The Child

Chapter 8

I can’t stop myself from jumping up and running out the door. I see him trotting down the street, trying to get away. I was determined to not let that happen. He turns a corner, I follow. As I turn, I see him stuck at a dead end. Clearly, he knows about as much about this town as I do. He looks around wildly, like a caged animal. There was no escaping.

“Who are you? Why are you following me?” I ask as my fire sparks in my hand.

“I swear I mean you no harm,” he says as he holds up his hands in surrender.

“My name is Gabriel. I was sent to keep an eye on you two by your dad. I owe him a debt and this is how I can repay him. He wants to keep you both safe from that psycho, Damion.” Gabriel said with sincerity.

“What is Damion planning?! Does he know where we are? If you found me, won’t he as well?” Questions were spinning in my head.

“No, he doesn’t know where you are. You are safe with the dragon. Trust him to protect you from the demon. Also, call your dad. He can answer your questions.”

“Marie!” I hear Joey’s concerned voice.

“I am over here.”

I watch him round the corner. He walks up to me, enveloping me in a hug.

“Why did you run off?” I snuggle closer into his chest.

“I was just talking to Gabriel here.”

“Gabriel?”

I turn around to see Gabriel is gone. Am I losing my mind? So many weird things have been happening since I moved here.

“Nevermind,” I say, dragging Joey out of the alley with me. I need to call my dad as soon as possible. But first, we have to finish getting set up here.

Joey takes my hand, leading me back to the sandwich shop. Gwen is patiently waiting with Ollie on her hip.

“I am so sorry, Gwen. I thought I saw somebody I knew.” I grab Ollie out of her arms, giving him a little hug. He flings his arms around me and gives me a sloppy, wet kiss on my cheek.

“It’s ok, dear. Well I have things I have to attend to. It was a pleasure meeting you, Marie. I will see you on Sunday.” She gives me a side hug, then ruffles Ollie’s hair. She gives Joey a kiss on the cheek and walks into her pearl white Mercedes convertible. It suits her. Elegant yet modern.

“You ready to go shopping?” Joey asks as he grabs the stroller out of the truck bed.

“Let’s go. I have a lot to get.” I buckle Ollie into the stroller then grab my list.

“The first thing I need is a crib. Then a tv, and groceries.”

“Let’s get moving then,” he says as he pushes the stroller to the first store. We found a crib and TV in less than hour. Joey loaded them into the truck for me.

Joey leads us to the grocery store, I grab a cart while Joey pushes the stroller. At this point Ollie is asleep, wiped out from all the excitement. As we walk I throw things in the cart. We talk and laugh, enjoying our time together. We stop in the baby section, I desperately needed diapers.

“Wow, I never realized how expensive diapers are,” Joey looks surprised.

“Yeah, having a kid gets expensive. I am glad he is off formula now. That is the most expensive I have dealt with.”

“I’ll keep that in mind when we start having little ones,” he kisses the top of my head. Sinful thoughts pop in my head heating my core. I clearly my throat, trying to shake the feeling of desire. We walk down the wine aisle, I grab a few bottles and stuff them in the cart. Joey stops at the expensive ones, looking over the selection.

“Joey! Long time no see.” We turn around to the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. She has fire red hair done up into an intricate braid, with chocolate brown eyes, and creamy pale skin. Her wing eyeliner is perfect, as well as her bright red lip stick. She has on a white blouse and a black pencil skirt. Her red heels show off her toned legs. This woman is giving me a complex. She runs up to Joey, giving him a big hug that lasted a little too long. Jealousy starts to bubble up inside me.

“Hey, Denise. It has been a long time. How is everything?” He asks politely.

“You know, same old. It’s been lonely without you around.” She bats her eyelashes at him. I don’t like her. Joey awkwardly turns to me.

“Denise, this is my mate, Marie,” he brushes off her advances, trying to change the subject.

“A little small isn’t she? And she has a kid?” Completely ignoring me. Denise sneers down at Ollie. It takes all my willpower to not punch her in the face. I look at Joey, pleading with my eyes to end the conversation. He nods.

“Well, we have places to be so I’ll see you around Denise.” Joey hurries to end the awkward interaction, sensing my anger.

“I’ll see you soon, Joey,” she gives him a wink and walks away.

“Who was that? Is she always so rude?” I ask, crossing my arms on my chest. He moves back to looking at the wine.

“She is my ex girlfriend… but we dated a long time ago.” He quickly adds as he grabs a bottle.

“Oh, ok. Well, I don’t like her.”

He starts laughing.

“I don’t either. After a while, she became obsessive and tried to ruin my relationship with my friends and family. She did not take the breakup well,” he chuckles at the thought. I can only imagine how she handled it.

We checked out and loaded everything into the truck. We get settled in, heading back to the cabin.

“I want you to know that Denise is my past. You are my present and my future. There will be no one else. You are a treasure to me. I will not let you go,” Joey blushes and grabs my hand as we wind up the mountain. The tingles seem to be getting stronger, making it hard to concentrate. I can’t believe how hard I was falling for him, only after knowing him for less than 48 hours. He made me feel at ease, safe, and confident. I don’t know much about mates, but I know Ollie and I are precious to Joey.

“I believe you,” I say quietly.

“Besides we all have past. I can’t be mad at you for that.” I tried to calm Joey’s anxiety. Joey nods. We drive for a while in silence, holding each other’s hand, enjoying the gentle tingles of our touch. Then a thought hits me.

“Joey, are there many supernaturals in town?”

He chuckles.

“Actually, everyone that lives here is supernatural. It’s a safe haven where we all live in peace and protect each other,” he explains.

“You never have to hide while living here.”

“Oh, wow! So are there many other witches?” He peaked my interest.

