by Lola Gabriel
“You shouldn’t be pushing the matter, Amy. How many times has he politely declined this offer and yet you still push him? Leave him alone!”
“You should be encouraging him to do something other than work all the time!” Amelia retorted. “Or do you find married life boring?”
Uh-oh, Owen thought, shifting his eyes away from the silent battle of wills between the couple.
“I never said that,” Colin replied evenly. “All I’m saying is that relationships aren’t for everyone, and you should respect Owen’s decision to stay single. I mean, gods, what’s wrong with being single for a while? Or even for eternity?”
“Everyone needs love!”
Owen suppressed a grunt. Vlad’s Day brought out the worst in people.
“I should probably get going,” Owen said, rising from his folding chair. “I have some calls to make before the end of business on the west coast.”
“Great! Now you’ve scared him off,” Colin moaned. “This is why we can’t have nice things.”
Owen laughed at his friend’s melodrama and shook his head. “Honestly, I mostly came by to give Bernie her present. I am not such a killjoy that I’d interrupt lovers on Vlad’s Day.”
Colin and Amelia scoffed in unison, telling Owen that they obviously didn’t have much of a date night planned. And if they had, he had inadvertently ruined it.
“Thanks for the beer and letting me pop by,” Owen continued, reaching for the jacket of his suit, which he’d flung over a chair upon entering the backyard. “Sorry I’m not more exciting a match for your friend, Amy.”
“You might be!” she protested. “You won’t know unless you try!”
Owen smothered a groan and waved cheerfully without acknowledging her comment. “See you tomorrow, Colin.”
“If I’m not in purgatory,” he muttered. Owen choked back a laugh. He didn’t know a couple who fought more than the Chimera and the Lycan, but he also knew how much they loved one another. No matter what Colin said, he wouldn’t ever hurt his wife.
“I’ll pray for you,” Owen replied wickedly.
“Are you leaving already?” Bernadette called, noticing him standing. “Wait!” Again, the little one flung herself toward him and wrapped her frail arms around his legs in a tight squeeze. “Thank you for the bracelet. I’ll never take it off. I promise.”
“You do exactly what you see fit with it,” Owen said, cupping her face with his hand. “I’m glad you like it, Bernie.”
He made his way toward the back fence, waving without turning around. While it was true that he had calls to make, it wasn’t anything pressing. He just wasn’t in the mood to listen to the couple’s squabbling. It didn’t bother him so much, as he’d heard them go at it much worse, but the combination of the sentiment of Vlad’s Day in the air and the pressure from Amelia was beginning to take its toll on him.
His mind was on Kennedy more than he cared to admit, and the talk about love and romance was swaying him in a direction he wasn’t quite comfortable dancing into.
What direction would that be? he mocked himself. You flirted with her for ten minutes in a jewelry store. Are you ready to pop the question now?
He reasoned it would be easier to do it there than anywhere else—she could pick out her own ring!
Owen had walked from the palace to Colin and Amelia’s place, the coolness of the air motivating him on the way there, but the trek home seemed considerably longer, as if he had gained weight in the hours between.
Festivities lit the streets in celebration of Vlad’s Day, and Owen idly wondered how the Impaler had ever gotten a holiday named for him. His recollection of history wasn’t great, but from what he remembered, Vlad had been a miserable nerd, locked away in his castle. He was an ancient serial killer, and suddenly he was being renowned as some modern-day Casanova.
The mortals and immortals were equally puzzling in their own ways, but Owen couldn’t be bothered to waste much thought on their reasoning when it seemed clear that they had none.
It was strange, the leaden feeling that seemed to overtake him. His legs were slower, and he felt slightly sluggish, as if he’d had too much to eat.
What’s wrong with me? he wondered. There wasn’t an external force at play, and it was highly improbable that he was coming down with something. Owen couldn’t remember the last time he’d been sick.
