Finding The Red Dragon

Finding Him

"I was beginning to wonder if you stood me up." The man stood from the bench. There was just enough light from the patio to show his outline, but not his face. "Sorry. Normally I am not late, but I had a rough evening." She smoothed her sundress down her legs.

"Are you ok?" His smooth voice drifted over her. "I will be." "Come, sit, tell me about it." He held out a hand to her and she deflated. "Look, I am probably going to be terrible company tonight, and you do not want to hear about my misadventures in dragonland." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Your company could never be terrible." "Oh, it will be tonight. I will probably start crying like an idiot and then blab about lo...nope. See, I almost slipped there." She crossed her arms over her chest and held back her emotions.

"Getting to know you, means learning the soft spots too." "Oh, this is more than a soft spot, it is a freaking hole." She exhaled. "Did someone hurt you?" His voice was so comforting that she fought the urge to tell him everything right there.

"Alright, you tell me your name, and I will sit and talk. I refuse to call you that guy." Ella smiled and his chuckle was soft as he stepped toward her.

"Fair enough. Olin." Olin. She liked that. "Ok, Olin, a deal is a deal." She moved to the bench and sat. Just being close to him was making her edgy. She folded her hands in her lap, then closed her eyes.

"No one hurt me, not on purpose anyway. It was the realization that I could not have what I wanted." "And that is?" "A dragon." She groaned. "Ella, you do know that I am a dragon, correct?" His voice held uncertainty. "I assumed you were." "I am. Is that a problem?" His voice was so smooth and calm that just hearing it make her heart rate spike.

"Well, you are a shifter, so that is different." "A dragon shifter." "Yes, but this was just a dragon. He did not shift into a human." Ella picked at the hem of her dress. "And you have feelings for this dragon?" "I do. I did. I still do, yes. I am sorry, I am not trying to lead you on Olin. You might as well know the truth."

"I am listening." Again, his voice was smooth and she took a deep breath. "I was brought here to study this dragon, to help find a way to stop him from dying, and I did, or at least I think I did. I mean I hope I did. He seems better now. He is such a brilliant red now. Anyway, somewhere along the way, in just a short time, I fell in love with him. Yeah, I know, tiny human fell for the big dragon, go ahead and tease me." She waited, but he sat there, stone still.

"Ok, well, so I fell for the dragon. He is perfect in every way, except for one thing." She twisted her hands as the pain burned in her chest. "He is a dragon." Olin answered. "No, I am a human. You see, if I were a dragon, we could be together. He told me that if I were, he would love me every day of his life. That is the love I have wished for since I was a little girl dreaming of a knight in shining armor."

"What if he wished he were human?" Olin asked. "I would never wish that for him. He is the perfect dragon." "Sometimes dragons wish for other things for themselves." "I doubt any dragon would wish to be human. We are weak and only live like 90 years." She laughed. "True. Dragons are way cooler." He teased and she laughed.

"Ok, you got me there." Her cheeks warmed as he watched her. "You have a beautiful laugh." "Thank you. Flattery will get you everywhere." "Thanks for the pointer." Olin chuckled.

"OK, enough sad stuff, tell me about you." Ella smiled. "Oh, no, this is not about me, this is about you." "It works both ways." "Not on my ship." "Oh, so you are a captain now?" It was strange, but she felt at ease with him, not nervous at all.

"Captain of my own ship, which only receives information." "Ok, one for one then." "One for five." "That is unfair." "Captain, I call the shots." Olin chuckled again. "Fine. Ask away." She shook her head and waited.