Her Dragon Destiny

by Roxie Ray

  I nodded. “Let me get dressed.”

  “I’ll be on the porch if you want to talk.”

  As I pulled my clothes back on, I considered how much I wanted to tell him. My upcoming choice weighed so heavily on my mind. It would’ve been nice to have someone to confide in, and I trusted my grandfather. He wouldn’t reveal my secret or problems until I was ready for him to, that was for certain.

  When I was dressed and had my boots back on, I joined Grandpa on the porch. He held out a glass of tea. “Okay, son. Want to unload on your old gramps?”

  I chuckled and sipped the tea, which had a hint of oranges. Grandma’s special recipe. “Thanks.” I looked into his wise eyes and knew he’d help me figure out the best course, whatever that might’ve been. “You know I want to go to law school.”

  He beamed. “And I’m so proud that you do. You’re going to be the best of us all, I can already tell.”

  I ducked my head. “Thanks. There’s a problem, though.”

  Grandpa’s brow furrowed. “What could it be? Your grades were exemplary. I thought you were already accepted to the school. Money isn’t a problem.”

  “That’s just it. I was already accepted. To two schools.”

  Recognition flew across his face. “Ah. Where is the second school?”

  “California,” I muttered.

  He winced. “We don’t have any family in California.”

  “Please don’t take this the wrong way, but that’s part of the draw.” I said it as gently as I could, but his eyebrows still flew up. “No, it’s not bad. It’s just... I’ve never been alone. I’ve never had to do anything on my own. I went from it being just me, Mom and Hailey to this huge family, which is great.” I held up my hands because he still looked confused. “I love the family and wouldn’t trade them for the world.”

  “But?”

  “But it would be nice to have a little bit of independence. And maybe some privacy.”

  Grandpa chuckled. “I’ve had those feelings before. When I lived with my father in Arizona. That’s why I moved to Black Claw, Maddox. And you’re an alpha. You’re going to have those emotions probably even stronger.”

  “You left home,” I said. A weight lifted off my shoulders. He knew what I meant. He understood. It was such a relief just to share the things I’d been worried about with someone else.

  “I did. And it was the right thing for me. Only time will tell if it’s right for you. But, Maddox, wherever you go, you have to make sure you have a place to shift. You have to have privacy and cover.”

  I nodded. “I’ve considered that. And of course, it would be a huge factor in my decision. And the family. And now, Bethany.”

  “Whatever you decide, we will support you. All of us will. We can visit you, and of course you know you’re always welcome here.” He smiled at me and shook his head. “I hate how much time I missed out on with you. We won’t miss any more, even if you’re living far away. We’ll figure it out. Maybe I’ll even let you kids teach me how to do that video chat stuff.”

  It was my turn to shake my head. “That’ll be the day.”

  “If it’s your dream to go to law school in California, we’ll find a way to make it happen. But if it’s a need for privacy and independence, then we simply need to set some ground rules for the family. You could even find a place a bit farther away during school if you opt to go here in Colorado.”

  I nodded thoughtfully. “I’d considered that, too. Just telling everyone would feel like such a rejection. I haven’t wanted to come out and say sorry, guys, you’re too invasive for me.”

  Grandpa shrugged. “It’s not a rejection. We’re a pushy, meddlesome bunch.” He leaned forward and whispered, “They get it from your grandmother.”

  I burst out laughing. “I won’t tell her you said that, so you don’t get into a bunch of trouble.”

  “Appreciate that, son.” He sighed and leaned back. “You can’t keep this to yourself. You need to confide in your parents. Your cousins. We can all help you figure out the best course and support you on your journey.”

  “I will,” I promised. “Soon.”

  We sat and continued to talk about the schools. I even told him about Bethany’s legal troubles with Tiffany. He was as sure as I was that they wouldn’t amount to much.

  As the morning wore into the afternoon, my stomach growled, and my phone beeped at the same time. I checked it to find a text from Bethany. Picnic at the park with Tiffany, if you’re free.

  “Gotta go,” I told Grandpa and jumped up. “I’m going to meet Bethany in the park.”

