“I know what will happen if the king doesn’t pass the crown on.”
Why did it have to be to Polly? Why couldn’t there be a volunteer among the clan to take the curse on themselves? There had been times in the past when there hadn’t been an heir. And the curse had spread to the clan, until someone stepped forward to be king or queen, and took it upon themselves again. Hell, he’d volunteer himself if that was necessary. Maybe then Polly wouldn’t be cut off from her dragon…
But that wasn’t how things were done. A person could not take the mantle of leadership onto themselves when the king had a living heir. It had to be Polly. As much as he hated it, as much as he wished that there was any other way…
“I’ll tell her.”
“Good. Sooner rather than later, Gilbert. We don’t have a lot of time.”
He hung up without another word. The excitement from the positive results now tasted bitter in his mouth. All these years of research, and his work wouldn’t do much good after all. Or maybe it would… perhaps he couldn’t save his king, but maybe he could save his queen. Polly was still young, they’d have several decades before they got to this point with her. There was time, wasn’t there? To save her?
His heart was heavy in his chest as he got up and moved to the window. As he looked out, he saw Polly in the open-air gym that the Freemans had. It had a roof over it to protect the equipment from rain and snow, but otherwise was open. Polly faced off with a punching bag. Even from this distance, he could see her dark skin gleaming under the light.
The punching bag suddenly split open. Its fillings burst out, spraying all over Polly, and she collapsed to her knees. Gilbert’s heart jumped to his throat. He was out of the house before he even had time to put on his shoes. He hopped over the small picket fence that separated his property from the Freeman’s and was at her side in a few seconds.
Polly yelped. She started to pull back from him, but relaxed when she saw who it was. Tears traced down her face, and she hastily wiped them away.
“Are you okay?” Gilbert asked.
Polly ducked her head and nodded. She cradled one hand against her chest. “I just hurt myself when the bag broke. But I’ll be fine.”
“Let me see your hand.”
“No, I’m fine.”
Gilbert held out his hands. Polly chewed her lip for a moment before reluctantly putting her hand in his. He ran his fingers over her knuckles and down her arm, checking for bruises or bones out of place. Even a dragon at full strength wouldn’t have healed from something like that yet. But he found nothing and frowned as he glanced up at Polly. She didn’t meet his eye.
“It doesn’t seem like you’ve been injured.”
Polly shrugged. “It just hurt a lot. Oh my god, this is unbelievable.” She sighed. “It was a brand-new bag. I just bought it. I wanted something to practice my kickboxing on. I’m just frustrated. That damned thing just split open! But I didn’t keep the stupid receipt, so I can’t take it back.”
A brand-new bag split open like that? Gilbert had to smile at that. He put a hand on Polly’s shoulder, and let out a soundless sigh of relief when she leaned into his touch. “You’re very strong to be able to take down a punching bag like that. Have you ever thought about joining the Olympics?”
Dragons weren’t allowed in the Olympics. Or the military. Or a plethora of other things that humans thought would give one side an unfair advantage. Gilbert thought there was some logic in that, but he wished that there could be special Dragon teams put together. Dragon Olympics—that was something he’d pay to see.
Polly giggled at him. It was good to see her laugh. “I’m not that strong. It was just shoddy workmanship. Next time I’ll get a brand name or something. Actually, maybe I’ll see if Shane has a type he likes best, maybe something made for dragons. I can only imagine how quickly this thing would have died if he had tried to punch it.”
Would she even believe him if he told her that she was dragon royalty? Gilbert helped her stand. How was he meant to tell her this? He sighed and shook his head. “Just watch that hand and arm. If you do develop pain in it, let me know.”
“I will. Thanks.”
Gilbert nodded stiffly. He turned and started back to his house. He’d tell her… he just needed to find the right moment.
Chapter Three
The last thing Polly wanted on her day off was to deal with her mother. It wasn’t that she didn’t get along with her mom, just that they had nothing in common. It was difficult enough to relax in a house invaded by mice, but to have that invasion, too? All Polly wanted to do was curl up in bed and sleep all day, try to shake the bone-aching tiredness. She guessed that she was coming down with a cold.
