering breath. “I would trade the world I knew before for a life here with the woman who is mine by destiny.”
Fleur swallowed the lump of emotion that formed in her throat as she placed her hand on his cheek. “I wish things were different. But we will all do whatever it takes to make this easier for you.”
Hidden Dragon Page 6