Through the maze-like streets he walked, and even though he was not feeling 100%, he took a detour through the Trenches, Colin’s words reverberating through his head. It was true—he hadn’t made a journey into that area for a long while, possibly years. Why would he? There was no one he knew there, nor were there businesses to discuss in the slums. But when he arrived at the lower crevices of the outer city, he was shocked at what he saw.
For once, the most dismal place in the Hollows seemed alive and vibrant, a flash of colors and hanging lights. People spilled onto the streets, hugging, clamoring, laughing, and Owen stood for a long moment, watching them all curiously.
Couples embraced openly and shared kisses in doorways, each one of them consumed only with the person before them, as if there weren’t hundreds of others milling about through the alleyways. Owen blinked, a foreign realization seeping into his mind.
There, in the Trenches, where the beings were poor and hungry, there was happiness and glee. Somehow, despite the poverty and rat infestation, the immortals had found love, and it elated them more than any amount of money ever could.
And at that moment, staring at these infatuated souls, embracing and smiling, Owen knew what was wrong with him.
The Dragon Prince of the Hollows was lonely.
3
“Dad, why are you so mad at me?” Kennedy sighed. “It’s not my fault he’s like that! You act like this is surprising news somehow!”
“I’m not mad at you, Kennedy,” Cameron replied, exhaling also. “I just wish I didn’t have to hear about it from Theo every damned day.”
“You could fire him,” she reminded her father. Cameron shook his head, chuckling slightly. Firing Theo was like trying to coax a leech out once it had lodged itself into one’s skin. Theo wasn’t going anywhere, no matter what. They both knew that from a sad history of experience in the matter. There was nothing harder to do than get rid of a vampire who was determined to hang on forever.
“What did you do to piss him off so badly, Kenn? He was in rare form yesterday.” Cameron peered suspiciously at Kennedy, and she wondered if he didn’t already know. She lowered her gaze back to the dinner table and reached for her soup spoon.
“No idea,” she lied quickly. She felt the blush creep up her neck instantly, although whether it was because of the lie or the thought of Owen, she couldn’t be sure. Most likely both.
It wasn’t her fault—she’d simply been unable to strike the image of the dragon prince from her mind for seemingly one second. It was as if he had implanted himself there.
Can dragons do that? Implant themselves? Kennedy thought of somewhere else that she might like to have Owen implanted and almost smacked herself in the face with her spoon. Get your mind out of the gutter! she scolded herself. You’re eating dinner with your father!
“I saw a sale at the palace yesterday,” Cameron continued as if they were having the same conversation. “Who stopped by?”
“Owen.” Her father’s eyebrows shot up almost to his hairline.
“Owen?” he echoed. “Is that how you refer to the princes now?”
“He asked me to call him Owen!” Kennedy said with more defensiveness than she intended. “I was calling him Mr. Parker before that!”
“He asked you to call him Owen?”
“Dad, you’re starting to sound like a parrot.”
“I think I’m starting to see why Theo was so pissed off,” Cameron concluded, lowering his own cutlery to stare at her with suspicious eyes. “You know better than to involve yourself with the dragons, right, Kennedy?”
“Involve—? Dad, I was at work, Owen Parker
came in to buy a gift, I helped him. End of story!” Kennedy heard the pitch of her words and wanted to stuff them back down her throat.
“Theo seems to think you undercut him for that sale.”
“Oh, for the love of the gods, Dad, we own the damned store. I don’t need the commission! How many times do I need to explain that to him?”
“More the reason that you should have let him have it, Kennedy. Was there an ulterior motive to you dealing with Mr. Parker?”
Kennedy threw her hands up in exasperation and rose from the table. She was sure her face was almost purple with humiliation. “It’s bad enough that I have to deal with Theo’s crap every day, but to come home and hear it from you—!”
“Sit down.” Kennedy considered walking away from the ornate dining table, but Cameron’s voice was sharp, and her father rarely took such a tone with her. He saved that voice for his underlings. Reluctantly, she obliged and sank back into her chair. “You’re acting very up-in-arms for someone who didn’t do anything.”
