Dragon 2 Chapter 11 (Patreon)

I pulled up to the sorority house in one of Morgana’s BMWs and shot Jadelyn a text. As soon as I hit send, she popped out of the house.

Smirking, I knew that meant she’d been eager and waiting for me. Behind her, the door was filled with her sorority sisters, all gawking and gossiping.

I got out and gave Jadelyn a hug and a peck on the cheek before walking her around to the passenger side and opening it for her.

“Thank you.”

“Just giving those girls something extra to gossip about.”

She blushed and scooted into the seat. “Yes. Although I’m not sure opening the car door is going to make many headlines once they recognize you as Scarlett's boyfriend.” She sighed.

I got a good look at her as I got back behind the wheel. As usual, Jadelyn looked almost as if she’d been carefully sculpted and then freshly dressed by a tailor. Everything fit perfectly as she stretched out her long legs in the car and gave me a sultry look for my inspection.

“Like what you see?”

“I do.” Squeezing her thigh first, I moved my hand to the joystick and shifted into reverse, heading out of Greek Row.

As I drove, I couldn’t help but notice her boots were spotless, like they might have never seen a hiking trail before. “When was the last time you were on a hike?”

She watched me rather than the road. “I wasn’t always so busy. Back when me and Scar were kids, we spent a lot of time together. That meant we went through the same early survival and combat lessons.”

“Oh. You fight?”

“No. Not any more. When I came into my magic, that became the focus, along with learning the family business. I’m afraid those combat lessons have been lost for the most part.” She said the last part with a sad note to her voice, like she often did when referring to her family obligations.

“You did great in that duel today. Did Scar manage to find anything on why?” I asked.

Jadelyn shrugged. “Suspicion that he was a warlock. Not much else. But let’s ditch that topic. I want to know about the man in the car with me.”

As I turned, I saw two black SUVs pull out with me. Scarlett waved from the driver’s seat of one of them before she leaned over the wheel and gunned it around me, leading the way. “Not much to tell. I led a pretty basic human life before all this, but I’m an open book. Ask away.”

She grinned mischievously. “Is what Scarlett said true? Twenty-nine?”

“Twenty— oh.” I realized what she was talking about and sighed, deciding this was where she could tell if I was going to be completely open with her. “If I’m honest, twenty-nine didn’t even wear me out. We only stopped there because I didn’t want to hurt Scarlett.”

Jadelyn rubbed her legs together as she squirmed in the seat. “So, you know I was engaged. Sirens are a little different, when it comes to relationships.”

I worked to keep my face on the road and not look at her, but she definitely had my attention. I was kicking myself for not asking Morgana or Scarlett more about sirens. “Tell me more. Last thing I want to do is make a misstep in the courtship of my favorite siren.”

There was a pause as she looked away. “I have no experience. None whatsoever.”

I paused. That was definitely not what I was expecting. Realizing she was holding her breath, waiting for me to respond, I quickly added. “That’s perfectly fine Jade. I didn’t have much experience before Scarlett.”

“No, it’s more than that. It is a siren thing. Our virginity is important.” She turned back, her face still flush. “It ties in with our song. We form a bond with our first.”

“Oh. Like…” I struggled to come up with any comparison.

She laughed. “There isn’t really anything like it. We call it a siren’s wedding when she sings a man into the ocean. Because after that, she’s committed to the man.”

My brain swirled as I processed that. “So, you are only ever going to be with one guy?”

A hand squeezed my thigh, and I took a glance from the road. Her face was serious and her eyes sincere. “Yes. And that’s why I really have to thank you for handling the Chad situation. My dad was pushing that one and… I’m glad that I’m not stuck with him.”

“You’re welcome.”

“No. Not just a ‘you’re welcome’. What you did was amazing. Not everyone would go to those lengths; a wolf pack alpha isn’t something most want to deal with.”

The beast rose up in my chest, declaring that it was our job to take care of things like that. This was our territory.

“You’re growling.” She patted my leg, looking me over carefully. “Scarlett still won’t tell me what you are, you know.”

