by Jo Vanz
When she was done there, Mark had taken her to her office. She was working on the same floor as their other private investigators, which was just fine with her. Katie’s office was just about as big as her whole apartment. The walls were bare and painted white and a lone desk sat in front of a wall of windows. Mark had assured her that an interior decorator would be by in the next few days and that she had no limit on how much she could spend.
Katie did not know how she felt about all of this. In a way, she was enjoying the fact that she now had money and freedom to do just about anything, but at the same time it was overwhelming. She had come from nothing and slowly made her way in life. A lot of kids that grew up like she did ended up losing their lives to drugs. Now looking around, Katie knew how close she had been to going down that road and she was happy that she had stayed strong even when everything was going against her.
Shaking away her thoughts, Katie stood and grabbed her bag. When she stepped out onto the sidewalk, she stopped and released a sigh. She was glad that no one had tried to stop her and talk to her on the way out. She had not realized just how much tension had been running through her body until she stepped outside and it all just kind of rolled off of her. She just wanted to get home and relax again.
While walking home, Katie remembered that Paul was coming over again tonight. She could not stop the smile that spread across her face at the thought. She did not think there could be a better way to unwind from the day than to lay down in Paul’s arms.
Before Katie knew it, she was walking up the stairs to her apartment and unlocking the door. She sent up a quick prayer that Paul would be there sooner rather than later. As soon as she opened the door and stepped inside, she got the feeling that she was not alone anymore. She pushed the feeling aside and set her purse down on the table, turning and heading for the bedroom so that she could change her clothes before Paul got there.
Katie stopped dead in her tracks. Paul was standing just inside her bedroom looking at her. She started looking around the room. Paul had set out lit candles on almost every surface, sprinkled rose petals all over the floor and bed, and there was a huge teddy bear sitting in front of her closet. Katie tried to hold back the tears but knew there was no winning the battle. No one had ever done anything like this for her before. Finally, her eyes came back to Paul. If she had any doubts about falling for him, they were washed away. He stood there with a smile on his face that melted Katie’s heart.
“I thought we would celebrate your first day at a new job.” He walked over to Katie. “I also wanted you to know that I want to be with you, Katie. Not just because I need your help but because I really do like you.” He grabbed Katie and pulled her into his arms. She just melted. She did not know what to say so she wrapped her arms around him and held him close.
“Thank you,” she finally squeaked out. “I really need this after the long day that I had.” Katie felt Paul go rigid.
“What happened?” His voice was calm but Katie could feel that he was anything but.
“Why did you contact Mark last night?” Paul looked down at Katie before he released her and went to sit down on her bed. Katie wanted to follow him but decided it was best if she stayed where she was until she got answers from him. He could have at least given her a heads up.
Staring at his hands, Paul talked softly. “I have been around for a very long time. Mark may be my opposite but he is still a part of me. We talk to each other whenever something is bothering us. No matter how mad we might be at each other, he has always had my back. I needed to talk to him last night.” He paused to take a breath. “Last night when you broke down, I felt so helpless. I did not know what to do to make it better. So when I left here, I walked around aimlessly. When that did not help, I contacted him.” He looked up at her now. “I wish I had never contacted him. All it did was make me feel worse. But then you connected with me right after I talked to him and just seeing you made me feel a thousand times better. What are you doing to me, Katie? I have never felt this way before.”
Katie did not know what to say. Paul looked so lonely, a feeling she knew all too well. So she did the only thing she could think of. Katie walked over and took Paul’s face into her hands, leaning down and kissing him softly. He responded to her immediately, pulling her down onto his lap so that she was straddling him. Running his hands down her back, he pulled her closer to him. It felt as if the kiss would never end, and Katie did not want it to. She was truly breathing for the first time in her life.
Finally, Katie was able to gather enough strength to pull away. “I do not understand what is happening between us. It is all happening so quickly. It is intense, but I do know that I want to see where it is leading. You do not have to be alone anymore, Paul.” Katie sat there and waited for Paul to respond. She hoped that she had not been too straight forward. She had never done this before so it was all a learning experience.
“Me, too,” Paul whispered. “I have never wanted anything this much in my whole life.” He leaned back in and covered Katie’s mouth with his again. This time the kiss was filled with raw need. Before Katie knew what was happening, Paul was pulling her shirt off, leaving her with only her bra standing between their chests. Paul broke the kiss then and started kissing her neck, down to the top of her breast. He slipped a finger under her bra and then with a SNAP, it fell away.
Paul immediately bent down and took one nipple into his mouth while he covered the other with his rough hand. Katie threw her head back and moaned. Needing to touch him, she started pulling at his shirt. Paul stopped what he was doing to reach up and grab the collar of his shirt, ripping it open. Katie had never seen anything sexier. She would be willing to buy him shirts if he did that at least once a day.
