Date with a Dragon by Lisa Daniels

Author:Lisa Daniels [Daniels, Lisa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-05-22T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter Five – Lena

Lena’s mother, naturally, knew about the gossip in town. It took skillful deflection on Lena’s part, along with a vague “We’re not that serious, we just want to take it easy, see how it goes,” for her mother to finally lay off her relentless questions. Conversation remained steady and safe then, and Lena returned home some time later, firing off a quick message to Oskar that she’d survived, and hoped he wasn’t rotting away due to the four-star service of the hotel.

Oskar: It’s not so bad. I think you’d like the food. Not tomorrow, though. I have a plan for you once you finish work. Advice: take warm clothes.

Mystified, Lena stared at the message, wondering what on earth he wanted to do. Warm clothes in early afternoon? No snow for miles around? Wasn’t snow season in Geevor, after all. She’d packed a duffle bag with warm clothes, stuck with her neat “librarian” sweater and pants doing her morning shift, where only three people came in. The library survived by church donations and book sales mostly, to pay the threadbare staff members who worked it. Sometimes money was allocated from Democrat and Republican funds to preserve heritage sites, since Geevor technically was one of those rustic, backwoods places with a wealth of local folklore and Cornish/Irish origins.

Excitement brewed in her as time neared the finish line for work.

Even though it was just a pretend date in a pretend relationship, Lena couldn’t help but wonder—maybe it was real.

Because Oskar didn’t have to do anything other than turn up. Yet he was messaging, visiting local places at her recommendation, trying foods, and, well, dating her.

Katie: I’m outside.

Lena practically skipped to clock herself out, handing the keys to Debra Haynes, mistress of bake sales, before grabbing her duffel and meeting Katie outside, wondering why Katie had messaged, and not Oskar.

“Hop in,” Katie said, patting the passenger seat next to her when Lena approached the car. “We’re going just outside of town to meet Oskar. You’ll see why shortly.” She stopped Lena when registering what she was wearing. “Actually, go in the back. You better change now.”

Flushing, Lena did as ordered, since Katie had a very no-nonsense tone to her demeanor. She hoped no one spotted her changing into her fluffy blue turtleneck and fleece top, which were probably better seen on grannies.

“Something else for you as well,” Katie said as she glanced into the mirror, before taking goggles out of her glove compartment and tossing them to Lena. “You’re gonna need these. Good choice on that turtleneck.”

“What on earth are we doing?” Lena asked, mystified. “Skydiving or something?”

“Only if you can’t hold on,” Katie said, “but I don’t recommend that.”

“What—” Lena stopped talking. She had her answer when Katie took the next turn, and, partially concealed in a copse of trees, was a huge, red dragon.

Light scintillated off the scales, which were small and layered like fish. Great, yellow-red wings, webbed like a bat’s, with veiny membrane between the bony joints, flared out at an eye-watering span.

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