by Jo Vanz
Katie looked up into Paul’s eyes. She was so damn happy that she had found him. Even if she had only met him a week ago, he meant the world to her. “I love you, Paul.”
He smiled down at Katie. “I love you too, Katie.” He landed a quick kiss on her lips. “As much as I want to make love to you right here and now, I need to start making arrangements
for tonight.” He turned and picked up the phone and started making calls.
Chapter 20
After making calls for an hour, Paul had walked Katie back to their apartment. Giving her a quick kiss at the door, he told her that he was going over to Mark’s place to get ready. Katie had then spent the next hour getting ready. She did not have a dress that fit the occasion so she just decided to wear a floor-length black dress instead. She knew the old wives’ tales but really did not have the time to go out shopping for a new gown.
Katie was in the bathroom when she heard a knock on the front door. She glanced at the clock and decided that it could not be Paul because she had another hour before she had to leave. As she made her way to the door, she stopped in the kitchen and pulled a knife out of the block on the counter. Just in case it is Julie, she told herself. As she neared the door, whoever was on the other side knocked again. “Just a second,” Katie yelled out.
Katie peeked through the hole and froze. Fabian stood on the other side of the door. Katie felt stupid holding the knife as she opened the door. “Hello.” Fabian looked down in her hand and laughed. “I am glad to see you are being safe, but I do not think you will need that.” He pointed to the knife
“With Julie still out there, I cannot be too careful,” she said with a smile. “Would you like to come in?”
Fabian nodded and stepped in when Katie moved to the side, granting him entrance. “I know you must be busy, but I thought I would bring you something that might make things a little easier.” Katie finally glanced down and noticed that he was carrying a garment bag.
“I will take any help I can get at this point,” she said with a smile. She was curious as to what was in the bag.
“We have a tradition in our race. A mother passes her gown down to her daughter when she mates. I figured that since we still do not know who your mother is, that you could use this.” He handed Katie the bag.
“You really did not need to do this,” Katie said as she took the garment.
“It was my wife’s dress. I know it would make her happy to see you wear it. I am sure you will be just as beautiful as she was.” Tears threatened to spill out over Katie’s cheek.
She wiped at her face before throwing an arm around Fabian and pulling him in for a hug. “I would be honored to wear it.” Katie stepped back and watched as Fabian wiped at his eyes.
“You are the best thing for Paul. I know that he will treat you right. You deserve the world, Katie.” Before Katie could reply, Fabian turned and closed the door as he left.
Katie rushed back into the bedroom and carefully laid the dress on the bed. She unzipped the bag and stepped back in astonishment. The gold material sparkled under the light. Katie pulled the gown out of the bag so she could admire it. The princess cut of the top held her gaze for a moment before she continued on. The bottom looked to be tight-fitting with a dragon that wrapped up the legs.
Katie could not wait to put it on to see how it fit. She rushed into the bathroom. After stripping out of her shorts and t-shirt, Katie grabbed the gown and carefully pulled it on. She was surprised when it fit like a glove. It not only hugged the curve of her hips, but pushed her boobs up and out. For the first time in Katie’s life, she actually liked how her boobs looked.
After applying her make-up, Katie took one more look in the mirror. She decided to leave her hair down and combed it over to the side. Taking one last glance, Katie turned and headed into the closet. She picked out a pair of gold stiletto heels she had bought but never wore. Thanking the fates that she had decided to splurge on them, she slipped them on her feet and stood.
Katie made one more stop to grab her purse off of the kitchen counter before she made her way out of the apartment and down to the street. When she stepped out of the building, she saw Mark standing by the rear door to a black town car.
“You look beautiful,” he said as he opened the door. “My mother would have been a blubbering mess right now. She would have loved you.” His smile held a hint of sadness. Katie gave him a quick hug before climbing into the back of the car.
The ride to the Elders building was short. Katie and Mark went over the vows. Katie repeated them over and over, she did not want to get up there in front of everyone just to screw up her vows. When the car parked in front of the building, Katie waited as Mark got out first and came around to open the door for her. He held out a hand and helped her to climb out.
Once she was standing on the sidewalk, Katie looked up to the roof. Everyone should already be up there waiting for her, including Paul. Katie’s heart started to race at the thought of seeing Paul standing at the end of the aisle, waiting for her to reach him.
“Do not fret, sis. Everything will be all right.” He held out his elbow for Katie to grab onto and she did so willingly. She needed something to ground her. Everything just felt like a dream. She had found the love of her life and was about to find out who her parents were.
“Are all the families up there waiting?” Katie asked as they walked through the front doors and headed toward the elevator.