Polly hated being sick. She hated trying to pretend like she wasn’t getting sick even worse. She loved her mom, but she didn’t really know how to give people space… or that being selfless meant doing things for other people without expecting something in return. Still, she was her mom, and Polly couldn’t exactly tell her not to come around.
When she arrived, Polly invited her to sit outside and brought out a couple of glasses of juice. Her mother settled into one of the lawn chairs overlooking the pool and leaned back with a sigh.
“Ah, yes. This is the life, isn’t it? I always did say that you were lucky to get hired by the Freemans. It’s such a delightful life, isn’t it?” Her mother gave her a wide smile. “It’s not like me. The hot water tank broke, and that cost an arm and a leg to replace. Then I noticed some chipped tiles in the bathroom. What do you know, the plumber did it. Of course, he claims he wasn’t even in the bathroom, but where else was he meant to check the hot water?”
“He could have gone to the kitchen. Weren’t you home when he came to fix everything?”
“Oh, I was too busy. I had my hair done. How do you like it?”
She fluffed her shocking red hair and Polly nodded. “It looks nice.”
“You’re just saying that. The shade isn’t right at all. It looks like my head is on fire. But I’ll just have to get it redone with a new girl, I suppose. That’s all there is to it.” Her mother gave a world-weary sigh. “I don’t think you know how lucky you are, to have everything going right for you.”
Polly bit her tongue. Everything going right? Yeah… sure. “Actually, I haven’t been doing so great lately, Mom. Ever since my identity was stolen—”
“Pish.” She waved a pale hand and narrowed her eyes. “You got that all sorted out and I know that Shane Freeman offered to help you out with all of that stuff. But since we’re talking money, how soon can you get me what you still owe from school?”
That brought Polly up short. She could feel her face starting to warm and her hands clenched. After a minute of holding her breath, she allowed herself to relax. Her mother wasn’t looking at her, but instead was staring across the pool. If she had really thought there was a debt to be owed, then she wouldn’t be deliberately ignoring Polly’s look.
Don’t lose your temper, Polly told herself. “Mom, I don’t owe you any money.”
“Yes, you do. I know that it was a while ago, but you still owed me a thousand. Remember? The last you gave me was three hundred dollars two years ago, and we—”
“Mom. You said that that last thousand was a gift and I didn’t have to pay it back.”
She watched as her mother took a sip of her juice. Her hands remained clenched in her lap, trying desperately to keep herself from snapping at her mother. This sort of thing was common enough in her lifetime, to be given something only for it to be taken away. Polly had been hesitant about accepting the ‘gift’, but at the time she was so hard-up for money that trying to pay back her mom on top of everything else was making her sick. The stress had caused her to lose almost fifty pounds—she’d ended up in the hospital over that.
“Well…” Her mother sipped at her juice again. “Maybe I did say it was a gift after all. But that’s a lot of money, Pauline. I might not have needed it then but these days things are dif
ferent. With the water heater and now having to renovate the bathroom—”
“Why do you have to renovate the whole thing over one chipped tile?”
Her mother set her glass down. “I understand why you’re upset, but I need that thousand dollars back, Pauline. I’m not being selfish, I just need it.”
“Mom, I—”
“Do you really think that I’d be asking for it if I wasn’t in desperate need?”
“Yes.”
Her mother narrowed her pale eyes and her jaw clenched. “Oh, really? And what makes you such an expert, young lady? You are working for billionaires, why can’t you just give me the money that you owe me?”
“I don’t have a thousand dollars just lying around.”
“I’ll take a check.”
Polly leaned back in her chair. Her teeth ground together. She’d been right, this was the last thing she needed on her day off! A headache started to pound behind her eyes and she had to resist the urge to start screaming. That wouldn’t help anybody. It would just make her feel guilty and she’d end up borrowing money from Tyler or Shane in order to assuage her shame.
