“You still lied to me.”
His face fell. “I know. But Aspen, I didn’t know how you would react.”
Aspen didn’t want to be angry with him.
“No more lies.”
“No more lies. Now, it’s freezing out here. Let’s go to your house. I imagine you have a lot of questions.”
“That is the understatement of the year.”
He took her hand, and she didn’t bother pulling away. He was forgiven, and he knew it.
Aspen didn’t say much as they walked, her mind reeling with this new information. The house was quiet when they got home. Rowan was probably still in his room playing video games.
They sat on the couch, and Aspen asked the question that had been bothering her since she realized Sid and Obsidian were one in the same.
“What do we do now?”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re a dragon, and I’m…well…I’m not.”
Sid laughed and scooted closer to her. “That hasn’t been a problem so far, has it?”
She shook her head. “But what about the future and the other dragons? Surely this isn’t allowed.”
“You’re right. It’s not. But we don’t need to worry about that now. As long as they don’t find out, we’re fine.”
“And when they do?”
“We’ll deal with it. Aspen, I want you to be a part of my life.”
She grinned and laughed. Sid pulled away.
“What’s so funny?”
She shook her head and continued giggling.
“I’m sorry,” she said when she finally stopped. She moved closer to Sid and took both his hands in hers.
“My boyfriend’s a dragon. It’s like a complete dream come true for me. But anyone else in the world would be horrified.”
Sid smiled.
“It’s a good thing I fell in love with you then, instead of someone else.”
She nodded. “Definitely a good thing.”
Ella had been right about the community looking forward to the party. For two weeks prior, Sid’s phone rang off the hook—half the time it was people from town and the other half was Vicki. Apparently, this party would reach epic proportions. It would be Vicki’s biggest yet—and most expensive. People from all over the county would be coming because Sid’s house was about to be opened up for the first time in a hundred years. People wanted to see the inside. Not that it would look like it normally does.
The weather was too cold to hold anything outside so his entire house would be transformed into a carnival. The basement would hold all the rides. The main level would be food and entertainers, and the upper level would have various freak shows and games. Costumes were mandatory.
Three days before the party, Sid hid out in his room to avoid Vicki, who was attempting to ask his opinion on everything from the exact placement of the candied apples to which room would best for the sword swallower. He kept telling her he didn’t care; she was the expert.
Someone knocked on the door.
“I already told you, Vicki. Use your best judgment.” But when the door opened, it was Pearl.
She sat at his computer desk, her face a mask of no emotion. “What are they doing to your house?”
“We’re having a party on Halloween. You should come, bring Raja with you. But you have to wear costumes.”
“Will Aspen be at the party?”
“Of course.”
“It’s time to fix the Aspen problem.”
“Nope, it’s not. What about Marcellus? Have you caught him yet?”
“We’re still looking. He’s been evasive. But every dragon guard is out searching for him. Including most of the council.”
“Sid, can you hear me?” asked Aspen from the other side of the phone.
“Just barely, where are you? I thought you’d be here by now.” The party started thirty minutes ago, and his date was still missing.
“I know. My parents just got home, and I promised I’d wait for them. They’re getting dressed. We’ll be there in fifteen.”
“Okay, hurry up though. Vicki’s having a fit because her Serpentina isn’t here yet.”
“Yep, love you. I’ll see you soon.”
Vicki had certainly done her best making over the house. They moved all the furniture into two large trucks that were now parked in the Purple Dragon’s lot.
Theo and Ella acted the perfect hosts in the entryway. Theo was a bit distracted because his bearded lady was running around in a tiny bikini, having the time of her life.
“Where’s Aspen?” Ella asked when Sid approached.
“On her way. Her parents were running late.”
She grinned, greeted another family, and handed them a map. “Food is to your right and straight through to the grand room. Rooms that are off limits are marked with a staff only sign. Otherwise everything else is open. If you go up to the second floor, the rooms all have games and freak shows.
