“Interesting… What else?”
“He has a side part and it’s long in the front—right to his eyebrows. It kind of angles across his forehead. All shaggy and sexy.” She sighed.
“He sounds like a hunk.”
“Yeah, and if you ever see him, keep your mitts off. He’s mine.”
“I wouldn’t dream of horning in on your territory. You might bite.”
Bliss smiled, at last. “Or tell you to bite me.”
The more Bliss thought about it, the more she liked the idea of making a card for the handsome firefighter. It wouldn’t be one of her trademark Hall-Snark cards. Those were blunt, irreverently honest or flippant, and bordering on rude, but she could come up with something on the fly.
Let’s see… what could I make and drop off at the fire station before I relocate?
“Claudia, can I borrow your computer, printer, and some card stock?”
“Sure. You can use my photos too if you want.”
“You’re sweet, but I have a design in my head that I can draw. I’d make the whole thing with a pen, but my handwriting is terrible and I want him to be able to read it.” Jesus. I’m lucky I can still draw breath, never mind cards, thanks again to Cameron Something or Something Cameron. “Just drawing the artwork will be quicker, and there’s no way you have a picture of what I want.”
“Okay, I’ll give you the necessary stuff and turn on the printer. As for card stock, I happen to have some with matching envelopes. It’s plain white. Is that okay?”
“That’s perfect.”
***
Drake plopped into his desk chair and powered up his computer.
“Well, I have plenty of time on my hands. Let’s see what kind of trouble I can get into here,” he muttered to himself.
Holding the lovely brunette had reminded him of something he’d been meaning to investigate. Dating websites. That had been on Drake’s to-do list for a while. He craved some kind of company, specifically of the female variety, and loneliness had been setting in big time. The death of his last known relative had made him feel adrift in an aloof sea.
Unfortunately, his mother would never see her fondest wish come true. She had always wanted him to find a nice female dragon, settle down, and continue the species.
He was the last of his line now, and finding another clan had proven nearly impossible. There was an Asian clan in San Francisco, but they had made it clear East Coast dragons weren’t welcome. Thanks again, Uncle Mob Boss.
His uncle had missed the family fortune and power so much, he’d decided to recreate it quickly in any way he could. Loan sharking, running guns, selling drugs to kids. Drake had not only walked away from one fortune, but two. The lair where his family had kept their treasure had caved in at about the same time they had to flee Britain. He wondered if his uncle had something to do with that. If he couldn’t take it with him…
When Drake discovered how his uncle “earned” his new money, he refused to have anything to do with the older dragon. His elder didn’t appreciate being judged but gave Drake a chance to reconsider and join the “family business.” Drake’s principles won out and he packed his bags.
He had originally moved to Boston because he’d heard about a female dragon and a paranormal bar here. Even though the dragon was a prostitute, he was willing to give it a go. He’d do just about anything to honor his dear mother’s wishes. Unfortunately, by the time he acted on the information and found Boston Uncommon, the female had gone home to San Francisco. The guys at the bar said something about all being forgiven and Lily being in her family’s embrace again. Nice for Lily. Not so much for him… and the species.
The only problem with a human hookup was that sometimes during sex, if he overheated before he finished “blowing off steam,” so to speak, his eyes glowed and his skin toughened into hard scales. He could even develop claws, all of which signified a shift he might not be able to stop. A couple of close calls with former female companions had told him he’d have to find someone who could accept him and his secret.
He was fairly sure the young woman whose life and business he had saved saw his alternate form, yet she didn’t faint or scream. Perhaps it was the heat of the moment, but he thought he sensed a willing connection, and when he glanced at her finger, he didn’t see a wedding ring.
Maybe I can find a dragon-tolerant human after all. If only I knew where she went…
If only the chief hadn’t had such a need to rip him a new one right then and there, he’d have pursued her. Now she was gone.
He typed in his password to access the dating site and tried to think of some cryptic way to describe himself and what he was looking for that would attract another dragon—or someone who was dragon-tolerant.