by Ashlyn Chase
Rory cleared his throat. “I don’t recall hearin’ anythin’ about our parents in the last eight hundred years.” His expression became somber. “They came for a visit dressed as beggars. I’ve since wondered if it wasn’t a disguise. Since everyone who could possibly recognize them has long since died and they could have returned at any time, I think we can safely assume they’ve met their demise.”
Conlan solemnly added, “Quite right, Cousin. I have thought so as well.”
Aiden moved to his side quickly and whispered in his ear. Since dragons have such sensitive hearing, Chloe caught the gist of it anyway. What she heard surprised her.
Conlan rose and said, “Long live Queen Chloe!” He dropped to one knee and reverently placed his fist over his heart. His brothers did the same. Rory followed suit.
Shannon giggled but slipped off Finn’s lap and onto her knees. “Long live me queen sister. May she remember where she came from and never get a big head.”
Chloe couldn’t help smirking. “All right, all right. I can see how it’s goin’ to be. Get off your feckin’ knees. Let’s all return to our seats and speak as equal adults.”
As soon as everyone was reseated, she said, “There’s one other thing I should let you all know. I have decided to accept Gaia’s offered position of muse of fire safety.”
Aiden’s jaw dropped. “You mean to tell us, you’re not only a queen now but a goddess as well?”
Chloe shrugged. “Minor goddess…and the queen thing was your idea.”
“Actually, it was Rory’s—”
“The jig’s up, Cousin,” Rory said. “And the others should know. It was Aiden who came to me with the suggestion that we declare our parents dead and make Chloe queen when I formally abdicated tonight.”
Chloe turned her surprised gaze on Aiden. “Is that true, Cousin?”
He nodded. “I want you to know that I said nothin’ until after I knew you were lost to me and goin’ to marry the firefighter—I mean the other firefighter.”
Her smile grew as did her respect for Aiden. He didn’t seem to hold a grudge.
“So what does the muse position entail?” he asked.
“I will encourage people to protect themselves from fires, encourage inventers to come up with new and better ways to help them do that, and look after firefighters everywhere.”
“That sounds like a tall order,” Conlan said.
“’Tis. But not as tall an order as yours. Am I to understand you mean to find another female dragon? How do you expect to do that?”
Conlan smiled. “I’m goin’ on a grand adventure. Eagan and Aiden can manage the whiskey-makin’ business. I know there’s another dragon out there. I can feel it.”
“Um…I might not return to Ulster right away,” Aiden said.
“Why not?” Eagan and Conlan asked simultaneously.
“There’s this friend of Amber’s I’d like to get to know better.”
Amber clapped her hands. “I knew it! I saw the chemistry between you and Candy Marie.”
“We took bets on you,” Rory added.
“Did you now?”
“Is she a flight attendant too?” Conlan asked.
“Yes,” Amber said with a grin. “So she can visit Aiden wherever he is.”
Aiden’s eyes lit up. “So you think she’d be willin’ to fly all the way to Northern Ireland just to see me?”
Amber laughed. “I’d say you could count on it.”
Aiden grinned and leaned back in his chair.
“So, Chloe, how long do you think it will take to restore the castle?” Eagan asked.
“A while. There’s no rush. Ryan will work with the volunteer fire department in Ballyhoo, updating and improving their methods, while I attend to my muse duties. When we have free time, we’ll restore the castle, together.”
Aiden scratched his head. “It sounds like you won’t have much free time at all.”
She glanced at Amber. “Oh, you may be surprised. We have a few tricks up our sleeves as far as time management is concerned.”
“It sounds as if your duties have already begun.”
“Not yet, but my training will begin soon. Amber will be teaching me whatever I need to know.”
Eagan chuckled. “Like how to fly people from the other side of the ocean and land in closets?”
Rory laughed. “The closet is just because disappearin’ and reappearin’ in full view of a front door, which has a glass inset, is against Mother Nature’s rules. I intend to replace that door with a solid one.”
“I’ll help,” Finn offered.
“Thank you, Finn. Now that Chloe is so busy, I’ll take you up on that.”
“I could help after my four-day shift is over,” Chloe said.
“I wouldn’t dream of askin’ your highness to do manual labor,” Rory said with a wink. “You might break a nail.”
She frowned. “I might break one on your head, if you tease me like that, Rory Arish.”
“Ah, it’s good to know that rulin’ isn’t goin’ to change you a bit.”
Everyone laughed.
* * *
Ryan stood on the emerald-green grass looking out to sea. Chloe strolled up beside him and slipped her arm around his waist. He welcomed her warmth. The breeze off the ocean was a bit chilly, even in May.
“I’d like to bury the power lines if we can,” Ryan said. “That way it wouldn’t block Shannon and Finn’s view, plus the cables should hold more securely against winter weather.”
“Winters aren’t nearly as bad here as they are in Boston. I can’t believe how much snow fell and how heavy it was.” She shuddered. “We were lucky there weren’t more roof collapses.”
He kissed her hair. “They really knew how to build solid roofs in the past.”
