“Yeah. I’ve had better,” River said, clearly exhausted.
I walked towards the kitchen, whispering to Charlie. River said nothing, following solemnly.
Chapter five
River
There was pie filling, with streaks of blood everywhere. My sink held my coffee maker and an array of spice containers, some of which had opened in my haste of trying not to burn down the building. Bits of burned paper towels covered the countertop and floor. The cabinet doors were black and smelled of burnt wood. When I rounded the corner, there were glass shards on the floor, the decanter with the five-hundred-dollar bottle of scotch tipped over, the amber liquid spilling over the marble work surface and pooling on the floor.
How did this happen in such a short amount of time? It couldn't have been over an hour from when I got home until Mr. Timberland stepped over my prone body.
I looked at the man next to me, and he was looking into the pouch. “You are cute, aren’t you? You’ve had an eventful morning.” I heard a chittering sound, then a chirp. I was happy I didn’t hurt Charlie; I dreaded watching them walk out the door together.
If I were being honest with myself, I wouldn’t have minded getting to know Mr. Timberland, too. He was tall and muscular; his front side interested me as much as his backside. I still felt the heat where his hand sat on my ass while we were under the bed. Several years ago, I was hooking up all the time, but as I became more successful, the less interest I had in going out and finding someone to take to my bed. Spending so much time being “on” with my clients and theathletes I wanted to recruit. I just wanted to be quiet at home when I wasn't working. I had hoped I could be with Charlie, then I wouldn’t be alone.
As I looked at him, I realized there was something about this guy. He had a calm, comforting confidence about him. Even though he came in like a badass, things about him made me curious. Like when he raised that eyebrow at me. Was it a challenge to sass him? If it wasn’t for him breaking my heart in a few minutes when he walked away with Charlie, I might have pursued this energy between us further.
As I stood there, I realized that my entire body hurt. Thrashing around on the floor, hitting my head twice, the anxiety of getting Charlie and the situation once we got home had exhausted me. I looked around at the mess and then at the two of them. A stinging started behind my eyes, holding it off by pinching the bridge of my nose. There was no way I would let tears worsen this situation. I was going to accept the consequences and learn from it. I would not cry where this man would see me. I’d already humiliated myself enough today.
I found Tylenol and swallowed them dry, flopping down on the middle cushion of my couch, never looking away from my houseguest. He looked like he walked out of a men's magazine. Turning his head, he caught me staring at him. Never looking away, simply raising that eyebrow again. His apparent confidence was infuriating.
Walking over and sitting down next to me, our thighs touched. The contact burned through my clothes and right to my groin. Sitting at either end would have been wiser, but moving now would seem weird. Emotionally, I was on edge, and this little contact brought back the urge to cry. I was a mess. I needed to get through this, have a few fingers of whiskey, and climb into bed to sleep off my humiliation.
“Are you ready to hold him?” He went to hand me the pouch.
“What? Me? How come? I thought,…YES!” I reached out and took the small bundle from him. Looking inside, I saw Charlie curled in a ball, entirely at peace. I tried speaking again. “I thought you would take him immediately. Thank you for letting me say goodbye.”
That eyebrow went up. I don’t know how a man could say so much with such little movement, but he certainly did. “Go where? Charlie is your dragon now. I would never take him.”
That was all it took, I cried. It had been too much for me, and I was pathetic. Enormous eyes looked up at me and blinked. The gorgeous green eyes of the man beside me gave me a similar look. He reached out like he would comfort me, then pulled his hand back. “I thought I had failed, and you were here to confiscate him because I couldn’t even manage for an hour.”
“Twenty-five minutes.” He said without emotion.
“Do I get to keep him? Is he still mine?” Tears ran down my face, and I made snorting noises. He had answered these questions. I just needed to hear it again.
“Yes? Only if this crying stops at once, please.” A smirk crossed his lips and nearly turned into a closed-mouth smile. “My name is Aaron Gentry. I will mentor you for the next year in all things dragon.” I thought about his name. It was familiar, but I did not know why, so I smiled at him, hoping to get one in return. He just looked at me blankly.
“I’m River Barallo, which I assume you know. I didn’t think the mentor would arrive so soon after I got home from picking him up.”
“It’s up to the individual mentor how they want to contact and proceed. When I got my Daisy, it was helpful for my mentor to be with me as soon as I got home. I decided I would do the same when I got assigned to you. I am here to help you learn about living with a dragon all day, every day.”
“That makes sense. I am glad the club has this program because I need help.” I was getting the crying under control.
He snorted. “You think? I’ll be honest. Daisy, my dragon, and I had a few bumpy spots. Nothing like this.” He waved his hand around the room. “But we had our moments.”
“Yeah, I’m not proud of this morning.” I didn’t have any defense. I was a disaster.
“Approximately five thousand people apply to the agency to get a placement. Only about one hundred dragons have ever gone to non-legacy homes. Worldwide, there are only about fifteen thousand dragons in total. You are in an exclusive club now, River.”
I knew the statistics without really thinking about what it meant. A wave of relief came over me. I settled into knowing that I would keep Charlie, and we would be a team from here on.
From what he told me, I had paid a much heftier fee than legacy members. Agency members also had a lengthy vetting process and wait time. Legacy members-a person with dragon(s) already in their family-had to be approved. Still, their review was more straightforward, and their financials weren’t relevant if they could pay the membership fee.
“This year, only three pups have been born. Charlie was from a legacy member who had not expected another egg. The parents offered him to the agency for placement.”
Aaron’s voice calmed me, and I hoped he would never stop talking. Gently, I stroked Charlie while he explained the basics of the system. I didn't miss that he would be at my apartment all day the next few days, then spend several hours Wednesday, Thursday, and possibly Friday. Every so often, my eyes took in the fullness of his lips, then moved down, looking at the square jaw, the soft skin on his neck, and his broad chest and thick arms. I knew being pinned under him would be hot, shaking away those thoughts and refocusing on his words. Myproblem was that looking into those emerald eyes was not helping me focus. Maybe it was the bumps on my head, but I would swear I saw desire in them. I picked up the bundle on my lap when he finished talking and asked Aaron to hold him. “I need to get a snack or something. I’ll be right back.”
When I stood up, a wave of dizziness hit me. Reaching out, I put my hand on Aaron’s shoulder. He grabbed my waist to keep me from tumbling over. I winced, then yelped when his hand made contact.
