Chapter Three
Frank
She was even more beautiful than he imagined. She was a vision his imagination failed even to compare. And her smile… it sent his blood rushing, and he found his dragon clawing at his skin more than usual. He had to turn the air conditioning up just to compensate for the blood rushing to his head.
Frank replayed their encounter over and over in his mind, shaking his head at himself. She was charmingly adorable, and he had spent too much time trying to impress her. He had been so enthralled that he had followed her to the office door.
He didn’t want her to think he was clingy, which is why he didn’t walk her to the elevator, but he couldn’t deny himself one last peek out the door. Which turned out to work in his favor, as he overheard her telling someone she thought he was cute. It made his heart race more than it should since the feeling was mutual, only to plummet when she finished her statement. “But he can only be my accountant.”
His mouth soured at that. He was a dragon. No one told him what he could or couldn’t do, but some rules weren’t up for negotiation. He thought he could at least get her to be his friend.
He could show her he could be more and somehow figure out a way to impress her. What did women like? Frank didn’t have much experience with dating. He was used to women practically throwing themselves at him. To be fair, women mostly threw themselves at him because of his looks or his money.
Violet didn’t seem to want him for any of that… just his accounting skills. He needed to talk to someone about it. Someone more skilled at wooing than him, and Desmond was just the guy for that, so Frank didn’t hesitate to dial his best friend.
“Hello?” Frank said.
“If you called me to bitch about the score, I don’t want to hear it. You lost the bet and the next time I see you, the first round of cheese is on you. No complaining,” Desmond said laughing.
“That’s not why I’m calling you, idiot.” Frank slouched back in his chair.
“Then what do you want?” Desmond was his best friend and the only one to get him out of his shell. Though Frank could be assertive and demanding, he was hesitant when it came to sharing his feelings or being vulnerable. Desmond understood that and often pushed Frank further than he would ever go alone. Frank didn’t want to admit it, but he needed Desmond to balance him out.
“I just met a girl,” Frank said slowly, drawing out his words.
“No shit? A girl? Was she wearing a brown vest and selling cookies?”
Frank rolled his eyes but clarified. “I met a woman.”
“Okay. Tell me more? There’s a whole bunch of those walking around here.”
“She was cute.” Frank wasn’t sure why he said anything, but he couldn’t stop himself. He had to tell somebody.
“Go on.”
“I brought her on as a temporary client,” Frank said.
“Okay. I’m not hearing the problem,” Desmond cut to the chase. He was never one to chase a woman. He believed in telling a girl what he wanted right from the start so that when they decided it wasn’t what they wanted, he would always be in the clear and without blame. It was a strategy that worked well for him over the years.
“She only wants me for my accounting skills.”
Desmond took a deep breath before laughing aloud. “Wow. The great Frank brought to his knees by a woman. You know how dragon girls can be.” Dragon women were known for their attitudes and running. They almost made it a game. Plus, they preferred dating younger men. “At least she isn’t human,” Desmond said, trying to make his friend feel better.
Frank let the awkward silence hang between them as an answer.
“You got to be shitting me,” Desmond said in between laughter. “She’s human?”
“Look, I didn’t call to be taunted. I called to schedule a night out,” Frank said.
Desmond snorted. “Why? So, you can get cheese-wasted and distracted from the indignity of liking women who don’t like you back?”
Desmond was an ass. He was still laughing, and Frank waited for it to stop. His phone vibrated in his hand, and he looked down to see Desmond sent out a group text to their friends making plans.
‘Link at Frank’s house. Headed to the bar at nine.’
Sean responded back immediately, ‘Rain check.’
Charlie sent a gif of a middle finger and said, ‘See you soon.’
Joseph sent a thumb ups emoji to let everyone know he was coming. Joseph hated texting and preferred emojis over words.
Jackie didn’t respond, but no one expected him to. He was known for losing himself in his work on ancient maps and old building plans. He worked in sterile environments, and his phone wasn’t necessary for that aspect of his life, so he constantly forgot that he even had it with him.
Sean texted back, ‘Somebody call Jackie, so he doesn’t get left out.’
“Thanks,” Frank said into the phone.
“No problem,” Desmond replied. “Don’t expect me to take it easy on you when we go out either. See you at seven.” He ended the call.