  Grandpa chuckled. “Boy, you’ve got it bad.”

  I knew what he was thinking, even if he didn’t project his thoughts. He thought I could never leave Bethany.

  And he was probably right.

  I used my preternatural speed to take me down the path from the manor to just beside town. The path came out by the drive-in where my Dad had nearly killed another dragon who came back later and tried to get revenge. He was dead now, of course. That tended to happen when someone messed with my family.

  A few minutes later, I crossed the greenway and entered the park behind the town proper. Bethany already had a blanket spread out on the grass near the jungle gym.

  “Hey,” I called.

  She turned and gave me one of her thousand-watt smiles. She had the ability to melt every worry away with just one look and make me feel like nothing mattered but her. And when it boiled down to it, nothing mattered more, not really.

  Tiffany ran up chattering excitedly.

  She matters.

  Artemis rarely expressed affection about anyone. Except for Bethany, of course, he’d wanted to claim her from moment one. He had developed feelings of affection and protection toward Tiffany in the couple of weeks we’d been around them.

  Interesting.

  “Maddox,” Tiffany squealed. She ran up to me and held her hands up. I swung her up in the air and let her fly a bit before catching her and holding her tight as she squealed. “Do it again!”

  I complied, throwing her up a few more times before Bethany interfered. “Okay, that’s enough. She already ate a sandwich and she’ll be puking all over you if you keep that up.”

  I’d seen the girl puke once before. She was a pro at it, leaving me with zero desire to repeat the experience while I held her.

  “Go play,” I encouraged, then plopped down on the blanket beside Bethany.

  “She really likes you,” she said. “Whatever happens between us, I’ll expect you to be cognizant of that. I know you don’t want kids.”

  She handed me a sandwich. I took a bite without paying any attention to what it was. It could’ve been sand and dirt and I would’ve eaten it if Bethany gave it to me. “I am,” I said. “And I do want kids. I just think having a baby right now would be complicated.” I chewed and thought about it. “Although, to be perfectly honest, if I had a child, I’d be very lucky to get it away from my mom, aunts, and grandmother.” I rolled my eyes. “Not to mention my sister.”

  Bethany giggled. “I’m sure Tiffany would love to meet your sister.”

  “You have a sister?” Tiffany plopped down on the blanket. I knew she was walking up but hadn’t realized she was within earshot.

  “I do,” I said. “And she loves to babysit. Maybe we can all go do something fun one day soon.”

  The sweet girl grabbed an apple and handed it to me. I wasn’t planning on eating an apple, but when a three-year-old hands me an apple, I eat the damn apple. “Here you go, Maddox.”

  The way she said my name was so cute. It was more like Maddos or maybe Maddoth. She had the slightest lisp. “Thanks! Apples are my favorite.”

  “Me too,” she crowed. Soon we finished our apples and she’d told me every food she liked and had begun the foods she didn’t like. I tried to agree or disagree as was appropriate, but mostly I marveled at how cute she was and how surprised I was that I was actually interested in the little girl’s food preference
s.

  “Tiff,” Bethany interrupted gently. “You better go get some slide time in before we have to go.”

  She jumped up and ran off, but before she got far, she whirled around and came back. “Will you slide with me?” Tiffany asked shyly.

  Nothing in the world sounded like more fun at that moment. Not even sitting in the warm sun with Bethany. “I’d love to.”

  If nothing else, I had to give Tiffany the medal for being tireless. Even with my dragon endurance, I finally had to call uncle. “Okay, you got me beat,” I said. “I can’t take one more trip down the slide.”

  My butt was sore and my hips from being a little bit too big for the narrow opening. I kept getting stuck halfway down.

  She giggled. “You’re too big to slide.”

  She was not wrong. I hobbled over to Bethany and stretched out on the blanket. She’d cleaned away the food, leaving plenty of room. “You’re sweet to humor her like that,” she said.

  After making sure Tiffany wasn’t looking, she leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to my lips.

