How to Date a Dragon (3 page)

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.

Why, oh why didn’t dragons have their own dating site? He snorted to himself and a slight curl of smoke exited his nostrils.
Because
we’re almost extinct, dumbass.
At least that’s what he’d been led to believe.

If dragons were open about their alternate identities, he might be able to find more, but “coming out of the cave” was forbidden. Humans would fear them. Fear leads to hate, and hate leads to discrimination—or worse, annihilation. No. He was stuck. There
must
be other dragons out there but he had been unable to find them, because each had learned the sad truth about being different.

He sighed and scanned a few profiles.
Okay, Cameron. Think. There’s got to be a way to find a like-minded individual.
His father had found his mother, and that was before the Internet. She worked in a store specializing in all things Celtic—mostly Scottish and Irish woolens, jewelry with symbolic thistles or Celtic knot designs, some imported foods, and books about Ireland and the United Kingdom.

His paternal grandparents had moved to Nova Scotia from Scotland when his father was a wee lad. He smiled, thinking about how his grandparents spoke. His maternal great-grandparents had come from Ireland a century ago. His great-grandfather on his father’s side was
supposedly
the “last dragon.” During the Middle Ages, his family had been rich and powerful, but after that debacle, the dragon clans went into hiding. Returning to living in caves, they’d given up everything to protect what was left of their dwindling species.

His father visited New Brunswick one summer, and according to family history, he and his mother had a whirlwind romance. They married the following winter and Drake was born a year later. Surely his mother’s and father’s families weren’t the only dragons to immigrate and intermarry.

There was no “dragon community” he was aware of. How nice it would be to have the Dragon-American club, like the Polish-Americans or French-Americans and many other ethnic subgroups.

Wishing wouldn’t produce results, so he settled in for the great hunt. Thank goodness the site had a free trial. If things kept going the way they were, he might be fired and then he’d need his money while he looked for another job.
Ha. Fired while being fireproof. If only they knew…

***

Bliss had made the card, drawing it by hand. She designed the inside text with Claudia’s basic Word program and printed it using Claudia’s color ink-jet printer. Thinking about how much she’d have to spend to replace everything was giving her indigestion, but there was no other way to stay in the race. She needed to buy a decent laptop and good quality software at a rock-bottom price that same day. The printer could wait a bit, but she’d need one soon to proof her own work—and the rules of the competition required that she receive no outside help.

The most important contract of her career hung on her ability to produce all her designs in three weeks. Unfortunately, she didn’t have a few thousand dollars for forensic data retrieval, so she’d have to recreate every one of them from scratch.

She couldn’t even afford a hotel for more than a night or two, so she called her mother, who alternately sobbed and yelled into the phone. As predicted, her mother wanted her to move home and never leave again.
Yeah. Good luck with that, Mom. I may be poor and desperate, but I’m not suicidal.

Her next stop was the fire station. Maybe that would be a kinder experience.

She approached the open bay, hoping
Cameron
was still there.

A dark-haired firefighter she barely remembered seeing earlier caught sight of her, grinned, and strolled over. The name
Benjamin
was stitched onto his dark blue uniform shirt.
No
help
as
far
as
knowing
if
they
display
their
first
or
last
names.

“Hello, beautiful. Can I help you?”

“I was wondering if Cameron is around.”

His expression grew serious. “Ah, no. He isn’t. Is there something
I
can do for you? Get your cat out of a tree or something?”

She couldn’t help but smile, then she quickly schooled her expression. “Well, you can give him this when you see him.” She handed Benjamin the card she’d made.

He glanced down at the envelope as he took it. “What’s this?”

“Just a thank-you note. He went above and beyond for me today.”

“Oh!” Sudden recognition dawned in his eyes. “You’re the chick who got him to run into that apartment building for some computer or something. Yeah, he’s in a shitload of trouble for that little stunt.”

She frowned. Apparently word got around. “Yeah. I’m afraid that’s me. There’s also an apology in there.” She nodded toward the card.

“It better be a doozy. He’s been suspended for a week.”

“Damn,” she muttered. Suddenly she had an idea. “May I speak to your chief?”

The guy had the audacity to laugh. “Are you sure you want to do that? He’s not in a very receptive mood right now. Maybe you should come back tomorrow.”

“I won’t be around then. I have to go stay with my parents for a while. He’s not the only one who’s miserable.”

Benjamin chuckled. “Okay. I’ll get this to Cameron, but I’d suggest you forget about talking to the chief. There’s nothing he hates more than wives or girlfriends trying to change his mind about something.”

“Does that happen a lot?”

“Not really, but when it does, the guy pays for it.”

“Oh. In that case, forget it. Thanks for getting the card to him.” She strode off before anyone else saw her.

***

Drake Cameron had taken his lumps like a man and had let the chief reprimand him without getting defensive. There would be no commendation this time, just a seven-day suspension.

Having distracted himself with the Internet for as long as he could, he felt the need for solace, so he headed to the bar his buddies frequented. Even when one of them did something stupid, they were supportive after the chief finished with them. The paranormal bar he went to would be supportive too, but sometimes he needed his human brotherhood.

As soon as he strolled in, he spotted Ralph Benjamin and Mike Kelly at the bar. They waved him over.

“I’m glad you came in. You saved me a trip,” Benjamin said.

“A trip where?”

“Your place. That crazy chick who got you suspended came by and dropped something off for you.”

“Yeah?” His heart leaped.
Maybe
I
haven’t lost her after all!
He had saved some hot women before, but none of them came to the firehouse bearing gifts. It was usually the blue-haired grannies who brought in homemade cookies or pies.

Ralph reached into his pocket and pulled out an envelope.

