Sassy Ever After: Dragon Sass (Kindle Worlds Novella) (3 page)

“I think you should come back when you have an appointment,” Kai said, surprising her. Jules had almost forgotten he was there.

She gave him a disapproving sideways glance. “Of course you can pet him. Let me get my boots on. I’ll meet you in the barn.”

“Thank you
so
much.” Carolyn’s shoulders sagged with relief. “He just wouldn’t stop asking.”

Jules headed to the bedroom, leaving Kai in the kitchen. She was sitting on her bed, pulling on socks, when he appeared in the doorway.

“Well, I can see why you’re not making any money.” He leaned against the door frame, his body filling it, arms crossed over his chest. Those tattoos peeked out underneath the sleeves of his t-shirt, a hint of what lay underneath.

“That’s none of your business.” Jules yanked on one of her riding boots and zipped it. “Didn’t I ask you to leave?”

“What do you want me to do with the kittens?” Kai changed the subject.

“I’ll take them out to the barn.” Jules pulled on her other riding boot and zipped it. “I’ll call Barb and thank her. Don’t worry about it.”

She stood and headed out of the bedroom, but he was in the way. He didn’t move, even when she nudged him with her hip. He just stood there, looking down at her.

“Did anyone ever tell you that you’re particularly stubborn?”

“No.” She lied. The phrase her mother had most often said to her had been,
don’t cut your nose off to spite your face
. “Can you move, please?”

Kai stepped back, making a sweeping gesture with his arm, with a slight bow. Jules rolled her eyes but went past him into the kitchen.

She found the orange kitten out of the box already, padding around the kitchen table like it was Pride Rock and it was good to be the king. She swept him up into the box and hefted it in her arms.

At the door, she struggled with the knob, nearly dropping the box and catching it at the last moment. The door was stuck again.

“What would it take for you to ask for help?” Kai stepped around her and leaned against the wall, not moving to open the door or take the box. “Kerosene and a match, maybe?”

“I don’t need your help.” She gritted her teeth and tried the door again. No luck. The box wobbled in her arms, kittens mewling with alarm.

“You keep saying that.” Kai wrapped one long arm around the box, taking it from her, and pulling the door open with the other. “But I don’t think it means what you think it means.”

She went past him without a word, going down the stairs of the wrap-around front porch and heading quickly toward the barn.

To Jules, the smell of manure and horses was the most familiar and comforting one in the world. She suppressed a snort of laughter when she heard Kai gag as he entered the barn with his box full of kittens.

Evan was already petting the chestnut stallion he usually rode. Most of her horses were mares, but Francis Bacon was gentle and obedient, making him perfect for equine therapy. Evan had climbed up the stall door so he could rest his cheek against Francis Bacon’s long neck and hug him. The horse didn’t seem to mind at all.

“Thank you, Miss Jewel.” Evan said this without even opening his eyes. “I missed him.”

“Yes, thank you.” Carolyn blinked fast, looking away, but not before Jules saw they were moist with brimming tears. Carolyn couldn’t afford her regular fee and even with the sliding-scale discount, was almost two months behind in making payments. But Jules hadn’t stopped their sessions, not wanting Evan to lose any hard-won progress he’d already made. And he’d made quite a bit.

“Okay, Evan. Can we go now?” his mother called. “I promise, we’ll stop at the K-Mart so you can ride the horsey out front.”

“Noooo,” the little boy wailed, his thin arms tightening around the horse’s neck. “I want to ride Francis Bacon!”

Jules looked at Carolyn and they both knew a tantrum was coming. She probably should have just turned them away at her front door, but it was hard to have any resolve when you looked at Evan’s swimming blue eyes in his little round face.

“Hey.” Kai spoke up, putting the cardboard box of kittens on the ground. “Hey Evan, want to see what I have in this box?”

Evan opened his eyes and turned to look at Kai where he was now squatting in front of the box of kittens. Curious, Evan climbed down from the stall door and edged toward the box. Evan wasn’t good with strangers or new people. His anxiety level was apparent in the shift of his eyes from Kai to his mother and back again, but his curiosity got the better of him.

“Kittens!” The little boy reached into the box, suddenly unmindful of Kai watching him. Meowing and scrambling for attention, eight kittens tried to claw their way out.

“Sit down.” Kai nodded at the little boy, who did as he was told, planting his butt on the dirt floor. Then Kai tipped the box toward him and a flood of fur poured out.

Evan squealed with delight, as eight curious kittens crawled everywhere on him. He fell to his back, giggling, trying to pet them all at once.

