The Accidental Dragon

by Dakota Cassidy

  When Mick began digging at her, poking at her again, she’d welcomed it because she didn’t know how to deal with the other Mick. The sad Mick. The deflated, sometimes broody Mick.

  Mick had always been the less introspective of the two of them, or so she’d thought. Noah was the one who occasionally withdrew, brooding about one thing or another, but Mick had been the clown of the pair. That had died with Noah.

  He did a good job of trying to cover it up, but there was always that niggle, something she couldn’t quite put her finger on that was missing in action.

  A knock on the bathroom door startled her. “Tessa?” Mick said. “You comin’ out anytime soon? How long does it take for you to fix that mug?”

  She smiled. Her mug. He teased her about it often, had as far back as she could remember. That was the old Mick—the one who rose up from the ashes of the remnants of the days when their families had picnicked together, shared holidays together, vacationed together.

  She popped the door open, the steam escaping and shrouding Mick’s face for a moment before it cleared, and he was looking at her with eyes full of concern. Eyes she’d fall so far into she’d drown in, if he’d let her. “What now? Are you reading minds? Scaling tall buildings in a single bound? Catching bullets with your teeth?”

  He grinned, his perfect white teeth flashing. “Not yet, but the day is young. I just came to tell you there’s pizza. Figured you had to be hungry.”

  “Pizza? Where did you get pizza at this time of night? Did Angelo open up the restaurant at this hour because Nina threatened to chew his tonsils out by way of throat?”

  Mick grinned again, leaning his head against the doorframe. “No. But it’s equally as fantastic.”

  “Did Angelo survive the blunt force trauma?” Worse, was his soul still intact?

  Mick chuckled. She liked when he laughed; it always did something funny to her insides. “Angelo had nothing to do with it. She flew.”

  She flew. He said that as if it was natural, as though he’d said she’d jogged. “What?”

  “Nina flew to New York and got some. It’s pretty damned good. Come have some with us.”

  Her eyes widened. “You do realize you just said that like she did nothing more than throw a DiGiorno in the oven, don’t you?”

  Mick sobered, his eyes serious, his luscious lips flattening. “It’s our reality now, Tessa. C’mon. Come eat. It’s been a long day, and if those wings of yours come out again, you’ll need your strength.”

  She pulled the door open all the way and followed his broad back out into the kitchen, where everyone had gathered at her breakfast bar with the shiny gray and black granite countertops.

  They chatted as though the world hadn’t just torn apart at the seams. As though no one had just sprouted wings, Frank hadn’t disappeared into thin air, and Nina hadn’t just flown to New York to get pizza.

  They chatted like they were all old friends.

  With a warm smile, Wanda held up a plate with a slice of pizza covered in ham and pineapple. Tessa’s favorite. “Mick told us what you liked best. Nina made sure she brought it back.”

  Nina sat on the plump sectional couch with Joe-Joe, stroking the dog’s head while he looked at the vampire with utter adoration in his eyes. “Don’t go thinkin’ I did that out of the goodness of my undead heart or anything other than avoiding the potential bitch-fest Marty and Wanda would have if I didn’t do their BFF bidding. I did it because they made me do it. I can’t even eat fucking pizza.”

  Take that, you waste of skin and bones.

  Tessa bit into the slice of pizza, realizing the moment it hit her taste buds just how hungry she was. “So I don’t owe you a soul sucking? Because you really went way far out of your way to make sure I had ham and pineapple on my pizza. That says something. Like maybe someday, we can have a conversation that involves minimal snarling.”

  Nina held up her middle finger. “You’re gonna owe me that snippy tongue of yours if you keep it up. Shut up and eat. You look like shit.”

  Tessa fought a giggle. She was probably delirious from the day’s events, but there was something heartwarming about Nina telling her to shut up. “So, where do we stand now?”

  Mick’s eyes caught hers from across the room. “We don’t know.”

  He was doing his best to avoid talking about what she knew they’d both heard just before Frank disappeared.

  Marty smiled at her, patting her hand, looking refreshed after her shower at the inn. “How about you just eat right now—refuel, and we’ll talk some more after?”