Oh. Just a friggin’ card. I guess she doesn’t bake.
He opened it and focused on the bright design. It was a fire-breathing dragon.
Holy
shit. Is she psychic or did she really see me through the smoke?
Either way, she didn’t seem terrified. Maybe she was worth getting suspended for.

With some trepidation, he opened it. A smile spread across his face as he read: “I know it’s your job and I’m sure you’re not braggin’, but I felt like a knob as you slew my dragon. You saved my ass and I’ll never forget it. I ran into yours and I don’t regret it. I’m sorry I sent you into harm’s way. You’re
so
my hero and I hope you’re okay.” It was signed, “Sincerely, Bliss
.
” Beneath that it said, “Please pardon the terrible rhyme. It was the best I could do with limited time.”

He tucked the card and envelope into his shirt pocket.

“She said it was an apology.”

“Yeah, it was.”
And
maybe
a
little
more.
The hope of finding a woman who could handle his dragon identity sprang to life like an ember coaxed back into a burning flame.

“Did she say where she was staying?”

“Said she had to move back in with her parents.”

“Where do they live?”

“Don’t know.”

“Did she mention their names?”

“Nope.”

Damn.
“Did she say anything else?”

“She wanted to speak to the chief and take the blame for what you did, but I told her it wouldn’t help. She just rushed off after that.”

“Did you see where she went?”

“Sorry, no.”

***

Finally back to work, Drake had promised the chief that he’d stop taking stupid chances. The one-week suspension had seemed like a month. He grabbed a cup of coffee in the fire station’s kitchen and leaned against the counter.

“That’s been there since this morning,” Mike said.

“That’s one good thing about staying home for a few days. Decent coffee.”

“So how’s the computer dating thing going?” Ralph asked.

Drake was beginning to regret ever telling the guys how he’d spent his time off. “It was a stupid idea. Nothing came of it.”

“Why not? Were you asking for a Victoria’s Secret model who’s a brain surgeon in her spare time?”

Drake chuckled. “No. Nothing like that.”
It’d be easier to find a neurosurgeon lingerie model than a female dragon.

He could picture the brunette as a model. She was tall, though not as tall as he was. He hadn’t seen her in heels, only bare feet, but she might be close to his six feet if she wore four-inch stilettos.

He couldn’t believe he’d caught himself thinking about her for the umpteenth time.
If
only
I
could
find
her.
But it seemed hopeless.

His family had lost the ability to breathe fire, which was a good thing. Otherwise, he’d have been tempted to let out a fiery blast of frustration.

“I’m going to check the dating site again, just in case.” He ambled off to the firehouse’s activity room with the guys wishing him good luck.

A few minutes later, Drake gaped at the computer monitor. He couldn’t believe his Internet dating search had paid off. The response he’d just received was obviously from a female dragon.

Hallelujah! There
is
hope
for
the
dragon
species
.

Fathering children was something he really wanted to do someday, and because that was only possible with another dragon, he had to at least look into it. This was the whole reason he’d moved to paranormal-rich Boston. If there was a single female dragon anywhere…

Suddenly, he thought of Bliss. He’d been willing to give up the dragon search when he met her. More accurately, he’d change his search from a female dragon to a female he could fall in love with, one who wouldn’t run from him in terror. A human couldn’t bear his children, but if that wasn’t important to her, perhaps…

He still didn’t know if she had actually seen his alternate form, and he was driving himself nuts trying to figure out a way to ask her… without asking her.
If
he ever saw her again.

Maybe this was a sign he should keep his options open a bit longer—at least long enough to meet the lady dragon.
Don’t think beyond the immediate task at hand, Cameron… for once.

Ignoring his ambivalence, he began typing his answer.

“I’d like to meet you. There’s a place called the Green Shamrock near Quincy Market. Do you know it?”

A few minutes later, she emailed him with her answer. “Yeh, I can meet you dayuh tomorrah. Whah time?”

Wow, she seems anxious… and barely literate. Drake chastised himself. Maybe she was just a terrible speller.

If all dragons had such a difficult time finding other single dragons, it made sense that she wouldn’t want to wait—and he shouldn’t either.

He typed, “I’ll be there at four o’clock. How will I know you?” And just to be doubly sure he was talking to another dragon, he said, “What are your distinguishing marks?”

“Mi family has chaka black hair wit a streak ah silvah growin out ah da widah’s peak.”

That was his confirmation. She mentioned her family’s marking. All dragon families had some visible way to identify their clan. Silver growing out of pure black, only in their widow’s peaks, sounded odd enough for a dragon’s markings.

On the line right below that, she asked, “An yas?”

Something didn’t feel quite right. His fingers tingled and shook slightly as he typed, “Sandy hair with yellow streaks. Side part.”

Am
I
about
to
make
a
mistake?

Some dragons, himself included, had a type of sixth sense alerting them to danger.

He thought about Bliss and figured he must be feeling a twinge of ambivalence. What possible danger could a blind date entail?
Ugh. Don’t answer that, Drake.

Without questioning himself further, he hit “send.”

She responded with a quick, “See ya den.”

And he typed, “See you tomorrow.”

He was just stepping away from the computer when Benjamin appeared in the doorway. “Lunch is ready, Drake. Any luck on the dating front?”

“Uh, maybe.” He hadn’t mentioned his desire to find Bliss. The guys would probably think he was nuts to get involved with the woman responsible for sending him back into a burning building for her computer—and getting him suspended.

“Hey, that’s great. Maybe we won’t have to worry about our sisters after all.” Benjamin returned to the kitchen without further comment.

That’s what Drake liked about the guys he worked with. They could joke around and leave an opening if a buddy wanted to share his personal life. The others would listen and maybe sympathize or offer an opinion, but no one pushed or prodded. Drake wasn’t about to volunteer any information. Not yet.