Chapter 15
Wayne
Sammy winked. “She’s ready.”
My heart flew to my throat, creating a lump I couldn’t swallow. I didn’t have the first fucking clue how she’d react. It was hard to know with her. She could be sensitive, but at the same time she was so strong. It was a complete tossup if she’d freak, get mad, get sad, or be excited.
Shit. How could I actually do this?
“It’s okay,” Sammy said soothingly. “I’m here in case she can’t handle it. We can cope if it’s too soon. But I think she’s ready.”
“Cope?” Bee asked in an alarmed voice. “What in the world are you about to tell me? This is some shit.”
Holy shit, I hoped we didn’t have to do this again. Keeping secrets sucked. I cared about Bee and wanted to be totally honest with her about all aspects of my life.
Oh, fuck, after this I’d have to tell Mom. She was going to be so pissed that I’d kept it from her. But damn, moms were just so interfering, especially mine. I might not survive long after Mom found out I’d essentially lied to her.
“Any day now,” Sammy said with a note of impatience in her voice. “I’m not getting any younger.”
I snorted, the humor relieving some of the nerves. “You’re not getting any older either,” I muttered.
“You’re not alone, Bee,” Briana said. “Just keep an open mind.”
She looked worried, so I stepped back. “Okay, so some fairy tales are made up. But…” I walked down the porch steps. “Not all of them are.”
Jace and Bri gave me a wide berth, and Bri joined Sammy and Bianca on the porch.
“There are lots of tales of the big bad wolf and scary things that go bump in the night. Human-like men who feed on your blood. Some of those tales are true.”
Bee blinked at me several times. “Are you trying to tell me I’m caught up in some True Blood, Anne Rice vampire nonsense?” She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. “Come on.”
Briana chuckled. “Not vampires, sis. But not far off.”
“Hey,” I said in indignation. “We’re nothing like vampires.”
Bianca’s eyes widened. “You’re trying to tell me you’re some mystical creature?”
I nodded. “Monsters exist, but not all monsters are bad or evil. Not all dragons keep the princess trapped in her tower.”
Bee narrowed her eyes and walked forward, leaning on the porch rail to fix her gaze on me. “You get to the damn point, Wayne Parsons, and get there right now.”
“Men were gifted the power to shift, very, very long ago. And one of those creatures was a dragon. I, and my clan, the cult, as you call them,” I gestured to myself and Jace, who nodded with a hopeful smile. “We’re all dragons.”
Bianca snorted. “Okay, y’all are absolutely nuts. Bonkers to the extreme. Do you think I’m really going to buy this bullshit?”
Jace grimaced. “Just shift.”
“I love you,” I said. It was the first time I’d said it and not the right moment, but I caught her gaze and held it. “And no matter what, you are in absolutely no danger.”
Without another word, I shifted into my dragon form. The magic supplied by Sammy kept the pain at bay and held my clothes in some sort of stasis so that when I shifted back, I’d be fully clothed.
That was handy as hell. I’d never had to deal with naked shifting like our ancestors had.
Bee gaped at me when my shift was complete, which only took a few seconds since there wasn’t any pain causing me to fight it. She stepped back, drawing off of the porch railing and into the shadow of the awning. “No,” she whispered.
Her eyes were as wide as I’d ever seen them. Briana reached over and touched Bee’s arm, but she recoiled, jerking her gaze away from me and onto Bri. “Do you do that now? Can you shift?”
Briana shook her head. “No, no, that’s not how it works. I’m Jace’s mate, but I don’t turn into a dragon.”
But Bianca didn’t seem to be processing. “This is a dream,” she whispered as she turned her gaze slowly back to me. “A crazy, insane dream.”
Briana reached over again, but this time she grabbed Bianca behind the arm, in the soft spot, and pinched the shit out of her. Bee squealed and jumped while Jace burst out laughing.
I laughed myself, watching Bianca whirl and slap Briana’s hand away. “Damn,” she screamed. “What the hell?”
“Now you know you’re not dreaming,” Briana said.
Laughter rumbled deep in my chest, but to them it would sound like a growl. Bianca squeaked again but didn’t recoil.
“He’s laughing,” Jace said. “It’s hard to hear the distinction. Takes time to learn.”
Bianca put her hands on her hips. “Stop laughing at me, Wayne,” she yelled.
Slowly, she walked down the porch steps, her gaze never leaving me. I turned in a slow circle, letting her take in the whole package, including my spikes and tail.
I was a pretty dragon and not too macho to admit it.
I had a lot of reflective scales. Each dragon was black in our clan, but we had distinct markers like different spikes, different sizes, some had more iridescent scales.
Mine tended to be a bit reflective, making me look like I had diamonds all over my back and legs.
“We’re living in a damn fairy tale,” she whispered. “Some princesses get a prince. I get a damn dragon.”
Sammy cackled and pointed at Bianca. “I like you. We’re keeping you.”
Bianca turned away from me and looked at Sammy, but when she turned back, she had a big grin on her face. She was taking this very well. It helped, having Bri there, thank goodness.
“Does it hurt?” she asked. “The shift?”
I shook my head. I couldn’t communicate with her like this.
“Sammy did a spell on our clan many generations ago that took away the pain,” Jace supplied helpfully.
Bee nodded but didn’t look away. “Do you breathe fire?”
I snorted and gave her my best derisive look, even though I had no way of knowing if she’d be able to interpret my expressions.
