Dragon's Heart [Dragon Love 4] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Read online

  “Your lucky rock?”

  “Uh-huh.” Balancing her plate precariously on one hand, Penny pointed to a large boulder sitting off to the side of the picnic tables.

  The rock was in the sun and wouldn’t be half as comfortable as the benches pushed up to the tables, but who was she to change Penny’s decision? “Lead the way.”

  Once they were settled on the rock, they began eating their hot dogs. Even though it was warmer sitting in the sun, she liked being with Penny and not in the loud bunch at the tables.

  “Are you Mr. Grant’s girlfriend?”

  Cinda choked on a sip of soda. “No. I’m just a friend.” She wasn’t really even that. She was the woman who had broadsided their car.

  “Oh.”

  They ate a few more bites in silence, but Cinda knew it wouldn’t last.

  “Mr. Grant wants you to be his girlfriend.”

  If she’d taken another sip, she would’ve spewed it across the rock. She did her best to cover her surprise. “Why do you say that?”

  Penny seemed blissfully unaware of Cinda’s reaction. “Because he said you’re pretty.”

  “He did?” She lowered the hot dog, her attention diverted from her food.

  “Uh-huh. Mr. Hank and Mr. Walken said they think you’re pretty, too.”

  The young girl’s revelations threw her. Was it true? Or had Penny misinterpreted what she’d heard?

  “They want you to be their…” Penny paused, deep in contemplation. At last, she found her answer. “They want you to be their mate. That’s a funny word. What does mate mean?”

  Didn’t the word usually apply to animals? “It is a funny word.” At least, a funny word for them to use about her.

  “Is it like being a girlfriend?”

  “I guess. Sort of.”

  “If you’re their girlfriend, does that mean you’re going to live here with them?”

  The conversation was getting serious. “Um, Penny, I’m not their girlfriend, so there’s really no reason to talk about this any longer. I’m just their friend. You have friends who are boys, right?”

  The sadness enveloping Penny’s face caught Cinda’s breath. No child should ever look so lonely.

  “Just one. Sort of. But he doesn’t like me much.”

  “Really? Who wouldn’t like you? You’re terrific.”

  “He’s over there.” Penny stuck out her arm at a redheaded boy climbing one of the trees. “Jumper.”

  “His name is Jumper?” The boy was going higher and higher. Thankfully, one of the employees was ordering him to climb down.

  “His real name is Billy Hopkins, but we call him Jumper because he got on top of a barn and jumped off it.”

  “He did what?” How could a boy jump off a barn roof? Where were the people who were supposed to be looking after him? “He jumped off that?” She pointed at the red barn.

  “No. It was his uncle’s barn, but now everyone calls him Jumper.”

  “Oh, I see. I guess his nickname makes sense.”

  “Uh-huh.”

  They went back to eating their lunches for a while. Or at least, she was. Penny only picked at her food.

  “I have to see the doctor today. My parents are taking me after lunch.”

  “Oh?” Cinda’s chest tightened.

  “Uh-huh. I don’t like going there.”

  “I don’t like going to see the doctor, either, but you kind of have to. You want to get better so you won’t have to go to the doctor.”

  “I’m going to die.”

  Cinda almost dropped her plate. Her chest hurt even more, and perspiration that had nothing to do with the sun broke out along her forehead. “No, you’re not. At least, not until you’re really old.”

  Penny gave her an “oh, please” look. “That’s what my mom and dad say, but I know they’re lying. I heard the doctor tell them.” She tucked her head and dug her toe into one of the holes in the rock. “My heart is broken, and they can’t fix it.”

  Cinda put down her plate and pulled the frail girl into a hug. Although a denial was on her lips, she couldn’t bring herself to lie. “I’m sorry, honey.”

  “Jumper’s lucky. He has cancer, but it went into remitton.”

  “Do you mean remission?”

  She shrugged.

  “Yeah. He’s lucky.” She hugged the girl closer, being careful not to squeeze her too hard. “Do you know who’s really lucky?”

  Penny’s big emerald eyes lifted to hers. “Who?”