  Artemis wanted to deepen it and wrap her up in our arms, but we were in the middle of the park with kids and parents everywhere. I was lucky I got the quick kiss I did.

  When the day wore on and Tiffany began to get visibly tired, Bethany smiled at me. We’d been holding hands for the last hour or so as Tiffany ran around with a girl she knew from school.

  “Come on, sweetheart,” Bethany called. We’d spotted Tiffany rubbing her eyes. “It’s time to go home!”

  She ran over, definitely slower than she’d been a couple of hours before. “But Mommy!”

  Bethany held up one hand. “We’ve been here most of the day. Don’t argue, okay?”

  Tiffany’s shoulders slumped, but she didn’t voice another protest. She just trudged toward us. To my surprise, she came straight to me and held her arms up. “Carry me?”

  My heart prickled as I drew her up into my arms. She laid her head on my shoulder. “Thanks, Maddoth.”

  Bethany looked ready to cry, and I even found myself a little misty-eyed. Tiffany had wound herself tightly into my heartstrings.

  I carried her to the car and buckled her in while Bethany put the picnic supplies on the other side. Then, I walked around and put my hand on Beth’s shoulders. “That was a nice afternoon,” I said.

  Beth peered into the car. “She’ll be asleep before we hit Main Street.”

  I chuckled and pulled her into a hug. “Text me tonight.”

  After another soft kiss, she got in the car, and I watched them drive away.

  It was time for a conversation with my father. I followed the trail back to Main Street, across and past the drive-in, and up the path into the woods. I knew exactly where to cut across to come out near my parents’ cabin instead of my grandparents’ or my Uncle Axel’s place.

  My father, alpha of the territory, was on the porch waiting for me when I came out of the woods. Of course, he’d known I was coming. He was more intuitive than I was, even though Artemis and I were alphas as well. “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  “Nothing. I just wanted to get your perspective,” I said. “About Hailey.”

  He furrowed his brow. “Is she okay? Is something wrong?”

  Shit. I hadn’t meant to make him think she was the focus of my worries. “No, no, she’s fine. I’m more thinking about what it was like becoming her stepfather.”

  He nodded somberly. “I don’t consider myself that. Hailey is mine, no matter who fathered her.”

  I long suspected he felt that way. She called him Dad, just like I did.

  “But I won’t lie. It was scary at first. Suddenly, I had two kids. As thrilled as I was to have you both, it was slightly terrifying. I didn’t know anything about raising kids. I still feel like I don’t half the time.”

  “Yeah, me too.” How badly could I screw up a kid? Probably pretty badly.

  “But it works out. You do your best and try to do right by everyone involved. You’re a good kid, Maddox.” He put his hand on my shoulder. “And you’d make a great father or stepfather. Trust yourself in that, but make sure before anyone’s heart gets too involved that you’re ready for it. I don’t think anyone would fault you for waiting a little while before getting too serious.”

  She was my fated mate. I’d fault myself.

  15

  Bethany

  The diner hummed with business that didn’t slow down for a second, even in such a small town. I slid into the booth with Kara. Abby had already ordered our teas. She’d texted this morning and asked if we wanted to do lunch. Of course, I’d agreed. We hadn’t had a chance to hang out since the night we’d sort of argued in the bar about how I was treating Maddox. That had been nearly two weeks ago now and a lot had happened since then.

  Kara and I had gone back this morning and checked out the house I couldn’t focus on when Kyle’s parents called, and we’d decided it was a good investment. It was a friend of Kara’s who was selling it, so she’d given me first dibs on it. We’d talked about the possibilities all the way to the diner, both of us growing excited about what the property would be once we had some time with it.

  When we sat down, Kara told Abby about the house, but the tension between Abby and me was pretty thick. She’d been standoffish since the scene at the bar.

  “I apologized,” I blurted out when Kara ran out of things to tell Abby about the house. “To Maddox. And now we’re...” I blushed and looked down at my tea. How could I describe what Maddox and I were now?

  “You’re what?” Abby’s eyes widened and she smiled at me. “Are you talking?”

