Enamored By the Dragon (Guardians of Vale Crossing #2)

Chapter 1

Zara

They say the most stressful moments in life come in pairs.

Zara Chura, unfortunately, was doing both at once: moving and starting a new job.

And not just the ordinary kind of move, either.

She wasn’t changing apartments or crossing state lines; she was shifting realms. One week ago, she’d lived in the Upperworld, where humans pretended monsters didn’t exist. Now she was here, in Vale Crossing, a hidden place where monsters didn’t just exist, they ordered pastries, paid taxes, and complained about the weather like everyone else.

Some things, at least, were comfortingly familiar.

“Latte for Zara!” a cyclops barista called, placing a ceramic cup on the counter with a surprisingly delicate touch for someone with forearms the size of tree trunks.

Zara exhaled in relief. If she could still get her morning coffee, maybe she could survive the rest of this transition.

She turned, cup in hand, and scanned the bustling café.

She was in luck; an open stool by the window, facing the street.

Perfect. In the Upperworld, she had been a dedicated people-watcher.

Here…well, it was monster-watching, but the principle seemed to hold.

Observing quietly from the edges made everything feel less overwhelming, like she could absorb the world one detail at a time.

And Vale Crossing had details in abundance.

She slid onto the stool, curling her fingers around the warm cup as she looked out at the street, at the trolls hauling crates with casual ease, the harpies swooping down to perch on lamp posts, the kelpie trotting impatiently in line at the crosswalk.

All of them going about their morning routines, as if this mingling of myth and mundane were the most natural thing in existence.

Zara wasn’t sure yet if she belonged here. But for the moment, with caffeine in hand and a front-row seat to the strangeness of her new life, she felt…almost steady.

Almost.

“Did you hear the drama with the geryons?” someone said.

Zara’s attention snapped toward the conversation before she could stop herself.

Two tables to her left, a pair of monsters, one with mossy green skin and antlers growing from his temples, the other a willowy woman whose shadow kept swishing its tail independently, were tearing into a stack of syrup-drenched waffles.

“Oh no, what now?” the shadow-tailed one groaned.

“Apparently, the bloodline of Cyncus will get their powers back,” the antlered one said, lowering his voice, though not nearly enough.

Zara froze mid-sip.

They were talking about it here? In public? Over breakfast?

In the Upperworld, anything involving magic, real magic, was either classified or dismissed as a conspiracy theory. Even in Vale Crossing, she’d expected whispers. Careful hints. Not…casual café gossip like someone’s favorite show getting renewed.

Her pulse thudded once, heavy.

Because it wasn’t just gossip to her. It was her entire life packed into a single sentence.

The bloodline of Cyncus. Her bloodline.

Zara shifted on her stool, gaze drifting back to the street even though her attention stayed anchored to the conversation. Her reason for moving here, uprooting her entire life, was exactly that: the possibility of inheritance awakening. Of power returning. Of wings.

Not guaranteed. Not even likely, not with how diluted the lineage had become over centuries. Not everyone will manifest abilities. Outcomes will vary.

But there was a chance.

A chance that she, Zara Chura, quiet, bookish, hyper-organized Zara, might one day feel a pair of wings unfurl from her back like the old stories promised.

She swallowed, the latte suddenly heavier in her hands.

Hearing strangers speak about it so casually made the whole thing feel more real…and somehow more terrifying.

But it wasn’t like she was scared.

Not really.

Nervous? Sure. Overwhelmed? Constantly. But scared? No. Because this move wasn’t only about possible wings and ancient bloodlines, it was also about her new job. A job that actually mattered.

For the past month or so, she’d been helping track down the remaining descendants of Cyncus across the Upperworld.

It had gone surprisingly well, better than anyone predicted, considering how many family trees had been scrambled, hidden, or magically erased over the centuries.

And now the whole project had an official office in Alindale, the capital of Vale Crossing.

New realm, new job, new responsibility.

And, unfortunately, her siblings.

Being triplets came with benefits, shared history, shared abilities, shared secrets. But it also came with constant commentary from Thing 1 and Thing 2, as she affectionately, and accurately, labeled them.

Her phone buzzed.

Thing 1: Where are you? I’m hungry.

Zara rolled her eyes. She loved them, really, she did, but sometimes the best part about moving realms was the theoretical possibility of ditching them on the border.

She typed back: Sucks to be you. Figure it out.

Another buzz. Of course.

Thing 2: Wow, what’s with the attitude?

