Julia nodded, and Jasper tossed her a beer. She wasn’t the best at catching things one-handed, but thankfully she managed to nab the can in midair. Jasper looked impressed, and Julia decided to gloss over the fact that that was probably a lucky catch. “I’ve lived here since almost the beginning of Torch Lake, and I’ve never been to this deli. But I might have to start going. This sandwich is legit.”
Jasper smiled, looking pleased, and then he bit into his sandwich as well. For a few minutes they ate in companionable silence. Julia looked out across the lake, admiring the way the sunlight glistened off the deep blue of the water. The sky itself was a cloudless blue today as well, the color beautifully offset by the emerald green of the trees lining the shoreline in the distance. The temperature seemed to have risen a few more degrees since they left the shore, and Julia felt completely comfortable in her warm hoodie. It might have been the most beautiful November day she’d ever seen.
She finished her sandwich and beer, and Jasper handed her another beer without asking. She took it, and also took the chocolate chip cookie he offered her. She had to hand it to him. He knew how to plan a good day out on the lake.
“So this is your boat, then?” she asked around a mouthful of cookies.
Jasper nodded. “It was one of my first purchases when I moved to Torch Lake. I’d had a boat back in my old clan, and I missed it. Nothing this fancy, but still. I love being out on the water.”
“Why didn’t you go back to your old clan after the war?” Julia asked. She knew that Jasper had tried to escape clan life entirely for a while. Rachel had told her that he’d hidden away and been difficult to find, but that the High Council in Torch Lake had been exceptionally keen to bring him here. She wasn’t clear on why exactly he’d avoided everyone after the war. And she wasn’t sure he was going to tell her now. His face darkened at the question, and for a moment she thought he wasn’t going to answer her. But then he shrugged and gave her a sad smile.
“My old clan kind of screwed me over. It was a shifter clan full of people who were supposedly all pacifists. I hate war and fighting, so I thought it was the perfect place for me.”
“A dragon shifter who’s a pacifist?” Julia asked.
Jasper nodded. “I know. It sounds kind of strange, since so many dragons love to fight. But I lost both my parents in a war when I was younger, and I just didn’t want any part in it. Anyway, our clan managed to escape unharmed for most of the Great Dark War, but at the very end the dark wizards attacked. My protective dragon instincts kicked in and I fought to defend my clan. It’s a good thing, too, because no one there really knew how to fight or defend ourselves. I don’t know how I managed to fight so well. Dragon instinct, I guess.”
“Pretty crazy that your dragon instinct made you one of the most famous dragons in the world.”
Jasper frowned. “Yeah. I could do without the fame. But I didn’t leave my clan to escape the fame. I left because they really screwed me over. For one thing, they wanted to start an army, and they wanted to force me into it. I didn’t want any part of that. I’m happy to fight when it’s in defense, but I don’t want to go looking for trouble like they did. But on top of that, I nearly died from a wound I suffered while defending the city. A doctor there fixed me up, but then tried to charge me his full fee, which I couldn’t afford.”
Julia’s jaw dropped. “He charged you? When you had just saved the entire town?”
Jasper nodded grimly. “And when I couldn’t pay he sued me. The High Council there backed him up, so I left town and never looked back.”
“Wow. I can’t believe they would all treat you like that, after all you did for them.”
Jasper shrugged and smiled sadly. “I can’t either. But it’s in the past now. I’m happy in Torch Lake, and I probably wouldn’t be here if my old clan hadn’t all been so crappy to me. So I guess I should thank them.”
Julia chuckled. “Well, that’s a positive way of looking at it.”
“Always better to look on the sunny side. What about you? What’s your story?”
“My story isn’t nearly as exciting as yours. I came from a small clan of wizards that was almost entirely wiped out during the war. I happened to be away on a trip when they were attacked, which is how I survived. But I lost pretty much everyone I knew, including my parents and brother.”
“I’m sorry,” Jasper said quietly.
