The Dragon Finds Forever (Nocturne Falls Book 7)

by Kristen Painter

  Well, Pandora. But she’d helped him build the house. She’d had to know about the vault. Even so, she hadn’t seen the inside of it since he’d taken possession of the house.

  Thinking of her made him take a moment to check himself over in the mirror. This was about as good as he could do. There was no way to erase the bend in his nose from being broken so many times or the resting scowl his face seemed to settle in without trying. Was it any wonder people were intimidated by him? He looked like a thug.

  He supposed that was exactly what people thought of him. He knew his profession—former profession—as a fighter didn’t help. But so what if people didn’t want to take a chance to get to know him? He was fine being alone. Always had been. The few friends he had were plenty.

  He grabbed his crutch and went out into the living room. Grom trotted along. No sign of Lisa. He called upstairs, “Are you almost ready? The car will be here.”

  “On my way down,” she called back.

  “All right.” He let Grom out to do some business. “Stay close. No rolling in bad things either.”

  Grom snorted and took off.

  Van shook his head as he went into the kitchen to get the champagne. Heels clicked on the stairs behind him. Lisa was on her way down. Good. Her timing was perfect. He was going to need help with the champagne. Two bottles and a crutch didn’t mix well.

  The heels clicked into the kitchen while he was taking the bottles out of the fridge.

  “Can I carry those?”

  It was nice of her to ask before he’d even said anything. “Yes, thank you. Just one will help.”

  He turned to hand her a bottle and almost dropped it. He stared, fixated, mouth open.

  She took the champagne from his hand, her brows knitting. “You okay?”

  He took a moment because he wasn’t sure. His immediate answer would have been no. Not with her standing there in a black dress that was at once heart-stoppingly sexy and extremely ladylike. The neckline dipped off of her shoulders just enough to expose her collarbones, plunging slightly at the center in a vee that pointed toward her breasts. Like he didn’t know where they were. The dress hugged every curve of her body, stopping just above her knees. Her legs were bare, and she wore shiny black heels that exposed her toes.

  They were painted glittery gold. His gaze stayed on her toes a long moment. “You look nice.”

  Nice? That was the best he could do? Grom in his new collar looked nice.

  Lisa looked…hot. Like an inferno. Like a metric ton of lava. Like the surface-of-the-sun hot.

  She glanced down at her toes. “I realize now my shoes weren’t the best choice for the weather here, but I wasn’t thinking. Things are different in Vegas.”

  He nodded. Then looked at her. “You are from Las Vegas?”

  Her eyes went blank for a second. “I, uh, yes. I work at the League offices there. Well, not at the offices, but out of those offices. That’s where I report to, I mean.”

  He nodded again. He wasn’t entirely sure what she’d just said. Her collarbones were too distracting.

  She set the champagne on the island. “Is this dress too much? I wasn’t sure what to wear. Everything else I had looked too businessy or too casual.”

  “Nyet. Is good.” And his English was bad. He took a breath and tried to remember what he’d just been practicing. “Your dress is very good. You look very pretty.”

  Pretty was better. And as far as he was willing to go. If he told her what he really thought, she’d run screaming into the woods, thinking he was about to maul her.

  She leaned her hip on the counter, her fingers loose on the neck of the bottle. “You look really great too. Casual but dressed up, and that jacket is perfect on you. Probably custom-made, right? With your shoulders, I can’t imagine you can buy anything off the rack.”

  Did that mean she’d been checking out his body? Did she like the way he looked? Not every woman appreciated this many muscles on a man. Why was he having the thoughts of a high-school boy? What was wrong with him? Were naked collarbones all it took to shove him into puberty again?

  “Da. All my suits must be made.” He shrugged. “A small price to pay for what my body allows me to do.” He cleared his throat. “Allowed.”

  “Not to mention that you’re probably going to look a hundred times better than the rest of the guys at this party who aren’t wearing a custom-made jacket.” She smiled at him and picked up the champagne. “Did you say the car was here?”