Zara sighed through her nose. No good ever came from engaging the gremlins this early in the morning.

She replied with the bare minimum: See you later at the office.

When the immediate flood of follow-up texts started, she simply flipped her phone facedown on the table and lifted her cup, tuning back into the monsters gossiping beside her.

“Yeah, I read it on Lifting the Vale,” the antlered one said. “You know that Lord Eros is Cyncus’s son? They did a whole post about how Cyncus got Aphrodite to fall in love with him.”

“I didn’t know that!” his companion gasped. “Well, you never mess with the gods, right? I’m gonna have to find that story.”

“Don’t worry,” the antlered monster said, already pulling out his phone. He tapped a few times and then grinned. “There. Just sent you the link.”

Zara sipped her latte, pretending she wasn’t listening while listening with laser precision.

Because if casual café gossip was already circulating about her ancient ancestor seducing a goddess…then the rest of this world was far more prepared for the return of geryon wings than she was.

Perfect. Just what she needed before her first day on the job.

Lifting the Vale.

Curiosity won out.

Zara flipped her phone back over and typed the name into the search bar. Thankfully, Vale Crossing had its own version of the internet; inter-realm networks were tricky, but Alindale was advanced enough to keep everyone here connected.

A site popped up instantly.

It was…a gossip page. A full-blown, neon-headered, tabloid-style gossip site complete with monster paparazzi shots, blurry photos of deities in questionable situations, flashy memes, and headlines that made her eyebrows climb high enough to be in danger of achieving flight before her wings did.

“Oh, interesting,” she murmured.

She scrolled, taking in a post about a minotaur influencer’s breakup, a blurry night-sky video labeled “KRONOS SPOTTED? OR JUST A REALLY BIG BIRD?,” and a long thread debating whether nymphs counted as “nature girls” or “elementals with benefits.”

Well…that tracked.

Most monsters here descended from the Greek world, after all, so she supposed it made sense the drama would be on par with Olympus itself: messy, ancient, and way too public.

Zara snorted into her latte.

Great. She hadn’t even started her first day of work, and she was already reading inter-realm tabloid gossip about her own bloodline.

But the site was weirdly addictive.

One article led to another, then a comment thread, then a grainy video purporting to show a satyr getting kicked out of a nightclub by a sphinx bouncer. By the time Zara finally glanced at the clock on her screen, her stomach dropped.

Ten minutes until nine.

“Oh, come on,” she muttered.

Thankfully, the office was only a block away.

She gulped down the last sip of latte, grabbed her bag, and slid off the stool.

In her rush toward the exit, she nearly collided with a hulking, stone-skinned ogre who didn’t even blink, let alone move.

She bounced off his arm like she’d walked into a warm granite pillar.

“Sorry!” Zara called, darting around him.

Outside, the day was annoyingly beautiful.

Sunlight spilled across Alindale’s cobblestone streets, the sky was an unmarred blue, and a faint breeze carried the scents of flowers, fresh pastries, and something faintly magical she couldn’t quite place.

The whole city looked like a postcard from “Wish You Were Here: Mythical Edition.”

She jogged toward her building, bag thumping lightly against her hip.

Just as she reached the door, someone called out:

“Zara!”

She turned and blinked.

Walking toward her, hand in hand, were Lord Eros and his mate, Psyche.

“Oh.” She straightened. “Lord Eros,” she said respectfully, then smiled at the gorgeous she-wolf beside him. “Hi, Psyche.”

Psyche’s bright eyes warmed. “Morning, Zara.”

Eros grinned, golden and effortlessly charming in a way only a god could manage. “Ready for your first day?”

“Yes,” Zara said, then added with complete honesty, “and I’m very surprised you’re here.”

“Psyche wanted to see Perseus,” Eros said, gesturing to his mate with fond indulgence. “And she’s never been to Vale Crossing.”

Psyche nodded. “It looks just like home so far. Has it been good for you? Settling in?”

“Yes,” Zara said, smiling a little. “It’s familiar enough.” Familiar in the way any place full of divine drama and monster bureaucracy could be.

Eros pulled open the glass door. “After you.”

Zara stepped through and followed the couple into the polished lobby, the sweeping staircase, and the buzzing heart of the building.

First day. New world. Ancient magic waking.

No pressure.

As they walked through the lobby, Zara felt it—like a soft pulse brushing against the edge of her mind.

Love.

Warm, bright, unmistakable.