Kai glanced up at Jules, a devilish smirk on his face, eyes bright with amusement. She couldn’t help smiling back, at least a little. He’d made Evan blissfully happy, and had effectively turned the boy’s attention from his beloved horse to this new, delightful distraction.

“Do you want to take one home?” Kai looked questioningly up at Carolyn. “They’re free.”

“Can we? Pwease, Mom?” Evan sat up, kittens pooling on his little lap.

Poor Carolyn looked a little trapped, but when she looked at her son’s happy face, she relented.

“Okay, I guess.” Carolyn pursed her lips for a moment, considering. “But you have to feed him and clean up after him.”

“I pwomise!” Evan exclaimed, trying to hug all the kittens at once.

“Which one do you want?” Carolyn asked her son, scooping up the white kitten at her feet and scratching it behind the ears. “This one’s cute.”

“If it were me, I’d pick the orange one,” Kai advised with a sage nod.

Evan frowned at him, then looked at the orange kitten already getting into mischief among the riding crops and saddles. All those straps and loops were clearly overwhelmingly appealing to felines.

“Okay,” the little boy said agreeably, hopping up and retrieving the orange kitten from his perch. “Can we stop and get him food? And a collar? And toys?”

Carolyn suddenly looked like she regretted saying ‘yes’—she clearly hadn’t anticipated all of those kitten-needs.

“Sure you can,” Kai said, standing and reaching into his back pocket. The little boy was engrossed with his new pet as Kai slipped a fifty out of his wallet and held it out to Carolyn.

“No...” She looked up at him in shock, shaking her head. “I can’t...”

“What is it with women who can’t accept a little help now and then?” Kai scowled and reached over, slipping the bill into the front pocket of Carolyn’s hoodie. “Now go buy that cat some toys to play with. And don’t forget a scratching post.”

Jules hid a smile at this remark as Carolyn thanked him and Evan proudly carried his new pet out to their waiting car.

“Thank you for that.” Jules didn’t look at Kai as they stood side by side, watching Carolyn turn the rusty Dodge Shadow around and head back down the long driveway. Evan twisted around in his seatbelt to wave and Jules waved back.

“You mean paying her to take it?” Kai asked as he lifted a hand to wave at the disappearing car. “That was the cat that bit me.”

Jules tried hard not to laugh, but she couldn’t help herself. “So much for altruism.”

“I never do anything selfless.” Kai turned to look down at her. She kind of liked the way she had to tilt her face up to see his eyes. They were even lighter in the morning sun. It was so early there was still dew on the grass and she saw a few of the kittens walking tentatively on it.

“Never?” She raised her eyebrows. “You should never say never.”

“Not anymore.” There was steel in his voice and Jules thought there was a story behind those words. One she sensed he wouldn’t tell her, even if she asked. “So—that said—are you ready to accept my help?”

“You mean, as long as there’s something in it for you?”

“Exactly.” A slow smile spread across Kai’s face. She hated to admit it, but while his smoldering scowl was sexy, he was even hotter when he smiled. Maybe because he did it so rarely. “Then it’s not charity, right? It’s just… a mutually beneficial arrangement. Like me paying them to take Kittenzilla out of here.”

“Okay, fine.” She laughed again at that, shaking her head, but relenting, at least a little. “Tell me what you have in mind.”

“Go to dinner with me tonight and I will.”

Jules started to protest but he put a finger to her lips. His touch was gentle, his eyes dancing with light.

“I told you—no selfless acts. You want my help, we meet on neutral ground and negotiate the terms.”

Negotiate the terms.
It was all very businesslike, but for some reason, the phrase made her feel suddenly warm in spite of the cool morning air.

Instead of answering—she suddenly didn’t trust her voice—she just nodded.

“I’ll send a car for you at seven.” Kai brushed something off her shoulder—grass or hay or lint, she had no idea. “And uhhh—as much as I like the look of you in these riding boots, maybe you could wear heels?”

She nodded again, dumbly, wondering why in the world she was agreeing to this “date.”
It’s not a date. We’re negotiating terms.
For what, she had no idea. She told herself she’d go, hear him out, and politely decline. It was perfect, really. She’d kill two birds with one stone. She could tell Barb she’d gone out with Kai but they didn’t click—and she could tell this persistent man ‘no’, once and for all, to whatever propositions he had in mind, business or otherwise.

Kai turned and headed toward his car. It was a BMW, and she thought it had likely been spotless before he drove it down her driveway. Now it was covered with dirt and dust.

