“So, if I spend my fortune traveling the world, that’s okay, as long as I’m happy?” Ruby asked quickly.
“As long as you do something worthwhile on the way and not just eat and sleep like you do now on the weekends,” Fiona replied tartly, back to her normal self.
Harlan chuckled. “You asked.”
“I thought it was worth a try,” Ruby said with a grin. “But honestly, if you can hang on a year or two, Harlan, I’ll take the internship.”
“You?” Fiona asked and rolled her eyes. “I refer back to the sleeping until late on the weekends.”
“That’s my thinking time,” Ruby replied. “I have some great ideas I’d love to put into practice.”
“Like what?” Fiona asked.
“Let me lie in bed for a couple more weekends, without yelling at me to get up, and I’ll tell you.” Ruby grinned, and the atmosphere lifted.
“So, what’s this man of yours like?” Harlan asked.
“Mom told you he has a baby?” Sapphi asked.
A flicker of disapproval passed over Harlan’s face before he covered it. “She did. I’m afraid I’m an old-fashioned guy. I always waited for Fiona to come along.” He sighed thoughtfully. “But as time went by, and the years passed…I suppose I can see the need to procreate.”
“You adopted Chrysi, that was your way of procreating.” Sapphi hated the thought of Harlan being disappointed in her mate before he’d even met him.
“I did. But it’s not the same as passing on your shifter genes. If I hadn’t met Fiona, and had Harlan Jr., my bloodline would have died out. And I’d come to terms with that.” Harlan’s gaze settled on Sapphi. She loved him like a real father and his opinion meant a great deal to her. “I won’t judge Alex on his past, if that’s what you’re worried about. But now that you’ve found each other, he needs to understand he’s a one-woman man.”
“He’d better, or he’ll have me to deal with,” Sapphi said quickly.
“That’s my girl, never let a man think he can tell you what to do,” Fiona said firmly.
“I know one man who tells you what to do,” Harlan said bravely, causing Ruby to snigger.
“It was nice knowing you, Dad.” Ruby patted him on the back. “No wonder we had pizza for lunch, if I’d known it was your last meal, I’d have added extra pepperoni.”
“Pitha, please,” Harlan Jr. said expectantly.
“Harlan, you just think you tell me what to do,” Fiona answered haughtily as she passed another piece of pizza to her son.
Harlan leaned over and kissed her cheek. “I wasn’t talking about me, sweetheart. I meant our son.”
Ruby and Sapphi collapsed with laughter at Fiona’s face. “He doesn’t count, he’s not a man yet.”
“But when he is, he’ll still wrap you around his finger,” Harlan replied, stroking the young boy’s head. “And you wouldn’t have it any other way. He’s melted that cold hard heart of yours.” He winked at the girls and ducked out of the way as Fiona threw a cloth at him.
“Someone will be sleeping in the barn tonight, won’t they, Harlan Jr.?” Fiona shot daggers with her eyes, but there was a twinkle in them that convinced Harlan it was safe to come back to the table.
“You know I love you to the moon and back.” He hugged Fiona, who hugged him back. She’d been so stiff at showing affection when Sapphi had first met the old dragon, as she was affectionately known by the other shifters in Bear Creek. Yet she had evolved into a caring mom, who loved her children, adopted or biological.
“I know.” Fiona planted a peck on his cheek. “It’s why I put up with you.”
Harlan got up from the table. “Come on, Sapphi, you can help me with the dishes.”
“I have some sleep to catch up on,” Ruby said as she escaped from the table.
“That had better be code for doing your homework,” Fiona called after her.
“If that’s what you want to believe, I won’t stop you,” Ruby’s voice called from halfway up the stairs.
“Is it easy loving someone else’s children?” Sapphi asked, the words spilling out of her mouth, before she could stop them.
Both Fiona and Harlan looked at each other, and then exchanged glances. Harlan set the dirty plates down on the counter and took her hand, guiding her back to the table. “Loving a child is a magical thing. We love you the same as we love Harlan here.” He looked at Sapphi as he asked, “Do you feel as if we don’t love you as much?”