Julia nodded. Deep loss was a fact of life for most of the shifters and wizards who had survived the war. Nearly everyone had lost someone close to them. She took a deep breath and continued. It was painful to remember the time right after the war, but Jasper had told her about the painful parts of his story. It was only fair that she reciprocate.
“I ended up as a refugee in the city of Falcon Cross. My family was relatively poor even before the war, so I was left pretty much penniless after the attack on my clan. But Falcon Cross took care of those of us who had nothing. When Torch Lake started up, the High Council here came to Falcon Cross to offer recruitment and relocation bonuses to anyone who wanted to move here. I jumped at the chance. I got a job as a customer service agent at the Advocacy Bureau and worked my ass off to get to where I am now. I’m still working my ass off, in fact. I’m not done yet. I’ve got some big dreams to fulfill.”
“That’s pretty awesome,” Jasper said. “It takes a lot of courage to completely start over like you did, but you haven’t just settled. You’ve strived to be the best you can be, and I really admire that. I’m not just saying that because I want to date you, either. I mean it, whether or not you ever agree to another date with me.”
Julia felt her cheeks heating up, and she was sure they were bright pink. She realized in that moment that she hadn’t thought about the fact that she was here on a date for quite some time. She’d been enjoying herself so much with Jasper that she’d forgotten to put up a wall around herself like she’d intended. She looked down at her beer and pretended to study the can. She didn’t know what to say. She certainly wasn’t ready to make the decision that she was going to date Jasper, but she wasn’t ready to completely write him off anymore. She’d been having fun today, and it had been a long time since she’d had fun with a man. Usually, the men she met were boring, with no real sense of adventure. Sure, they might have stable jobs. They might look impressive on paper, or even be handsome—like Elliot at the Advocacy Bureau. But there was never any spark there. Here and now with Jasper, she couldn’t deny that she felt a spark.
Was it just a spark from the excitement of the speedboat ride? Was she just feeling a bit too buzzed from the two cans of beer she’d had? Or was it possible that there was something more there?
Luckily, Julia didn’t have to think about it too long before Jasper unexpectedly changed the subject.
“So, have you ever been swimming in the lake in November?”
Julia looked at him like he’d lost his mind. “Um, no. I mean I know it’s a warm day today, but it’s still not hot. And that water is still going to be damn cold.”
“Oh come on. Where’s your sense of adventure?”
Jasper was already standing up and taking his hoodie and t-shirt off. When he did, Julia’s breath nearly caught in her throat. His abs were chiseled into a perfect six pack. She’d seen a lot of good looking men in her lifetime, but she’d never seen abs quite this impressive. She swallowed hard, and for a moment she was so distracted that she even forgot about the fact that he was making the ludicrous suggestion that they go swimming. She remembered quickly, however, when he reached to open the storage hatch again, and, after a moment of rummaging around, found a women’s bikini and handed it to her.
“Here. This is Rachel’s. She said you two are about the same size and that it would probably fit you.”
Julia blinked at him, still trying to process the fact that he was actually serious. “Okay, no way. I like a good adventure as much as anyone else, but this is insane.”
“I’m gonna do it, and I’m not insane. Seriously, don�
�t knock it until you’ve tried it. It’s actually quite refreshing to plunge into ice cold water.”
“Um, maybe if you’re a polar bear.”
Jasper only laughed at her and then slid off his jeans to reveal that he was wearing a tight black Speedo underneath. Julia had been completely unprepared for this, and gasped despite herself. It was obvious from the tight outline of the Speedo that his dick was as big as the rest of him. And his legs’ thigh muscles looked as strong as those of a horse.
“I…I…” Julia was at a complete loss for words, and she knew her cheeks were definitely red at this point. Her face was so hot with embarrassment that she felt like it was on fire. But if Jasper noticed her discomfort, he didn’t say anything. Instead he walked to the edge of the boat and peered down at the water below him.
“Come on. Don’t be a chicken.”
