Page 28 of Lahaina Noon (Modern Legends of Dragons & Shadows #1)

Chapter 28

T he sun rose and warmed the day like a smile upon the land. The rays spread out across the horizon and stole away the shadows. Okay, now I’m being fanciful, Bridget thought, spend one night on an island with a dragon, and suddenly you’re writing poetry. She heard a laugh behind her.

“You know, I prefer sonnets myself,” Vaughn said. He was hopping around on one foot, trying to get his shoes back on while standing on the roof of a skyscraper.

She laughed at how ridiculous it all seemed. They had slept until the sun had warmed them both and, after Drake took a quick dip in the water, flew back.

He had flown high enough that she was able to trail her fingers through the few wisps of cloud remaining before the sun burned them off. It was a thrill she’d never forget.

“I’m still not sure I forgive Drake for shaking lake water on me like a dog. ”

He was finger-combing his hair in the reflection from a nearby window. He laughed, “Well, I needed to dry off so you weren’t slipping around.”

Mmm-hmm . She heard Drake’s raspy laugh fill her head as Vaughn grinned at her.

She walked over and placed her hand on his arm. “Thank you, Vaughn. Thank you for sharing that side of yourself with me. Thank you for trusting me and loving me enough, to be yourself fully with me. I know now what it means to you.”

He pulled her in and kissed her softly. “Thank you,” he whispered back to her, “Now let’s get these kolaches inside before the kids eat us out of house and home.”

She nodded, following him downstairs. “Honey, we’re home.” Bridget called out, walking in the front door.

Gabe and Liam were standing in the kitchen, digging through the pantry. They both poked their heads around the corner and spied the large bakery box Bridget carried. They smiled at each other and made a beeline for it.

“Whoa!” Vaughn stepped in front of them, holding up his hands. “Plates, and save some for your mom!” he called as they rushed off with the box, like goblins eager to hide their treasure.

“Yes, Dad!” Liam called back with a hint of sarcasm, Gabe cackling like a co-conspirator.

Vaughn rolled his eyes and turned to Bridget. She was beaming at him. He liked that look on her face. He decided he never wanted to see it go away. He took her hand and led her to the dining room. “Let’s see if we can get some of that before they finish it all. ”

“Mmm,” Gabe mumbled around a mouthful. “I love the ones with cheese and jalapeno.”

“Gabe,” warned Bridget.

He swallowed, clearing his throat. “Sorry, Mom.” he grinned at her and mimicked a sing-song voice, “No talking with your mouth full.” He looked over at Liam, “Moms, am I right?”

Liam laughed, “You think she’s bad? My mom would have smacked me in the back of the head. And Drake, well, he’s just as stuffy about manners.” He dropped his voice to copy Vaughn’s, “Pick up the trash from your room. Don’t forget to pick up the dry cleaning, quit staring at that young lady’s—”

“And that’s enough of that,” Vaughn interrupted.

Gabe was still snickering when a frantic knock beat at the door.

Vaughn leapt to answer it, moving with a speed Bridget wouldn’t have believed possible if she hadn’t known about dragons. When the door opened, Marco rushed in, closely followed by Siobhan and Killian.

“Drake, man, you’re okay!” Marco breathed, patting him on the shoulder like he wasn’t sure he could believe his eyes. “What is wrong with you guys!” he yelled. “We’ve been trying to call you all morning!”

Liam grimaced, “I forgot to charge my phone last night, battery is dead.”

Bridget and Vaughn looked at each other. They had both left their phones in the bedroom last night when they went on their adventure. They hadn’t checked them since they’d returned. Vaughn turned to Marco, demanding an update, while Bridget ran to the bedroom to get hers .

She pulled it off the charger where she’d left it and saw dozens of missed calls and text messages. Most of them were from Jorrie and Jack. Quite a few texts from her friend group as well. Glancing through them, she came to understand something drastic had happened early that morning, and no one knew where they were. She debated briefly about who to call first, but by this time, they were probably together. She dialed Jorrie, who answered on the first ring.

“Bridget? Bridget! Please, God, let that be you!” she shouted.

“Jorrie!” Bridget shouted over her friend, “It’s me. I’m here. I’m fine.” She heard Jorrie let out a breath.

“Thank God, oh thank God. Jack! She’s fine. I have Bridget on the phone. She’s fine.”

Bridget heard an engine revving and pictured them speeding down the road in Jack’s classic Mustang.

Jack was shouting, “Where is she, are they at Vaughn’s? Let her know we’re almost there.”

She heard tires squealing as they went around a corner fast. “Yes, I’m at Vaughn’s, I’m here, he’s here. Gabe and Liam are here. We just didn’t have our phones with us.”

Jorrie was quiet for a minute. “Bridget, I’m so sorry. I know how much that place meant to you.”

Bridget’s mind reeled. What place? What was Jorrie talking about? She heard a car door slam.

“We’re here,” Jorrie said breathlessly, “We’ll be right down.” The call disconnected.

Just then she heard Gabe wail loudly as if in pain. Bridget dropped the phone and ran back to the living room. What the hell had happened? She said “Jorrie and Jack are in the garage, they…” she trailed off.

Gabe was sitting on the sofa, looked shell shocked, and Vaughn was pacing the floor, fury waving palpably off of him. His talons were snicking in and out, and smoke was pouring from him like a chimney. Marco and Killian were standing between them all, clenching their own fists.

