Page 13 of The Baby Dragon Cafe (The Baby Dragon #1)

Chapter 13

A iden and Saphira continued working together, training in the evenings, and fixing up the garden during the day. Whenever Saphira had a spare moment, she popped over to help Aiden with whatever task he gave her, but for the past week, she hadn’t even had those moments to spare.

The cafe was incredibly busy. Every day had been packed—which was excellent for business—but it wasn’t the best for her physical state. She was exhausted, even more so now that Lavinia had started her internship with the vet.

Saphira had hired another part-timer to take over the days Lavinia wouldn’t be in. He was a graduate student who was a bit slow to learn the ropes.

Because he didn’t do as much as Lavinia did, Saphira had to pick up his slack, on top of her own work.

Which was why, a few days later, by the end of the work day, she was moving sluggishly enough that Lavinia looked concerned.

“Are you okay?” Lavinia asked. “Sit down and have some water.”

“I’m fine—just a bit tired,” Saphira said, though she didn’t protest the water. She was always forgetting to stay hydrated, and taking a long sip definitely helped. She stood up again, smiling at Lavinia, who was picking up dirty dishes with more energy than Saphira could muster.

“I’m glad to see you have a pep in your step,” Saphira said. Lavinia smiled.

“The Animal Hospital is so fun!” Lavinia said. “It’s rewarding—and not as tiring as working here, so yes, I do have a bit more energy.”

Guilt needled through her. “Ugh, I’m sorry, I know I work you way too hard.”

Lavinia waved a hand. “Don’t. Anyway, you work yourself even harder. Is that new guy finally getting the hang of things? What’s his name? Carl?”

“Calahan. And, kind of? Of course, he isn’t as good as you.”

Saphira and Lavinia were perfectly synced up from working together all those years, so nobody else could compare.

“Have you thought about hiring more help?” Lavinia asked, following Saphira into the kitchen to prepare an order. Saphira made a cold turkey sandwich, placing it neatly on a plate before sighing.

“I haven’t had time to think of anything,” Saphira replied. “This is for table two.”

She sent Lavinia off with the order, catching her breath alone in the kitchen for a moment.

Saphira had no days off, and she was doing multiple jobs at once: she was a barista and waitress and line cook and prep cook and dishwasher … Not to even mention being a business owner and manager and accountant. There was so much paperwork!

The cafe was pulling in a decent profit, and Aiden’s weekly payments were definitely useful, but she needed a more long-term solution than to constantly be putting out fires. Paying off the mortgage would be a big help, but she hadn’t thought further about how to make that idea into a reality. Managerially, she needed to come up with a better plan.

Her head throbbed, and Saphira rubbed her temples.

“Hey, you okay?” Lavinia asked, entering the kitchen again. Saphira gave her a bright smile.

“Yup.”

Lavinia frowned. “Maybe you should hire more staff.”

“I just hired Calahan.”

“Beyond a replacement for me,” Lavinia gave her a pointed look.

Saphira sighed. In an ideal world, she could simply be the cafe’s manager, overseeing things, while the little everyday tasks were delegated to others, but Saphira was hesitant to take that leap until things were doing better at the cafe and she was sure she could hold onto such staff.

“More staff could also keep an eye out for the baby dragons,” Lavinia said. “That way there wouldn’t be so many little disasters to deal with.”

“Hm, I know you’re right,” Saphira said, following Lavinia out of the kitchen. It was almost time for closing, so there were only a few people left in the cafe now. “I have to sit down at some point and do that math.” A prospect she was dreading.

“You really do,” Lavinia agreed. “I would offer to help but you know math and I aren’t the best of friends.”

Saphira smiled. Her gaze strayed to the front door, which had just opened as a lanky boy walked in. “Speaking of best friends …” She nodded at the door, and Lavinia’s face lit up.

“Ladies,” Theo said, striding up to the counter.

“Hey, Theo,” Saphira said, barely getting a response before Lavinia whisked Theo away, the two of them instantly absorbed in their own conversation.

They had just seen each other this morning when Theo had dropped off a delivery of falooda cake truffles (which she was skeptical about, but actually tasted really good), but they were always like this when they saw each other, as if they could never get enough.

Saphira watched the pair of them: Theo took Lavinia’s drink from her hand, taking a sip. As he did, a bloom of lipstick stained his mouth, and Lavinia laughed, leaning across the counter to wipe it away. It was a simple gesture, but Saphira could have sworn she noticed something change in Lavinia’s face as she touched Theo’s mouth, her thumb lingering at the point of contact.

But the moment passed in a millisecond, so quickly that Saphira could have imagined it, and the pair were back to talking over one another. They were on an entirely different wavelength, and Saphira was so delighted for them, even as her chest ached.

It made her feel lonely, sometimes, how solidly they were each other’s person. It underscored how she did not have that.