“I’m not sure how I’m supposed to defend myself against an attack that makes no sense,” Kennedy snorted. She sat back and folded her arms under her chest, her appetite gone.
“Kennedy, you are my one and only child. You are a treasure that can’t ever be replaced, and that is why I need to watch out for you, protect you, and guide you in the right direction.”
Oh, here we go, Kennedy thought. The serve and protect spiel. It had been a while since she’d heard it. She supposed she’d been on a good streak then.
“Theo is wound tightly,” her father said, and Kennedy had to once again marvel at his ability to jump topics without notice. She was used to his odd manner of speaking, but others thought it was a tactic he used to confuse.
It was confusing, though also completely unintentional. Cameron Solstice simply had too many things on his mind at once to talk or even think linearly. His mind worked a million miles a minute.
“I hadn’t noticed,” Kennedy replied dryly. “What the hell does that have to do with me? If a customer wants me to tend to him, what am I supposed to do? Run away? Cry, ‘No, I can’t, it will traumatize Theo’? Come on, Dad, why are we even having this conversation?”
“For two reasons—actually three,” Cameron answered. “First of all, I know you like to put the screws to Theo, and you need to stop it. One day, he’ll be your employee, don’t forget.”
Kennedy cringed and rejoiced at the same time. Maybe I’ll find a way to get rid of him. However, she didn’t have high hopes.
“Secondly,” her father continued, “I’m worried about why Owen Parker would pay you undue mind.”
“Gee, thanks, Dad.”
“That’s not what I mean, Kennedy. You are likely the most beautiful being in the Hollows. That is undisputed, but you also know that the dragons are no friends of the Lycans. It bothers me that he sought you out.”
“Oh, for gods’ sakes. He didn’t seek me out!”
“I hope not.”
The heat was flushing hotter in her face, and Kennedy shot her gaze away under the guise of irritation. The truth, though, was that she was mortified that the encounter between her and Owen had become somewhat public knowledge.
I’m going to tear Theo a new one when I see him tomorrow, Kennedy swore. “Why do you think he would ‘seek’ me out? He has some devious plan we don’t know about? He’s out to take over the jewelry store?” She spoke sarcastically, but her father took it at face value.
“It wouldn’t surprise me in the least. Those dragons are capable of things I can’t even begin to explain, Kennedy. Horrific, terrible, monstrous—”
“All right, Dad, put the thesaurus away. I get it.”
“I don’t think you do,” Cameron said, “or you wouldn’t be taking this so lightly.”
Kennedy was silent, knowing the topic was one she would never find her way out of on top. She decided to let her father have his dark thoughts and move the conversation along.
“You said there were three reasons,” she reminded her father. She figured it was best to get everything out of the way at once.
“Why aren’t you returning Rocco’s calls?”
Kennedy froze in her seat, her eyes dilating at the question. “What?”
“You heard me. Why do you keep brushing him off, Kennedy?”
A thousand reasons popped into her head, but she stifled them all, even though they choked her like bile.
“He complained to you?” she demanded, unsure of where to place her immediate disbelief. “He ratted on me like a teenager? To my father?” Although she voiced the questions aloud, they were more spoken for herself than Cameron. “He’s a goddamned Lycan and he went crying to my father?”
“While I am your father first and foremost, Kennedy,” said Cameron, “I am also the leader of the Lycans on this side of the Hollows. You can’t forget that.”
“How could I? You never let me,” Kennedy retorted bitterly. “So, Rocco went blubbering to you that I didn’t answer his calls and he expects you to what? Force me to call him?”
Cameron’s expression puckered into annoyance. “He’s worried about you, Kennedy. He thought you two had something, that you were headed for a future together.”
He thought wrong, Kennedy thought flatly, but she bit back the comment. “I’ve been busy, Dad. Moreover, I don’t appreciate being stalked at work. If I don’t answer calls, that should be my prerogative. Besides, I don’t have to answer to anyone, least of all Rocco.”
“What do you mean, being stalked at work?”