  His phone buzzed, no doubt the driver announcing his arrival. “Just now.”

  The first part of the ride was spent in silence, the addition of the driver somehow making Van self-conscious about anything he might say. It was all right, though. Lisa seemed occupied with the town as soon as they turned onto Main.

  “Hey, this place is really cool.” She stared out the window, the shop lights reflected in her pretty eyes. “Hah! Look at that. Hats In The Belfry. That’s funny.”

  She kept up a running commentary even as they got onto the residential streets. “The houses here are so pretty. And so different from what I’m used to. I love them.”

  The driver pulled in front of Pandora and Cole’s and parked.

  Lisa sucked in a breath. “Is this seriously their house?”

  “Yes.” That much Van could say.

  “It’s amazing. I’d be throwing a party too if I lived here.” She snuck a look at him. “I can’t imagine cleaning it, though.” She laughed. “It would take days.”

  He studied her as the driver went around to open her door. What did a woman like Lisa want out of life? She’d been concerned about losing her job. He understood that. But the women he’d met in the last few years had been focused on things. Or at least, what things he had and what things he might be able to provide. Expensive gifts, nice cars, big houses, posh trips, lavish meals.

  He got out of the car as she did too. She’d already grabbed both bottles of champagne from the driver, who’d gotten them out of the back. Van walked to her side and offered her his arm. The one not piloting the crutch.

  She took it, guiding the champagne carefully through. “That’s very gentlemanly of you.”

  “Hand me one of those bottles. You should not carry both.”

  “You sure?”

  “Yes.” He opened his hand for her to place one of the bottles in it.

  She did, but her smile seemed to lessen a bit.

  “Something wrong?”

  Her gaze shifted to the house. “It’s nothing. Just a little nervous. Parties do that to me, I guess.”

  He nodded as he looked around. Cars lined the street in both directions. Every window in the house blazed with light, showing off just how packed it was inside. And more people were walking up the driveway. He understood how intimidating it must feel. “Everyone is very friendly.”

  “I’m sure they are.”

  “But you do not know anyone.”

  She smiled brighter as she made eye contact, but the crinkles around her eyes betrayed her nerves. “Just you.”

  “I’ll introduce you. You will see. Very friendly.” His dragon instincts kicked in a little, the urge to protect impossible to resist. But she wasn’t in any grave danger. Being uncomfortable wasn’t life threatening.

  Still, he would do what he could. Normally, Pandora would take over in a situation like this, but tonight she was the hostess. She couldn’t spend her evening making sure Lisa was all right. “Ready to go in?”

  “Yes.” She lifted her bottle like a soldier wielding a sword before heading into battle. “Let’s do this.”

  Monalisa’s nerves weren’t a put-on. She really was nervous, and for a whole host of reasons. One, she was worried she’d be recognized. Yes, she was miles and miles away from home, but her father entertained a lot, and she was always expected to make an appearance, so her face was fairly well known in the upper classes of the supernatural community. She was the daughter of the king of the leprechauns, after all. And there was no w
ay of knowing who might be here.

  Two, she’d slipped up twice already by admitting she was Irish and saying she was from Vegas. She couldn’t afford a third time, and with all the small talk she would have to make, there was no telling what might accidentally come out of her mouth. She was, apparently, not that great at lying.

  Her father would be so disappointed.

  And three, there were the normal nerves of going to a party where she didn’t know anyone. Van would no doubt be busy with all his friends. They’d have their own stories and inside jokes and had probably known each other for ages. Meanwhile, she was not only a stranger, but she couldn’t even be herself.

  She’d be walking a fine line all evening between not saying too much while still trying to appear social. A night like this should be fun, but she doubted it would be for her. More like work.

  Regardless, she was going to make the best of it, because for all those reasons to be nervous, there was the huge benefit of no one knowing who she was. With any luck. No leprechaun pun intended. Could there be someone in this town who’d hobnobbed with her father? Maybe. But it was probably unlikely, even with as many people as seemed to be here. She hoped. And so, clinging to that hope, despite the rest of her worries, she put a big smile on her face and prepared to face the evening.

