“They’re about dragons.” Keion said he was well aware of that. “Don’t you see? I’ve broken the very laws that I helped make. I told others about dragons.”
“You told stories to your grandchildren and wrote them down. No one, save these children, would ever believe that there are real dragons, Dad. I mean, they might want to believe, but their parents won’t ever believe.” He nodded, and started to argue more with Zak when he put up his hand to continue. “I don’t know about the rest of them, but I think this is the most amazing thing that I’ve ever seen. My dad and mom wrote books.”
The rest of them told him how proud they were of them. And as they drifted away to start their days, he looked at Asher. He’d been silent through the entire thing, and he so wanted him to be pleased as well. Essie and Eve left him there and he looked at his king, the man who he had known for a great many years, and asked him if he was mad.
“Not for what you’ve done, no. I think, like the rest of them, that you’ve done a great job. I love the fact that you did it. But I’m hurt that you didn’t think we’d care. Because that’s it, isn’t it?” Anthony felt like a small child caught doing something that he wasn’t supposed to. “We love you. You do know that, don’t you?”
“Oh yes. What a thing to ask. Yes, I know that you love me. But I was...I was embarrassed that I did this. Not that I did the stories, but that other people seemed to enjoy them so much. And the children? My goodness, Asher, they write letters to me.” Asher smiled at him and said that was wonderful. “Eve said that I should have told you from the start, but to be honest with you, I wanted this for myself for a little while. You know, it’s something that I held to me for a time.”
“I can understand that as well. And it makes knowing that you kept it from us a lot better.” Anthony told him he was sorry. “No need to be. As I said, I understand. But I do have a question for you. Can we go with you? To New York?”
“You wish to see me on television?” Asher was shocked by that. “I might have forgotten to mention that, didn’t I?”
“Yes, you did, but that’s all right. We can make a time of it. The kingdom will be all right for a little while. The children have their parents. My own are too old for me to watch after. Essie and Kiaran and I, we’d love to be there. The others too, should you like.”
“I’d like that very much.” He stood up and noticed that all the books were in front of Asher. “You keeping those?”
“Only if you’ll sign them for me.”
He felt so pleased that someone had asked that he did so with a flourish. “I’ve been practicing my last name. It’s all so new to me, this need of a surname.” He wrote Anthony Dawood, then drew a small dragon under his name. “I thought that cute. And Eve, she said I have a fine hand at it too.”
~~~
Eve watched her mate as he talked about the stories that he had written. It made it so much easier to have him look only at the man speaking to them rather than the cameras and such that were all around. There was so much going on too.
You are so beautiful, my love. She smiled at him as he spoke to her. We shall celebrate tonight, all of us, that this is done.
It is only the beginning, and you know it. The rest of the books are finished too. He asked her when she’d done that. While you sat upon your bottom with a child upon your lap. You are the best pillow I think any of them have ever used. You know that, don’t you?
I so love them there. It is as calming as your beating heart to me. She told him she loved him. And I you. Forevermore.
They had been to New York before, of course, though not for a great many decades. When they’d been here, there had been no large buildings that blocked out the sky, nor were there as many people. And the number of cars made her want to rush back home to their little spot and hide away. But there were the shops now that she was enjoying.
Last night when they’d arrived, she and the girls, with Sally, had gone shopping. She’d never been to so many stores that carried clothing. And the shoes. She had bought herself six pairs of them, and several more shorts. And the little two piece bathing suit she was saving for when they returned home. She thought that Anthony would enjoy it most of all.
They had also done some shopping for the children. There were so many of them now, too many to count, but she loved each and every one of them. And buying for them was such a pleasure for her. But sitting here, with her mate and one true love, was the greatest joy she had.
They had written so many books, some that the children would never know of. Eve had told tales about their adventures as dragons, but adult versions. That was fun for them, writing out sex scenes and then having fun trying them out. Some of them were as outlandish as the children’s stories, but no less successful.
As the television show wrapped up, Eve stretched a little, careful of the things that had been attached to her dress. And when the little voice in her ear, a microphone, they’d called it, told them they were clear, she stood up and waited for someone to take them off her.
“Would you like to have lunch with me?” She stared at the young man who had pulled the microphone off her blouse, and smiled. Men were forever a mystery to her, especially humans. “I know this quaint little place that we can have a quiet afternoon. It’s my place.”
“I don’t think so.” He smiled at her, and it wasn’t friendly. “I have a husband and children older than you.”
“I don’t care. I think you’re sexy.” She only huffed at him and looked for Anthony. He was with their publisher. “He’ll never have to know you came with me. A man who writes children’s books is probably a pervert anyway.”
Her temper, something that she’d never had any trouble with before, surged forward. It was like she was hot with it. Even her dragon seemed to roar out. But the man, instead of being afraid, thought her sexier. The fool.