Scratching the back of my head, I pulled onto the off ramp and headed for the park. “Yeah.” I blew a breath out. Telling her was hard. “I want to tell you, but it will change things.”

“Scar gave whatever it is the ‘all clear’. Even told our dads to cool it.”

“Really?” I hadn’t known she’d done that. I hadn’t even known that their dads were asking about me.

“Yep. Threatened her dad in front of mine. Something like ‘once what he is comes out you are going to regret giving him a hard time’.” Jadelyn gave me a big grin. “So, I’m pretty curious myself.”

“Unless they do something terrible, it’s not like I’ll cause trouble. They’re the fathers of two of my favorite women.” I pulled into a parking spot. “We’re here!”

My paranormal identity was a crisis I wasn’t yet ready to take on. From learning what Scarlett and Morgana had told me about dragons to seeing them literally worshiped at the magi conference, I definitely wanted to keep my identity as a dragon on the down low.

And I also wanted a chance to get to know Jadelyn and feel a connection before I told her. I needed to know that she was with me for me and not because I was some powerful creature.

I reached to open the door and hop out.

“Hold up. Wait for someone to give us the signal.” Jadelyn didn’t make a move to get out and instead stared out the window.

In a few moments, a man in a suit listened to his earpiece before giving us the okay.

“Is it always like that?” I asked.

“Sort of. Places like our home, Morgana’s atrium, and the council meetings are pre-secured, so there isn’t the hassle of guards. You probably don’t notice them, but I always have two shadows on campus, and there’s a team watching the sorority house.”

She talked about having a constant surveillance team and a security detail like it was a decision between which cereal for breakfast. Clearly growing up that way, she didn’t know any different, but it seemed stifling.

“I’ll be honest with you.” I closed the car door and hurried around to help her out. “That isn’t something I can relate to. If we start dating, will I have to do something with them?”

Jadelyn paused, her winter coat rubbing as she brought her hand up to her chin in thought. “Not sure. Your place in the Atrium is about as safe as it can get. I might not be able to spend much time at your apartment though without a lot of extra hassle.”

I shrugged and took her hand, pulling her down the path. “I don’t spend much time there anyway. The place Morgana gave me was pretty sweet.”

Jadelyn gave me a serious side eye look. “You have no idea how expensive that place is, do you?”

“No? Morgana made the space, right? So it is just a bit of work for her.”

She stopped and gave me an exasperated look. “For her to even connect a place to the Atrium, we are paying her millions. Not only is her creating a place for you connected to her space more than just ‘a bit of work’, it is exorbitantly expensive. Even with my wealth, I would hesitate to spend that kind of money.”

“Oh.” I hadn’t even considered that it was a big deal that she’d set up the space for me.

But the part that surprised me most was that she’d given me the room after a few days of knowing and training me. “How long would it typically take her?”

“Weeks? Months? I’m not sure. She made a big deal of it the few times she made things for us.”

Surprised, the wheels started turning in my head, but I filed it away and decided to focus on Jadelyn and our date. “Guess she just takes being my mentor that seriously. But enough about her. I’m more interested in the beautiful siren walking with me in the woods. I’ve met your father. What’s your mother like?”

We kept on walking. “Supportive. Always there helping my father in the background, making sure I had everything I needed. She doesn’t leave the house often, but she’s very much a part of home, you know?”

Then she paused and winced. “Shit. You didn’t know your parents. I’m sorry, that was insensitive.”

I brushed it off. I had gotten used to the fact that many others had a more standard childhood. “It sucks for sure. But I was raised by an older couple, and I get what you mean. When I’d come home to my mom baking cookies, I was always filled with a warm gooey feeling.”

“Exactly.” Jadelyn recovered. “Always cooking or doing something to make home better.”

“Sounds like a great mom.” My eyes tracked a homeless man on a nearby bench. He was covered in rags and his hat was hiding his face. I gave Jadelyn a questioning look.