  “Me because I met you. And me because I made a new friend. Wanna know her name?”

  A slight smile lifted the corners of Penny’s mouth. “Uh-huh.”

  “Her name is Penny.”

  Penny giggled and eased out of Cinda’s hold. “Will you play with me later?”

  Cinda hadn’t meant to give the girl the wrong impression. As much as she wanted to say yes, how could she stay? “I don’t think so. I have to go home.”

  Penny’s smile died. “Nooo. Please. Don’t go. Please play with me after I come back from the doctor. Pulease?”

  “Yeah, pulease, Cinda?”

  The sound of Hank’s deep voice tore Cinda’s attention away from Penny. He strode toward her, along with Walken and Grant. “You know I need to go home. I’ve overstayed my welcome as it is.”

  “No you haven’t. As far as we’re concerned, you can stay at the ranch forever,” added Grant.

  “Yay!” Penny grabbed hold of Cinda’s hand and jumped up and down. Suddenly, she stopped, as her face grew pale. But even her obvious pain didn’t diminish her excitement. “You can stay. Yippee!”

  Cinda gave Grant a hard look. What was she supposed to do now? “I’m sorry, honey, but I really need to go home.”

  “Why?”

  She blinked at Walken’s question. “What?”

  “Why do you have to get home? Is someone waiting for you there? Pop told us you don’t have any showings scheduled.”

  “No, but—”

  “Then there’s no reason you can’t stay.” Walken put out his hand. “Penny, your parents are up by the house waiting for you.”

  “Awww. I don’t want to go.” Although she’d taken his hand, Penny pulled back, resisting. “Please, Miss Cinda, you’re my friend. Please stay. Pulease?”

  “Yeah. Like she said, sweetheart, pulease stay.”

  She scowled at Hank then smiled at the pleading girl. How could anyone resist those big green eyes? “Okay, but just for today. And only if you promise to be a good girl at the doctor’s.”

  “I’ll be good. I promise. I’m always good.” Penny broke free from Walken and flung her arms around Cinda’s waist.

  “Great. Then it’s a deal. Cinda’s staying. Let’s go, kid. Your mom and dad are waiting.” Walken took the child’s hand then nodded toward the corral. “Cinda, you might enjoy watching Jumper ride. It’s his favorite thing to do whenever he’s not trying to fly off the top of barns.”

  “Will do.”

  Walken and Penny strode toward the house, leaving her alone with Hank and Grant. Hank swept his arm around her.

  At first, she felt amazing with his arm wrapped around her and his hand resting on her hip. His strength could’ve been measured in the muscles outlined under his shirt, but a better measurement was how gentle such a big man could be. When Grant fell in step with them, walking close enough that she could smell his musky aftershave, she found herself wishing everyone else in the world was gone.

  If I could have just one night with them, I’d be happy. I’d treasure it until my dying day.

  And then their remarks from last night struck her, and she pulled away. How could they say those things if they liked her? Hadn’t Penny said they thought she was pretty? She couldn’t, however, put much faith in the young girl’s words. Not and keep her heart safe. Why or how it happened wasn’t important. Whenever she was around Hank, she remembered all the lonely nights she’d thought about him and what might have been. Adding Grant and Walken to the mix was like
throwing lighter fluid on a fire.

  It had taken a long time and a lot of self-examination for her to finally accept her body shape. Since then, she wouldn’t put up with men who didn’t like it. But which way did these men sway? Did she dare ask them?

  “Have you heard about Jumper?” asked Hank.

  “That he likes to jump off buildings or that he’s in remission?”

  “I see Penny’s been filling you in. We do all we can to keep him busy, including riding horses. As long as he’s busy, he doesn’t get into trouble.”

  They took her to the side of the corral. She leaned against the top board, determined to keep her attention on the boy instead of Hank and Grant. “It’s great that he’s gone into remission.”

  “Yeah. He’s a tough little guy.” Hank pulled off his cowboy hat and put it on her. “Your nose is getting pink. Here, take mine. We’ll round up a better one for you later on.”