Another moan escaped Katie as she ran her fingers down Paul’s chest. He sucked in a breath as he shivered beneath her touch. He quickly flipped them over so that Katie was laying on her back with Paul on top of her. He stood and removed first his pants and then hers.
Then he was back on top of her, kissing and running his tongue down her side slowly. When he reached her waist, he switched direction, slowly heading for her core. When one finger slid down, Katie moaned, arching her back to give him better access. “So wet,” Paul said in a husky voice as he slipped one finger inside of her. “Is that for me?”
Katie did not think she could speak so instead, she nodded her head franticly. Paul slid his finger out and then back in. Katie did not know how long he continued with this, she finally screamed as an orgasm hit. Paul pulled his finger out and put it straight into his mouth, moaning in delight. He then straightened himself and positioned his cock at her entrance, slowly pushing himself into her. “This is where I want to be.” Paul pulled out so only the tip was inside of her.
Then he slammed into her, picking up the pace with every thrust. When Katie thought she could not take it anymore, her world exploded. She grabbed onto Paul, digging her nails into his skin. She screamed out his name as another orgasm ripped through her but she was drowned out by Paul throwing his head back and screaming as he pumped his hot seed into her. He fell over, twisting as he came down. Katie figured it was so that his weight did not land on her. They laid there silently trying to catch their breaths.
After a few moments, Paul looked over at Katie. “See, this is an example of what I was saying earlier. I have had sex with a lot of women in my life, but nothing has ever felt as amazing as this.”
Katie laughed. “Yeah, I know what you mean.” Then she looked up at him. “Wait, how many women have you had sex with?”
Paul smiled. “I am over five hundred years old. Let’s just say I am fairly experienced in the bedroom department.”
Katie laughed. “Wow, so you really are robbing the cradle.” She laughed even harder when she looked over and saw the look of shock on Paul’s face. It was priceless.
“Soooo, in other news, how was your day?” Paul asked as he ran his hand up Katie’s arm, causing her to shudder under his touch.
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“It was all right, just long. During the meeting this morning, I found it really hard not to react to some of the things they were saying.” Katie rolled over and laid her head on his chest, letting out a sigh. This just all felt so right. It was like the planets of Katie’s world were finally lining up. She honestly felt happy, which meant that something was sure to go wrong and mess everything up.
“Like what?” Paul asked as he ran his fingers through her hair.
“Like when they started talking about your conversation with Mark. They are now looking for me and they do not even know it.” Paul went still but his heart started to race under Katie’s head.
“But they do not have any way to track you down. I never said anything that would give you away.” Katie could hear the fear in Paul’s voice as he spoke.
“You may have not meant to give anything away, but you did. When you told Mark that I had only just learned that I was a dragon, they figured the only way that was possible was if I was raised in the human foster care system.” Katie paused, letting Paul absorb that before she continued. “So they are having me search through the database with a fine-tooth comb. I am looking for any kids who show any signs of being a dragon. I know my name will show up but I can make sure that it stays off of their lists.” Katie looked up at Paul. He looked to be in deep thought. Laying her head back down on his chest, she said, “This is a good thing, Paul. It means they cannot use me against you.”
“What do you mean they cannot use you against me?” Paul sat them both up so that Katie was looking him in the eyes.
“They are trying to find me because Mark got the feeling that you are falling for me. That I might be a potential mate for you. So they figure if they bring me in then it will force you to turn yourself and the book in to them.” Katie’s palms started to sweat, she felt like Paul was going to explode at any second now.
“I will not let anything happen to you, Katie. I will do everything in my power to fix all of this.” Paul leaned over and gave her a quick kiss before standing up. He reached down and picked his pants up off the floor before slipping them over his legs.
“Where are you going?” Katie did not want Paul to leave. She was actually hoping that she would get the chance to fall asleep with his warm arms wrapped around her.
Paul smiled at Katie. “Do not worry, babe. I am not running away. I just thought you might like some food before I ravish you again.”
“Oh,” Katie was relieved. “Then I guess I should get dressed, too.” Katie hoped off the bed and went into her closet to find some clean shorts and a t-shirt.
“What would you like?” Paul asked as she was shimmying into her clothes.
“You mean besides you?” Katie stuck her head out of the closet when she heard Paul growl.
“Woman, watch yourself, or you will end up back in that bed and we will not take another break for the next four hours,” he said with a grin that wreaked havoc on Katie’s heart.
“You promise?” Katie winked at Paul.
“That’s it, I am ordering take-out.” Paul pulled his phone out of his pocket and walked into the other room. Katie just laughed and finished getting dressed.
On the way out of her bedroom, Katie looked over and saw the envelope sitting on her dresser. She knew that it held all the answers about her past but she could never bring herself to open it. Even now her heart started to race at the thought of opening it. Katie picked it up. It was time and she was not going to let her fear of the unknown keep her from knowing the truth anymore. She turned and walked out to the living room.
Paul was just hanging up the phone when she walked into the room. He looked down at the envelope in her hands. “What is that?” he asked.