Frank was looking forward to it. His friends would put him in a good mood because thinking about Violet, when he knew she wasn’t thinking about him, was stressful. With an hour until his friends came, Frank waited on the back porch until the sun went down so he could go for a quick fly. It always relieved the tension he felt in his back.
Flying was like an aphrodisiac. It did something to Frank. It was akin to a mental high but better. It made him feel more alive than anything else.
When his friends pulled in, he was greeted with back smacks and shit talking. Their friendships had been forged over many years of hiding, shared secrets, and a commonality that others wouldn’t understand. They had become a solid group that knew what they all needed. It was easier to talk to each other than anyone else, dragon or human.
“So, where are we going tonight?” Charlie asked. “I want to go somewhere I can dance.”
“Footloose. The remodeling is already done, and it’s back to being open.” Jackie chuckled. “Sorry, Charlie, no dancing for you.” Of course, he’d be the first one to know it was back open since he routinely studied building blueprints. He had an obsession, but so did everyone in the room. But they were dragons, hoards came with the territory.
From the outside, Footloose looked like any other bar, maybe a touch shinier than some, but nothing special. Granted it was their regular hangout, but Frank figured that if Jackie was insisting on it, he must have heard something interesting about the changes. The bar must have something special on the inside, and Frank amused himself by trying to decide what it would be.
As he walked into the bar with his friends, he knew they would be getting a lot of attention. That always happened when they went out, and Frank understood why. Frank was told he could be Thor’s stunt double. Their eyes and hair coloring were the same. Desmond was Frank’s polar opposite. His brown skin, brown eyes, and short black hair always got attention. Frank and Desmond had been propositioned for a threesome more than once.
Charlie looked like a young Antonio Banderas with his gelled-back hair and tanned skin, but the glasses made him more approachable. Jackie was the wolfman or lumberjack of the group. His hair was shaggy and hanging around his face, and his face was covered in nicely trimmed facial hair. Some ladies went crazy for it.
Frank was used to the attention, but it wasn’t his favorite thing. To distract himself, he looked around, trying to figure out why Jackie thought this place was worth it. Even with the remodeling, the bar itself was old, older than Frank even. That was special, and worth noting, but not enough by itself.
Then Frank noticed the layout: tables tucked into nooks, half walls, and interesting sculptures creating privacy around the edges, and even though there wasn’t enough room for dancing, the center of the room was full of people coming to meet strangers and talk. He thought he had it, but then Desmond swore under his breath.
“What?” asked Frank.
“Have you seen the menu yet?” Desmond asked.
“Not yet.”
“You’ll be pleased, then. They’ve made some additions,” Desmond said, handing over the menu. He was right. There were more cheese options and Frank was impressed with the selection. As they waited for a table, Desmond leaned in. “How do you know she’s not interested?”
“Because I heard her. I heard her on the phone saying I am a lovely accountant.” Frank couldn’t keep his tone from being sarcastic as he mimicked her.
“So,” Charlie said shrugging, “if she wants you to be her accountant, be her accountant. And if she wants to be a little more, be a little more.” He wagged his eyebrows for emphasis.
Frank shook his head. “Charlie, you’re incorrigible.”
“The ladies love it,” Charlie said before ordering three platters of cheese.
“Don’t forget this one is on Frank,” Desmond said pointing at him. Frank bet the Cleveland Cavaliers would beat the Golden State Warriors, but they hadn’t. To this day, Frank thought it was rigged, but he couldn’t prove it, so he handed the waiter his card and told him to run a tab. Desmond laughed and held up his cube of cheese in a toast.
Their dragon metabolism burned any alcohol they drank in minutes. It didn’t matter how much he drank, he would be buzzed for a few minutes at most, but cheese was an entirely different thing. It was like alcohol to dragons. A platter of cheese gave them a nice buzz, but three platters would leave them drunk.
A hostess returned quickly and escorted them to a table in a separate nook.
The bar was a mixture of a hundred conversations. The voices melded together as they walked through the bar, with beer bottles held above their heads, trying to find a table. This bar was a regular stop for them, which was odd since they didn’t drink, but for some reason, they all felt comfortable here.