Sapphi shook her head. “But you had Chrysi, and Fiona was used to helping other children. What if I can’t love Archie?”
Fiona pushed Sapphi’s hair away from her face. “When I met you, I was scared, but I knew I had enough love in my heart for you and Ruby. And you returned that love. You have a big heart, Sapphi. You can do it.”
“Love doesn’t happen overnight, Sapphi. Even the mating bond isn’t a miracle worker. Yes, you have that instant attraction, the sense that the other person makes you whole. But love, deep love, takes time. The same with children. It grows, until you can’t remember a time when you didn’t love them.”
Sapphi nodded. “I’m scared, everything is changing, nothing is how I thought it would be. At eighteen I thought I knew everything. At twenty, I think I know nothing.”
“That’s when you know you’ve matured. Because you’re willing to accept that you aren’t invincible. You have so much to learn. Your mom and I don’t know everything, and we’re a lot older than you,” Harlan said gently. “Although Mom might think she does.” He winked at Fiona, who smiled softly.
“Open your heart. Enjoy this new experience, it’s big and scary, but wonderful, too.” Fiona took Harlan’s hand. “I waited so long for love. So very long. I thought I was alone, and now I have a family.” She sniffed loudly. “Sentimental fool.”
“You or me?” Harlan asked gently, as he hunkered down between his son and Fiona. “You made my world complete. All of you.” He looked up at Sapphi. “So the answer is yes, you can love other children, other people, that aren’t your blood relatives, just as much.”
“Thanks.” Sapphi went to Harlan and Fiona and hugged them close. “Why don’t you leave me to the dishes? I’d like some time alone to think.”
“Are you sure?” Harlan asked.
“Perfectly,” Sapphi replied.
As she ran the hot water into the sink, excitement crept through her. chasing away all her fears. It was like the first time her dragon had stood on the edge of a cliff and jumped off, trusting in her wings to carry her safely down to the ground. Sometimes you had to take a chance to know you were living your life to the fullest.
But then Sapphi knew that in this case, if she did fall, her family would be there to catch her.
Chapter Six – Alex
“What do you think, Archie?” Alex angled his body sideways to look at Archie, who was seated in his car seat in the back of their new SUV. It was a nondescript black Ford, just like a thousand other family SUVs. Not Alex’s first choice of car, but perfect for a growing family.
And perfect for blending in with other vehicles on the road if whoever was after Archie and Kim turned up in Bear Creek. He sighed and looked at his reflection in the rearview mirror. Why wasn’t Kim here? Why couldn’t he contact her? And what the hell was he supposed to do?
For now, he was going to get out of the car, knock on the door of the house where his mate lived, and eat dinner with her family. All while skirting around the awkward questions of why he had a baby. Another big sigh. Later, when he was alone with Sapphi, he was going to tell her everything. She was his mate and she deserved to know what she was possibly taking on if she accepted Alex into her life.
Opening the car door, he took a deep breath, letting the scent of the pine woods surrounding the house penetrate his mind. There was nothing as refreshing to the soul as the scent of pine. Or the sight of his mate.
She stood at the open door, surrounded by a halo of light. “Evening,” Alex called as he opened the rear door and
took Archie out of his seat.
“Hi.” She sounded breathy and nervous, which stirred his emotions, and his arousal. Her eagerness to see him mirrored his own. “Hi there, Archie.” She gave the young boy a small wave, and Archie lifted his hand into a fist and waggled it.
“That’s the best you are going to get,” Alex told her.
“Good enough for me.” Sapphi reached out her arms and Archie leaned forward, going to her with a happy squeal. “Do you want to come and meet Harlan Jr.? He has some toys you can play with.”
“You look beautiful.” Alex followed her into the house, trying not to stare at her full figure. As she walked, her hips sashayed, and he longed to reach out for her and draw her into his arms. But tonight, he was going to be on his best, gentlemanly behavior, he needed Sapphi’s family to like him. Because they were going to be his family, too. Once this was all over, he and Sapphi could plan the rest of their lives together.
