by Anya Nowlan
Aeon reached for a glass of water and took a sip. Without sparing a look at the door, he squeezed Isobel’s thigh gently.
“I think they’re here.”
Isobel whipped around in her seat, her heart pounding in her chest. There they were, her mother and father, fussing with the maître d’. Her mother already looked annoyed, and her father, bless his soul, looked as sternly indifferent as he always did.
“I don’t know what to tell them,” Isobel murmured nervously, leaning into Aeon.
She was slowly getting used to his whole ‘premonitions’ thing. That was the best way he managed to explain it to her – that he could see things coming because of his powers. Except for her. He could never tell what she was about to do. It was incredibly sweet, at least as much as it was absolutely crazy and weird.
Her hand was on the dragon stone around her neck, the simple silver chain rattling comfortingly as she ran the pendant up and down along it. The dragon stone glowed in an eerily dark way, though it was almost unnoticeable unless you looked at it. When you did, there was little else that you could notice other than the chilling, mysterious pulse of the pendant.
“We will tell them everything they need to know.”
Aeon sounded so damnably calm and confident. Isobel took a breath, stilling herself for the inevitable.
The dreaded conversation with her mother.
“Isobel! I thought I would never see you again!” Alicia Evans gasped, crossing the floor of the mostly full restaurant.
“Mother,” Isobel said, standing up and allowing herself to be pulled into the tight, crushing hug.
“You look like you’ve gained weight! I knew this would happen with all those fatty pastries in Europe!”
Isobel gritted her teeth, signaling Aeon to ignore her mother. Aeon looked less than okay with the remark Alicia had made but Isobel couldn’t afford a fight breaking out this early. She had too much to tell them and there would be plenty of opportunities for confrontation with what she had to say!
Considering that she was already showing the pregnancy, her mother’s comment wasn’t entirely surprising to Isobel.
“Sir,” Aeon said, shaking Alicia’s father’s hand – Thomas Evans, a former Major in the Army.
“So you’re the man we’ve heard nothing but bad things about,” Thomas Evans responded with a mild smirk.
Isobel’s heart skipped a beat, but Aeon only grinned.
“My reputation precedes me. I prefer it that way.”
Isobel hugged her father and Aeon shared a quick handshake with a very skeptical looking Alicia, before they all took their seats. Isobel was fidgeting again, but she stopped when Aeon grabbed her hand under the table.
“It’ll be alright,” he whispered, leaning into her while a waiter took drink orders from her parents.
Like hell it will be, she thought, but she managed a smile at what Aeon was saying.
She knew she wasn’t fooling him a bit.
“So Isobel,” Thomas Evan started. “What happened in France?”
Straight to the point.
“It’s a long story,” Isobel started, frowning.
It really was. Not only because of what had happened with the dragons, but everything that had happened past it. Isobel hadn’t been home for a month and a half now and this was the first time her parents were seeing her in person after she rushed out of the church.
How was she supposed to explain that she’d gotten abducted by dragons, because her ex-fiancé was a loon, and she’d ended up getting him thrown into jail for it? The more she’d thought about it, the less sense it made in her head.
“It better be! I can’t imagine what you could tell me that would make it alright that you had Joshua arrested! His family is mortified! Do you know what this is doing to our reputation?”
Alicia was practically clutching her pearls. The way Aeon was staring at the woman from across the table made Isobel go on high alert. He didn’t take kindly to anyone showing remorse for Joshua. Unfortunately, he was stuck with one of Joshua’s biggest fans and it was up to Isobel to keep a lid on the situation.
“Your reputation is the least of the problems here,” Aeon growled.
It was Isobel’s turn to squeeze his hand, willing him to take a breath.
“Mother, I don’t think Joshua has told you everything,” Isobel started.
“He has told me more than you have!” Alicia said, getting red in the cheeks.
“That’s true. But I had my reasons. You see… Joshua… Joshua kidnapped me. He found out that I had met Aeon and he got jealous. Aeon and Joshua have some common… acquaintances, that’s how Joshua found out about it. He came after me in France and abducted me. That’s why he’s in prison right now.”
It was as close to the truth as she could get without telling both Alicia and Thomas things they would never believe. And most of it was true! Joshua had gotten thrown in jail for kidnapping her, but the driving force behind it were the dragons. They knew the right people to get him handled fast and thrown into a cell to think about what he’d done.
Isobel was fairly certain that it was as much for Joshua’s protection as it was as punishment. There was no doubt that there were more than a couple of dragons ready to rip Joshua limb from limb for daring to mess with their traditions.
Shade had been served a similar fate, in a way. While dragons couldn’t exactly imprison their own kind – no one had the patience to deal with that – Shade and the rest of the Grayson ilk had been banned from the tournaments, their dragon titles stripped and shunned from business dealings with other dragons. It was basically a sentence that would have the Graysons looking in from the outside for a very long time. Being cut off from doing business with other dragons was going to hit them right where it hurt – in their net worth.
The last Isobel had heard, Shade was slowly recovering, but he wasn’t going to be flying for years. Maybe forever.