“Get yourself away from me, or I shall make you regret ever being born.” Essie came to stand with her then, having no doubt heard her anger. “He’s making some sort of proposition with me.”
“He’s flirting, and clumsily too.” Essie stared at the man, then smiled at him. “You are not going to get away with this; you know that, don’t you?”
Anthony came to stand behind the man when he asked Essie what she was talking about. Anthony only touched the man, just put his hand on his shoulder, when he suddenly started screaming in pain. The sleeve of his jacket was on fire, small flames shooting up around his face. Anthony made a show of helping him, but all he did was fan the fire.
Eve told him enough and he stepped back, the small flames going out. The man started screaming that she’d hurt him, that she’d set him afire when she only stood there. Essie held her hand, but neither of them commented. Anthony asked if they were all right.
“Yes. He tried to get me to go with him. He said that we could have a quick lunch at his home. I told him no, but he was persistent.” Mr. Calloway, the manager of the show they’d just been on, came from the group around them. Eve repeated her story to him, and he glared at the young man.
“You’ve been told about touching people when they tell you no.” The man, Scott his name tag said now that she could see it, said that she’d set him on fire. “Yes, I’m sure she did. And she’s a dragon too. Moron.”
Mr. Calloway knew just what they were, and winked at her when he bent to help young Scott up and to the door, none too gently either. As soon as he was out of sight, she nearly fell into Anthony’s arms.
“He won’t be believed.” Eve told him that she knew that. “The idiot. He’s lucky that I didn’t really burn him to a crisp. He should know better than to touch what is mine. Are you all right, love?”
“I am, but I’m ready to leave.” He asked her to home or the hotel. “Both, but we’re to have that dinner with the children, so I won’t miss that. He was so...I don’t know, but it made me sick the way he treated me.”
“Yes, well, he’ll never do that again.” She asked him if he’d killed him. “No, I on
ly took care that he cannot have an erection again. It wasn’t hard. I mean, literally, he was never hard.”
They were still laughing as they entered the limo. The ride to the hotel wasn’t long, but it was good to get away from people for a few minutes. As her love held her, she thought of how humans were no different, not really, than they had been from her time. Only they were bolder. She didn’t think she cared for that any more than she did before.
“Anthony, when we return from this, do you think we could have a nice picnic by the lake? As we used to do?” He said that he liked that idea. “Just you and I, and we’ll turn off those blasted cell phones too.”
“I think that is a perfect idea, my love. We’ll have Elbert make us some of his scones and some tea. Those thermos things are wonderful for that sort of thing now.” She agreed with him. “Then we’ll take us a blanket and make love, right there on the edge of the water, and look up at the stars when we finish.”
“I could never be finished with you, Anthony.” He kissed her then, and she felt his hunger for her as well as his love. “You and I, we are so lucky, aren’t we? We have our lives back, children galore, as well as our dragons. Who would have thought, all those years ago, that we’d come back here to watch over them all?”
“Not I, ever. When the pike pierced my heart, all I could think about was that you were gone from my life, never my heart, but my life. And that I’d miss you.” She said the same feelings had come over her. “As I lay there dying, I thought of all the things we’d done, all the people that we had touched to make our children safe, and I felt at peace. For the first time in a long while, I was at peace with my life.”
She lay there, his heart beating under her ear, and thought of her life thus far. They were very lucky, she thought. Not just to be here, in this time, but to have so many loved ones around them. To her, there weren’t enough words, nor the right ones, to say how much it meant to her to have all that she did.
Akassa and his loves had prospered so much, more than the rest of them, she thought. He was happy too, with Simeon and Bryn by his side. With Bryn’s magic they had helped so many people, children included, and that made her so proud of them all. She thought of all her children, they were the happiest of all. And they enjoyed life to the fullest too. Eve could not wait for more adventures from them to come along. Not to mention their children too.
When they were in their hotel room again, she thought of another book she wanted to write. This one, she knew, would be hers alone. It was going to be about the love affair between two dragons who would someday be king and queen of their kind. Yes, she thought, she’d write it, and she and Anthony would add to it over the years to come. A Tale of Two Dragons, that would be the name of it.
Kathi Barton , winner of the Pinnacle Book Achievement award as well as a best-selling author on Amazon and All Romance books, lives in Nashport, Ohio with her husband Paul. When not creating new worlds and romance, Kathi and her husband enjoy camping and going to auctions. She can also be seen at county fairs with her husband who is an artist and potter.
Her muse, a cross between Jimmy Stewart and Hugh Jackman, brings her stories to life for her readers in a way that has them coming back time and again for more. Her favorite genre is paranormal romance with a great deal of spice. You can visit Kathi on line and drop her an email if you’d like. She loves hearing from her fans. [email protected].
Follow Kathi on her blog: http://kathisbartonauthor.blogspot.com/
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