And then he jumped in. The splash sounded unnaturally loud against the otherwise still lake. Jasper disappeared beneath the surface for just a moment before bouncing back, water droplets dripping from his hair like little diamonds in the sunshine. Julia crossed her arms and shook her head at him. She had to hand it to him. He had guts. But there’s no way she was jumping into this ice bucket of a lake.
“Come on in. The water’s fine.”
Julia rolled her eyes. “Yeah, right. Besides, there’s nowhere for me to change out here. This is just a ploy for you to have the chance to see me naked when I switch into the swimsuit.”
“I’ll turn around and I won’t look until you say you’re done. Scout’s honor.”
Julia frowned. She was shivering just thinking about jumping in that lake. And even though she tried to be proud of her curves, she wasn’t sure she was ready to be in a bikini in front of Jasper. But she figured her body would be under the water and not very visible for the most part. Besides, did she really want to let Jasper show her up? And even though it was crazy, it would make a good story to tell the girls next time they were all together at the Winking Wizard.
“Fine,” she said, still not believing that she was actually about to do this. “Turn around.”
He grinned and obeyed, and Julia quickly stripped off her clothes. The air that hit her was cool, but not unbearable. The warmth of the sun tempered the breeze somewhat. But she knew as she pulled on the bikini that the lake water would not be so forgiving. She told herself to just grit her teeth and bear it. It would be over in a few minutes, and then she would forever have bragging rights for having jumped in the lake in the middle of the winter.
Jasper was still turned around, and rather than tell him he could turn back, she decided to just surprise him by quickly jumping in. Taking a deep breath, she took a few steps back to give herself a running start, then leapt from the side of the boat.
Chapter Six
The shock of the water hit her in an instant. She felt like she had just jumped into a bucket full of ice, and when she resurfaced she shrieked. “Oh my god, this is freezing.”
Jasper, who had recovered from the surprise of being splashed by Julia’s sudden jump into the pool, was laughing. “It’s not that bad. After a second you get used to it and it’s really rather refreshing.”
Julia shook her head at Jasper in disbelief. Her teeth were already chattering. “You dragons have some sort of internal heater or something. I can’t handle this cold.”
She started swimming back toward the boat, but Jasper was still laughing.
“Your face when you came up for air was priceless. You looked so shocked.”
“Glad I could amuse,” Julia said. She feigned a hurt look, but she couldn’t help but smile, too. It must have been pretty funny.
When she reached the boat again, Jasper helped push her up. His hands were surprisingly warm, which confirmed her suspicion that the cold didn’t bother him as much because he was naturally hot-natured. She, on the other hand, could hardly wait to wrap herself up in one of the giant blankets still laying across Jasper’s boat.
“There are towels in the hatch,” he called up to her.
Julia grinned. “No need.” She loved the way shifters always forgot that wizards were capable of some very practical magic. With a flourish, she raised her magic ring above her head and called out, “Magicae siccum.”
Instantly, the water on her body and bikini disappeared, and her hair was once again perfectly dry. This helped a great deal with warming her up, but she still wanted more. So she wrapped herself in one of the blankets and said, “Magicae therma.”
Between the blanket and the warming spell, Julia soon felt cozy and comfortable once again. She snuggled in happily, then sat up with the blanket still wrapped around her and reached for another beer from the cooler. Jasper grinned at her from the water, where he was still happily treading water. “Toss me a beer,” he said. “I could use some refreshment.”
Julia tossed him a beer, but looked skeptically down at him. “Are you sure you’re okay down there? I’m not sure I could rescue you if you got too tired or cold to keep yourself afloat. I suppose I could throw you a lifejacket, but if you were tired and cold that might be hard to hang onto.”
Julia looked doubtfully back at the front of the boat, where the lifejackets they’d worn while the boat was moving were sitting in a pile on the driver’s seat. Julia wondered if she should throw one to Jasper now and insist he put it on. Having him drown would definitely put a damper on this day.
He was laughing again, though, and he tilted back his head and guzzled his beer down before answering her. “I’m fine, really. We dragons don’t feel the cold that much, thanks to our internal heat. But if it makes you feel better I’ll come up on the boat again.”