“About last night.” Kai stopped at the driver’s side door, looking at her over the car’s dark blue roof. “I didn’t mean to embarrass you.”

She stared at him, blankly.

“Your song,” he went on. “When I said I’d never heard anything like it before?”

“Oh. That.” She willed herself not to blush. The memory of his reaction still burned in her, something she didn’t quite understand.

“It must mean something to you?” It was a question, a far too personal one she told herself not to answer.

But she found herself answering anyway. “It was my parents’ song. The song they were playing when they met, when they got married.”

“Ah.” He gave a little nod and she saw the ghost of a smile play on his lips. “Well, it was beautiful. You have a rare gift.”

She didn’t know what to say to that, so she said nothing.

“I didn’t pick it,” she called as he started to get into the car. She didn’t know why she felt it was so important for him to know that.

“No?” Kai leaned an elbow on the car roof.

“Barb did. Ms. Matchmaker.” Jules rolled her eyes, twirling a finger around her ear. “Probably thought it could be our song. Yours and mine. If… you know, if her crazy scheme worked. Then we’d have this story to tell our grandkids someday or something…”

“Our grandkids.” The corner of his mouth twitched.

“Not that we’re ever having any grandkids,” she protested, back pedaling. “Or kids for that matter.”

“Well, like you said…” Kai said smoothly. “Never say never.”

Jules refused to give him the satisfaction of watching him drive away, so she slipped inside and watched from the kitchen window, her heart beating so fast it was like a hummingbird trapped in her chest.

The man was arrogant and insufferable. And she was going to tell him that tonight, as soon as she got the chance. But first, she had to find something to wear.

Rescuing damsels in distress wasn’t his thing. Kai left that to the knights in shining armor. Granted, there weren’t many of those left in the world, armor or not. But that wasn’t his problem. That’s what he kept telling himself, every time Barb Wolfe insisted he had to meet Julianna Monroe. According to Barb, the girl needed his help. She was going to lose her ranch if someone didn’t step in, and the poor thing had lost her parents at such a young age—just eighteen.

Kai listened, nodded, told Barb to have Jules call him. He wasn’t averse to having her as a client and giving her financial advice. That’s what he did “for a living.” At least, that’s what he told people, but Kai didn’t really need to make a living. He had so much money hoarded away in various accounts around the globe, it would make the Rockefellers drool with envy. He offered financial advice to people he liked and trusted—mostly because he was good at making money grow and it was fun—and in his mind, he thought all the members of the Wolfe clan resided in both of those camps.

But in spite of Barb’s mention of Jules nearly every time he saw her, even just casually, the phone didn’t ring. So he didn’t worry about it. Clearly, the woman didn’t want his help. The damsel might be in distress, but she obviously didn’t need rescuing. Or she thought she could rescue herself. And, who knew, maybe she could. Either way…

She’s not my problem.

And then he’d heard her sing.

He didn’t know what had come over him, but the minute she opened her mouth and sang the first note, he’d been utterly captivated. He was still bewildered by it, even now, and had been cursing himself since for going to the Wolf’s Den the night before with Tristan. Jules had rebuffed him at the bar and refused his offer of help. Her prerogative. He figured he’d just have a few drinks, talk to the Wolfes for a while, and head home.

But then she’d gotten up onto that stage, and somehow he forgot all about her rejection. She’d been a beautiful woman before she went up there—long, chestnut hair that fell in ringlets halfway down her back, chocolate brown eyes with little gold flecks that seemed to flicker when she was mad, which was all the time—but her voice had transformed her into something unearthly, almost angelic. It had disarmed him completely. Kai found himself drawn to the stage like steel to a magnet.

Barb and her kittens had provided him with an excuse to see her again, but as he sat in his living room waiting for Jules to arrive for dinner, he had to admit he would have found another reason if one hadn’t presented itself. He didn’t just want to see her again—he
had
to see her again. And he couldn’t, for the life of him, figure out why.

“The car is here, Sir.”

Kai glanced up to see Sebastian standing in the doorway, announcing Jules’s arrival. The old man quirked a quizzical eyebrow at him when Kai didn’t move or speak at his announcement. His valet—well, Sebastian was really more than that, a sort of jack-of-all-trades manservant, if such a thing could be said to exist in the twenty-first century—had already been intrigued by Kai’s insistence on a formal dinner, which required Sebastian to shop and cook a gourmet meal before donning a coat and tails to serve them.

