Dragon's Nanny: A Paranormal Romance (West Coast Water Dragons Book 1)

by Kayla Wolf

  Professionally nice, of course, she told herself sternly. It was nice because she was doing her job well, not because she was harboring any stupid romantic feelings for him. This was a professional relationship. She wouldn’t allow herself to fall into some kind of stupid fling with this guy. After all, she’d heard the way James flirted with her—the way his friends clearly saw entanglements with women as brief events that were over as soon as they’d begun. She wasn’t going to let herself fall into a fling with some guy if there was no chance of him taking it seriously. She’d never been that kind of girl—even as a teenager, the idea of dating casually just seemed pointless. If you weren’t in it to fall in love, what was the point?

  Well, she thought briefly, shooting Lachlan a guilty look out of the corner of her eye, she could think of a few reasons for a casual affair…

  No. Not if it meant ruining her career. The upheaval that it would cause Delilah was too much. The little girl clearly already liked her—she’d shown her all her favorite toys, they were basically best friends at this point. If Serena fell into some stupid affair with Lachlan and it ended badly, she’d have to leave the peninsula completely… tearing herself out of Delilah’s life. She might have been too young to remember her mother leaving, but Serena knew from her studies that at age three, Delilah was fully capable of forming traumatic memories of abandonment. There was more at stake here than just Serena’s feelings. She was responsible for Delilah’s wellbeing now, and she wasn’t going to mess that up just because she happened to be working for an unbelievably handsome dragon.

  ”What are you up to today?” she asked casually, trying to break a silence that was beginning to weigh on her.

  ”Bit of construction work in the morning,” he explained, swallowing a mouthful of food, “then I’m on patrol for the afternoon.”

  ”Wolf hunting?”

  ”Yeah, keeping an eye on things. What are you two going to do?”

  ”I think a bit of drawing this morning, then a trip to the beach.”

  ”Beach!” Delilah squealed delightedly, spraying eggs all over the kitchen table. Serena laughed, grabbing a cloth to wipe up the debris.

  ”Popular idea,” Lachlan said, grinning. “It’s a gorgeous day for it. Did you bring a bathing suit? I wouldn’t think you’d have any reason for one, up in Montana…”

  ”People in Montana know how to swim, you know,” she said frostily. Then: “I bought one at the airport.”

  He laughed. “Well, have fun. Lots of sunblock,” he added as he headed out the door.

  It was a pleasant morning. She managed not to think about Lachlan at all as she tidied up the kitchen, humming to herself as Delilah did some coloring. And when the worst of the midday sun was over, they headed for the beach… and despite her determination not to seem like a beach newbie, she couldn’t help but gasp as they crested the low hill that lay between the settlement and the closest beach.

  It was absolutely gorgeous. The Pacific Ocean stretched out before her, impossibly vast, sun sparkling from its surface. Delilah charged on ahead, oblivious—she supposed this beautiful sight was everyday to the toddler, who was more interested in chasing a flock of seagulls than she was in taking in the view. The sand was bright yellow, pristine and untouched. Serena made her way down the side of the sand dune, feeling the sun on her skin, grateful for the generous coating of sunscreen she’d applied to both herself and her impatient charge.

  They set up their little camp a few dozen feet from the high water line. Delilah was already in her bathing suit and itching to go—Serena followed her down towards the water at a more sedate pace, feeling a little self-conscious in her one-piece bathing suit. But there was nobody but Delilah around to see her—and the toddler was much more interested in splashing and kicking at the water than she was in her nanny’s outfit. Soon enough, Serena was absorbed in playing with Delilah in the water. They even did a little bit of swimming. Delilah was a natural, her strong legs kicking her happily along, not a trace of apprehension in her even when the waves splashed at her face.

  “You’re a water baby, huh?” Serena laughed. The afternoon wore on, with plenty of breaks for water, snacks, and extra sunscreen. By the time the sun was low in the sky, Serena was about ready to turn in—but Delilah was undeterred, running down to the water, again and again, laughing and shouting.

  ”She’s wearing you out, huh?”