There was privacy since the bar was located off a vacant district downtown, but, despite rumors about the owner being rich, the bar preferred to stay small. Which made it easier for Frank and his friends, since one could never be too careful with new faces. As often as they came to this bar and the secret they were holding, it was a familiar place, and the bar held a limited amount of people. Plus, they had an extensive cheese list.
They sat and ordered as much cheese as they could fill their stomachs. Their metabolisms burned the calories fast, but the cheese still got the job done. It made them lightheaded and made every part of them feel warm. Senses were dulled. The cheese was their alcohol, but humans didn’t understand that. All they would see would be men eating a lot of cheese at a bar. To preserve the illusion they couldn’t just eat, so they made sure to have just as much beer as they had cheese.
There were conversations everywhere, but the boys spoke in hushed whispers. They needed to make sure no one could listen in on them since they were in a room full of strangers.
“Frank met a woman today,” Desmond started. “No, wait, how did you say it? You met a girl today.”
“Aren’t you a little old for a girl?” Charlie joked in between bites of cheese.
“Just a little.” Frank rolled his eyes and took a swig of beer. He desperately wanted a way out of this conversation, but he had a feeling his friends wouldn’t let this go anytime soon.
“What’s she like?” Jackie asked, voice low. Even though they were all talking pretty quietly, Jackie’s voice was always lower than theirs. It made him sound sullen, which went well with his wolfish looks.
“Why do we need to talk about this?”
“Because it’s not every day that you feel so down about meeting someone,” Desmond said.
He had a fair point. Frank wasn’t the type to pine over someone. He could have any girl he wanted, but this was different. He enjoyed the company of women, but the feelings he was experiencing were different, and he couldn’t fully explain it. He wasn’t even sure how to start.
“Her name’s Violet. She’s beautiful, smart, the whole package, but it doesn’t matter. She only wants an accountant.”
“That’s a terrible way to look at it,” Charlie said. “She may only want an accountant now, but after you fix her books, maybe she’ll want you to do some more math, with her. See what you plus her equals.”
“Don’t be gross. It’s not like that.”
“You don’t know unless you spend time with her.” Desmond pushed cheese toward Frank.
Maybe it wasn’t hopeless. Violet had said he was only an accountant, but that was after only spending a small amount of time with him. He didn’t want to get his hopes up, but he wanted to continue hearing her beautiful, musical voice. No matter how many times he reminded himself that she was a human, and it wouldn’t work, he always went back to wanting her.
“What does she do?” Jackie asked, with a mouth full of cheese.
“She owns a jewelry store.”
“That’s perfect for you! You should show her your hoard sometime. There’s no way she won’t love you after seeing that collection,” Charlie laughed and lightly slapped Frank’s arm.
Frank rolled his eyes again. His friends could be a little much sometimes, but they were good guys. They had his back whenever he needed them, and they knew he needed this tonight. The jokes were helping him feel better. The cheese was helping too but in a different way. He was feeling lighter than he had just a few minutes ago, and he didn’t know if it was the conversation or the intoxication, or a combination of the two.
The conversation left the topic of Frank’s love life, or lack of one, and moved to sports. The boys were planning more bets, and Frank knew he would regret this when he was sober. Intoxicated Frank never made the best financial decisions.
Frank heard her voice, but he assumed he was hearing things, since he was just thinking about her. That sometimes happened, voices lingering long after thoughts. He didn’t know what that meant, but at least he was able to still hear her voice.
There was another voice that he recognized. He heard Claire talking, and the voices were getting louder. He centered himself, allowing his magic to flare out. All dragons had the ability to pinpoint something’s location, particularly with dragons in their Flight and anyone they held dear to their hearts. His skin tingled, and he turned around without thinking. His feet started walking before he could see her. He shouldn’t have been able to hear her but he could, and he continued toward her.
“Hey, Frank, where you are going?” he said in between a mouthful of cheese. Seeing Frank wouldn’t answer, he jumped up to follow.
Frank couldn’t answer. The answer to his question was talking, and he quickly spotted a group of women, Claire and Violet included. His feet continued forward until he was almost at their table. The only thing stopping him was a group of men passing by and at just the right time, as his ears caught something he was certain he shouldn’t have heard.