Bianca burst out laughing. “Sorry,” she said. “But how would I know? I had to ask.”
Jace supplied more information again. “We’re a water clan. We can breathe fire, but it can only happen if we’re in extreme duress. Nobody is exactly sure why.”
To show what we could do, I opened my mouth and sent a blast of water off to the side of the house. My dragon could pull water from the very air but living next to the ocean meant we never had a short supply.
When I shut my mouth, I was left with the faint aftertaste of salt, but in this form it was pleasant. As a human, it would’ve been gag-worthy.
She sighed and tentatively moved forward with one hand outstretched. I lowered my nose and let her touch my scales. Once she’d had a feel, it emboldened her and she moved all over me, rubbing and even scratching. If I’d had the ability, I would’ve purred at her, it felt so good.
Jace narrowed his eyes at me, and even though I wasn’t making any noises, he was able to read me. “He likes it,” he said. “I think he’s loving your touch.”
Chuffing, I nodded my head up and down.
“I always suspected there was more to this world, but I figured it was more like aliens, you know like secret government-funded research and all that.” With a laugh, Bianca walked back to my face and put her hands under my jaw.
“I guess dragons are pretty cool,” she whispered, her face betraying the fact that she thought dragons were very cool.
“Hey,” Sammy said from the porch. “I’m a witch!”
Bianca whirled around. “Seriously?” She squealed and ran up the steps to peer down at Sammy. “They said something about thanks to you, but I didn’t register it.”
Sammy ducked her head. “Aw, it’s okay.” She looked over Bianca’s shoulder at me. “I think you can put the oversized reptile away now,” she said. “Bianca’s heart is steady. She’s not going to bolt or overreact.”
I chuffed at her and shifted back to my skin as Bianca watched with her jaw unhinged. “Now that I know it,” she said, turning back to Sammy, “it’s obvious you’re a witch. You have witchy vibes. I’d love to make you over one day.”
Sammy pursed her lips. “I believe I’d enjoy that. We’ll talk another time.” She tapped her nose and disappeared, causing Bianca to gasp and stagger back.
I joined her on the porch, followed by Jace, and we went inside out of the cold. “Okay,” I said. “Let me have it.”
She plopped down on the sofa, followed more slowly and carefully by Briana. Jace and I perched in the armchairs.
“Um,” she said, shaking her head. “It’s so much to process. There aren’t any female dragons?”
“No, no, there are. But there’s something about the magic here, probably from Sammy imbibing so much magic into the very ground and atmosphere, that’s made it possible for dragons to find their true mates with humans.
” I studied her face but couldn’t find a hint of panic.
Sammy was right. She was taking this like a pro.
“There are female dragons, but it would be the same if any of them took a male mate. The male would get the tattoo, and there are a few other things that the mating claim gives the human, we think. Like health and a sort of sturdiness. We’re not totally sure about long-term consequences because Skye was one of the first humans claimed as a mate anywhere, and certainly the first in our clan. ”
Bianca processed my words, then her eyebrows narrowed. “Mate? True mate? What?”
Briana put her hand on Bee’s shoulder. “I am Jace’s fated mate.
His dragon, or magic or a combo of the two, chose me as the perfect companion.
That’s not to say we don’t fight or butt heads.
Life isn’t a walk in the roses. But we are compatible and have the best shot at making a life together.
His inner dragon-slash-magic recognized it. ”
“That’s where the tattoos come in,” I said.
Bianca gaped. “Then why do you have one?” she whispered.
Smiling, my heart swelled with affection for her, I leaned forward and took her hand. “Because you’re my fated mate.”
“You wanna run that by me again?” she said in a shocked voice.
I chuckled. “My dragon, or magic, as Briana said, chose you. You’re my perfect mate.”
“When did you know that?” she asked.
“The moment I first saw you.” I ducked my head. “Actually, I smelled you over at Kaylee’s. You’d left right before I got there. I knew then what I was smelling, though I didn’t know you. I hadn’t met you yet.”
She blinked rapidly, her eyes looking moist. “So, months ago, you knew we were meant for each other, but you treated me like crap.” She sucked in a deep breath. “Made me cry, then walked away from me?”
I mouthed at her, my brain not moving fast enough to form the words that I needed to say to explain in more detail why I’d walked away.
“You’re lucky I’m a forgiving person.” She stood. “But I’m also good at holding a grudge.”
“No,” I whispered. “Wait.”
“Right now, I want to punch you in the junk.” Bianca tossed her hair and walked toward the front door as Jace and I jumped to our feet. Briana tried to get up, but she was slow. Jace helped her.
“Hang on,” Briana said, trying to come to my defense.
“Yes, please, wait. Let me explain,” I exclaimed and rushed forward.
But Bianca put her finger up, right in my face, making me recoil in aggravation.
“No,” she said sharply. “You knew we were supposed to be together. You should’ve told me right away.
This isn’t the sort of thing you keep from someone.
Now, I’m going to forgive you, of course I am.
But right now, I’m pissed at you. So, I’m going home. ”
Then she turned her glare to her sister. “Once you have that baby, I’m gonna kick your ass.”
Bianca put her hand on the door. “I…” She turned back and glared at me. “Come on, you lying lizard. Take me home.”
My heart soared. She was going to give me a lot of shit for making her wait to learn about us, but she wanted me to go with her. Damn, this woman was fire.
I walked out of the house on cloud nine. Until I remembered one last thing.
Now, I had to tell my mom.