  Serena jumped at the familiar voice. Lachlan had come down to join them, still in the gray t-shirt he’d been wearing this morning—but soaked in sweat. She forced herself not to take in the sight of his well-defined arms, the beads of sweat that were clinging to his throat, the muscles outlined by the tight confines of the shirt… Delilah was bolting up the beach, excited to see her father, and Serena fidgeted with her bathing suit, feeling more self-conscious by the second. She could feel Lachlan looking at her, feel the weight of his gaze on her… and how much of her body was revealed, even by the modest one-piece. It was basically like being in your underwear.

  ”How was patrol?”

  ”Fine. Uneventful. Bryce took the other side of the peninsula—I’m meeting him here to discuss it.”

  Sure enough, as if summoned by the sound of his name, the big, quiet guy she’d met the day before was heading down towards the beach. He was sweaty, too—both men had clearly been working hard all afternoon. They conferred in low voices for a moment while Serena fixed Delilah’s hat, which had flown away.

  ”Definitely a camp, definitely fresh,” Bryce was saying, and Serena’s eyes widened a little. They were talking about the wolf pack in the area. Wolves like her. Wolves who were a potential threat to the settlement. Lachlan was nodding.

  ”I’ll head into town this weekend and ask around, see if anyone knows anything. In the meantime, we’ll keep up the patrols. Fill Harvey in, will you?”

  Bryce nodded, then turned and headed up the sand dune. Serena tilted her head, smiling at Lachlan. “I didn’t know you were the boss around here.”

  He blinked at her. “What? I’m not.”

  ”Seems like it,” she shrugged. “You give orders, people do what you say…”

  ”I’m not the boss, though. I just… organize stuff, I guess. Share my ideas for how to do stuff. If people have better ideas, I follow them.”

  ”Sounds like a leader to me,” Serena said. “Whatever you want to call it. Would you like to join us for a swim before it gets dark?” Dusk was beginning to creep into the sky. But before Lachlan could reply, Delilah had taken a firm grip of his hand.

  ”Dragon,” she said, in the tone of voice that brooked no disagreement. “Dragon, daddy.”

  ”That sounded like an order,” Serena said thoughtfully. Lachlan chuckled.

  ”If I’m the boss, she’s the queen,” he said grinning. Then he took a few steps back. Serena blinked, confused by what was going on—but Delilah was clapping her hands delightedly, her eyes fixed on her father. And then, as quick as blinking, Lachlan was gone… and in his place was a dragon.

  The dragon must have been fifteen feet long from the tip of his nose to the end of his tail. He was covered in glossy scales the same dark blue shade as the ocean at night, and his eyes gleamed like jewels—the same pale blue as his human form. His body was covered in jet black fins, and as she watched, thrown by the sight of him, he spread a pair of huge wings and leapt into the sky. Delilah shrieked with delight as he winged his way into the sky, heading out for the sea, and she ran down to the shoreline as he flew higher, higher, higher… then lazily folded his wings and went plummeting towards the water. At the last minute, he opened his wings, and his huge body hit the surface of the water with a splash that sent an enormous wave rolling towards the shore—where it drenched both Delilah and Serena completely.

  Spluttering laughter, Serena wiped her face clear of water, hearing Delilah’s shrieks of delight. By the time she could see again, Lachlan was walking out of the water, human-shaped again, a broad grin on his face as seawater dripped from his ha
ir into his handsome face. His clothes must have shifted with him because he was dressed in the same clothes as before shifting.

  ”Oh, did I splash you?” he said innocently. Serena couldn’t help but laugh as he squatted down to scoop a giggling Delilah into his arms, tossing her into the air as she spread her arms like wings and flapped them furiously. “One of these days she might just join me in the air, you know,” he said to Serena, grinning.

  “Oh, that’s just what we need,” Serena sighed, looking at the rambunctious toddler as she demanded to be tossed into the air again and again. “This little menace to society with the power of flight.”

  It felt nice, standing on the shore of the ocean as the sun set, casting a gorgeous display of orange light across the sky. Professionally nice, of course, Serena thought to herself. Just an employee and her employer, sharing a magical sunset. Nothing problematic here.

  Right?

