by Milly Taiden
She chuckled and shook her head. “No way. I only make one thing that’s edible. He’s like Master Chef or something. Everything he makes is amazing.”
3
Clacher couldn’t believe his eyes. He never would’ve imagined Morgan’s best friend looked so fucking hot. Granted, Morgan was beautiful in a wholesome sweet librarian type of way. Lexi was the total opposite. She had a pair of torn up jeans that molded to her very curvy frame and made her ass look fucking sexy as hell. She had a body on her meant to be grabbed. Her ass alone gave him wet dreams. Then he got a glimpse of the front, too, and he was in heaven.
Her top landed just above the waist to show off a hint of skin. He saw the ink that ran from her shoulder down to her elbow and wondered if that was her only piece. Her lovely hazel eyes shone brightly with excitement as she spoke. There was more. So much more.
A sense of rightness filled him the closer he got to her. His dragon, usually picky with the female population, was interested and curious to know more about her.
He watched her push her colorful curls away from her face and behind her ear. The bright colors in her hair made her dark skin glow. She was the most beautiful woman he’d seen in centuries. She reminded him of a woman he’d cared for once. Laila. At that time, he’d given up on finding a mate and was ready to be a husband to a woman that made him feel wanted, loved.
He hadn’t spent much time with her, but the time they were allowed, he found Laila to be sweet, funny, and so caring. There wasn’t a person who hadn’t loved her, including him. But things were not what they seemed.
Laila disappeared one night and he never saw her again. She had pale skin compared to Lexi’s brown. And Laila had been petite and slim where Lexi was curvy and fucking gorgeous.
“You all right?” she asked, her eyes peering into his. “You’re frowning.”
He shook his head. “Sorry. I tend to think a lot. So what are you doing here, Lexi? I have a feeling you didn’t come to finally meet me because we keep missing each other at family dinners.”
She let out a husky laugh that made his balls draw tightly against his cock. He’d never had this type of reaction to a female’s laughter.
“You’re really smart, Clacher. By the way, very cool name. I work at the Tears of Hope Women and Children’s Shelter. One of the ladies staying with us is currently getting her life back together after a horrible marriage,” she said and turned to point at a lady filling out an application in the waiting room.
He sensed the sadness Lexi felt for the other woman. “Jennifer’s been through a lot. She’s taken major steps to keep her children safe, so when she asked me today if I’d take her here to fill out an application for a job opening you have, I said yes and jumped into my car.”
He glanced at the woman filling out the application. He saw a hint of vulnerability in the way she sat, raising her gaze every few minutes as if expecting to see something scary. “There are several job openings, right now. What is she here for?”
“Assistant manager. She used to manage a shop before she got married and is hoping that can get her in the door.”
He nodded and glanced at Lexi. “Come on. Let's talk to her.”
She walked beside him toward Jennifer. Having her there, next to him, felt right. He started to wonder if maybe there was something happening he didn’t know about. Could she be the one? The one meant for him? And if she wasn’t, was he willing to pursue something with a woman who would one day die?
“Hello,” Jennifer stood when they got near. “I’m almost done with the application,” she said to Lexi.
“Hi, Jennifer. I work here. I just have a few questions for you.”
She nodded and handed him her application. “Sure.”
“Have you ever ordered equipment and supplies for a store like this?”
“Yes. I worked at a big store in a busy city and that was part of my duties along with ensuring proper safety procedures were followed for the disposal of supplies,” she replied. “This store is a lot bigger and busier than the one I worked at before. I’m happy to do anything that’s available,” she gulped. He sensed the near desperation in her as she spoke. “I’m willing to start from wherever is needed.”
He glanced at her application, but not reading anything. It was Lexi’s tension and her fear for the other woman that got his attention. He met Jennifer’s worried gaze and smiled.
“We do need two managers. I’d be willing to enroll you in our management training program. Since you already have experience in this kind of shop, it would probably be like a refresher course for you.”
Jennifer’s eyes widened and she covered her mouth when she gasped. “Are you serious?”
“Yes. There is the issue of our training course being in another state, but we’ll pay for your hotel and travel and give you meal vouchers for the time you’re gone.”
Jennifer’s gaze flew to Lexi. “My kids.”
“Your caseworker will work with Julissa and ensure they are well taken care of while you go to a job training, Jennifer. It’s something we already discussed amongst ourselves. Mr. Drachen is offering you a fresh start.”
Jennifer’s eyes popped open further. “You’re the owner?”
He grinned at her shocked expression. “I am.”
“N-N-Nice to m-meet you,” she stuttered.
He offered her the seasoned manager pay rate. “Does that sound good to you? Normally, we start our manager trainees a bit less but given that you already have experience, I don’t see why we’d do that with you.”
“Oh, my god!” Jennifer choked. “I think I’m going to faint.”
Lexi squealed and threw her arms around his waist, giving him a hug. “Thank you so much! I can’t begin to tell you how amazing you are.”
He was caught off guard by her show of affection being that they didn’t know each other, but he loved having her there, in his arms.
She quickly pulled back but continued to smile at him as if he’d slayed a goddamned demon and he was her hero.