She chuckled. “Yeah. If one sprung a leak, they just slapped another roof over it. You should have seen all the layers Rory and I uncovered when we looked at buildin’ a roof deck on top of his B and B.”
“Hey. Maybe we could…”
“If you say build a deck on top of the turret, I’ll have to talk you out of it. I’d like to keep the integrity of the castle on the outside. You can make it as modern as you like on the inside.”
He gave her a side hug. “I was going to suggest a patio on the grass, but your idea of modernizing the inside is welcome news.”
“Oh. You don’t want rock walls and dirt floors?”
“Not so much.” He wandered toward the site of the future staircase, taking her with him. “I can see floor-to-ceiling tempered glass windows. Wide wood floors. Sheetrock with modern, but sophisticated wall treatments… Modern plumbing will be a trick, but one I’m willing to puzzle out.”
Suddenly they weren’t alone.
Gaia stood on his other side. “My muse hasn’t picked out her reward yet. Perhaps I can help you with that.”
Chloe faced her. “My reward will be toilets?”
Mother Nature shrugged. “Unless you don’t want them. After all, your ancestors were used to peeing in cold porcelain bowls which they kept under the beds—”
Chloe gagged. “Ah, no, Goddess. You have the right of it. I became used to indoor plumbin’ decades ago and would welcome your help bringin’ it into the castle.”
“Good. It would be a shame to mar the beautiful facade with whatever waste you had to toss out the windows.”
“What facade?” Ryan asked. “I imagine working on the inside will be tricky enough. I can’t ask anyone to put themselves in danger by working on the outside walls.”
Gaia rolled her eyes. With a wave of her hand, she created a beautiful stone stairway that led to an oval patio below. “Go ahead. Take a look over the side.”
Ryan gaped at Chloe. “Should we trust it will hold us?” he whispered.
Gaia’s back stiff
ened. “If you think I’d allow you to set foot on a structure that might collapse and send you falling to your deaths, you don’t have a very high opinion of me.”
“It’s not that, Goddess. I just imagine you haven’t had a lot of building experience.”
She snorted. “How you humans try to restrict me with your own limitations! I can do anything you can do, only instantly and better.”
“Sorry, Goddess,” he said and bowed. “You’re absolutely right.”
Chloe elbowed him and whispered, “Those are smart words. Keep talking that way.”
“I can hear you think, little dragon. Never mind whisper.”
She aimed her smile at Mother Nature. “I know. I was teasin’ my husband.”
“Oh. I may never get the hang of this ‘teasing’ you speak of.”
“Mayhaps that’s a good thing, Gaia,” Chloe said.
Mother Nature nodded. “Yes. And getting back to your reward for taking the modern muse job, I think I can do better than providing bathrooms for your joint project.”
Ryan and Chloe focused their attention on her.
Gaia waved her hand and a huge pile of lumber appeared. “I believe you wanted wide solid hardwood floors?”
Ryan breathed deeply, “Shit. Yeah, I did.”
She waved at another spot on the grass and a pile of sheetrock appeared. “And walls…” Then suddenly a structure popped up between the two piles of supplies. “Inside you’ll find tools, glass panels, fixtures…basically everything you’ll need down to the finish nails and caulking.”
“I’ll be damned,” Ryan mumbled.
“No, you won’t.” Mother Nature said. “I don’t do that to people. Oh, by the way…” A man appeared before them. “Here’s an architect to help you design your dream.”
The man scratched his head and mumbled something about not realizing he’d had that much to drink.
“Will you need laborers, or do you two want to build the whole thing yourselves?” Gaia asked.
Chloe squeezed Ryan’s hand. “I think we want to be involved as much as possible, but we could use one completed bedroom and bath.”
One side of Ryan’s lip curved up. “I can think of six strapping young men who’d be willing to help.” He turned toward the architect. “We’ll need to build a few guest rooms for family visits.”
“Mayhaps ten or so?” Chloe added. “We’ve cousins as well.”
“True.”
The architect whipped out his pencil and a pad of paper and started jotting down notes. “Maybe a few guest suites, with their own baths?”
“To be sure.” Chloe looked to Gaia. “How many baths did you provide for?”
Mother Nature rolled her eyes. Suddenly the storage shed doubled in size. “Eleven,” she said with a smug smile. “Let me know when you get to the furnishings. It sounds like you’ll need a huge dining table. I think the one from Camelot might be about the right size.”
“Camelot?” The architect gasped. “I thought that place was a legend.”
Ryan, Chloe, and Gaia all answered at once. “Legends have to come from somewhere…”
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from Ashlyn Chase’s Flirting with Fangs series!
Chapter 1
“I’m never attending a destination wedding again.”
Bliss Russo dragged her garment bag and carry-on up the ramp to her Boston apartment building. Her purse had fallen off her shoulder ten minutes ago and dangled from her wrist. She needed the other hand to hold her cell phone to her ear so she could bitch to her friend Claudia.
“Oh, poor you. Someone made you go to Hawaii.” Claudia chuckled. “The bastards.”