  Chapter 7 – Lachlan

  Serena had arrived just in time, Lachlan found himself reflecting as the days wore on. If he’d had a spare minute, he’d have picked a bouquet of flowers for Alice as thanks for giving him the kick he needed to organize a nanny for Delilah. With his little daughter not only taken care of but in good and reliable hands, he was able to meet the increasingly difficult workload that was falling onto the shoulders of the dragons in the settlement. Not only was there still considerable work to do on the houses in the settlement itself, but they were also still well behind on their timeline for constructing the tourist accommodations for the next tourist season… and on top of all that, there were patrols to maintain, keeping an eye on the peninsula to make sure there wasn’t a pack of wolves scheming against them. They were yet to find any concrete evidence of the wolves, but there were more signs than any of them were happy with that something was going on.

  But it all would have weighed on his mind a whole lot more if he hadn’t had Serena to rely on. She was amazing. Delilah adored her—she had such a great knack with the little girl of tricking her into doing what she was told without running into her famous stubbornness. He could tell that his daughter was happier, more secure—she was sleeping better, too. It felt so good to have someone else in his corner, someone who cared about Delilah, too, who’d look after her when he had to deal with other things.

  But he had to admit, he did miss seeing her as much as he had. A few weeks had gone by since Serena had moved in, and he realized with a start that with all the chaos of construction and patrols, he’d barely seen either of them for days on end. He felt guilt wash over him as he hammered in a nail—Bryce, who was measuring a doorway nearby, raised an eyebrow, always observant.

  ”You alright?”

  ”Yeah, it’s just… it’s been a long time since I spent much time with Delilah.”

  ”Good nanny,” Bryce observed. He liked Serena—everyone in the community did so far, even the ones who distrusted wolves as a general rule. Maybe it was the lack of a pack, or maybe Serena just didn’t carry herself like a wolf.

  ”Yeah, she’s great. Too great. Delilah’s going to be a teenager before I see her again.”

  ”You’ve got tomorrow off, right?” Bryce said, tilting his head. “Mandatory weekend?”

  ”I guess,” Lachlan sighed. A lot of the guys had been pulling double shifts on construction and patrol—he’d instigated a rule that they had to have at least one full day off both tasks each week. The men had agreed… provided the rule applied to Lachlan, as well. Nefarious of them.

  ”Take both of them on a picnic while the weather’s still good.”

  ”That’s a brilliant idea.”

  ”I’m full of them.”

  Serena, too, was delighted by the idea. She’d been getting less and less awkward around him as time went on, though there was still a kind of stiff wariness to her that made him wonder if he’d done something to offend her sometimes. When he suggested a picnic, she beamed from ear to ear—so the next day, they set off bright and early with a basket and blanket in hand.

  ”Where are we going? Down to the beach?”

  ”I know a spot,” Lachlan said, attempting to curate an air of mystery. But Delilah was having none of it.

  ”Rock in the forest!” she declared. “Rock in the forest, rock in the forest!”

  Lachlan rolled his eyes. “No sense of drama, that one. Yeah, there’s a big rock in the forest. You’ll see what I mean.”

  They headed into the trees, and Delilah charged off ahead down the path, clearly familiar with the path. The cover of the trees warded off the worst of the hot summer day, and he could tell Serena was enjoying the quiet of the forest, the pleasant coolness of the air, the sounds of birds singing in the trees. And when they came into the familiar clearing, he grinned to himself as she took a sharp breath of surprise.

  There was an enormous rock here, mostly covered in moss and half-engulfed by dirt. Delilah was already busily climbing a low section—Lachlan led Serena around to the side of the rock, where it was possible to pick a careful path up the side of it to a flat area on top. Up there, the sun broke through the canopy of trees and baked the stone, making a perfect picnic spot. The smile on Serena’s face made the walk worth it. Delilah, clearly hungry from the walk, followed them up to the flat section of rock and wiggled herself in between them, peering expectantly at the basket.