“Sorry,” she laughed. “I got carried away.”
He loved it. Loved that she got carried away with him. He wanted to see just how far she’d go in her appreciation for him doing what he’d do with any other person. He rarely looked at applications anymore. It was what his dragon and senses told him that he went with.
“Well,” he offered Jennifer his hand. “Welcome aboard, Jennifer.”
She shook his hand and smiled brightly. “I can’t thank you enough.”
He motioned for one of his assistants to come over. “This is Layton. He’ll take you to fill out some paperwork. You’ll come in tomorrow to meet with my HR representative and she’ll set you up for training.”
Jennifer went off with Layton and Clacher turned back to Lexi. She was bouncing excitedly, her eyes bright with happiness. “You won’t regret this, Clacher.”
He loved hearing her say his name. It was unreal to know he’d met her less than an hour ago and already he wanted to take her to bed and kiss every inch of her. Her scent warmed his insides and made his heart fill with hope. He wanted to ask her what she was doing to him. He wasn’t driven by lust or emotions, but his heart said he had to keep her. Mate or not, it didn’t matter.
Was this what humans called love at first sight? It couldn’t be. He was a dragon. He trusted his mate instinct and his dragon made the call on what female they’d mate. She’d have a mate mark and it would drive them to each other. This was new. This was different.
His dragon was going along with the manly desires he was feeling. With the human emotions taking hold of his heart. It was scary as hell. He felt like an addict. He wanted more. He needed to know just how much more she’d make him feel.
“I know I won’t regret it. She will make a great manager.”
Lexi nodded. “I know. I had hoped she’d have better luck looking for a job.” Her shoulders dropped. “It’s been hard for her. Everyone wants experience now. She was out of the workforce for a
while due to her abusive ex. So those years really hurt her when she went on interviews.”
“It happens. I would never turn anyone away for having taken time to have a family. That’s a full-time job on its own.”
She met his gaze, her grin wider. “You’re some kind of awesome, aren’t you?”
He chuckled at her words. “I’ve never been called that.”
“Well, I am calling you awesome. I want to thank you for giving Jennifer a chance.”
“Sounds good. How about dinner, then?” He threw the question out there and knew it was now or never. He preferred now. Besides, his dragon wanted more time with her and so did the man in him.
She tapped her chin as if thinking. “Hmm, let me think.” Then she made a show of looking at the phone she’d pulled out of her pocket. “My calendar says I have nothing going on, so…dinner sounds fantastic.”
He loved her spunkiness. She was full of life and hope. “Great.”
“Not tonight, though,” she told him. “I have to take Jennifer back and then I have to fill out a bunch of paperwork I didn’t get done this morning because I went to spend time with Morgan and Noah.”
He sensed her desire for children come through as if he were the one feeling it. It was surreal this strange connection he was having with her. “You want children?”
She sighed, her eyes turning wistful. “Yes. I’ve been dying for a family.” She pressed her lips together and glanced down at his chest. “Hard to get that family when you don’t have someone in your life to do it with.”
“I know. I’d love kids.”
Her head shot up and she frowned. “Really? Oh! Yes, I remember Morgan telling me about your kind. You have to meet your mate or you’ll die.” She gulped. “What do you think would happen if you don’t find her.”
In another time, he would have said his life would be empty but looking at her beautiful face and caring eyes, he knew that would never be the case again.
4
Lexi kept her eyes on the road and tried to control the flip-flopping happening in her belly. She was going to have dinner with the hottest man she’d ever seen in her life.
“I still can’t believe I got a job,” Jennifer said in the passenger seat. “Thank you!”
Lexi glanced at Jennifer’s smiling face and grinned. “I didn’t do anything. It was all you.”
“Oh, please! I saw how Mr. Drachen looked at you. If you had asked him for a mansion, he’d probably have one built then and there.” Jennifer laughed. “It was cute. I’ve never seen a man look so ready to please a woman in anything.”
Really? Is that what happened? No. She’d sensed his mind had been made up all based on how he thought, not trying to please her. Though it was nice to know he seemed willing to do something to give Lexi what she wanted.
After she dropped off Jennifer at the shelter, she decided to go home and call her mother. She hadn’t spoken to her in days and she wanted to know more about what she was feeling.
Her parents were used to her calling in the middle of the night their time so she wasn’t worried about waking them. They were in Namibia, helping set up schools for underprivileged children and teaching women about healthcare. With her father being a doctor and her mother a teacher, it came as no surprise they had eventually decided to take their charitable works full-time once they retired. Coming from a wealthy family allowed both to use their nonprofit foundation and give back in countries that needed it.
She took a shower and heated left overs before putting on her Sailor Moon tank top and shorts and lying on her bed to use the phone.
“Hello, sweetheart,” her mother answered as if she’d been up, and she might have been knowing her.
“Hi, Mom. How are you guys?”
“We’re great, darling. Missing you and hoping we can come back to the states in a month or so to see you.”
“I really hope you can. I miss you guys.” She controlled the tears trying to clog her throat. “How’s Dad?”