  If Mick wasn’t going to say it, she would. “Because we need to talk about Noah.”

  Mick visibly stiffened, his jaw clenching tighter as he chewed his slice of pizza.

  Marty’s brow furrowed. She tucked a strand of her vanilla-blond hair behind her ear, her ring flashing as it caught the beams of the recessed lighting. “Who’s Noah?”

  “My dead brother.”

  Mick clapped a hand on the granite counter, making her jump. “Jesus, Tessa! Do you have to say it like that?”

  Tessa dropped her plate on the counter. “Say it like it’s the truth? He’s been gone for three years now. He’s dead. That’s just the reality. Quit acting like you didn’t hear what I heard. So the question is, how did Frank know about him?”

  Mick wiped his mouth with a napkin, crushing it up and lobbing it into the garbage can with an angry toss. “I know he’s dead, T. I get it.”

  “So how does some random guy who can make himself disappear know about Noah?” She was pushing, because the only way to get a rise out of Mick was to push, and they needed to acknowledge what Frank said.

  Wanda, also freshly showered and utterly gorgeous in crisp slacks and a black silk shirt, held up a hand. “Hold the phone, scaly ones—Frank knows your deceased brother?” She turned to Tessa, sympathy in her eyes when she grabbed her hand and squeezed it. “My condolences, of course.”

  Tessa rounded the counter, glaring at Mick before she answered. “I don’t know. For all I know, Frank and Noah could be having beers at the afterlife bar and grill. All I know is, both Mick and I heard him yell, ‘No, Noah!’ just before he disappeared. How does someone I’ve never met before, who has the ability to disappear into thin air, know my brother?”

  “You don’t know that he meant our Noah, Tessa,” Mick scoffed.

  Tessa rolled her eyes at him. “Right. So it was just a random choice out of all the names in the Big Book of Baby Names he could have chosen? You’re delusional, Mick. This has some connection to Noah.” The more she thought about it, the more she was convinced it was true.

  Mick shook his head. “I can’t sit here and listen to this.”

  “Then go home!” she retorted.

  Nina popped up off the couch, strolling over to Mick and making the face that after less than twenty-four hours, Tessa knew meant shut up or prepare to die. “Hey, the both of you—quit this shit now or soul sucking is gonna be the least of your worries. Mick, I don’t know what the fuck your shiz is about, but I sense avoidance. In fact, I could scoop it up and lick it off a spoon. Fuck that. Everything is subject to suspicion as of this second. So whatever your hang-up is with her brother, can it, and let’s figure this out.”

  Mick fell silent, his brooding anger at being openly checked by Nina palpable.

  Wanda took Tessa’s hand and pulled her to one of the stools lining the breakfast bar. “Tell me about Noah, would you? I always wanted a brother. I have a terrific sister named Casey, but a brother would’ve been lovely.”

  Tessa’s throat tightened. She’d opened the can of worms, but now that she’d spilled them all over the floor, her words wouldn’t come.

  “He died in a fire three years ago,” Mick offered, his words tight like they always were, thick with something he just wouldn’t or couldn’t share with her.

  Wanda smiled sympathetically while Marty leaned in, giving her a quick hug. “Oh, Tessa. I’m so sorry. How painful. Are your parents s
till with you?”

  Tessa shook her head. Now she’d really done it. “No. Both of them are gone.”

  “And he was all you had left?” Nina asked, her voice oddly soothing and minus a snarl.

  “Yes.”

  Nina was up and beside her in a second, giving her shoulder a squeeze Tessa didn’t even cringe beneath. “Dude, I’m ever so fucking sorry.”

  Tessa shook her head to rid herself of the tears that so desperately wanted to fall from her eyes. “Frank said, ‘No, Noah’ just before he disappeared. I know Mick heard him, too. How, out of all the names in the world, could he have known Noah’s name?”

  “Good question,” Wanda murmured. “Did any of you smell anything unusual about Frank? Obviously, he’s not human. So what is he?”

  Marty made a face. “I can’t get the smell of smoke out of my nose. Now I wish I’d sniffed him closer.”