“Bring her up.” Kai gave him a nod, ignoring the continued question in the man’s eyes. If he couldn’t answer it for himself, he sure as hell couldn’t tell Sebastian why meeting this woman tonight—and hopefully impressing the hell out of her—was so important.

Kai poured himself more wine and filled the other glass across from his on the little table that stood between the chairs. He thought wine in the sitting room—he really didn’t do a lot of living in it—would be a good prelude to dinner. Well, under the circumstances, he thought wine anywhere was a good idea. Not that he was out to get her drunk. He just thought alcohol might help to loosen her up a little. And him, too.

He picked up his wine glass, staring moodily into it, knowing he was going to need something stronger than wine to accomplish that goal tonight. It wasn’t just first-date nerves—although he didn’t even know if this could be considered a date—his whole body felt taut, something inside him coiled, ready to spring free.

“Julianna Monroe,” Sebastian announced.

Kai rose, turning to see her standing in the doorway, clutching a small purse in her hands and looking around the room like she’d never seen anything quite like it before. And Kai thought the same thing about her. The woman who had tromped around her yard in riding boots—not that she’d looked bad in them—had been transformed into a stunning vision, a creature not quite of this world.

She floated into the room toward him, no greeting, not as of yet—instead she turned her head, gazing up at the skylights and the rows of books that lined the room, nearly to the top of the vaulted ceilings. Kai took the opportunity to gaze at the tight, red dress and matching heels she wore—the woman in them made his mouth go dry and his hands turn clammy. He felt like a high school kid on prom night.

“Oh, by the way, it’s Jules,” she said, looking over her shoulder at Sebastian. “No one calls me Julianna anymore.”

“Miss Julianna.” The old man gave her the hint of a smile, glancing at Kai. “Shall I leave you until dinner, Sir?”

“Thank you, Sebastian.” Kai waved his hand to dismiss him, turning his attention to Jules. She’d wandered over to the shelves to examine the spines of the books there.

“These are ancient,” she remarked, running a finger down one of the tomes. Her fingernails were short and unpainted, but her fingers were long, delicate. He thought she should be playing an instrument, not riding horses. Especially given her talent. “Is this Gaelic?”

“Yes,” he replied, surprised. “My ancestors were from Scotland. Back in the dark ages.”

“Mine too!” Jules turned her head to look at him over her shoulder. Her hair was pinned up in loopy curls, leaving her long, slender neck exposed. He had the sudden urge to let her hair down, to feel it in his hands.

“Well, I don’t know how far back,” she confessed. “But my father was interested in genealogy. He traced my mother’s line to roots in Scotland. She knew some Gaelic, actually. She taught it to me. She knew lots of songs. Her mother taught her.”

“Really?” He perked up. “Want to sing me one? I’d love to hear you sing in Gaelic.”

She smiled and blushed. “Not right now.”

“Excuse me, Sir?” Sebastian poked his head in. “Would you like the
hors d'oeuvres
served in here?”

“No, we’ll come to the dining room,” Kai told him with a nod.

“Very good, Sir.”

When Sebastian was gone again, Jules turned to him, her eyes dancing.

“Do you know what I think?” she mused. “I think you’re Batman.”

Kai chuckled, distracted from the plunging neckline of her dress by her comment.

“You had me picked up in a limo, you have a servant who has an eerie resemblance to Alfred… and this house!” She looked around in wonder. “I’d be surprised if you didn’t have a Batcave.”

“Oh, I have a cave,” Kai admitted cryptically, taking her elbow and leading her toward the table where he’d poured them wine. “But I’m not Batman.”

“And you’re not a wolf shifter… right?” she asked, accepting the glass from him as they sat across from one another.

“No.” He watched her sip her wine, her gaze still moving around the room. “But I’ve known the Wolfes for a long time.”

“This view is amazing.” Jules stood, walking over to the wall of glass on the south side of the house. “How much property do you own?”

“Less than you.” He smiled when Jules looked back at him, her eyebrows raised. “Yes, I did a little research. You’ve got almost a thousand acres out there, most of it cleared pasture.”

“And yours is all woods.” She came back to sit in the chair, finishing her wine. “This house has so much glass—bad news in a zombie apocalypse.”

“I’m not worried.” He chuckled, picking up the bottle. “More wine?”

She held her empty glass out and he poured. Her cheeks were alcohol-flushed, little roses blooming in them.

“I have to admit, when Barb told me about you, I thought…” Jules hesitated, biting her lip.

“You thought…?” He poured himself more wine, enjoying the way her cheeks reddened even more.