  “Thanks.” She pulled the hat lower and didn’t bother arguing that she wouldn’t need it. Once she’d kept her promise to Penny, she’d leave.

  Jumper took the horse around the enclosure again, sticking close to the fence. The horse moved slowly, with its head down, but Jumper excitedly bounced in the saddle, calling for Winder, the horse, to run. Winder, however, paid no attention to the boy’s demands.

  They watched for several minutes. Jumper was such a vibrant, happy child that it was difficult for her to believe he was ill. But he was better. At least, for now.

  “Hey, Jumper, time’s up. Give Winder to Mr. Bob.”

  The employee holding the reins helped the boy off. Jumper dashed over to the fence then climbed to the top of it and sat on the top railing. Hank and Grant positioned themselves on either side of the young boy, ready to grab him should he fall.

  “Am I going to see the dragons now?”

  Dragons? Cinda glanced from Hank to Grant but stayed quiet.

  “Soon enough, little man. Soon enough.”

  Jumper’s bright brown eyes locked onto Cinda. “I’m going to see real, live dragons.”

  “Really?” She wasn’t sure what was going on, but she hoped the guys weren’t lying to the boy. “Do you mean the dinosaurs at the exhibit?” A traveling exhibit of dinosaur bones and recreations had come to Atlanta. She couldn’t think of anything else they could mean.

  “Not dumb dinosaurs. Dragons. With real fire.” Jumper roared, his hands wide open and his fingers flexed, simulating fire coming out of his mouth.

  Hank pretended to be frightened and dodged the flames. Grant laughed, but Cinda wasn’t laughing along with him. Why were they building up the boy’s hopes?

  “Jumper, if it’s all right with Mr. Hank and Mr. Grant, can you come help me put Winder back in his stall?”

  Cinda wouldn’t have believed the boy could get more exited, but he almost fell off the fence trying to twist toward Mr. Bob.

  “Can I go, Mr. Hank?”

  Hank lifted him off the fence. “Sure. But be careful and listen to Mr. Bob.”

  “Okay!” Jumper squeezed in between the boards then dashed over to the gate where the worker waited with Winder.

  “He’s a good kid. If we can get him to stop jumping, we’ll have performed a minor miracle.”

  As soon as Jumper wasn’t looking any longer, she whirled toward Grant. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

  Hank hooked her by the arm and pulled her away from the corral. “Better watch your language, babe. There are children within earshot.”

  She lowered her voice but not her anger. “How can you make such a ridiculous promise? Dragons? Really? What are you planning on doing? Showing him some kind of mechanical dragon and telling him it’s real. I don’t think that’s going to work. He’s a smart kid. How can you lie to him?”

  Hank crossed his arms as Grant pulled his hat lower. “We’re not lying.”

  “Of course you are. You can’t show him a real dragon.”

  “Hank’s telling you the truth, darlin’. We keep our promises.”

  She’d thought they were such great guys, but great guys didn’t tell lies. Had they told lies to the other children? Or lies to other people? Like how they thought she was pretty? Or had she overheard the real truth last night? She couldn’t get them straight, their actions not matching their words. Yet all that didn’t matter any longer. Only Jumper and his eventual disappointment did.

  “Why would you ever promise he could see dragons?”

  “It’s his wish. Sure, he’s in remission, but we still do our best to fulfill a child’s dreams.”

  “But telling him he’ll get to see a dragon? Are you nuts?”

  “Cinda, calm down. Now.”

  The color of Grant’s eyes seemed to change, adding bits of red. She would’ve asked about it, but she was too intent on getting answers about their so-called dragons.

  “I will when you tell me how you’re going to show Jumper a real, live, fire-breathing dragon. Because if you can do that, I’d sure as hell—” She paused and glanced around, making sure none of the kids had heard her. “I’d really like to see a dragon. Are you going to show me, too?”

  “If you want, sure.”

  “Grant,” warned Hank.

  Grant backed off, but she didn’t want to let it go. “Okay. When and how are you going to fulfil this little boy’s fantasy? Tell me and I’ll be there.”

