by Chant, Zoe
The other donut was covered in a light green glaze.
“Green tea flavor,” Timothy said. “I know, sounds weird, but—”
“Oooh, that’s my favorite!” Liana said eagerly. “It sounds weird at first, but when you actually try it—”
“—it’s such a perfect combination of sweetness with the slight bitterness of the tea,” Timothy finished.
For a moment, they looked at each other and grinned.
“You’ve got excellent taste for a billionaire dragon,” Liana teased.
Timothy laughed. “I’ve had pretty bad green tea flavored desserts in the city, ever since it became all the rage. But Noah here could take any flavor in the world and turn it into something amazing. Green tea donut day is my favorite day of the week.”
Liana took her half of the donut with the green glaze. Some of the generous, green filling oozed onto her fingers. She licked it off, then sighed in deep pleasure.
“This is amazing. Everything here’s amazing. I want to move into this coffee shop. How do you manage to keep this place a secret?”
Timothy leaned back, his eyes gleaming with pride. “Well, for one thing, it’s pretty hard to make your way here if you don’t know where you’re going. We only advertise to shifters. And there’s only one narrow road leading onto the peninsula, and no signs. Every now and then a tourist gets lost, but it doesn’t happen very often. There’s just no real reason for anyone to drive out here.”
Liana took a deep bite out of her green tea donut half. She closed her eyes to concentrate on the delicious flavor—the sweetness of sugar, the richness of cream, and the delicate green tea with just a hint of bitterness.
“Oh God, this is so good,” she sighed. “Please continue keeping everyone away so there are more donuts left for us.”
“Just wait until you try one of his cinnamon rolls for breakfast.” Timothy was licking some of the green filling off his own fingers with obvious delight. “Actually, let’s bring back a box of donuts so Braeden can have some, too.”
“Another guest?” the sheriff asked curiously.
Timothy nodded, but Liana noted that he didn’t elaborate on Braeden’s status as a captive fire dragon.
“He stayed back to cook. Actually, we should probably start to head back soon before he gets bored. I’ll give you a call later so we can catch up, sheriff.”
“Looking forward to it,” the man said. “Let me know if there’s anything I can help with.”
Determinedly, Liana slurped up the remaining mound of glittery whipped cream through her straw. For some reason, the final layer had turned blue, even though it had tasted like chocolate.
Magic or not, this was the best coffee she’d ever had, and the most entertaining too. And in the sexiest company as well.
Who’d have thought that sleepy but magical small ocean towns had so much to offer to an eternally single geek girl who usually spent her Friday nights with video games and Netflix?
Chapter Twelve: Timothy
“The sheriff’s a badger shifter,” Timothy said when they slowly walked back home, carrying a box of donuts.
“A badger?” Liana said in obvious surprise. “I would have thought a bear, or maybe another wolf.”
“Badgers are small, but mean and fierce when cornered.” Timothy grinned. “Or so the sheriff claims. I’ve never fought a badger, and don’t intend to. But he’s a good guy. Tenacious, and like all badgers, very loyal to his community.”
“I can’t imagine there’s a lot of crime here—what with you being a pretty scary dragon.”
Timothy laughed. “No, there really isn’t. At least not anymore. When we started building this community, we got into trouble with a rogue gang of sharks—I think there was smuggling going on here all along the coast, long before I bought the land. They started using it as a landing spot for drugs, but the sheriff and I put a quick end to that. We haven’t had any real trouble since, and we’re all working hard to keep it that way.”
Liana sighed deeply, leaning against him as they walked along the shoreline.
“You’ve built an amazing place here,” she said softly. “I’ve never lived somewhere rural. I guess I just assumed that it would be boring, and that there’d be nothing to do—but I love this place. Everyone’s so nice. And everyone’s magical!”
Timothy chuckled. “Want to see some real magic?”
He’d tried hard not to overwhelm Liana, although every instinct had his dragon desperate to show off and impress his mate.