“Make sure you go down to the end of the east wing and see the fortuneteller.” She looked up at the parents. “Both towers are open, but the farther up you go, the scarier the shows get. And it’s PG-13, so I wouldn’t take your little ones up there.”
She got down on her knees and looked very seriously at the miniature witch and wizard in front of her. “The midgets all have candy, and the louder you yell ‘trick or treat’ the more candy they’ll give you.”
Vicki approached from his right. “I need to hire her to host all my parties.”
“Yeah,” Sid said as Ella went to greet a family of fairies. “But I don’t think your dwarfs will appreciate her telling the kids to yell loud.”
“Oh well. They’re actors used to doing strange things. The one upstairs with the sword swallower yells back. Most of the kids run away before he can give them any candy. Shame because he’s got full size candy bars. Those kids brave enough to wait it out are rewarded. Now where’s my snake lady?” She put her hands on her hips and waited for a response. The effect was quite humorous as she was a half man, half woman. The bearded side of her face did not match the lipstick.
“On her way. I’m a little hungry. What do you recommend?”
That got a smile out of her. She had bragged the last two weeks about the food. She found it hard to believe Sid had never been to a fair. “The corn dogs are to die for. Or you could try the funnel cakes. Everything is good. Go pick.”
Sid dodged midgets and screaming kids and made his way into the great room, nearly running into a man on stilts. The bright green and blue cotton candy caught his eye, so he tried that first. The fibers stuck to his fingers and tasted sickly sweet. Not his kind of food. Ella would probably eat it, though. Sid snatched a corn dog from a man in torn clothes with a permanent snarl and turned to go to the entryway when he caught sight of Aspen.
Her back was to his, but his heart stopped anyway. Above her bare feet, her marking stood out. On her left ankle she had an airbrushed tattoo, but it was bright green and contained her name instead of his. Her own tribute to Obsidian.
She wore sheer green gypsy pants that hung low on her hips. Her nearly bare back had another airbrushed tattoo, a black dragon with a golden belly. Her black-dyed hair curled and hung down to her shoulder blades.
Sid snuck up on her from behind and slid his hand across her bare stomach and pulled her toward him.
“How am I supposed to host a party when you look this hot? All I want to do is take you to my room,” Sid whispered in her ear. She laughed, and he found himself face-to-face with beady black eyes and a forked tongue. The snake stared at him for a half second before it opened his mouth and hissed. Sid let go of Aspen and turned her around.
She looked even better, except for the snake weaving itself around her body, into her hair, and down her back. They were a few species dragons couldn’t communicate with. Snakes were one of them.
“I don’t think your snake likes me much.”
“Yeah, probably not.”
“Course, I don’t like h
im much either. I’m a little jealous that he gets to crawl all over you. I was under the impression I was the only one who got to do that.”
She blushed and wove her fingers into his. “Come on, I want to see the rest of the party.”
He held her at arm’s length and looked her up and down again, wondering how the hell he’d manage to stare at her all night and refrain from doing things not fit for the public eye. His eyes trailed down to her ankles, and his heart froze. He hadn’t thought about the implications.
“You need to cover your tattoos.”
“Why?”
“My sister is coming tonight, and she can’t see those.”
Aspen’s eyes bugged. “Your sister is coming? You mean I get to meet another dragon?”
“Yeah, but, for obvious reasons, she can’t know that you know about us.”
He stopped one of the actors who had leather cuffs around his wrists.
“Can I have those?”
“Your party. Sure.” The man took off the cuffs and handed them to him.
Aspen fastened the cuffs to her ankles, and Sid sighed. Pearl would have a fit if she saw the markings.
“You hungry?” Sid asked, hoping for another corn dog.
Aspen shook her head and dragged him up the stairs. They played a few games and he won her a stuffed dragon by hitting a balloon with a sharp dart. At the end of the east wing they visited the fortuneteller. She gave them their fortunes together. Told them they’d get married, have ten kids, and live until they were a hundred. Sid grimaced because he already passed his five hundredth birthday and would be lucky to see another one.