She waited until we were a little further away. “The security team is going to try and be as unobtrusive as possible. He seems harmless, and I trust them.”

“Far be it from me to make a decision for them.” I said, but something about the homeless man had been like an itch. It kept nagging me as we walked.

The trail pitched into a steep incline just ahead, and we both had to lean forward as we walked, stopping the conversation as we focused on the trail. It was warm for this late in November, but I found the cool air and the crunch of fallen leaves refreshing on our hike.

I only caught her security detail twice during the hike. They hung back, giving us privacy yet clearly working to make sure Jadelyn was safe. I couldn’t blame them after the duel earlier in the day.

It wasn’t until the hill leveled back out and the trail swung around the hill that we started to get a great view.

“Beautiful.” Jadelyn breathed in deeply, taking in the view.

From the hillside, the sun was still hanging in the sky, but it was low enough that it was starting to be tinted dark orange. We only had an hour of light left.

“There’s something serene about a nice view on a hike.” I wrapped an arm around her. “Maybe because you work for it, but they are just a little more special.”

“I like this one.” She leaned her head against my shoulder and relaxed. “But it’s special for other reasons.”

Giving her a quick squeeze, I let go. “Come on. The spot we’re going to isn’t far from here.”

“More than just a hike?” She teased.

“Dinner too.” I grabbed her hand and pulled her along. It wasn’t that much further around the bend until we came upon the little viewing platform. There was a small fire pit and a couple of benches around it.

Most importantly, Scarlett had gotten the milk crate I’d given her here. “Tada. Your table is ready.” I made a big sweeping gesture.

“Thank you.” Jadelyn took my hand as I made about as much pomp and ceremony as I could before depositing her on the bench next to the crate. “What do we have here?” She picked at the contents, taking out the tin foil and holding up a bag of frozen burger patties.

“Dinner.” The firewood was already stacked. I just needed the matches. But as I dug around in the crate, I came up empty. “It looks like we might have lost the matches.”

“It’s fine. We can get one of the security team; they might have a lighter.”

“Oh, no. I think instead I’ll show you a little secret.” I teased, stepping over by the fire pit.

She didn’t answer, instead leaning her chin on her palm to watch.

Thankfully, while I might be having trouble with shifting, my fire breath was well under control. Cupping my hands around my mouth, I blew out a small stream of fire right into the center of the pit, which roared to life as the dry wood caught quickly.

It was dragon fire, after all.

Jadelyn leaned back and clapped excitedly. “Ooh. Fun trick.”

“Thanks. Now for the main course.” Pulling out several plastic containers with carrots, potatoes, onions and mushrooms, I placed them in front of Jadelyn and pulled out two peelers. “Care to join me in the excitement that is hobo dinners?”

She took one of the peelers with a gleeful smile. “How do we do this?”

“Well, just take what’s in the plastic container and peel it back into the container. I washed the vegetables before I gave them to Scarlett. And then we’ll cook them.” I started with the mushrooms, which were the hardest, letting Jadelyn take the potatoes.

“Easy enough.” She started to peel the potato while poking around in the crate. “Mmm S’mores”

“Don’t ruin all my surprises.” I teased. “This isn’t too rustic for you, is it?”

“Not at all. It’s nice. Very different from dates I’ve been on before. Those were always nice dinners and exclusive clubs.” She looked a little lost in the fire as she talked about her past dates. “You know when we first met, and Simon said those things about me—”

I put a hand up to stop her. What that pompous elf had said wouldn’t have hurt her back then if it didn’t have a grain of truth. He’d insinuated that she was just her father’s whore, essentially, being used for her potential marriage to lure in allies. But I didn’t see her that way at all. “Don’t worry about it. I’m glad I was able to win the duel with him and keep your honor intact.” I winked at her.

She smiled as she went back to peeling. “Thanks. You know, you startled a lot of the council with that duel.”

“They can be as startled as they want. Doesn’t mean much to me.”

“Not many would say that. They can make almost any para’s life a living hell if they want to. I have a feeling that if Morgana wasn’t protecting you, the elves would be harassing you right now.”