But with the way she looked at him, her face animated and her eyes all warm and soft, it was impossible to resist.
“I did promise you grilled fish for the evening,” he murmured, tilting his head at the water.
“You mean you want to—to turn into a dragon again?”
“To shift,” he said, then nodded. “I’m the ocean dragon, remember? Hold this for a moment. I’ll be back in a minute or two, I promise.”
Liana took hold of the cardboard box, watching with wide eyes as he stepped towards the water.
He smiled at her. Then he took a deep breath and gave himself over to his element.
Energy rippled through him. He could hear the song of the ocean loud and clear. When he raised his arms, they had already turned to wings, the senses of his dragon picking up the alluring sound of fishes swimming where the water was deep and blue.
He beat his wings to slowly rise into the air. Then he wrapped his wings tightly around his body and dived headfirst like an arrow into the ocean.
The water swallowed him, muting all sound. Immediately, much of the energy that had thrummed nervously through his body faded away.
He floated in the water, weightless, utterly at peace in his element.
The ocean was cool against the scales of his dragon. It whispered to him of sunken ships and forests of algae, of sharks hunting and dolphins playing. There was the song of sea shells at the bottom of the ocean, deep below the surface, who’d offer up a perfect, glistening pearl...
But there was no time to explore and play today.
Later, he whispered.
Today, he had a different task to fulfill. Today, his dragon wanted to hunt for his mate. He wanted to bring her the largest, juiciest fish he could find, to show her that he could provide for her and impress her with his strength.
Timothy opened his jaws, laughing soundlessly at his dragon’s eagerness to woo their mate.
A few bubbles of air escaped him. They rose up to the surface far above him, where the sunlight formed a shimmering, rippling pattern on the waves.
Fortunately, as the dragon of the ocean, he did not need to come up for air in this form. Sometimes, he’d stay below water all day, singing with the whales in the deep of the ocean or playing with schools of dolphins.
Today, there was no time for that.
Soon, he promised his dragon.
For now, he hovered motionless in the water, listening to the song of the ocean and the slow, muted sounds carried by the current.
It did not take long until he heard what he’d been waiting for.
With his wings still tightly pressed against his body, he shot forward through the water like an arrow.
A heartbeat later, he closed his claws around the body of a huge black grouper. Then he propelled himself back upwards, shooting straight out of the water and scattering drops everywhere.
He stretched his wings. Water ran from them in rivulets, and for a moment, he could see the sunlight form a rainbow.
Gently, he soared back down to the ground, setting down the grouper before he shifted back.
“Wow.” Liana was staring at him with wide eyes. “That was incredible.”
Timothy grabbed hold of the slippery fish.
“That’s our romantic dinner on the beach all settled,” he said, new heat rising up in him at the way Liana watched him.
Maybe his dragon had been right. Maybe the proper way to woo their human mate was with good food.
“Let�
��s hope that our fire dragon behaved while we were gone,” he then said. “If he set the kitchen on fire, I’m not going to share our donuts.”
***
It turned out that Braeden hadn’t set anything on fire. He hadn’t even ruined any of Timothy’s pans or pots.
“For a fire dragon, you’re surprisingly good at just using a stove,” Timothy said, giving him a suspicious look when they found him stretched out on the patio with a plate full of bacon and eggs.
Braeden shrugged. “You haven’t had real food until you’ve had dragon fire charred steak. Mmm. Now that’s the real taste of home.”
“Yeah? If that’s the case, why not take over the world with a new burger chain or something?” Timothy said. “Anyway, we’ve brought donuts. And I guess, since you behaved while we were gone, we’ll share with you.”
“You’ll probably hate the green tea donuts,” Liana said, eyes gleaming, “but don’t worry, I’m more than happy to take care of your share...”
“Hey,” Braeden said, grabbing one of the green glazed donuts before Liana could get to them. “Green tea is my favorite flavor, just so you know.”