Gabe looked up at her and sobbed “Mama!” She ran to him, wrapping her arms around him. He held onto her, shaking, and crying. “The house Mom, the house.” It was all he could say.

She looked to Vaughn for answers. All she could get from him was black waves of anger and something about Shadows and her house.

Another burst of frantic knocking on the door sent Killian rushing to open it. Jack and Jorrie burst in like a whirlwind and ran straight to them.

“Aunt Jorrie!” Gabriel wailed, throwing himself into her arms.

Jack picked Bridget up and squeezed her so hard she couldn’t breathe. He put her out at arm’s length and looked her up and down— for what she wasn’t sure, but he seemed satisfied and pulled her back in.

She could hear Jorrie crooning to Gabe the way she had when his father had died. She rocked him like a baby, and it was telling of his state of mind that he didn’t protest. Bridget couldn’t take it anymore. She backed away from Jack and started speaking, softly at first, “Look, I appreciate you all being here, and I’m so glad we are all here and okay, but I have yet to know what actually happened because no one seems to be able to give me a straight answer.” Fear got the best of her, and she shouted, “So will all of you, just stop and tell me, what the fuck is going on! ”

Everyone froze and stared at her in shock. It was quiet except for the sniffling coming from Gabe.

Vaughn rushed to her side. “Bridget, my love, I’m so sorry.” He pulled her gently to his chest. “The Shadow Claw, they retaliated for our escape yesterday, and now they’re playing hardball. My darling, they set fire to your house before we could finish warding it. I’m afraid there’s nothing left.”

Her stomach plummeted to her toes, and her knees gave out. Only Vaughn’s quick reflexes allowed him to catch her and stop her from hitting the carpet.

“I’ve got you.” he whispered soothingly, holding her upright.

“My,” she cleared her throat, finding it suddenly clogged with tears, “My house?” she asked pitifully. He nodded and hugged her tighter. “Everything?” she whispered, and he nodded again.

It’s all gone, she thought. All of my things, Gabe’s things. His baby pictures, my wedding photos, all I have left of Brian and our life together. “Oh my God.” She sobbed into Vaughn’s chest, feeling his rumble, trying to soothe her. It was sweet, but it didn’t help.

Gabe walked over and hugged her from behind. Vaughn adjusted his grip and wrapped his arms around them both. Laying his cheek on Gabe’s head. She sighed. Now it helped.

She had to be strong again. She couldn’t fall apart. She still had Gabe. She still had Vaughn. Her cats were already here. She could get new clothes, a new car. She could take more pictures of Gabe. She would always have Brian in her heart. She leaned back and gave Vaughn a watery smile. I’m okay, she sent him.

My love, he replied, his anguish evident. His sorrow and remorse at not prioritizing the warding, swept through their connection.

“No, Vaughn, it’s not your fault,” she whispered, trying to reassure him. “You kept us all safe. We might have been there if you hadn’t insisted on us staying here in the interim. Now I guess I’ll have to figure out where we will go.” She blew out a heavy breath, calculating in her head what she would have to replace.

“You’ll stay here. With me,” he told her firmly. “Gabe can pick any of those back bedrooms he likes, and you would of course stay in my room, our room. You can change anything you want. Please Bridget, I want you both here more than anything, where I can keep you safe.”

“Oh, no, Vaughn. We couldn’t possibly impose on you like this!”

He tilted her chin up and brushed a kiss across her lips. “Bridget, I love you. You love me.” You’re my mate. Be honest, there’s no point in you finding another home when you’re going to be moving in with me eventually anyway. We would just make our current situation permanent . Don’t you want to wake up next to me every day?

His words and thoughts made sense to her, but the thought of surrendering to him fully and letting him make this decision on her and Gabe’s behalf was hard to swallow. Her need to protect her son at all costs was at war with the sense of independence she’d been so proud of for the last few years. Being a young widow had its challenges. Additionally, being a single mother had raised those stakes even higher. Logically, it made sense to take Vaughn up on his offer, but emotionally, was she ready to shift her entire world to intertwine it with his? She looked into his deep blue eyes. They were anxiously searching hers for an answer.

She smiled softly. Every answer she wanted was there in his face. She’d let him mark her as his mate that morning when they woke. As a result, she felt more connected to him than she’d ever felt with another person. It was as if their very souls were woven together. She could feel what he was feeling and right now that was love and devotion. She needed to let go of being stubborn and strong because she had to, and let someone love and care for her because she could.

“Vaughn!” came the sharp snap of Killian’s voice.

A black eyebrow raised in question at the silver wielder who was rarely heard speaking, much less snapping at his friend.

“Are you linking with her psychically?” Killian demanded.

Vaughn’s massive shoulders heaved with a deep sigh. He’d hoped to keep this secret a little longer to avoid the Council catching wind. It seemed the dragon was out of the bag. The others were looking at the two of them, waiting to see what the fall out would be from the question.

He nodded. “Yes. We are.”

Killian stared at him consideringly, his one visible eye intensely focused on his friend. He tossed his hair back and grinned. The sudden view of his entire beautiful smiling face shocked the others. “You marked her, didn’t you? She’s your mate.”

All the dragons in the room gasped, and Siobhan’s jaw dropped.