Aspen thought the night couldn’t have been more perfect. Sid looked adorable with his bushy mustache and top hat. Except it tickled her cheek when he kissed her. The snake Vicki’s people loaned her was docile, except he didn’t like Sid. Although the feeling was mutual. After a visit to the fortuneteller, they were about to make their way up the towers to see the truly freaky and weird when Sid stiffened next to her.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
He nodded, but his eyes were on a tall girl with dark red hair. She wore a golden dress with long sleeves and showed generous cleavage. Her arm was looped through the arm of a man who had the same dark skin and black hair as Sid, but his hair was cut short.
“Aspen,” she said, untangling herself from the man and taking Aspen’s hands in hers. “It’s fabulous to finally meet you. Sid has told me so much about you. You are every bit as gorgeous as he said. And what a clever costume.” Aspen couldn’t tell if she was being genuine or if she was mocking her in some way. Sid had a frown on his face. Or at least Aspen thought he did. It was hard to tell from the mustache. “Sid, aren’t you going to introduce us?”
He put his arm around Aspen’s waist. Her snake, who had been hiding in her hair, peeked his head out and hissed at Sid again. Sid gripped her ribs a little harder, but he didn’t move from her side.
“Aspen, this is my sister Pearl and her fiancé Raja.”
Raja grimaced when Sid said fiancé.
“Wow, Sid didn’t tell me there was going to be a wedding in the family. When’s the big day?” Aspen asked.
Pearl looped her arm through Raja’s again and put on a sugary smile. “We haven’t set a date yet.” She looked at Sid. “Raja’s dying to see Theo again. Why don’t you help find him, and I’ll stay and get to know Aspen a little better?”
Sid pulled Aspen back as a couple of kids ran down the hall. “Aspen and I were just about to go up the tower. Why don’t you join us, and then we’ll all go and find Theo.” He didn’t wait for Pearl’s response.
Before Aspen knew what was happening, Sid had her halfway up the stairs. The first room they stopped at had purple fabric draped on the walls. Eerie green lamps hung from the ceiling and a vintage desk with an ancient sewing machine sat in the corner. A woman with a pixie face and bobbed hair sat beneath the chandelier. She would’ve been cute but for the eight legs curling under her skirt. She flexed three of the legs and wrapped one around her neck. Aspen grimaced, and Pearl spoke.
“Sid, this is disgusting. Why would you have a party with this filth?”
“If you don’t like it, go back downstairs and wait. We’ll be done soon.”
“I’m not leaving you alone with that girl anymore.”
Pearl had been so friendly so far that her words surprised Aspen. She looked at Sid. He and Pearl were staring at each other. Probably having a conversation in their heads that she wasn’t invited to. Not fair. Aspen put herself in between Sid and Pearl. “Look, you have something you want to say to me. Why don’t you just say it?”
Pearl pursed her lips and glared. Raja looked at Sid and raised his eyebrows.
Sid spoke up. “Pearl, it’s obvious I shouldn’t have invited you. I’m sorry you have a problem with Aspen, but I think it’s time for you to leave.”
Wuss. He didn’t want Aspen to listen to what Pearl had to say. “No, Sid, I think we need to hear her out. She’s your sister. I don’t want to create a rift. Why won’t she let you be alone with me anymore?”
“He’s not allowed to be with you. You threaten everything.”
“Look, I know a lot more than you think I do. We’ll figure it out.”
Pearl sneered. “There is where you are wrong, sweetheart. I don’t know what Sid told you, but you don’t know anything, or you would stay away from him. He’s been promised to another. You threaten that. Stay out of his life.”
Aspen felt as if someone had slapped her. Not two weeks ago, Sid practically swore he’d spend the rest of his life with her. What had Pearl meant when she said he was promised to someone else?
Pearl turned and swept down the stairs with Raja following.
“Sid, what the hell was that all about? Is there some dragon waiting for you?”
Sid pressed his lips against hers. “Who she wants me to end up with, and who I’m supposed to be with are two different things. Don’t worry about it.” He pulled away. “But I do need to take Theo to her so she’ll stay out of our hair. Wait for me. I’ll be back in a few.”