“Good! He’s right here, waiting to say hi. I knew you were calling so we stayed up waiting.”
Like Lexi, her mother was a precognitive empath and had a gift of knowing when something was going to happen. “So, what’s going on?”
There was no sense in waiting around, her mom probably knew exactly what she was feeling, too. “I wanted to know how you knew dad was the right man for you. What did you feel?”
She’d been overwhelmed by emotions and strange feelings since she laid eyes on Clacher Drachen. He’d broken an invisible wall in her heart and now all she could think about was being near him and getting him naked. Lust was all well and good. She knew lust and could handle it. It was the rest that confused her. The desire to hug him and have him hold her. The urge to go off and sit at a park to people watch. Things she knew were not something she’d do with a guy unless there was a relationship growing between them.
“Oh, honey. It’s hard to explain. When I met your father, I didn’t really understand what was going on. One minute I was living alone and wondering where my life was going, and the next I laid eyes on him and knew I wanted to spend my life with him. It was quite insane.” Her mother laughed.
Shit. That didn’t make her feel any better. “But you couldn’t have gotten emotions over a guy you just met, could you? I mean, you had to have spent time together for love to grow, no?”
“Baby girl, no. Falling in love can happen in a flash. It can hit you at any time and can suck you into a spiral of emotions and feelings.” She sighed. “The hard part is staying in love. You have to work at it. Those emotions and feelings may show up out of nowhere, but you have to feed them for them to grow. Communication. Respect. Honesty. Trust. And most importantly, joy.”
She leaned back on her pillows, Clacher’s face showing up in her mind’s eye. His beautiful eyes glowing as they had when he spoke to her. That sexy grin calling her to press her lips to his. Her heart started beating faster and all she was doing was imagining him.
“Mom, but how did you know you were in love?” She felt like an idiot asking her mother something so personal. But the truth was, she’d never been in love before and she didn’t know what to expect.
“Well, it’s like suddenly your heart is beating double-time and you can’t get enough air and just listening to this man makes you giddy and you want to throw yourself in his arms and hold on to him forever. That’s the best way I can describe it, love.” Her mom laughed again. “Like I said, it’s really quite insane.”
Oh yeah. She was in trouble.
Lexi was in bed. She knew she was close to death. Her body felt frail and weak. She couldn’t lift her limbs. Everything was hazy.
“I think she’s waking,” someone said.
“Get the doctor,” said a female voice.
Lexi blinked but it was hard to see clearly. It was as if she were looking through a foggy glass. She frowned, squinted and struggled to clear the images in front of her.
“I’m here. Leave us. Let me check her.”
“Yes, Doctor.”
There was a flurry of movement but she couldn’t be sure what was happening.
She focused on the blurry face in front of her until he was clearer. His dark eyes sent ice shooting through her veins.
“You’re fighting to live,” he said in a low, cold voice. “It’s a shame you’re one of theirs.”
She opened her mouth, but words wouldn’t come.
“Shhh,” the man said. He placed a hand over her mouth and the chill in her bones intensified. “Next time, I’ll be sure to make your pain last. Death won’t come this easily for you.”
Lexi woke with a sense of dread. She picked up her cell phone but there were no messages or texts. Maybe she was letting her nightmares get the best of her. That had been a strange one she’d had last night.
5
It was Saturday. She needed to get her ass in gear and get to the animal shelter or she’d be late to walk old Titan. After a quick shower, taking her allergy
meds, and packing toast and coffee for the road, she was on her way.
The first Saturday of every month she spent at the animal shelter. Other days, too, but that day was a guarantee. Nothing stopped her from showing up for the morning and sometimes the full day so she could walk dogs, feed them, play with them and pet them. She was highly allergic to the dogs, but she took allergy meds in order to keep her promise to visit the shelter. Sometimes, if the medication didn’t work, she ended up having to take the type that made her sleepy, but she was willing to chance drowsiness later if it got her time with her favorite dog.
The shelter usually provided a light lunch for her so she could have a picnic and let Titan walk a trail next to her. They always ended up going by the pond and staring at the water.
Her cell phone ringing got her attention. She hit the Bluetooth and tried not to sound too eager over picking up the phone.
“Hello?” She winced at how chipper she sounded.
“Hello, Lexi. It’s Clacher.”
“Hi! How are you?” She bit her lip and wondered if he was going to cancel their date. Probably not. He appeared to want to hang out with her when he asked.
“I’m good. I was just talking to Morgan and she mentioned you going to a dog shelter today,” he said in a rumbly voice that gave her goose bumps.
“I am. Why?”
He was silent for a moment. “I was wondering if maybe you’d like some company.”
She blinked, her mouth wide with shock. “You want to come to the shelter with me? It’s kind of dirty work. The dogs will be all over you and they get muddy and…” she trailed off.
“I’ve gotten muddy before,” he chuckled.
She shook her head as if he could see her. “Okay.”
“You don’t sound very sure.”
“No! No, what I mean is sure. I can meet you there. I’m just a bit surprised is all.” She laughed. “I haven’t met many men willing to get dirty or muddy for no reason.”