“Thank you,” Sapphi cast a look over her shoulder. “Come through.”
Sapphi led him into a living room, where a young toddler was playing with a pile of bricks, building them as high as he could before they all fell down. Archie was immediately enthralled by the game, and reached out, wanting to be put down.
“Play nice,” Alex told Archie as Sapphi set him on the floor.
“Hello, Alex, I’m Harlan.” A man, who Alex took to be Sapphi’s dad, entered the room, his hand extended in welcome.
“Good to meet you, Harlan.” Alex shook his hand and grinned.
“Can I get you a drink? Beer maybe?” Harlan asked.
“Just one, I’m driving,” Alex said. “Thank you.”
“You are welcome. My son and I are looking forward to more male company. We’ll outnumber the women.”
“Is that all you care about?” Fiona asked, walking up behind Harlan.
“More of us to watch the game on TV,” Harlan replied, leaving the room and returning with a bottle of beer. “Dinner will be in five minutes.”
“Thanks.” Alex took a drink. “That’s good.”
“Bear Creek Honey Beer. It’s brewed here in town by Carter Eden.” Harlan glanced at Sapphi, and then asked his next question. “He owns the cabin. In the mountains.”
“Ahh,” Alex liked Harlan’s style, subtle. “Archie and I stopped over there. When a diaper has to be changed, it has to be changed.” Harlan’s expression softened, his suspicions fading. Yet he had every right to be suspicious.
“The girls said you left in a hurry.” This statement from Fiona, her shrewd expression weighing him up.
“I thought I was trespassing.” Alex took another gulp of his beer. “I admit it was wrong, with hindsight, but the feeling I got…panicked me.” He glanced over at Sapphi. “I didn’t expect to find my mate, and I certainly didn’t expect to find dragons.”
“We’ve all presumed we were the last of our kind.” Harlan looked down at his son. “And now Harlan Jr. and Archie will each have a friend to play with, too.”
Alex looked away, hating the lie he was caught up in. Tonight, he would set everything straight, but he couldn’t announce the truth here in front of everyone. He wanted to speak to Sapphi alone first, explain everything to her, and let her make her own decision. Families had a habit of exploding first and asking questions later.
“Where are your parents?” Sapphi asked, coming to sit next to him, with a look aimed at her parents that said back off.
“They live in a mountainous region along the Himalayas.” His statement was met with surprise from everyone in the room.
“They’re alive?” Fiona asked, clutching hold of the back of the sofa. “There’s more of us.”
“One more. At least that I know of for sure. My mom is a dragon shifter, my dad is a human. They met late in life, and I’m the only child.” He looked down at his bottle of beer. “My mom miscarried several times before I was born.”
“That’s terrible.” Sapphi reached out for his hand and held it in hers. “They must love you very much.”
“They do. They would wrap me in tissue paper and protect me from the world if they had their way. But I needed to be out in the world, to make something of myself. Life isn’t for hiding away. And I didn’t want to wait until it was too late to have lots of children of my own. There are so few of us left.”
“That does explain things,” Harlan said, his voice filled with sympathy as he looked at the two young boys playing together. “Let’s eat.”
Alex stood up. “There’s something I need to explain.”
“No, there isn’t,” Harlan said gently. “At least not to us. You and Sapphi are the ones who need to talk. After dinner, you two kids go fly and we’ll entertain the young ones.”
“You don’t mean me?” Ruby asked sharply.
“You are young, even though you don’t think you are,” Fiona told her daughter. “And if you want a bedtime story, I’ll read you one.”
“I might take you up on that,” Ruby said as Fiona lifted Harlan Jr. into her arms. “Would you have had more children, if you were younger?”
Ruby’s sudden question rattled Fiona, who clutched her hands tightly around her son. “Yes. I wish I’d met Harlan when we were young enough to breed like rabbits. But I’m blessed and incredibly grateful we have this young man in our lives. And you and Sapphi make our family complete.”