“Mom,” she said, trying to force her voice calm, “I don’t have a thousand dollars at all.”
A disappointed sigh answered her. “Why are you so careless with your money?”
Careless? She was being careless by living off of leftovers from the Freeman household and Ichiban noodles so that she could pay off debts that weren’t even hers? She was careless because every time she managed to save a bit of money, something went horribly wrong and she had to spend it all? Or was she careless because she hadn’t had an actual vacation in five years? Her hands clenched.
“You didn’t even bother to ask me how I was before you launched into your spiel about how good my life is right now,” she spat. “For your information, my life is not good right now. My car broke down, I’ve got debt collectors breathing down my neck for money I didn’t even spend, I am loads in debt to my employers, and, what’s worse, my house has been invaded by mice!”
Her mother spat out the juice and set the cup down. “Now you tell me!”
“I washed the cups with a bleach solution and kept them in a container mice can’t get into,” Polly said quickly. “And the juice was in the fridge, so—"
“Polly, I need that money. You’ve already borrowed money from the Freemans, what is one more loan to them?”
Before Polly could respond to that, a cheerful voice called from inside the house.
“Knock, knock!”
Polly’s shoulders tensed as she got to her feet. In just a few moments, Bernie and Xavier, Tyler’s mate and infant son, appeared. Bernie’s smile was huge as she carried the gurgling baby over.
“We were going into town for some frozen yogurt, do you—” Bernie caught sight of Polly’s mom and cutoff. “Oh! I didn’t realize you had company. I’m sorry for interrupting.”
“It’s fine.” Polly made herself smile. She and Bernie got along just fine, but she didn’t want to have to do this song and dance with her mother. It was like she didn’t have a filter, just blurting out everything that came to her mind. She would no doubt embarrass her in front of her new friend. Her relationship with Bernie was still developing, and it was too soon to subject her to her mom… too late now, though. “Bernie, this is my mom, Jessica. Mom, this is Bernie.”
“Bernie?” Her mom got to her feet and cocked her head to one side. “Why does a pretty girl like you have a boy’s name?”
Polly bit back a groan.
“It’s short for Bernice,” Bernie explained. “I just hate being called that, so Bernie it is.”
“And this is Bernie’s son, Xavier,” Polly continued. “She and Tyler are engaged.”
Bernie gave her a surprised look; they hadn’t told Polly anything about getting married. Her mother was traditional about these things, though. Polly remembered the many, many lectures she had gotten as she grew up about keeping herself ‘pure’. Which was hypocritical, considering that Polly herself had been conceived and born out of wedlock. Jessica claimed that her father was a dragon shifter, but that was impossible. If he was, she’d be able to shift by now. But she couldn’t even make smoke, let alone fire.
“Well, I had better get going.” Jessica smiled stiffly at Bernie. “Polly, we can continue this discussion another time. Love you, darling.”
“Love you, too.” Bernie made herself hug her mother, but a sigh of relief escaped her once she was gone.
Bernie gave her a sharp, knowing look. “Family trouble?”
Polly let out a sigh, debating how much she wanted to tell her friend. Not much, as it turned out. In the end, she just shrugged. “It’s just my mom being my mom. Nothing unusual.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“No. Let’s just go get some fro-yo.” Polly tried to force herself to smile.
She really shouldn’t be spending money on this right now. After everything, though, a little treat seemed like just the thing to perk her up. Besides, what difference did five dollars make, really? It wasn’t like she went out and bought fro-yo every day. It was maybe once a month. With the frustration in her chest and the anger burning through her fingertips, Polly needed something to give her a little bit of satisfaction.
If you can afford a treat that will just go to your waist, then you can afford to pay your mother back.
She could almost hear her mother’s voice in her head. She scowled and shook her head. She was going to enjoy this, dammit!
Xavier gurgled as they drove into town, talking to himself the way babies do. Polly tried to keep her mind on the small talk conversation she had with Bernie, but it was difficult to concentrate. Once they got the yogurt, they went to the park and walked around while eating their treat. Eventually, Bernie hesitantly brought up Jessica again.