“Seriously… do you know how long the flight is? Or I should say flights. First there’s the leg from Boston to L.A., then L.A. to Honolulu, and finally Honolulu to Maui. Two days later, I go from Maui to Honolulu. Then Honolulu to L.A. Then L.A. to Boston. Plus I had to follow Hawaiian wedding tradition—at least what the bride’s parents assured us was the tradition—and party all night. I haven’t slept for days.”
“You’re exaggerating.”
“No, I’m not. Unless you count the five-minute nap I took at LAX. I was so exhausted, I woke up on the chair next to me when the guy I had apparently fallen asleep on got up and left.”
“Sorry. Okay, you’re right. It was a lousy, miserable thing to make you do. So where are you now?”
“Almost home. In fact, I’ll probably lose you in the elevator. Give me a few days to sleep and I’ll call you back.”
“Call by Thursday if you can, and let me know if you want to go out Saturday night.”
Bliss jostled the door open, and one of the residents held it while she maneuvered her luggage through. “I shouldn’t. I worked a little harder and got a few days ahead so I could go to this damn wedding in the first place, but I really can’t afford to take any more time off. The competition will crush me.”
“That’s what you get for landing in the finals of your dream reality show. What is it? America’s Next Great Greeting Card Designer?”
“It’s not called America’s Next… oh, forget it. I’m at the elevator now and I’m too tired to care. I’ll call you.”
“Okay, sugar. Sweet dreams.”
“Thanks.” Bliss hung up and dropped her phone into the bowels of her purse. She yanked and stuffed her luggage into the tiny elevator, which she rode to the second floor. Eventually, she dragged everything to her door, rattled the key in her lock, and brought it all into her bedroom. Passing out on top of her bed fully dressed seemed like the only good idea she was capable of having, so she donned a sleep mask, did a face-plant, and stayed that way.
* * *
Hours later—or maybe days—Bliss awoke to a deafening blare. Still disoriented, she had no idea what the hell the noise was or, for that matter, if it was night or day. She tore off the sleep mask and still couldn’t tell what was going on. But what was that smell?
Oh. My. God. Smoke! That ear-piercing screech is the friggin’ fire alarm.
Bliss tried to remember what to do. Oh yeah, crouch down low and get the fuck out of Dodge. Thank the good Lord she lived on the second floor, because she couldn’t use the stupid elevator.
Bliss remembered just in time to put her hand to the door before opening it. It didn’t feel as though there were an inferno on the other side. Staying low, she opened the door. The smoke was so thick she could barely see. She held her breath and charged toward the end of the hall.
Suddenly, her head hit something firm and she fell backward. “Oomph.” The sharp intake of breath resulted in a coughing fit.
Looking up to see what she had hit, she realized she had just head-butted a firefighter’s ass.
He swiveled and mumbled through his mask. “Really? I’m here to save you, and you spank me?”
Despite her earlier panic, Bliss felt a whole lot safer and started to giggle. Oh no. My computer! “Wait, I have to go back…”
“No. You need to get out of here, now.” The firefighter lifted her like she weighed nothing—an amazing feat in itself—then carried her the wrong way down the rest of the hallway, through the fire door, and down the stairs.
“Wait!” She grasped him around the neck and tried to see his face through watering eyes.
His mask, helmet, and shield covered almost his whole head, but she caught a glimpse of gold eyes and a shock of hair, wheat-colored with yellow streaks, angled across his forehead. She thought it odd that the city would let firefighters dye their hair like rock musicians.
As soon as they’d made it to the street, she could see better and noticed his eyes were actually green and almond shaped. She must have imagi
ned the gold color. He set her down near the waiting ambulance and pulled off his mask.
What a hottie! But I don’t have time for that now. She staggered slightly as she tried to head back toward the door.
He grabbed her arm to steady her. “Hey,” he shouted to one of the paramedics. “Give her some oxygen.”
“No, I’m fine. I don’t need any medical attention.” Thanks to the gorgeous hunk with the weird hair.
“Please… let them check you out.”
“I’d rather let you check me out.” She covered her mouth and grinned. “Sorry. It must be the smoke inhalation.
He laughed. “Seriously? First you grab my ass, and now you’re hitting on me?”
“I didn’t ‘grab your ass.’ For your information, I ran face-first into your… behind.”
“Oh. Well, pardon me for being in the way.”
His smile almost stopped her heart—or was it the lack of oxygen? Regardless, she had to rip herself away from him and get her computer out of the building before it melted. No matter how hard she pulled, he didn’t budge.
“You need to go back in there for my computer. Apartment twenty-five, halfway down the hall.”
He took off his gloves. “Look, I’m sorry, miss, but if I went back in there now, my chief would have my hide.”
“But my whole life is on that computer. I’m in the finale of a huge TV competition.”
He didn’t seem impressed, so she tried again.
“It’s my greeting card business and all my newest designs are there. This show would pay for a whole ad campaign and give me fifty grand if I win.” Realizing she sounded like a babbling idiot, she pressed on. “I’ve worked so hard to make it this far. If I lose my work, I’ll never catch up. I’ll wind up presenting a half-assed portfolio, and not only can I forget about winning, but it could ruin me!”