  “What’s going on? There are too many people around.”

  She kept her attention on Grant, even as Walken rejoined them. “Hank and Grant are going to show me a real, live dragon.”

  Walken stopped. Yet instead of laughing, he stared hard at the other two men. “Jumper?”

  “Yeah.” Hank eased back. “I’m done talking about this. Walken’s right. Too many people might hear us.”

  Grant turned on his heel, along with Hank. “Stick around, Cinda. You wouldn’t want to break your promise to Penny.”

  She fumed as she watched Hank and Grant storm off. “And what about you, Walken? Can you produce a dragon, too?”

  He smiled, but there wasn’t warmth in the gesture. “I may or may not know anything about dragons, but I do know one thing.”

  “What’s that?”

  “I know when to walk away.” And he did, eating up the ground between himself and his friends.

  “I’m not leaving until this is settled.” As soon as she’d finished shouting, she noticed how many of the others were watching. Embarrassed and a little ashamed, she lowered her gaze and took off for the house.

  Real dragons, my ass.

  * * * *

  “Hank, are you sure about what you heard?” asked Walken.

  Grant looked to Hank. He’d wondered the same thing.

  “I’m sure.”

  “Damn it.” Grant strode into the house, leading a way. “I could use a stiff drink. Anyone else want one?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Me, too,” answered Walken. “So do we tell her we know?”

  They’d had the same conversation several times since bringing her home from the hospital. Not that they’d done much good talking about it. The discussions always ended the same. They felt useless, unable to do anything for her.

  “Like I’ve said before. No. We let her tell us.” Grant poured whiskey into three shot glasses. They lifted the drinks and slugged them back together.

  “What if she brings it up?” Walken motioned for Grant to pour another round. “What do we say?”

  “We let her tell us. It won’t do any of us any good for her to find out how we know. Just put it behind us and wait for her to want to tell us.” Hank drank his second shot and winced.

  “What are we going to do?” The alcohol added to the burn in Grant’s stomach that had come the moment he’d learned about her condition. “We can’t let her die.”

  Yet, none of them had an answer. Instead, they took a third shot and remained silent, each deep in their own thoughts.

  I won’t let her die. I don’t know how, but I won’t.
I can’t.

  Grant slammed back his shot.

  Chapter Six

  Cinda spent the rest of the day stewing over the dragon issue. Even while playing with Penny, she was distracted, often gazing into space until the young girl pulled on her arm, forcing her out of her thoughts. Since the argument, the men had kept their distance, talking to her only when they needed to.

  By the time dusk was settling in, she was exhausted. As upset as she was about the men and their promise to Jumper, she’d had a great time. She’d pitched in around the ranch, doing whatever she could to help out. Taking care not to overexert herself was new to her, but she was determined to follow the doctor’s orders about taking it easy. If she did, then maybe, just maybe, she had more of a future than she thought.

  “Cinda, can we talk?”

  She looked up from brushing the horse down and was immediately struck by how handsome the three men were. They were tall, broad-shouldered men, but it wasn’t only their physical attributes that had her heating up between her legs. Throughout the day, employees and clients alike had told her stories about them. Stories glowing with praise that highlighted their kindness. Although the others said that the men’s tempers flared every so often, those flashes of anger had never resulted in anything bad. In fact, not one person could remember the men getting angry with a child. Their anger was reserved for parents and caregivers who weren’t doing their jobs.

  “Sure.” She didn’t like being upset with them and had, in fact, gone from a not-so-quiet fury to one of simple disappointment. The men she’d heard stories about would never tell a lie to a boy. So why had they told Jumper they’d grant his one wish?

  “Can you come inside the house?” asked Walken. “It’s hard to talk with everyone else around.”

  Were they going to admit they were wrong? She nodded and started for the house with them falling into step beside her. They dwarfed her in size, yet she couldn’t help but imagine she was a statuesque queen with her handsome bodyguards protecting her.

  Hank led them up the front porch steps and into the house, taking a hard right into the main office. Her heart thundered in her chest as Grant closed the door behind them.