Aspen turned and saw the spider woman scuttling across the floor. Her stomach churned. No, thank you. She made her way down the spiral staircase to the second floor. Aspen could barely get through the hallway. People were everywhere. She figured she could wait by the fire-eaters. They were far more entertaining than spider woman.
Easier said than done. The crowd wouldn’t move. At the end of the hall, Aspen saw the fortuneteller talking to Tori. Aspen’s heart twisted. How she wished Tori would talk to her again. Determined to make up with her, Aspen pushed her way through the crowd and found herself in the middle of several kids yelling “trick or treat” to a harried midget who was trying to control the line for the fortuneteller. Aspen found a chair and waited for Tori.
A short way down the hall stood Rowan. Next to him, laughing, was the most beautiful woman Aspen had ever seen. She had shoulder length platinum hair waved and curled to frame her heart-shaped face. Her smoky blue eyes never left Rowan’s face.
The woman smiled, revealing perfectly straight, bright white teeth. She wore a blood-red strapless dress that revealed a tiny waist and flared out to her calves. And of course, the requisite three-inch black pumps. Aspen could never get away with wearing something like that. But women like her, women who belonged in a Victoria’s Secret catalog, could. Why was she talking to Rowan? Probably waiting for a boyfriend or something.
Aspen was so enthralled with the Rowan/Hottie show, she nearly missed Tori when she came off the dais. Tori had gone with a traditional sexy French maid costume. A little cliché, but that was Tori.
“Tori, wait.”
She spun around. “Oh, it’s you. You’ll have to excuse me. The fortuneteller didn’t say anything about back-stabbing best friends, so I suppose we have no future.”
“I’m sorry, and I miss you. Please talk to me.”
She cocked her head. “No, I don’t think so. A real
friend wouldn’t have done what you did. Excuse me. I need to find my date.”
Tori disappeared down the hall, and Aspen watched, debating whether to go after her. She wondered who her date was. Probably a guy from Bozeman. Aspen wandered down the hall and decided it would be a good time to find Sid. She hadn’t seen him since he went after Pearl. Aspen guessed his sister was giving him a hard time.
She stopped in front of the sword swallowers juggling their weapons. If she asked nicely, would they show her how to do it? Probably not, but she could talk to Vicki about it later. A finger traced the tattoo on her back. Aspen shivered. Then the hand lay flat and circled her belly drawing her back. It had to be Sid. But the smell was different. Vodka and sweat instead of cedar. Aspen’s snake slithered out from her hair and hissed at her groper, who was probably one of the creepers Vicki hired. His hand slipped, and she moved away from him toward the swords.
Aspen didn’t want to see who it was, because being violated, even mildly, reminded her too much of Marc. What a way to complete the horrid night. Not only had Sid’s sister yelled at her and Tori still wasn’t talking to her, now she had someone who thought they could put their hands all over her without invitation.
Her groper grabbed her hand and pulled her back. “Aspen, it’s been too long,” his slimy voice slurred in her ear. “Who knew I’d find you here? At my cousin’s party no less. And looking like you want your clothes taken off. Come with me. Maybe you’ll enjoy it this time.”
Aspen froze. It was Marc. How was this possible? She thought it was just some creepy carny.
She took deep calming breaths and focused on her aikido training. Go with the attack, don’t fight it. Go with the flow. Against her better judgment, she let Marc pull her toward him. When he had his arms wrapped around her, she adjusted, and he laughed thinking she was trying to get closer to him. But her adjustment was for her benefit, not his, since she’d have an easier time getting a grip on him this way. Aspen was shocked at how clear her mind was. Maybe Sid was having a good effect on her.
Marc moved her into a clearing with less people. Grabbing the hand that held her, she ducked and flipped him over her. He landed with a crash, and she ran. Aspen weaved through the crowd seeking one thing. The swords. Marc wouldn’t assault her again. She’d kill him first.
Obsidian (The Dragon Kings) Page 16