“I guess I’ll have to eat your banana pudding donut then...”
Braeden smirked at Liana and grabbed one of the chocolate covered donuts with his other hand. “Just so you know, banana pudding is my favorite.”
“But I thought that—”
Braeden shoved the donut into his mouth with an exaggerated sound of pleasure.
Timothy couldn’t help grinning at the sight. For all that Braeden was supposed to learn about humans, he was already doing a pretty good job of behaving like a normal human being.
Timothy hated to admit it, but it was sort of fun to have the fire dragon around. Now that the storm dragon had found his mate, Timothy missed the summer days they used to spend together on the beach.
It still surprised him, but having Braeden around was almost as good.
Except for the times when Timothy was aching for some privacy with his mate, of course...
Liana laughed, shaking her head when the donut was gone in record time. Her eyes gleamed, as if she was just as surprised as Timothy that their fire dragon had a real sense of humor.
“Help yourself. As long as you leave some for Timothy and me.”
Just then, Timothy’s phone vibrated in his pocket. He snatched one of the green tea donuts out of the box before Braeden could wolf them all down, then looked at his phone.
Ginny, the caller ID said.
“Sorry, I have to take this call—will be back in a minute.”
Liana gave him a little wave, taking another donut herself before she moved to stretch out in one of the deck chairs. “Take your time,” she called out. “I’m not going anywhere.”
Timothy closed the door behind him for some privacy. He had a feeling that the call might concern Braeden...
“Hey Ginny, what’s up?” he said when she answered.
“Timothy, hi,” the soft voice of the mouse shifter said.
Ginny was currently taking care of Sky Home, the seat of the council of elements. She’d come to live there for a few weeks when they’d first locked Braeden into one of their cells.
But now that they’d convinced the chimera to start investing in some newer technology, Timothy began to suspect that the chimera kept her around because he needed someone who knew how to use a phone and the internet.
“The chimera’s wondering how things are going for you. Is everything okay with our fire dragon?”
“The chimera was right,” Timothy said. “Fire dragons attacked this morning. I sent them packing.”
Ginny drew in a shocked breath. “You’re okay?”
“There were only a few of them. It wasn’t a problem,” Timothy said. “Though the chimera will be pleased. I found my mate.”
“Congratulations,” she said warmly. “That’s what he assumed. He said he could feel a burst of your power.”
“They must have felt the same,” Timothy said slowly. “Or, perhaps—if there’s a plinth of fire now, that means there’s a powerful, elemental fire dragon out there as well. If he exists, he must have felt the same thing. They attacked the morning after I’d found her.”
“You’re the last dragon of the council without a mate,” she reminded him. “Once you’re mated, the council will be more powerful than it’s been in a long, long time. Of course they don’t want to deal with three elemental alpha dragons.”
“Makes it a bit harder to take over the world.” Timothy grinned, then grew serious again. “They attacked my mate. Not me—they went straight for her. Makes sense, of course—if you take her out, you keep us from mating.”
“She’s safe now?” Ginny asked worriedly. “Maybe you should just come here—”
“I don’t think she’d be any safer in Sky Home,” Timothy said. “Not after those fire dragons got in, all the way down into the prison cell.”
Ginny gave him a humph that didn’t sound convinced at all. “I’ll tell the chimera what you said. You know he’ll probably want to see the two of you anyway, once he hears that you found your mate?”
“I know,” Timothy said with a sigh. “But she had a pretty terrible morning. I’m not going to drag her away right this instant to meet the scary chimera. Tomorrow, if we have to. Anyway, shoot me an email once he’s decided what he wants from us.”
“I’ll let you know. Take care, okay?” Ginny said warmly. “And I’m looking forward to meeting her.”
“You’d like her,” he said softly, his heart filling with warmth when he looked out through the window.
Liana was still teasing their fire dragon, her face animated with laughter.
“See you soon.”