Julia nodded sheepishly, and Jasper climbed back up a moment later. Julia pointed her magic ring at him as he stepped onto the back of the boat, and once again said “Magicae siccum.” Instantly, Jasper dried off. He looked down in wonder at his completely dry body and shook his head.
“Nice party trick,” he said. Then he grabbed the other blanket and wrapped it around himself, sitting a little closer to Julia than he had to on the back of that small boat. Julia was surprised to feel a little thrill of excitement going through her. She’d determined not to let herself fall for him, but it was hard not to feel at least a little bit of chemistry sitting out here on a boat in such a beautiful setting with such a handsome man. To distract herself, she took another sip from her beer and scrambled to think of something to talk about that wasn’t related in any way to the fact that Jasper and she were on an actual date. She finally settled on the name of his boat. She’d been curious about it since the beginning, but hadn’t had a chance to ask him yet.
“So why the Sapphire Diamond?” she asked. “Seems like a pretty intense name for a boat.”
Jasper chuckled. “Well, the diamond part is just because it sparkles a bit thanks to the metallic paint. And I like to say that the sapphire part is because the boat is blue, but in reality it’s because of me.”
“You?”
“Yeah. My dragon form is blue. That’s relatively rare.” Jasper looked embarrassed and hurried to add, “It’s not like it means anything special. It’s just a rare gene or something that makes me have blue scales instead of the more common red or green scales. And like most blue dragons, I breathe acid instead of fire.”
Julia raised an eyebrow. “That all sounds pretty special to me.”
But Jasper shook his head, looking uncomfortable. “It’s nothing, really. It doesn’t make me any stronger than any other dragon or anything.”
Julia let the subject drop, but in her head she was thinking that Jasper was being too modest. After all, he had singlehandedly defended his clan. That sounded like an extraordinary level of strength to her. But she understood feeling out of place and embarrassed because of your past. For her, it was because her past was so humble and nondescript. She had no good education or resources, and no exceptional magical abilities that made her stand out. For Jasper, it was the opposite. His abilities were too excepti
onal, and his past was too special. But she imagined the feeling of wanting to be judged for who you were now rather than who you’d been was somewhat the same. She felt a sudden strange kinship with him, and she reached over to pat his knee underneath his blanket. He looked up at her in surprise, then smiled warmly, which made Julia’s whole body feel tingly.
Careful, she told herself. She knew she was treading on dangerous ground. She was starting to think of Jasper as more than just an annoying coworker. This shouldn’t have surprised her, but it did. After all, she’d enjoyed her time with him quite a bit the first night they’d met. She’d felt then like they “clicked,” but she’d put up a wall when he ended the evening by asking her out. She did not want a relationship with any man, not even one as handsome and fun as Jasper.
At least, that’s what she kept telling herself. But it was getting harder and harder to believe. Jasper was handing her another beer now, and the buzz was making it harder to remember her resolve to hate Jasper, and easier to remember everything good about him. Julia relaxed just a little bit more, and let herself enjoy his company as they talked and laughed for the next two hours. She was so comfortable here. The water had been cold, but the air temperature was mild and the sun was warm. Not to mention the blankets were cozy. Neither of them bothered to take their swimsuits off and change back into their normal clothes yet. That would require getting out from under the blanket, and Julia didn’t want to do that. She felt so comfortable.
Jasper brought more food out at some point—fruits, crackers, and cheeses. Julia was glad for something to soak up the alcohol a little bit. She was starting to feel a bit lightheaded from her beer buzz, and, perhaps worse, she was starting to feel like she could actually imagine a future with Jasper. Surely, that must just be the alcohol talking. Julia did her best to push away the thoughts, but they kept coming, harder and faster. She was trying to remember why she had thought that a man was not compatible with her career plans. Some men would drag her down and ruin her focus at work, true. But surely, not all men? Was Jasper one of the good ones?
Dragon Defying Page 4