Aeon had promised that if he ever saw the dragon anywhere around himself, Isobel or his family, he would make sure that he never took flight again. It was the most eloquent death threat Isobel had ever heard.
“You have got to be kidding me.”
Alicia’s voice was shaking, and Thomas was staring quietly at Aeon. Isobel felt the vortex of nervousness still in her and anger spike in its stead. It was that very moment that the baby decided to kick, making her keel over slightly. Dragon babies didn’t mess around.
“Isobel, are you alright?” Aeon asked, wrapping an arm around her immediately.
“I am,” she said, rubbing her hands over her belly.
It was a needed reminder as to why she was here, having this conversation.
“Mom, dad, it doesn’t matter to me whether you believe me or not. I didn’t come home after I got away from Joshua. Do you know why?”
She paused for a moment, searching for recognition on her parents’ faces. Thomas looked uncomfortable and Alicia? Well, she just looked outraged, her cheeks red even through the heavy makeup she was wearing.
“Because I didn’t want to come home. I talked to Allie and I gave you guys that phone call and that was it. I was perfectly fine in France because the only good thing that has happened to me at home lately is… well, nothing. But now I’m back. And you know why that is? Because I’m pregnant and I want my child to know both sides of the family.”
“You’re what!?” Alicia screeched, while Thomas looked ashen in the face.
Isobel’s stomach dropped. This was exactly how she had envisioned this going, but somehow, it wasn’t quite as bad as she’d feared. She wasn’t sure whether it was the fact that Aeon was by her side, or that she had someone else’s life to guard now, or that she just couldn’t be bothered to get guilt-tripped into anything by her overpowering mother, but she could get through this.
It will be alright, she told herself, echoing Aeon’s words from before.
Instead of slouching down in her seat and wishing she’d disappear off the face of the earth, Isobel
straightened her shoulders and head her head a little higher.
“You heard me. I’m pregnant.”
“Who is the father?” Thomas asked, putting a hand on Alicia’s wrist to quiet her.
“I am.”
Aeon’s voice was filled with perfect calm. Whenever he got to say that he was going to become a dad – like when they told his brothers, both of whom had already figured it out – his face lit up with an internal light. She loved watching him talk about his unborn baby boy.
“So you went to France to whore around and get poor Joshua, who loves you so much and simply made one mistake, thrown in jail? You are not the daughter I raised!”
Alicia’s voice was stuck at that level where it was almost too loud, but forcefully kept at bay. For a moment, Isobel had to wonder whether her mother was a dragon shifter as well, because she could practically see the smoke rising from the top of her head.
Aeon leaned forward to tell Alicia exactly what he thought about the way she was treating her daughter, but now it was Isobel’s time to stop him again. Both of them were operating on very slim margins of patience.
“I am exactly the daughter you’ve raised. I’m resilient, and strong, and I can take anything the world has to throw at me. Including jerks like Joshua. Now, I know better and I can protect myself from people like him.”
“You don’t have to. I’m here for that,” Aeon said sternly, bringing a smile to Isobel’s lips.
He certainly was.
“This is the man I love. This is the man I intend to marry in two weeks. We’re here to invite you to the wedding, because despite everything, you’re my mother and father and I want to keep the family together. But I won’t have you treating me the way you are right now, mom. You can accept the truth of what happened, or you can make the choice of believing in lies and be cut from my life. It’s up to you.”
Silence rang out over the table. Isobel’s heart was pounding in her chest and Aeon was squeezing her hand, looking at her with so much affection in his eyes.
“I think it’s time to go,” he said, and she nodded quietly.
Both her parents looked positively shell-shocked, and Isobel really didn’t have much else to tell them. Her father was a good man, she knew that, but after thirty-five long years with her mother, he’d gotten caught in her web as well. Isobel couldn’t hold it against him – it wasn’t easy shaking the things she could say to people, somehow knowing exactly which words to utter to make a person feel the worst about themselves.
“I think so too.”
“You can’t do this to me! What will people think of us!?” Alicia called, mortified.
Aeon and Isobel stood up. Before they could leave, though, Thomas Evans pushed his seat back and rounded the table.
“Thomas, you cannot! I forbid you!”
When Thomas came to stand in front of Isobel, the two of them ignored Alicia completely. Thomas pulled Isobel into a tight but careful embrace and she melted into it gladly, looping her arms around his neck. It was only a brief hug, but it was way more than she had been expecting.
“Be safe, babygirl,” Thomas said, his eyes shimmering. “All three of you.”
“Thank you, dad! It means a lot to me.”
He gently placed a hand on her stomach for a moment and Isobel smiled wide. Then, Thomas offered his hand to Aeon once more and this time. The two men shook and Aeon nodded at Thomas.
Alicia Evans, at the same time, looked like she’d swallowed a toad.
Aeon led Isobel out of the restaurant and she leaned on his arm, shaking a little. When they stepped into the cool air of New York City, her knees almost buckled, but he was right there to keep her up.
“I can’t believe I just did that,” she said, looking up at the man she’d grown to love more than she thought possible.
“You can do anything you want. Anything you set your mind to,” Aeon responded with a smile.