“Yes, ma’am. That are all very excited to find out if you are their daughter. There was even a mad dash of them all offering up their dresses. Dad had other plans, though. He said this would eliminate any more fights.” He smiled at Katie as they stepped onto the elevator. “I believe he even threatened the full wrath of the Elders if they did not behave themselves the rest of the night.”
“Oh,” Katie looked up at Mark. “Is this what it is like to have a family?” she asked. Katie knew it sounded naïve, but she really did not know how loving families acted.
Mark gave her a big grin. “For the most part, yes. We will fight every now and then but we will always have your back, Katie. I am here if you ever need me to kick Paul’s ass.”
Katie laughed as the elevator dinged. She took a deep breath and stepped out as the doors opened. On the walls hung candles leading the way to the stairs that would take her up to her future.
As they approached the stairs, Mark stopped and turned to her. “Last chance, Katie. Are you sure you want to do this? You can pull a run-a-way bride right here and now. I will cover for you.”
Katie laughed. “I think I will be fine. Just a little nervous. I am ready to get this done and over with, I just do not want to let anyone down.”
“Katie, you have already given our race more hope than we have had in decades. I do not think you could do anything at this point that would cause any of us to be disappointed in you.” Mark leaned in and gave her a quick hug. “Now, let’s get up there and get you mated to my twin.”
Katie took Mark’s elbow when he offered it again and they made their way up the stairs slowly. At the top, Mark gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. “This is where we part ways. Give us a few moments before you come out, please.” He turned and walked out onto the roof.
Katie rubbed her suddenly moist hands on her legs. Her heart was racing and her hands were shaking. Her future stood on the other side of the wall. Was she truly ready to go through with the mating ceremony? Yes. She had been alone all her life. It was time to pull up her big girl panties and accept that she now had a group of people that cared for her. She took a few deep breaths to help calm herself. She was fated to be with Paul, everything else was just an added bonus. Squaring her shoulders and holding her head high, Katie took a step toward the door. She was ready.
As Katie stepped out of the door, a soft breeze blew across her skin as music started to play. All at once, all the people sitting in chairs stood and turned to look at her. Katie’s heart raced. There were so many people in attendance. She had
never expected so many dragons to be here.
She took a step forward as she scanned the crowd, then another step as she looked down the aisle and locked eyes with Paul. He stood tall and proud as he looked at her. Katie wanted to rush toward him but held herself back, forcing herself to take one step at a time to the beat of the music.
When Katie was only a few steps away from Paul, he came down the two steps to meet her. He held out his elbow for her and kissed her cheek as she placed her hand in the crook of his arm. They climbed the steps together, then turned to look at each other. The attendees all took their seats. Paul wrapped his arms around Katie, letting his hands rest on the small of her back. Katie followed suit.
“I love you, Katie,” Paul mouthed to her.
“I love you, too,” she replied
.A man Katie recognized from her first meeting at Elder Enterprises stood and made his way to stand in front of them. He placed a hand on both of their backs over their hearts. “These two are fated mates. It has been written by the fates that they shall be joined as one.” He looked at Katie and then Paul. “If you would please say your vows together.”
Katie did as she was instructed. She repeated the words that Mark had gone over with her. She did not know what they meant, only that they were of the ancient dragon language that she would have to learn. As they spoke, the wind around them started to change, whipping Katie’s hair around her face. She kept speaking, afraid to break whatever was happening around them. When they were done, a group of Elders stood and started chanting. Their words were lost to Katie as the wind picked up again.
Katie’s whole body began to tingle. Paul pulled away and stepped back. “Just relax and let it happen, love.”
Katie nodded and closed her eyes as the tingling turned into a sting. Then all at once, her body began to shift. First came the wings, popping out of her back. Her jaw elongated and sharp teeth replaced her formally dull ones. Her body began to grow and expand until she was as big as a private jet. Then finally, her skin shimmered away and turned into a shiny new dragon hide. Katie was surprised when none of it hurt. She felt completely free for the first time in her life. Huffing out a deep breath, Katie forced her eyes open.
She was startled. Everyone was starting to kneel down, their left hands balled up and placed over their hearts, heads bowed. Katie did not remember this being part of the ceremony. She went over the list that Paul had given her earlier. Nope, not part of it. Katie’s heart started to pound. She turned her head over her shoulder to see her reflection in the building across the street.
Looking back at her was a beautiful royal dragon. Katie’s head snapped in Paul’s direction and she froze. Paul’s pearly white coat was slowly turning purple right before her eyes. The look he gave her said he was just as scared as she was.