Then, the front door chimed, drawing her attention, and her heart rate picked up. Aiden lifted a hand, waving, giving her an easy smile, and even now, it felt like a personal victory. She loved his smile, how it morphed his entire face, the harsh features softening.

Her spirits immediately lifted upon seeing him. He had this effect on her whenever she saw him. No matter how long the day had been, or how tiring, she always got a little burst of energy every time he waved at her through the front door.

Aiden usually headed straight to the back with Sparky when he arrived, and then she would meet him out there once she finished up inside, but today he came inside to the counter. Saphira felt Theo and Lavinia watching and promptly ignored them, even as her skin prickled.

“Hi.” She leaned over the counter to wave at Sparky, who was by Aiden’s legs.

“Hey,” Aiden replied, eyes warm. “So I was thinking we could do something a bit different today.”

“Oh?” She was intrigued.

“Yeah.” He looked excited. Behind him, outside the cafe, Saphira saw he had parked his car out front.

“Where are we going?” she asked. Usually, everything in town was within walking distance and did not require a car.

“Surprise,” he replied. Excitement fizzed through her.

“Okie, just give me, like, half an hour to finish up here,” she said. The cafe was closing in a few minutes, but she would need to close up.

“I can help,” Aiden offered, just as Sparky trotted away, heading for the front door, wanting to go out.

“It’s okay,” Saphira said with a laugh. “You can wait outside with Spark before he has a tantrum.”

That was something the baby dragon did not do as often these days, but that he still engaged in when the moment called for it. The little draggo was doing very well during his training sessions, not having many temper flares and staying generally well-behaved. Saphira was proud of how well he was progressing, and proud too of how Aiden was progressing with him.

“Alright, I’ll see you soon,” Aiden said. Saphira waved, and he chased after Sparky, letting him out.

As they played out front, Saphira watched, a gooey feeling in her chest. Aiden was smiling, sunlight warming his skin as he held up a stick, making Sparky jump higher and higher. Sparky was enjoying himself—the baby dragon liked Aiden a lot more now, and was much more comfortable with him than he had been before. Aiden and Sparky were properly bonding.

At first, Saphira had been worried that she would feel jealous when this started happening, but she wasn’t, not one bit. She was simply happy that they were getting close.

Probably because she loved him, and wanted him to be happy.

“Go on,” Lavinia said, nudging Saphira from behind.

“What?” Saphira asked, seeing that Lavinia had come over. “Theo and I can close up.”

“No, it’s okay, I’ll stay for closing,” Saphira said, shaking her head. Theo was finishing up his iced chai latte at the bar, but he nodded in agreement with what his best friend said.

“Seriously, go,” Lavinia said. “Like you mentioned earlier, I’ve got a pep in my step.” She winked.

“Are you sure?” Saphira felt bad. “I thought you guys were going to the town movie night.”

Theo waved a hand, getting up. “We’ve got some time. Besides, you look like you could use a break.”

Saphira wanted to protest further on principle, but she really was eager to accept the offer, so she did. “Thanks, angels. I appreciate it.” Saphira gave Lavinia a hug and blew Theo a kiss. “Drinks on the house!”

“I thought our drinks were already on the house?” Theo whispered. Lavinia laughed, hitting his arm.

Saphira grabbed her purse and headed out. The weather was beautiful today, the sky in soft stripes of blue and white.

“Done already?” Aiden asked, as Sparky bounced over to Saphira. She laughed, picking Sparky up and giving him a hug.

“Yup. So what’s the big surprise?”

“You’ll see.” He was pleased with himself, which made Saphira only more excited. It didn’t even matter what the surprise ended up being; she was happy to see him happy.

As they drove, heading up to the hills, they listened to music, chatting about random things, time slipping away. It was strange to think that just a few months ago, Saphira hadn’t even known Aiden, and yet he was such a prominent part of her life now, as if he had always been there.

Aiden parked in a seemingly random place on the edge of a forest and stopped the car.

“Where are we?” Saphira asked. She didn’t recognize the place. He gave her a small smile.

“Come on.”

Saphira exchanged a glance with Sparky, but they obliged, getting out of the car and following Aiden. They passed through a short section of trees before arriving in a clear field. There seemed to be pieces of rotted wood set up at different distances, each marked with a slab of red paint.

Saphira gave Aiden a quizzical glance.

“Sparky can practice his dragon fire here,” Aiden said, looking excited. “See, I set up different markers for him to aim at.”

“Oh!” Now it made sense. Pleasure swept through her at the initiative he had taken, and he looked happy at her delight. “That’s wonderful.”

“I know about this place because the sunset around here is beautiful,” Aiden explained. From beyond the field, she could see the rolling green land of the hills. “Grandad and I go for hikes up here.”

“Lovely! Though that old man should not be hiking. ”

“Well, more like nature walks.” Aiden laughed. “Nothing too intense, don’t worry.”

Sparky was intrigued by the field and the setup, looking curiously at the red-painted marks. Saphira crouched down to get eye level with the baby dragon, giving him her best encouraging smile, even though she was a bit nervous herself, now.