“She’s just unpredictable,” Polly sighed. “Everything revolves around her, and she thinks that if my life isn’t how she envisions it, that means either I am lying or I’ve done something stupid. Like when my identity was stolen? She said it was because I didn’t collect my receipt when I went to the store and that one of the cashiers used it to steal my money. And now she wants me to borrow a thousand dollars from Shane so that I can pay her back for my university, five years after she said that debt was forgiven. And you know why she needs it? To redo her bathroom! I know that she’s lonely and it’s hard for her, but it’s frustrating!”
Bernie sighed. “Sorry to hear that. I know something about lousy family. Parents shouldn’t treat their kids like that.”
Polly nodded, a melancholy mood hanging over her head. “I don’t know. Maybe I’m the one being unreasonable. I mean, she did just have to replace her hot water tank, too.”
“Well, there is only one way to deal with all these money issues. You have to marry Gilbert.”
Bernie’s words were matter-of-fact. Heat flared to Polly’s face and she choked on the spoonful of yogurt she had just put into her mouth. The image of Gilbert, shirtless, splayed out on a bed with a come-hither look on his face made something tighten inside of her. The smolder in his eyes…
Polly forced a laugh, as though Bernie’s suggestion had been funny. “Yeah. And then we’d divorce in a month because I bankrupted him with my bad luck. No, I just need time to think and figure this out.”
“Well, if you need to talk, I’m here.”
“Thanks.” Polly smiled at her. “I appreciate it. Now, when are you and Tyler getting married?”
Chapter Four
Every morning, Gilbert and Polly went for a walk together. Only on the worst of the days did they not go out. This morning, it was pretty nice out. Cool but not cold, the dawn still silvery in the sky, and everything completely calm, without even the slightest breeze. A perfect day for him to finally tell her everything… as long as he could get up the courage to do so.
Polly gave him a distracted smile when she came from her house, wearing loose yoga pants and a form-fittin
g hoodie. Drool pooled in his mouth as he took in her bounteous curves, but his mouth went dry as soon as he remembered what he needed to tell her.
“Hey, I saw your light on late last night,” he blurted out. “Couldn’t sleep?”
Polly shrugged. “I had… words… with my mother yesterday. It wasn’t very pleasant. But I don’t want to talk about it. How is your research stuff going?”
“Good. I’ve gotten some encouraging results back.” They started walking. Gilbert considered the situation. It was clear that whatever had happened, Polly wasn’t happy with the conversation she’d had with her mother. Jessica Shields. The whole clan knew her name and her story. Perhaps he ought to tell her first, so that she had the chance to tell her daughter the whole story…
That would be kinder, wouldn’t it? To hear the news from her mother, rather than him. Or was that just him being a coward?
“I don’t know what I’m doing with my life,” Polly said suddenly. They left the gated community that his and the Freeman mansions were in and Polly shoved her hands into her pockets. “Ever since I was a little girl I had all these great plans, these dreams I wanted to accomplish in my future. And it feels like every single one of them has been pulled away from me, like I’m not worthy of seeing my dreams fulfilled. I don’t even know if I’m going to get anywhere with my life.”
Gilbert took her hand in his and squeezed gently. “Why don’t you tell me what is bothering you?”
Polly sighed. “I don’t know. It’s just everything. Things going wrong. And those damn mice in my home. It makes me sick and I don’t think I’m going to be able to be comfortable in it again, wondering where those little buggers came from.”
“I’m sure that the Freemans would—”
“That’s another thing.” Her fingers tightened in his briefly before she pulled back and wrapped her arms around her waist. “They’ve helped me out so much already. It feels like I’m being ungrateful when I think that it’s not…”
Gilbert studied her face as they walked. Her head was bowed, her gaze firmly on her feet. “Not enough… not in a way that you want more from them, but more like you want to be able to figure all this out and not have to rely on them. It makes you feel inadequate, to always be asking for help.”
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