“There is only one other witch, that I know of. Her name is Tally. She is a free spirit. She mainly keeps to herself. She is a seer.” He explains, rubbing circles on my hand.

“A seer?! I have only met one other seer. Back when my mom was alive. She said my children would have the power to build great empires, or destroy them. But that is all she said. I still don’t understand what see meant.”

“Well maybe we should meet with Tally and she can give you a little more insight.”

“I like that idea. Now I am curious, what is Denise? She isn’t a dragon or a witch, I couldn’t sense much power in her.”

“She is a werewolf,” Joey said in a matter of fact tone.

“She is the sister of Alpha Kane. Their pack is near Tally. Alpha Kane is a good man and a close friend of mine.”

“I have never met a werewolf till today. If Denise is any indication of how werewolfs are, I rather avoid them.” I wince at the thought.

Joey laughs, “Alpha Kane is nothing like Denise. They are like oil and water. You’ll see when you meet him.”

We pull up to the cabin. I jump down from the cab and go to open the front door. Brutus comes charging out, jumping up on me. He covers my face in kisses, then runs to do the same to Joey. I can’t help but laugh at his goofiness.

Joseph

I get Ollie out of the truck, trying to be gentle, but I accidentally wake him up in the process. He rubs his eyes then looks up and smiles at me. Brutus starts to prance around us, so I put Ollie on the ground. He flings his little arms around Brutus, giggling. After a bear hug from Oliver, Brutus runs off to do his business in the woods. I carry Ollie to the living room then head back to unload the heavy stuff. Marie is busy putting away the groceries.

I offered to pay for everything, but my mate is very stubborn. She is the definition of an independent woman. Marie kept trying to lift heavy boxes, I refused to let her do any hard work. I am a dragon after all, carrying the boxes was nothing for me.

“Where do you want the TV?”

“Can we mount it above the fireplace?” She looks unsure.

“That shouldn’t be a problem, let me run out to the truck and grab some tools.” She nods and turns back to her task.

I get the tools out of the truck and whistle for Brutus. He comes out from the trees, then turns back to the tree line and starts growling. Before I know it, he is full on barking, drool flying everywhere. I look into the trees, seeing a figure.

“I can see you, you better come out before I have the dog attack you.”

“Alright, you caught me,” a tall man with dark hair and dark eyes comes walking out of the shadows. A demon! Brutus’ hair sticks up on his back, he barks even more. I hear the door open and Marie rushes out.

“Gabriel! What are you doing here?!” She flicks her brow at him. Brutus moves to stand in front of her, growling protectively. I start growling, as well.

“I promised to watch after you,” he says with a sheepish grin.

“Joey and Brutus, stop, he is a friend. Come in Gabriel, I am just about to make some tea.” She turns around and walks inside. All 3 of us follow. She motions for Gabriel to sit on the couch. I was hesitant to let a demon into her home, but she seemed to be at ease.

Gabriel sits on the couch, taking in his surroundings. Then he looks at Oliver with curiosity. I take the seat to the left of Gabriel to block him from Oliver. I let out a low growl. Gabriel c***s his eyebrow at me the rolls his eyes.

“So this is the Child? He is cute. And your King Shepherd is gorgeous.”

“Uh, thank you,” Marie says as she hands us both a cup of tea. She goes back to the kitchen to grab her mug, then gracefully sit in the armchair next to me.

“By King Shepherd, I guess you mean Brutus?” The demon nods.

“He may look like a German Shepherd, but he is in fact a King Shepherd. Magnificent creatures. Truly vicious when full grown. They are the trusted guards of the Fae World. How did you get him?” He rubs his chin.

“He was dropped off on my dad’s doorstep while I was pregnant with Ollie. He was just a little puppy. It was storming that night and he was shaking like a leaf. He had a note in the box saying his name was Brutus. He has been with me every day, since.” She smiles while recounting how she met her companion.

“And how old is he?”

“I think about two and a half. He is a year older than Oliver.”

“Interesting,” the demon rubs his chin again.

“He will reach full maturity at about 10. He will weigh around 450 to 500 lbs, if my memory serves me correctly.” Gabriel has sparkles in his eyes like he just met his role model. I look at Marie, her jaw is on the floor.

“Ok, I’m lost. Can someone fill me in?” I ask, looking between the two of them.

Gabriel sighs, putting his mug down.

“These are things you have to ask your father, Marie. But long story short, I owe a debt to Marie’s father. To repay him I promised to keep Marie and Oliver safe,” he tries to explain carefully.

“Keep them safe from what?” I am skeptical.

“Damion, Oliver’s father. I rather Marie’s father tell her everything though.” A growl escapes my throat at the mention of her ex. Marie lays her hand on my forearm, relaxing me instantly. I look into her eyes, she gives me a reassuring smile.

“A demon who is protecting a witch, interesting. I can protect them, she is my mate after all.”

“I have no doubt in your abilities, dragon. Sadly, we need all the help we can get. Damion is powerful, unhinged, and desperately wants the Child and Marie.”

Marie looks between us with wide eyes. She picks Ollie off the floor, holding him close.

“Here, call your dad. He can tell you everything you want to know.” Gabriel hands Marie his cell phone. She dials the number and puts it on speakerphone.

“Hello, this is Richard.” The man on the other line says with authority.

“Uh, hi Daddy. I was wondering if we could talk. I met Gabriel and he insists that you can answer all my questions.”

“Oh sweetheart, I knew this time would come,” he sighs on the other line.

“Give me a minute.”

The line gets quiet, we all look between each other. Then there was a knock at the door. Marie gets up to open it, with concern in her eyes. Brutus follows close behind.

“Dad! How did you get here so fast?!”