I just grinned. “They may regret that in the long run, anyway. I welcome them to try.”

She shook her head in disbelief, and we settled into a comfortable silence as we filled up the plastic containers full of peeled veggies.

I got to the onion and looked at the peeler skeptically. Thinking of the fire, I concentrated on my finger, turning it into a razor sharp claw and carefully cutting the onion in half.

“Are you trying to give me clues?” She looked at the claw. “Also, that’s incredibly sharp. It looks like one of those knife sale videos.”

“Just getting used to what I am and what I can do.” I used my claw to quickly tear the onion apart. It wasn’t pretty little cuts, but then again, we were making hobo dinners and everything else was peeled.

“Okay, now the fun part.” I took out the foil and laid it down beside me on the bench, measuring out a square. But then I remembered how much I’d been eating and doubled the size from what I’d done before I knew I was para. “You don’t have to make yours this big. I just eat a lot.”

Jadelyn laughed and made her much smaller foil square. “I’m guessing we add the food?”

“Yep. Break up one or two patties for some meat. Don’t forget the onions, they are critical. Otherwise everything ends up chewy.”

“Yes chef.” She teased, sprinkling in her own ingredients before pulling the ketchup and mustard out of the crate and adding a small dollop in her foil.

“You can’t overdo the ketchup. Here.” I took the bottle and hosed down my own dinner as an example before moving on and doing the same with mustard. Wrapping up my foil and doing my best to keep it as flat as I could, I then helped Jadelyn with hers and stuck them both deep into the fire before sitting back down.

“That was fun. I’ve never made something like that before.” She took the opportunity to lean against me again.

Next to the fire, I was feeling a little warm with my coat on. Taking it off, Jadelyn joined me and we draped them over our shared backs. Getting closer to Jade was a pleasant bonus.

Cuddled up and enjoying the warmth of each other as the fire crackled, we watched the warm sunset.

“Things like this are nice from time to time.” Jadelyn broke the comfortable silence. “I don’t often get the opportunity to just relax.”

“Is it always so busy?”

She leaned back against the bench, pulling me with her. “Busy, but not bad. Dad and the company take a lot of my time. It often seems like there’s really not any time for myself.”

She sighed before continuing. “Then there're things like Chad and all he took out of me to make things work between us. So far you are different, though; you give me something like this and I recharge here with you.”

I nodded along with her, although I couldn’t really understand. She was an heiress being prepped to handle a multi-billion-dollar shipping company on top of everything else a woman her age deals with.

It couldn’t be easy. All I can do is just be there and do my best to support her. “I’m here if you ever need me. You just need to tell me what I can do to help.”

She turned to me, completely dumbfounded by my response. “What can you do?” She repeated it, processing the words as if it was completely outside her expectations.

Strange how a sincere offer to help could make her stumble.

“Yep. I just want to help. And honestly, you probably know better than I do how I can accomplish that.”

Jadelyn relaxed, and her eyes widened as she processed that. This might have been the most surprising part of the date so far for her. “I don’t know. But just knowing that you put that out there means a lot.” She turned to face me to make sure it really sank in. “Thank you.”

I kissed her on the cheek and continued to enjoy the sunset with her. Our hobo dinners added to the ambiance, the juices trying to escape from the foil and filling the air with delicious aromas.

Even Jadelyn was sniffing the air. “I didn’t expect them to smell so good.”

I laughed. “What were you expecting?”

She shrugged. “Honestly? With burger patties and roots, I figured it would be bland.”

I did my best to look offended.

Jade just laughed and smacked me on the shoulder in response. “I’m sure they are going to taste great.”

“Just wait. Hobo dinners have something special to them.” I assured her. There’s something about being cooked over a real campfire that brings out the flavors.

She smiled, nuzzling in closer. “Where’d you learn to cook like this?”

“My father had a pension for spending time outdoors. Though if I’m honest, I’m mostly a city boy at heart.”