  Nina bumped Marty’s shoulder. “Same here. I should have paid closer attention, but I couldn’t stop thinking about how he sounded like the dude who does Winnie-the-Pooh’s voice. Charlie loves Pooh Bear. We listen to the audiobooks all the time.”

  This vampire listened to Winnie-the-Pooh? What was next, long walks on the beach, cuddles on the couch? “It’s so odd you should say that. I thought the same thing about Frank’s voice, Nina. So who, in your world, has the ability to disappear like that?” she asked.

  Wanda shrugged like it was no big deal. “All sorts of people—in our world, anyway. Demons, genies. We need to get in touch with Casey and Darnell, maybe even Jeannie.”

  “Who’re they?” Mick asked, suddenly not as sullen.

  “Casey’s my sister and Darnell is a friend. Both demons. Jeannie’s, well, a genie.”

  Tessa gripped the edge of the countertop to anchor herself. They spoke of these paranormal entities so casually she had to remind herself she was still on planet Earth. “So what do we do after that? I mean, you say this dragon thing will probably never go away, right? How do we learn to control it? Live with it until we find out more about Frank? We can’t go around setting things on fire.”

  Wanda began cleaning up the debris from the pizza. “Here’s what I say. You look exhausted, Tessa. You’ve had a traumatic day, seen things you never even believed were real, got yourself some wings. You need rest. You’ll probably need a lot of rest if your wings are going to sprout again—because that looks like it’s going to take some getting used to. Now, I’m going to suggest we stay with you so we’re close by if something comes up. Or if Frank comes back looking for his spice. I’ve already checked us out of your adorable inn here in town, so protesting is futile.”

  Mick moved forward, his dark hair gleaming under the recessed lights of her kitchen. “I can look out for her.”

  “The same way you looked out for my store?” She regretted the words the instant they came out. She was tired and cranky, and her bad mood was seeping from her brain via her mouth.

  Marty popped her lips like Tessa’s mother used to. “That’s uncalled-for, and you know it. Stop being pissy and taking stabs at Mick for something that was an accident. A big, hunky man is offering to protect you. Where I come from, you don’t let something like that go unnoticed. As to you, Mick.” She turned to face him. “You’re not equipped to deal with what we’re equipped to deal with. Sure, you’re the size of a semi, but we have the strength of an army. Between the three of us, we’re like having five NFL teams and a bulldozer with a wide array of foul language. So we stay. Now, go do whatever it is you do when you’re preparing for bed, and we’ll stand watch tonight.” She waved a hand at him and went to help Wanda clean up the rest of the kitchen.

  Tessa eyed Mick. Wasn’t it enough that she had to be in such close proximity to him because of their situation, but in the same house—overnight? She only had one bedroom. He couldn’t sleep out in the living room if Nina and the other women were going to stand watch.

  What if she had one of those dreams about him? The ones she’d been having since she was a young adult.

  The ones where he threw her on her bed and made wild love to her the way she’d wanted him to for as far back as she could remember?

  Without Noah’s memory between them.

  Just her and Mick.

  Tessa stared up at the ceiling, her back achy from her de-winging, her eyes grainy. The patterns made on the wall by the Malibu lights outside her window in her small garden usually soothed her, but tonight, she couldn’t find peace.

  Noah’s face, handsome and strong, kept floating in and out of her mind’s eye. She couldn’t stop thinking about him, and she knew Mick was doing the same. She just didn’t know how to broach the subject without him frying her house.

  “You awake?” Mick called from the floor. She’d lobbed some pillows and an old sleeping bag at him before climbing into bed and shutting off the light.

  “Yep.”

  “I can’t sleep, either.”

  She pulled the comforter under her chin and tried to forget what Mick looked like semi-naked in just some boxer briefs and flannel pajama bottoms. “It’s been a long day. I imagine our days aren’t going to get any shorter until we figure this out.”

  “He did say Noah’s name. I heard him.”

  “Yep. He did.” No more. It would only lead to an argument she wasn’t up to having.

  “You’re angry?” His silky-deep voice rumbled around the room with the question.