In her heart, Isobel knew he was right. Gone were the days when she’d cower in fear of her own feelings and feel guilty for putting herself first. If all of this had taught her anything, then it was that courage was something she had in spades, and that she could face monsters trying to take her happiness from her and win.
Whichever form they came in.
Epilogue
Aeon
“You need to relax,” Hex commented with a yawn, sprawled out on a high-backed, burgundy leather chair.
“I doubt he’s going to do that,” Phase added with a chuckle.
Instead of glaring at them as usual, Aeon simply sighed and chuckled. He handed a glass of whiskey to both of his brothers and then took one for himself as well, swishing the dark liquid around in the tumbler a few times. It spiraled beautifully, the light hitting the amber drink.
“I’m not going to fall for your banter today.”
“Oh, I’m sure we could do something about that!”
Hex grinned and Phase rolled his eyes. It was the latter who raised the glass in a toast.
“How about we focus on what’s really important today, hmm? Like the fact that the first of the Prevoir brothers is getting married. May happy times be endless, brother,” Phase said, uttering the traditional toast.
“May happy times be endless,” Hex and Aeon repeated, with Hex jumping up from his seat to clink the glasses together.
All three of them took sips. Aeon appreciated the heat of the drink slowly rolling down his throat, the burn unnoticeable as usual, though he found himself enjoying the nuances of the taste of it more than he had before.
That was something that had kept happening over and over again since getting Isobel in his life. Everything tasted better, the sun seemed to shine brighter and the future didn’t seem quite as… daunting. It was curious how that worked, how the right woman could change everything.
Aeon grinned to himself, setting the glass down.
“Oh, he’s thinking about Isobel again,” Hex said.
It might have been Aeon’s imagination, but he thought he heard a tiny note of jealousy in Hex’s tone. Not that he could blame the man – being around someone as deliriously happy as Aeon had been lately must have been a bit of a chore to a dragon best known for… well, being a bit of a womanizer.
Curious, Aeon thought, tucking that thought away. Maybe there’s hope for him after all.
“He better be, on this of all days!”
Phase clapped Aeon on the back and set down his own glass as well.
“I think it’s time we go,” Aeon murmured, shaking his head with a grin.
Though he’d wished his parents could be here for this day, he was lucky to at least have his brothers by his side. It was no small consolation, sharing the happiest day of his life with the people closest to him.
“I think so too,” Phase confirmed.
The three Prevoir brothers cut dashing figures as they made their way down from the study and into the courtyard of the castle. All dressed in black suits, they looked like they could command any space they walked into, and definitely this one.
That was, until the bride showed up, of course.
The courtyard was decorated in silver and white, with lavish bouquets and live flowers everywhere. Though there weren’t going to be more than ten people at the ceremony, Aeon had wanted it to be perfect for Isobel. He’d gone to plenty of trouble to be sure that it didn’t look anything like the ceremony that had been planned for Isobel and Joshua, though – Allie had helped with that.
Gentle piano music played in the background and Aeon greeted everyone present. Allie was off fussing with Isobel somewhere, but Thomas Evans was there, having only arrived the night before. Casey and her husband were also in attendance, along with Grale and a few other dragons who had worked to try and help find Isobel – and most importantly, to get Joshua thrown in prison.
The gathering was intimate and that was how Aeon preferred it, though he was sure he’d enjoy the time alone with Isobel far more. But he was not the kind of man to shake all tradition, aft
er all.
He took his place at a small podium, with Hex and Phase at his side. Standing there, he felt… nervous. It was weird.
An emotion he’d never thought he’d need to get used to. Since Isobel came into his life though, Aeon had learned that there was a lot he hadn’t experienced. He’d managed to shelter himself from what the world had to offer, but with Isobel at his side, he was running at break-neck speed to catch up with all of it.
Not only did he want to give her all the joys in the world, as well as their soon-to-be born child, but he wanted to become a better man than he was now as well. Finally, he had something to live for other than his hoard.
The fact that he couldn’t just guard the family’s gold for at least a year didn’t even register on his list of annoyances at this point. Few things did, being entirely truthful.
Patience had always been a virtue that Aeon had in spades, but waiting for Isobel, time seemed to tick by far too slow. And it wasn’t even his doing!
“There she is,” Phase whispered, tapping Aeon on the shoulder.
Aeon turned to see Isobel appear on the wide, arched door across from him. Allie had already slipped out and was beaming with joy. Isobel paused for a moment as Aeon met her gaze and he felt the universe truly stop for a moment to stare at her beauty, just as he was.
She was dressed in a white gown, modest in cut, flowing over her quickly growing belly. Her long, luxurious tresses were left down and her cheeks were lit with a blush. She looked a vision and for once, Aeon could completely understand why dragons had spent an eternity on chasing princesses.
If they were as amazing as Isobel, he could definitely see the appeal.
With a steady pounding in his chest, Aeon watched in quiet amazement as she walked to him, everyone’s eyes on her. When she stepped onto the podium and slipped her hands in his, Aeon thought he was going to burst.
“You’re gorgeous,” he said, breathless.
Isobel smiled wide, tears shimmering in her eyes.
“I thought this day would never come,” she all but whispered in response.
“It was always going to come,” Aeon countered.