Jadelyn laughed. “You might as well be a wilderness survival expert compared to me.”

One of the dinner started to leak and the sound of sizzling filled the air. I got up and headed closer to them.

“Are they done yet?”

“You sound like the eager kid at the campfire. Not yet: they need a bit more time.” I used a stick to curl the corner back closed.

She pulled me back to the bench after I was done checking on them. “I’m eager to try something new, and something cooked by you.”

A grin plastered itself on my face as I leaned forward. “Why don’t we do something then to pass the time?”

“Oh yeah? How should we do that?” She smiled and tilted her face to mine. I couldn’t help but stare at her pink lips as she closed her eyes and gave me all the permission I needed.

Wrapping my arms around the back of her neck, I pulled her close, and we shared a tender kiss. Her lips were soft and innocent, unlike my voracious Scarlett. Jadelyn didn’t kiss with tongue, instead rolling and nibbling with her lips, pulling and tugging at mine like she was encouraging me to deepen the kiss.

It was soft and sensual, and it was taking everything I had to keep the beast from ripping off her clothes and taking her right there on the bench. But based on the beast’s response, it had already claimed Jadelyn.

I pulled back before he got too greedy.

“You really are possessive.” Her eyes searched mine.

“Yes.” I wasn’t going to deny it. Dragons do what they want.

“Sirens only claim one man; it’s nice to feel you latch on so strongly as well.” She trailed off at the end, and I knew she was thinking about Chad and the other women he’d been with, even when they were in a relationship.

“You should know, I’m very possessive and protective. It is in my nature.”

She gave me a squinty eyed look. “How possessive are we talking?”

“Like a dragon with his gold.” I joked, trying not to give it away in my look that there was more to it. She laughed, completely unaware of how close to the truth it was.

Jadelyn leaned forward, kissing me on the cheek. “I like that.” Then she kissed me again, distracting me from the fire.

We stopped enjoying each other's lips minutes later, to the sound of the foil crinkling under the fire’s crackle.

When we broke apart again, she gave me a lip biting look. “I can’t go all the way, but I can do some things.” Her eyes were filled with a fire that had my body aching for more.

I was about to respond when I caught a whiff of something burning. I looked at the fire before turning back to focus on her. What she was suggesting was far more important than the food.

But she caught the same smell and slapped me in the chest. “We will continue this later. I’m hungry!”

I gave her one last kiss, promising to pick the discussion up later, then got up to see the corners of the foil charring black. I grabbed sticks to navigate them out of the fire and a smaller stick to peel back the hot foil. Fishing a plastic fork out of the milk crate, I pulled the first morsel out, steaming in the cool November air and held it out for Jadelyn.

She took a dainty bite off the fork, careful not to burn herself. “Yum. That’s actually really good.” She leaned around the fork to give me a kiss.

I pulled both meals away from the fire with my bare hands. It didn’t even cross my mind until she pulled away and noticed it with a raised eyebrow. I’d used the sticks earlier because of habit, but I didn’t need them now, did I?

“Fire really doesn’t bother you, does it? I mean, I guess I should have realized that after your duel with Simon.”

Waving her comment away, I focused more on the plump pair of lips before me. Leaning forward, I was halted when I heard shuffling steps behind us. I quickly pivoted, keeping Jadelyn behind me.

The homeless man we’d passed on the way in was stumbling towards us, sniffing the air in a way that didn’t quite seem human.

I didn’t want to look like an insensitive ass, but I also didn’t want to have my date interrupted. “Hey man, if you want, we can drop off the rest of our food after we’re done.”

But the homeless man didn’t acknowledge me as he staggered into the firelight. Something rippled beneath his skin before he took one large whiff of our food; at the smell, his pale pink skin started to turn into a thick swampy green hide.

Oh shit.

AN 1: I really love mid book cliff hangers between chapters. *hides*  But at this this isn't a Friday cliff hanger!

AN 2: Wow, patreons flooding in lately. Hi new people! Welcome to my patreon. Honored to have you join me for my scribbling of new stories.