Saphira didn’t exactly have good experiences with baby dragons and their fire, as a melted espresso machine would attest to. But she was confident that Sparky could be trained, that her baby dragon would not cause such a mishap.

“Okay, Sparky-Pie, it’s time to work on your flame,” she said.

He looked at her with big purple eyes, watching as Saphira opened her mouth wide, taking in a big breath. She closed her mouth, holding the air in her cheeks, then slowly blew the air out onto his face, hoping he’d understand she meant he was to make dragon fire.

Sparky blinked at her, and she repeated the gesture until it sunk in. He nodded, then took a breath.

Sparky puffed out a little flame ball. Saphira clapped. “Good job!”

“Okay, now, Sparky, look,” Aiden said, setting up a piece of wood about six inches away from the baby dragon. “Aim at this.”

Sparky turned to Saphira, and she pointed at the wood, blowing out air.

Sparky settled into position, a determined expression on his little face. He inhaled, then aimed a flame ball right at the wood. It hit the mark, the piece lighting into flames.

Saphira jumped up, hooting, and Aiden clapped. “Yes! Good job!” Saphira cheered.

Sparky grinned; he adored being praised. Saphira opened her arms for him, and he ran into her lap, where she kissed his face. Aiden petted Sparky’s scales, and Sparky closed his eyes, content.

“Alright, now let’s keep going,” Aiden said.

They continued with a similar practice all throughout the green field, each time aiming for a mark a little farther away. This way, Sparky could slowly build up his fire.

The baby dragon did well, taking a few tries in the beginning, then hitting each mark with perfect accuracy by the end. They all worked together, Saphira staying by Sparky’s side, urging him on, while Aiden stood by the marks, encouraging the little draggo. After Sparky hit the mark, Aiden would snuff the fire out.

Sparky seemed surprised by his capabilities and satisfied by his own strength, which gave him more energy. He would run to the next mark before the initial one was put out, aiming without Saphira’s encouragement.

Which was good, by the end, for Saphira was getting extremely tired. She felt lightheaded, her vision swimming. The heat was perhaps getting to her; the sky was cloudless now, perfectly sunny. She just needed a moment to rest, that was all.

“Aiden, why don’t you come stand with Sparky so you can practice commanding him, too,” Saphira suggested, trying to keep her voice normal. She didn’t want Aiden to notice she wasn’t feeling well or he would want to stop, and Sparky was progressing so beautifully. She didn’t want to ruin the dragon’s momentum or dampen his energy.

Aiden came over to Sparky. “Okay, Spark, aim there.”

Sparky looked back at Saphira. She nodded at the baby dragon, and he turned back to Aiden.

“Right there,” Aiden instructed, but he wasn’t being confident. Sparky took an inhale, as if to blow flames, then released it without fire, rolling onto his back in the grass. “Tch, Sparky,” Aiden scolded.

When he saw Aiden was vexed by his disobedience, Sparky trotted around, purposefully not listening now. Saphira had the sense Sparky was being a brat on purpose to annoy Aiden, which was admittedly funny. Saphira bit back a laugh, and Sparky saw; he shot little flame balls up into the air, nowhere near the target.

Aiden scowled, and Saphira knew she needed to be serious and teach the baby dragon, not be his accomplice.

“Aiden, be firm,” she said. “He’ll listen to you.”

“Sparky, get back here now,” Aiden said, voice stern. Sparky glanced at Saphira, who frowned at him to let him know disobeying Aiden was no longer amusing, and Sparky acquiesced, coming back to Aiden’s side.

“Good. Now aim.”

Sparky listened, aiming for the target. His fire struck the piece of wood square in the center, the wood bursting into flames.

“Yay! Good job!” Saphira cheered.

“Well done,” Aiden said, petting Sparky’s head.

Aiden and Sparky continued the target practice while Saphira’s condition worsened. She stopped paying attention as her head felt heavy and her stomach hurt. Feeling like she needed to lie down in a tiny ball, she remembered she hadn’t eaten anything all day—she hadn’t had the time.

Saphira squeezed her eyes shut, trying to get her head to stop spinning. They would be done here, soon, and then she would eat. She didn’t want to ruin Aiden and Sparky’s time together; they were really doing so well.

Until she opened her eyes and saw that Sparky was getting carried away, enthusiasm turning to hyperactivity. Aiden went to put down more wood as Sparky sent bursts of flames up in the air, his purple eyes lighting up from the fire.

“Sparky,” Saphira tried to warn, but her voice was too weak. Sparky wasn’t paying attention; he continued playing with his fire, amused by the bright light, not looking where it was going.

The baby dragon did not notice that his next fire burst was heading straight for Aiden’s back.

“Aiden!” Saphira called, breaking into a run. “Look out!”

She pushed him out of the way. Burning pain overcame her, and then everything went dark.