Chapter Thirteen: Liana
“Everything okay?” Liana asked softly when Timothy finally came back out half an hour later.
She’d used the time to go back inside and change. Now she was wearing the turquoise bikini she’d bought this summer during a particularly adventurous moment, and which she’d used exactly once, when her sister had taken her to a fancy spa with her girlfriends.
Timothy had changed as well. He was wearing shorts, which were the same, startling sapphire blue as his eyes, and a simple, white t-shirt. He pulled the shirt off as soon as he settled into the deckchair next to her.
She couldn’t help drawing in a startled, admiring breath. Of course, she’d known that he was an athletic man—but there were more than just broad, strong shoulders hidden beneath his shirt. Now, she had a perfect, unimpeded view of rock-hard pecs and abs that rippled and shifted with every breath he took.
His skin was gleaming in the sun. It had the golden glow that showed that he spent a lot of time outside in the sun, rather than spending all of his days inside a basement gym.
When he turned to face her, he reached out and rested his hand on her arm. The touch sent another shock through her.
A wave of longing flooded her. For a long moment, all she could think about was the heat pooling in her belly. The desire to touch those rippling muscles was so strong that she had to clench her fingers around the armrest to resist.
What if he doesn’t want me to resist...?
Heat rushed to her face.
She knew he wanted her. And if Braeden hadn’t been sitting out here on the deck as well, maybe she’d have reached out to press her hand against the flat, hard plane of his pecs to feel the powerful heartbeat beneath.
Maybe he’d have taken that for the invitation it was and pulled her into his arms to kiss her breathless.
And then...
Liana just barely managed to keep from squirming when her body throbbed with sudden need.
“Everything’s fine,” Timothy said, his voice a little hoarse. “I was just updating my friends about the fire dragons. We might have a meeting tomorrow—and don’t worry, if we do, I’ll bring you along. I won’t leave you unprotected, no matter what.”
“Oh,” Liana said, a little worried as
she remembered the attack, but also intrigued. “Will I meet more dragons?”
Timothy nodded. “Probably. If we are summoned, the dragons of air and earth will be as well. They both have human mates, too. Although Naomi, the mate of the dragon of air, is pregnant, so he’s particularly protective right now.”
“Human mates? I’d love to meet them.” Liana felt a little surge of relief.
No matter how strange and scary all of this had been, others had gone through the same thing she had.
“Autumn, the earth dragon’s mate, will come along if we have a council meeting,” Timothy said. He nodded lazily towards where Braeden was finishing off another donut. “She’s his friend, can you believe it?”
Braeden rolled his eyes at Timothy.
“I’m going to watch TV,” he said primly and got up. “So you can gossip about me in peace.”
Timothy waited until he was gone, then shrugged. “He’s not really all that bad, but teasing him is so much fun. And he did save Autumn’s life.”
Liana stretched, staring out at the ocean shimmering in the sunlight before her.
“This is all so complicated.” She sighed. “In my games, dragons are so much easier. You breed them, you hatch them, you feed and train them, and then they win competitions for you. And no one tries to kill you.”
Timothy chuckled, then slowly leaned over her. “But there are things real dragons can do that no virtual dragon can...”
Liana’s heart was beating in her throat. Timothy’s eyes were drawing her in, the blue so bright that she could feel herself sinking into the azure depths. Between her legs, her clit throbbed with sudden need.
Then his mouth was on hers again.
Sighing into the kiss, she wrapped her arms around his neck. He smelled so good—like saltwater and the coconut scent of sun lotion, all mixed with masculine musk.
Between them, she could feel the strange thrum of the connection that bound them together. When she closed her eyes, she could see it, too—a faint, golden light that pulled her towards him, pulsing with her need for him.
He was overwhelming, like an ancient god of the ocean who’d suddenly come to life. And she wanted nothing more than to give herself over to him. She wanted to feel him sinking into her, to claim her and hold her and fan the heat inside her until she could no longer bear it...