Kennedy knew she had her father’s full attention now. It was why she had brought it up. Cameron was not a being to mix business with pleasure, and the last thing he would ever want was a scene between lovers in one of his stores. Reputation was everything to him, and he would not appreciate learning that someone was trying to undermine him, even indirectly.
“Oh, what?” Kennedy asked innocently. “He didn’t mention that part to you? That he showed up in the middle of a sale and demanded to know why I hadn’t answered his calls?” She left out the part that the sale was between her and Owen Parker. She didn’t want to downplay the effect.
“No, he did not.” The growl in Cameron’s voice told Kennedy he was displeased.
“You see what I’m dealing with here, Dad? He’s out of control!”
Cameron was silent for a long moment, his eyes boring into hers as if trying to weigh the truth of what she had said. Kennedy was slightly offended that he had to consider it.
“I’ll speak with him,” he finally told her.
“And tell him what? You’re not a referee for me or him, Dad! I didn’t tell you this so that you can play middle man. I told you so that you know your golden boy isn’t as golden as you think. Leave well enough alone.”
Cameron’s mouth turned downward, and Kennedy caught a glint of sadness in his eyes. She was puzzled by the expression. “What, Dad? What’s wrong?”
“It’s just…” He let out a deep sigh. “I’d had high hopes for you and Rocco. He’s got solid standing in the pack. He’s a lawyer, which will strengthen this family, and…” Cameron trailed off, as if he knew the next words would enrage Kennedy. “I wanted to see you with someone like him, someone strong who can be a good Alpha.”
He was right—Kennedy was incensed.
“So your solution to finding an heir is pimping me off to the first stalker you deem fit?” she snapped in disbelief. “That’s freaking lovely, Dad.”
“KENNEDY!”
Kennedy rose again, the china clattering over the table. Instantly, the housekeeper appeared, but she stopped in her tracks as she sensed the deep tension hanging over the table.
“I’m tired,” Kennedy said. “I’m going to bed so I have energy tomorrow to keep all the males in my life happy. You, Theo, Rocco. Just tell me where to bend over, Dad, and I’ll do it, okay?”
She stormed from the dining room, shaking with anger. She expected it from Rocco, the need to control
, but she didn’t expect it from her father. Their relationship had always been based on trust and openness.
Certainly, Cameron had never made a secret of wanting her to marry a wolf in high standing to replace him one day, and Kennedy had not been opposed to the idea of settling down—if or when she found her mate. She was not about to sit back and let some power-hungry Lycan insert himself into her life because it made her father less nervous about his legacy.
Scaling the stairs to her bedroom, Kennedy threw the door closed and flopped onto the settee in the sitting room, willing herself to breathe normally. Logically, she knew her father would never force her to date anyone she didn’t want to, and that she was overreacting to his words. On the other hand, there had been a truth to what he’d said about Owen, and she suspected she had reacted so strongly because of it.
She had been unable to stop thinking about the dragon since the previous day, to the point where she had not slept well. His piercing golden-green eyes seemed to overwhelm her, even as she fought to claim a few hours of slumber. She woke wondering if she was ever going to see Owen so closely again, or if whatever those moments had been were the end all and be all for them.
Whatever girlhood crush she had felt for him before seeing him in the store had been magnified a hundredfold in less than twenty-four hours.
But Dad is right, she thought. I could never entertain a relationship with a dragon, not with the history between dragons and Lycans.
True, it had been millennia since the last war or any indication of an uprising between the species, but old scars never died, and while some of the Lycans may have moved on from the ancient past, no Alpha could properly let bygones be bygones.
And neither can an Alpha’s daughter, Kennedy thought grimly. She closed her eyes and focussed on her breaths. In her fury, she had begun to shift, and slowly, her body was reclaiming its mortal form. Her nails retracted, and she felt the snout of her face sinking back.
There you go. Deep breaths, she coached herself. Tomorrow, you and Dad will kiss and make up. You’ll tell Rocco to go to Hell and then you’ll go to work and give Theo a blast of shit he won’t ever forget.