“Well, you know… retired investment banker. I had an image in my mind that was more like Sebastian than you.”

“Are you disappointed?”

Jules hid a smile behind her wine glass. “No.”

“Sir, dinner is ready,” Sebastian announced from the doorway.

Kai stood, holding a hand out to Jules, who took it as she rose. They took their wine glasses to the dining room down the hall. Kai didn’t use it very often—he didn’t entertain much—but even he had to admit it was impressive. Jules’s reaction thrilled him. She actually gasped out loud, running as fast as she could in heels to the wall of glass to see the view on the west side of the house.

“With this much glass, I’d be afraid to walk around my own house,” Jules called over her shoulder and then laughed. “Especially naked.”

“I own all of that,” he reminded her. “No one would see you—besides me.”

The sun was going down beneath the trees, casting a soft, orange glow into the room. Jules’s blush was hidden in the sunset and he noticed, when she looked back at him, that those gold flecks in her eyes were dancing.

“So what’s for dinner?” she asked, smiling a thank you to Sebastian as he held her chair. “Did you make this poor man cook supper for us?”

“Sebastian loves to cook gourmet meals,” Kai protested. “Don’t you, Sebastian?”

“I live for it, Sir.” The sarcasm in his voice made Jules laugh and the sound of it delighted Kai so much, he didn’t bother forcing the old man to admit what he said was true.

Jules exclaimed over the first course—a cold watermelon soup. Kai hardly tasted it, because he was too busy refilling her wine glass and listening to her tell him about her ranch, her horses, her clients and her family.

“It isn’t easy being alone in the world,” Kai agreed as Sebastian cleared their soup bowls and Jules thanked him for the third time for their first course. The old man was enjoying the attention, Kai could tell. “I know what it’s like to lose everyone you love.”

“Do you?” She sat back in her chair, studying him. He could almost see the wheels turning in her mind, curious as one of her new barn cats. “I’m sorry… your… wife?”

Kai felt a sudden weight on his chest and a wave of sadness he hadn’t experienced in a thousand years. He had no photographs or drawings, nothing to remember her by, but the image of his beloved still burned bright in his memory.

“A very long time ago.” Kai poured himself another glass of wine, seeing a puzzled look on her face.

“But…” She worried her lip between her teeth, a gesture that drew his gaze and quickened his pulse. “You can’t be… I mean, I’m twenty-three… so you can’t be any older than… thirty?”

“Where are those salads, Sebastian?” he called, clearing his throat, grateful to see the old man bringing in two plates.

Jules was distracted by the salad, at least momentarily—long enough for Kai to find words.

“I guess it feels like I’ve been alone a long time,” he told her, watching her lick dressing from the corner of her mouth. He chided himself for staring, but he couldn’t seem to help it. “Like you, I don’t have any family. Only a few close friends.”

Jules nodded, chewing, looking thoughtful. “I don’t really let people get close anymore. There’s Stuart, but we’ve been friends since we were little kids.”

“Stuart?” He fought his urge to spit the man’s name—and Kai didn’t even know him. But he already didn’t like him. And not just because Jules clearly thought the world of the moocher. “The booty call?”

“It wasn’t a booty call.” She rolled her eyes, dabbing the corner of her mouth with her napkin. He just gave her a long, steady look until she sighed and admitted, “Okay, we dated. Back in high school. But it’s over—it’s been over for a long time.”

“So what did Stuart want then?”

“None of your damned business.” Jules put her fork down and those little gold flecks in her eyes sparked like she had a fire burning inside.

“Money then.” Kai chuckled when she huffed at him but didn’t deny it. “How much did you give him?”

“Didn’t I just say it’s none of your business?” she snapped. Her attitude changed slightly when Sebastian came to collect the salad plates, but her color was still high.

He didn’t like how defensive she got about this Stuart guy. If he hadn’t already disliked him, that alone would have raised his hackles.

“Is it warm in here?” Jules fanned her flushed cheeks with one hand.

“I apologize,” Kai said. “I do like it warm—mostly so I can walk around the house naked.”

He couldn’t help smiling when she looked over at him, aghast, until she realized he was joking and then burst into a bright, lovely laugh.

“You’re incorrigible,” she said with the shake of her head. “Aric warned me.”

“Did he?” Kai glanced at Sebastian as the old man took his plate. “Can you make it cooler in here?”

“Certainly, Sir.”

“Are you sure he’s not Alfred?” she whispered as Sebastian left the dining room.