  Kara snorted. “They’re doin’ it.”

  Abby squealed, but luckily for me, the noise of the diner drowned it out. “I’m sorry I got in the middle of it,” Abby said. “I should’ve let you two work it out and minded my own business.” She pursed her lips. “Jury kind of got onto me for butting in, and now he won’t tell me anything about you two.”

  I held out my hand and she took it. “It’s okay. I get really prickly when things don’t go exactly my way. I didn’t make any of this any easier.”

  Abby squeezed my hand. “So tell me! You’re doing it?”

  After pulling my hand back and covering my face, I peeked out at her. “I don’t want to kiss and tell.”

  That told her all she needed to know, though. More squeals from both Abby and Kara, but these didn’t go unnoticed in the busy diner. A few people nearest us gave us odd looks. I shushed my friends with tears of laughter in my eyes.

  “We’re getting to know each other. And the more I learn about him, the more I like.”

  “How is he with Tiffany?” Abby asked. Kara and I had already discussed it.

  I sighed. “You know I’ve never had anyone around Tiffany. No guys at all. Hell, not that many friends.”

  They both nodded. “Maddox stepped in like he’s known her all her life. Right now, he’s like an uncle or older brother. But it’s all too easy to imagine it blossoming into something more. Something larger.”

  Abby put her head on her hands and looked at me dreamily. “That’s so sweet,” she whispered. “I knew he’d surprise you in the end.”

  Kara sighed. “There’s just something about the Kingston men.”

  Abby and I both nodded as we watched our food approach. Once we had our plates in front of us, Abby started telling us about something ultra-romantic Jury had done for her.

  My phone beeped halfway through her story, and though I didn’t want to be rude to my friend, it was the tone that indicated Maddox was trying to get in touch with me. No way I could resist checking.

  You having fun with your friends?

  I smiled and typed a quick reply. I am. I’ve been neglecting them.

  He didn’t reply, so I slipped my phone back in my purse. Seconds later, the back of my neck prickled. I turned to look behind me and desire slammed through me when I spotted Maddox greeting diners as he worked his way toward our table. Damn, but
he wore that uniform well. Very, very well.

  Kara turned to see what I was looking at. As soon as she realized Maddox was heading our way, she giggled and slid out of the booth. Abby scooted over and Kara sat beside her and dragged her plate across.

  “Hello, ladies.” He greeted Abby and Kara with a nod and smile before his eyes landed on me. “Bethany.”

  The way my name rolled off his tongue made my skin crawl with anticipation. I knew exactly what he was capable of doing with that mouth. And those hands. And... other parts. “Maddox,” I whispered.

  He leaned over, never breaking our gaze. I lifted my face upward to maintain the eye contact, and when his lips met mine in front of the whole diner, my nipples pebbled under my bra as shivers coursed through my body. The diner went silent because of course most eyes were on Maddox. He was a police officer in uniform, which would’ve attracted attention either way, but on top of that, he was the youngest Kingston. Black Claw royalty.

  Our first PDA. Wow.

  And once again, I thanked the inventors of the lightly padded bra.

  He straightened up with a self-satisfying and smug expression on his face, but it didn’t bother me. I felt pretty damn smug myself. I’d never felt this way about anyone else in my entire life. What was a little PDA when my emotions were so strong?

  “Sit?” I asked and gestured toward the empty space in the booth beside me.

  He shook his head. “No, I’m on patrol. I just wanted to stop in and ask you if you’d come to a cookout at my family’s place on Saturday.” He glanced at his smartwatch. “Er, tomorrow.”

  Abby grunted and swallowed her sip of tea. “Yeah, Jury mentioned it to me,” she exclaimed. “You should come!”

  A family gathering seemed like an enormous step, but with both Maddox and Abby grinning at me like a couple of fools, plus Kara nodding her head enthusiastically, how could I have said no? Besides, we’d slept together. Surely meeting his family wasn’t all that big of a step, was it?

  As I nodded my head, I was surprised to find I actually wanted to go. I was curious about what his mother was like. I’d seen her around but never officially met her.