  ”This is beautiful,” Serena said earnestly, looking up at him with those bright silver eyes, and for a moment he thought of the brief moment they’d shared all those weeks ago when he’d come home late from patrol, and something undefinable had passed between them in the silence of the night. But then Delilah squealed a demand and thumped her tiny fist onto the picnic basket, and the connection broke. Serena set about feeding the impatient toddler, and Lachlan sat back, feeling the warmth of the sun on his face. It felt good to take a little bit of time to spend with his family. He realized with a start that he’d started thinking of Serena as a member of his family—not a staff member, or a babysitter, but as someone he cared about. Someone close to him. Someone… important. That was a new feeling, he realized, suppressing a frown as he explored this new realization. Was it possible that he was developing feelings for the nanny? Feelings beyond professional gratitude for the work she did with Delilah, beyond respect for her skill and work ethic? Sure, he’d been aware of how beautiful she was for quite some time—but this felt like a new dimension to those feelings.

  ”Are you okay, Lachlan? You seem a little quiet.”

  ”Just peaceful,” he said simply, shrugging.

  ”Peaceful? With this one around?” Delilah cackled maniacally—somehow, she’d already managed to get peanut butter and jelly all over her face, despite only having taken a single bite from the sandwich.

  He smiled down at them for a moment, and just for a second, let himself indulge in the fantasy… in the idea that they were a family, that Serena wasn’t just Delilah’s nanny, but her mother—that they were there together on a family outing. And for just a second, he felt such a sense of love, of relief, of absolute pure joy, that tears threatened to spring to his eyes. Thankfully, Delilah chose that moment to start trying to throw things from the edge of the rock, so Serena didn’t pick up on his mood. But he was lost in thought for a lot of the afternoon.

  They finally headed home when the sun started setting. To both Lachlan and Serena’s amusement, Delilah had actually managed to tucker herself out—rare for the rambunctious little toddler, who could usually run from dawn to dusk without seeming to lose any energy at all. Lachlan picked her up despite her protests and carried her as they headed along the road, and before too long, she was asleep in his arms. She was heavier than she had been as a baby, but still, there was something so familiar about the weight of her in his arms. He smiled to himself, thinking of how fast she’d grown—and knowing that she’d feel just as familiar if he carried her home from a picnic in thirty years.

  It was dark by the time they reached the house. Serena was carrying the picnic basket—she p
ut it down in the kitchen and made a motion as if to take Delilah from him, but he shook his head. It had been a while since he’d tucked his daughter into bed by himself—and besides, he didn’t want her to wake up and decide that her short nap was a great excuse to stay up all night.

  He tucked her in, smiling to himself at how peaceful her face looked when she slept—then crept out of the room as quietly as he could, leaving the door open a little to let the light in from the hallway as she preferred. Serena was in the living room when he emerged.

  ”Still fast asleep?”

  ”I think we wore her out,” he said grinning. “She’s not used to having two people to terrorize.”

  ”She’ll adapt, I’m sure.”

  And maybe it was how strange he’d been feeling all day—maybe it was the residual warmth from the sun, the relaxation of having a day off from his worries and responsibilities, or just the way her eyes were gleaming silver in the low light of the living room, but before Lachlan even knew what he was doing, he had taken two pointed steps across the space and pulled Serena into his arms. She didn’t pull away, her eyes impossibly close to his, her face marked with surprise but not with fear, not with trepidation, not with anger—but with something else. Something like desire. Enough to overcome the last of his resistance to this, to this feeling, to the pull he’d felt to her almost since the minute they’d met.

  When he kissed her it was like the tide coming in, knocking his legs out from under him. Her lips were soft and warm like the sun against the rock, and before he knew it his hands were in her hair, his fingers ghosting across her scalp as he kissed her deeply, all thoughts of the future or the past completely gone in the face of the feeling of kissing her. His eyes were shut, all his focus on the feeling of her lips against his, her hands that had come up to rest on his shoulders, ever so lightly—and her body was leaning against his, just gently, and he fought the urge to crush her against his chest, to hold her and own her and mark her as his own. The kiss was deepening, his breathing was beginning to catch as his desire for her climbed higher and higher, breaking free of his vain attempts to suppress it over the last few weeks. The smell of her was intoxicating—it was like a spice he couldn’t quite name, sweet like vanilla but sharp somehow, too, driving him completely wild.