“You aren’t Ruby and Sapphi’s parents?” Alex asked, confused by Ruby’s question.
“No,” Sapphi answered. “Our parents died. Fiona and Harlan took us in after our stepmother tried to steal our treasure.”
“But they are our children now,” Fiona said possessively. “We will protect them, and their interests, as if they were our own blood.”
“And Sapphi is my mate.” Alex reached for Sapphi’s hand, and she took his; a tingling feeling where their skin touched spread throughout his body, igniting his desire. “I can’t believe how lucky I am.”
Sapphi blushed. “It’s going to take some getting used to.” But her shy smile told him she experienced the same longing that had settled on his soul since the moment he’d locked eyes with her across the diner.
“Come on, the food will be cold!” Harlan called from the kitchen.
They made small talk as they ate. Alex shared stories of his childhood in the mountains. His parents had ranged far and wide, until settling in the mountains. This had given Alex a varied education, mainly through homeschooling. He’d ridden the great waves of Australia, crossed the Sahara Desert on his mom’s back, and lived in caves deep in the Himalayas, where temperatures plummeted so that the dragons had icicles on their tails.
“What was your favorite experience?” asked Sapphi, in awe of his travels.
“I can’t pick. Each was so different.” He leaned toward her. “I’d like to share some of those places with you.”
“I’d love that. I haven’t really been anywhere. Our parents raised us like any other child. They didn’t want us to see ourselves as different. Perhaps because they believed we were the last of our kind.” She placed her knife and fork on her plate and clasped her hands together. “I wish my mom was here. She longed to know others of her kind.”
“I’m sure she’s looking down on you and is proud of the two young ladies she called daughters,” Harlan said gently.
“I hope so.” Sapphi swallowed, her eyes misting with tears. Alex wished he could bring her parents back to life and make everything perfect for her. Instead, he diverted attention away from her while she composed herself.
“That was delicious,” Alex said, setting his knife and fork down on his plate. “Can I help clean up?”
“No!” Fiona said quickly. “You two go and have fun. We’ll do the dishes and keep Archie occupied.”
“That would be great, if you don’t mind.” Alex was already out of his seat, dropping a kiss on Archie’s head while taking hold of Sapphi’s hand and pulling her with him. “All his stuff is in the bag I left by the door.”
“
Thanks, you guys,” Sapphi said. Her mood lifted and her face flushed as they raced out of the kitchen, giggling like a couple of fools. Excitement filled every atom of his being as they burst out into the cool night air. Sapphi shivered and caught hold of him, her eyes bright in the moonlight that filtered through the clouds. “Ready?”
“To fly?” Alex asked.
“What else?” she asked coyly. Then she pulled away from him, running around the side of the house, with a backward glance that urged him to follow.
He did, her scent filling his senses, the warmth of her touch still searing his skin. Skidding to a halt, he prowled closer as she stood in the middle of an open clearing, her face turned to the sky as the moon crested the clouds, spilling its rays down on her. She looked like an angel, an ethereal being who didn’t belong in this world.
As he took a step closer, the air shimmered around her, and a thrill passed through him as static electricity filled the air. Sapphi slowly faded from this world, before returning an instant later as a dragon, blue scales shimmering as the moonlight worshiped this magnificent beast.
“You are incredible.” Alex stepped toward her slowly, his hand outstretched. She bent her head and breathed her warm breath on his skin. His anticipation grew, he wanted to fly with her, to conquer the skies, two dragons, whose souls were joined as one.
Alex stepped away from Sapphi, who moved backward toward the trees, to give him space to shift. She wanted to see his dragon, and he didn’t want to disappoint her, not on their first date.
Power surged through him as he released his dragon, the air snapping and crackling around him. Some might say he was showing off, but he wanted to impress his true mate.
Chapter Seven – Sapphi
The air filled with static electricity as Alex shifted into his dragon. Excitement filled her, a thrill that made her want to draw in a large gulp of air and spew it out as flames. But the thought of an irate Fiona stopped her from scorching the house and surrounding forest.
Single Daddy Dragon Page 4