  “No.”

  “Yes, you are. I can hear it in your voice.”

  He didn’t mean she was angry about Frank. He meant she was angry because Noah was such a touchy subject. “I’m not angry anymore, Mick. I don’t know why you still are. Whenever we talk about Noah, you get your back up. So from now on, I’m choosing to remember him silently, because just the mention of his name sparks an argument I’m not willing to have with you anymore. Frank said his name. That makes no sense. I don’t even know how it relates to what’s happened to us, but my gut says it’s connected. If you don’t want to talk about it, even though it could be important, then don’t. But I’m going to—at least with those women.”

  “I miss the shit out of him.”

  That stung. Mick couldn’t claim all the rights to missing Noah, and he couldn’t behave like an ass because he did. “And I don’t? He was all I had left, Mick. You have your parents in Lauderdale and your sister in New York.”

  “You have me.”

  “On my back all the time. We have what I’m sure most psychologists would classify as a dysfunctional relationship. We’re not healthy for each other.”

  Nothing. Only the sound of Mick’s breathing. She imagined the rise and fall of his wide chest, stretched taut with olive-colored skin, rippled with muscle and just a sprinkle of hair between his pecs.

  For a hundred years she’d wanted to lay her head on it, rest, inhale the unique scent of Mick.

  But she wouldn’t, because he didn’t see her that way. It had begun with her silly childhood fantasies of chaste kisses and hand-holding, and had grown through the years into a full-on love affair in her mind. One she kept the deepest of secrets.

  “I’m sorry you feel that way,” he grumbled, his voice sexy and deep in the dark of her bedroom. She hadn’t been in a bedroom with Mick since she was five and she’d snuck into Noah’s room during a thunderstorm during one of their sleepovers.

  She was raw tonight. Raw with the events of the day, raw with the surreal revelations she’d witnessed—just raw. “It’s okay, Mick. Let’s let it go for now. Please.”

  Movement under the covers made her stiffen. Mick found her fingers and wound them around his. He squeezed before saying, “I just can’t.” His voice was tight, exactly like it had been the day he’d told her about Noah’s death. Tight and thick, and holding back whatever it was that kept him from talking about his best friend.

  A tear slipped from her eye and she fought a shudder of breath. Closing her eyes, she whispered, “I get it. But I can’t anymore, either. Go to sleep, Mick. I
’ll see you in the morning.”

  Tessa let his hand go and rolled over, tucking the comforter under her chin, and stared out at the night sky until her eyes grew heavy and she finally succumbed to sleep.

  * * *

  “TESSA!” Winnie-the-Pooh hissed in her ear.

  She batted at the voice with a weary hand. No-no wakey-wakey. She was having such a lovely dream about antiques shopping in Paris, and it didn’t involve Mick naked at all. Not even Winnie-the-Pooh was going to disturb her serenity.

  “Tessa! You must wake up!” Hands shook her shoulders. Soft, meaty hands.

  Her eyes popped open, making her sit up and scoot backward on the bed as her heart raced. Frank.

  Wait, Frank? In her bedroom?

  “Frank?”

  He pressed a chubby finger to his lips. “Shhh! You’ll wake up the very large man sleeping on the floor.”

  Fear crawled along her spine. How had Frank gotten into her room? How had he gotten past the trio of beasts right outside her bedroom door? Tessa opened her mouth to speak, only to find there was more to this than just Frank in her room.

  Frank was in her room, and Frank was floating.

  A ghost? No. Ghosts existed, too? Oh, sweet baby J. No more paranormal surprises, please. “How . . .” She fought to keep her voice low. “How are you doing this?” She waved her hands around, her eyes widening when they passed right though his form.

  His sweet face zoomed in, hovering right in front of hers. Hovering. Frank was hovering. Flying, lifting cars, fire-breathing. She was this close to supernatural overload. “Never mind that,” he said with urgency. “You have to listen before I disappear.”

  “Disappear?”

  “Yes! I can’t control my plane hopping. It’s a defect. A pathetic defect that even in death, I can’t seem to elude. So you must listen. Do you understand?”