Katie held it up to look at it. “This is my past. It is all the information the state has on my birth mother.” Katie paused. “I have never been able to open it. I know it is stupid, but I have been scared to know the truth.” Katie looked up at Paul and could see the sympathy in his eyes.
“It is not stupid.” He walked over and pulled Katie into his arms. “After everything you have been though in your life, I would be scared, too.”
Katie sighed. “Will you sit here with me while I open it?”
“Of course I will.” He squeezed her a little bit. “I will do anything for you, Katie. All you have to do is ask.” Katie relaxed knowing that she did not have to go through this by herself. It was nice finally having someone she could lean on.
“We can open it after we eat.” Katie pulled out of Paul’s embrace and sat it down on her coffee table. “I need just a little bit longer before I find out the truth.” She turned and headed for the kitchen. “So what did you order for us?”
“Chinese.” Paul followed her. “I hope that’s okay.”
Katie opened the fridge and pulled out two beers. “That is perfect.” She handed one of the beers to Paul and headed into the living room to wait for the food.
Chapter 12
Paul and Katie talked about anything and everything while they waited for food, then continued to talk as they ate. Two hours and several beers later, they sat in the living room looking at the unopened envelope.
“We can do this later if you are not ready. There is no need to rush this.” Paul put his arm around Katie and pulled her close. He liked the feel of her in his arms.
“No, I have waited long enough as it is. Plus, I need to finally know the truth.” Katie reached over and grabbed the envelope off the table, tearing it open. Paul figured that she wanted to just get it done and over with before she had the time to talk herself out of doing it.
Paul watched as Katie pulled a few papers out and started to read them. When she was done with one, she would hand it over for Paul to look at. One was her birth certificate, which did not have the spaces filled out for her parents. The next one was the intake report from the adoption agency. Paul looked it over but again, it did not have any names on it.
Paul sat the second piece of paper down and looked over at Katie as she was reading the last page. Her face was drawn in tight. Finally after a few minutes, she handed the paper over to Paul and downed the rest of her beer.
Paul quickly found out what was bothering Katie. At the bottom of the paper, there was a note from the lady nurse that admitted Katie to the hospital. She said a woman had come into the hospital shortly after midnight. She had started out saying that she was the mother but later changed her story. She said she was the mid-wife that had helped to deliver Katie. The lady then went on to say that the mother did not want the baby, that she wanted the mid-wife to bring her into the hospital and just leave her there. Paul had to swallow back the rage that swept through him. The nurse then went on to say that she had contacted the police but after a few weeks of no one claiming Katie, she had no choice but to release her to child services.
Paul had to read the note again. Surely he was missing something. Finally, he looked at Katie as she sat next to him. “I know that it may not seem like much but I know dragons do not just give up their babies like this. There has to be something we are missing.”
“How can you be so sure? I am obviously proof that they do!” Paul watched as the tears started streaming down her face.
“Katie, look at me.” He waited until she did. “Dragons are not like humans. Most of us wait centuries before we are even able to have children. We would never abandon them, especially girls. Over the last fifty years or so, our numbers have dropped. Most females are mated already and for whatever reason, female baby dragons are not surviving.”
Paul did not even try to hide the fact that talking about this hurt him, too. His reasons were of course different than Katie’s, but it still hurt him none the less. “But that does not tell me who my parents are. Or why they never claimed me.” Katie stood and started pacing. “It does not tell me why I was moved from family to family. It does not tell me why I was forced to live with people who hated and despised me. And it sure as hell does not tell me who I am.”
&n
bsp; Paul knew just how upset Katie was, he could see it written all over her. “Katie, it will all be okay. I promise.” He did not know what else to say, let alone what to do to make things better.
“How will it be okay, Paul? I do not know who I am!” Paul really did not know what he could do to make her understand her past, but he had an idea on how he might make her feel better. He stood up, walked over to Katie and picked her up, carrying her out the door. Instead of heading down to the stairs and out to the street, Paul took the stairs leading up to the roof. Once there, he looked around to make sure no one was up here and sat Katie down in a lawn chair someone had left up there.
“Katie,” Paul knelt down in front of her. “You are the bravest and smartest woman I have ever met. You are kind, funny, and determined. You do not need to know who your parents are to know who you are. You just have to look inside yourself.”
After a few moments, Katie nodded her head in agreement. “You did not have to bring me all the way up here to tell me that.”
“No,” Paul agreed with a smile. “I brought you up here to show you what you will be some day when you come into your full power.”
Before Katie could say anything, Paul stepped back. Magic burned the air, making Katie’s hair frizzy. She sat there stunned as Paul turned from a man into a beautiful white dragon. At first she could not move, but then she had an overwhelming feeling to touch him. She stood up slowly and walked over to him, laying her hand on the base of his neck. She thought he would feel rough, so she was surprised when he felt more like a smoothed out rock.