  They walked into the house, and Pandora greeted them almost instantly, even though there was a crowd milling about.

  “I’m so glad you could come.” She hugged them both, Van first, then Monalisa.

  It shook Monalisa. She wasn’t accustomed to much physical contact. People didn’t generally touch her, being royalty, unless she touched them first. And her parents certainly weren’t the affectionate kind.

  Van held up his bottle of champagne. “For you.”

  Monalisa offered the one she was holding as well.

  “Thank you so much! That’s so fabulous. Who doesn’t love good champagne? And that looks like exceptional bubbly.” Pandora took both the bottles. “Now you two get in there and get something to eat and drink while I stick these babies in the fridge. I won’t take no for an answer. There’s too much of both, and I need help getting rid of it. Food’s in the dining room here. Drinks are in the kitchen. Which is where I’m headed.”

  She winked at Monalisa and took off.

  Van looked at her. “Eat or drink?”

  She had no appetite for either, but a drink might take the edge off. Just one, though. No point in tempting fate. “Drink.”

  “Come,” Van said, patting Monalisa’s hand. Then he took hold of his crutch and moved them forward.

  Oddly, other than a few nods of the head and some interesting looks, no one paid much attention to Van as they made their way deeper into the house. They finally stopped in the kitchen, where the party was especially boisterous around the table. Small groups of people were clustered together, laughing and talking and enjoying short glasses of something pink. The punch on the table, from the looks of it.

  She let go of Van’s arm. The heat from his body had sunk into her, making her almost shiver as it began to dissipate. “Why don’t I get us some of that punch? Seems to be the thing to drink. Unless you want something else?”

  “No. That is good.”

  “Okay, I’ll be right back.” She made her way to the table and the enormous crystal bowl sitting there. The pink punch had slices of citrus floating in it, and there were bottles of top shelf vodka and rum sitting in chillers nearby. Maybe so guests could add their own spirits? She watched as someone came up to the table and did just that.

  That was a great idea. She put a splash of vodka into two clear plastic cups, figuring that was what any reasonable Russian would prefer, then filled the cups the rest of the way with punch. Thankfully, not a single person spoke to her the whole time. So far, so good. She picked up the drinks and turned to head back to Van.

  A teenage girl with earbuds draped around her neck stood in front of Monalisa. “Hi, I’m Kaley, and my dad said I need to work on my social skills by actually talking to people in person and not by text. So, like, this is me doing what he said. Who are you?”

  Monalisa almost laughed. “I’m Lisa. Nice to meet you, Kaley.”

  “Are you a friend of my dad’s or Pandora’s?”

  “Technically, neither.” Monalisa lifted one of the punch cups in Van’s direction. He was talking to a tall, distinguished older man. “I came with Mr. Tsvetkov over there.”

  Kaley glanced his way. “Oh, cool. I like Van. He’s like the toughest guy I know in real life. His dog is super cool too. Have you met his dog? I’d like to get a dog, but Pandora’s got a cat, and well, you know.” She rolled her eyes.

  This kid didn’t have any trouble being social. “Sure, that could be tricky. And yes, I’ve met Grom. He is definitely a cool dog.”

  Kaley’s eyes narrowed. “So, are you Van’s girlfriend? That would be good. Because Pandora said he could totally use one to snap him out of this funk.”

  Monalisa almost choked. “No, I’m his rehab therapist. I’m just here to help him recover from his injury.”

  “Oh.” Kaley thought about that a moment. “Then your job is to, like, get him happy again?”

  “You could say that.” Happy enough to get back into the ring.

  A big smile broke out on Kaley’s face. “Then you’re kind of like his girlfriend, right?”

  “No, it’s strictly a professional relationship.” She tried to catch Van’s attention to see if he’d pick up on the signal that she needed to be rescued, but he was still talking.

  “Well, your aura’s pretty cool. And based on that, I think you two would make a good couple, so if you like him, like like him like him, you should go for it.”

  “I don’t—what did you say about my aura?” The tiniest panic alarm went off in Monalisa. So small, it probably wasn’t even worth listening to. Not much anyway.

  Kaley preened. “I’m a witch like Pandora. She’s my mentor, actually. She’s teaching me all about witch stuff, and that’s my gift. Reading auras. She says no one can do it as good as I can. And yours is, like, super interesting.”

  “Oh? How so?” The alarm got a smidge louder.

  “I don’t know what kind of supernatural you are, but…” Kaley leaned in like she was about to share something top secret. “You’re kind of dangerous, aren’t you?”

  The alarm turned into full-fledged panic, freezing Monalisa. She had no idea how to respond. Admitting the truth wasn’t going to help. Especially not if this kid decided to share her new-found info with everyone she knew. Like Pandora, who would undoubtedly tell Van.

  Monalisa had no choice but to keep up the lie she’d begun. But what if Kaley could see the dishonesty in her aura too? She tried to come up with an answer that stayed clear of both sides. “Aren’t we all in our own way?”

  Kaley nodded. “Totally. And it’s cool with me. I mean, I dig that you and Van both have that dark and light thing going on. You even share some of the same colors. His has a lot deeper greens and sparks of gold and red—like scales, which makes sense, right? But his aura also has the dark edging like yours. There are some definite similarities, for sure.”

  Intrigued, Monalisa had to know more. “What does mine look like?”

  “It’s pale green with streaks of blindingly bright light, plus a thin inner band of gold, and then the whole thing fades to black at the edges, which is what Van’s does. Your black is thicker, though, so you must be a little more dangerous than he is. Which is super cool.”

  “That is very interesting. No one’s ever read my aura before. Thank you for sharing that with me.” She wasn’t sure what to do with this new information. It was interesting. Thankfully, she felt like this was a good ending to the conversation. “I’d better get this punch to Van. Nice meeting you, Kaley.”

  “You too, Lisa. And I better go see if my grandfather needs anything. Oh, if you see my dad, tell him I was totally social, okay?”

  “Will do.” Monalisa made her exit
. She got the feeling Kaley’s dad was Pandora’s boyfriend, so that made him Cole. She hadn’t been introduced to him yet, but it would probably happen before the night was over.

  She joined Van and almost breathed a sigh of relief that she’d gotten out of the chat with Kaley without revealing more about herself than she wanted to. Maybe she had a little of that paternal luck after all. If so, that was all she wanted from her father. Ever.

  She held Van’s punch out to him without interrupting the conversation he was still involved in.

  Van took the cup. “Lisa, this is Bartholomew Stanhill.”

  The older man stuck his hand out. “Pleasure to meet you, miss. Please, call me Stanhill. Everyone does.”

  “All right.” His British accent added to his charm. “Nice to meet you too. Are you a friend of Pandora’s too?”

  “You could say that.” He smiled. “I’m sweet on the mother of the girls, Corette.”

  She shook her head. “Is that Pandora’s mother? Or are the girls someone else? I just met Kaley.” She laughed. “I’m Van’s rehab therapist, so I’m a little clueless as to who’s who.”

  “Not to worry, love. Corette Williams is the girls’ mother, and the girls are Charisma, Marigold, and the hostess of this party, Pandora. Kaley is Cole’s daughter.”

  “Oh, I see. And Cole is Pandora’s boyfriend. That much I know.”

  “Righto, now you’ve got it. I think Cole’s father, Jack, is around here somewhere too.”

  She was never going to remember all these names, but there probably wasn’t going to be a test either. “So you and Corette are an item. How nice!”

  His grin expanded. “We are. And it is. Engaged and the whole bit. Wanted to lock that down, I did.”

  A handsome older woman sidled up to them, slipping her arm through Stanhill’s. “Did I just hear you say you wanted to ‘lock me down,’ darling?”