Dragon Warrior (Midnight Bay) (37 page)

“Where exactly
are
you from?”

William watched Mac break into a slow grin. “Atlantis.”

“The lost continent of Atlantis? But I thought that was only a myth!”

He winked at her. “Then I guess that means I am but a myth, too,” he said, giving William a quick nod just as the air suddenly filled with smoke.

And when the sea breeze carried the smoke away, Maximilian Oceanus and his troublesome brat of a sister were gone.

Chapter Twenty-four

W
illiam sat beside Maddy on the floor in her bedroom, leaning against her mattress; the silence of the Lane household settled around them like a comfortable blanket, Sarah and Patricia and Rick long since gone to bed. Maddy was holding his small wooden box on her lap, and he was sitting cross-legged, a cedarwood chest the size of a small coffin in front of him.

She’d led him up the stairs ten minutes ago, but William had balked when she’d tried to bring him into her room. She’d giggled softly and pulled him inside; the house rule being that if she had a boy in her bedroom, the door must remain open, she’d told him even as she’d closed it. And then she’d said she was putting bars on Sarah’s window in another couple of years and that no boy was ever making it past the kitchen. To which William had wholeheartedly agreed.

Maddy had then proceeded to drag what she’d called her hope chest to the middle of the room and pulled out the box he’d given her from under the bed just before she’d sat down and patted the floor beside her.

But when he’d sat down beside her, she’d suddenly gone silent.

“I hope Mac didn’t frighten you too much this afternoon,” he finally said.

She looked at him in surprise. “He never frightened me, not even when he was a tiger.” She smiled. “I think he just pretends to be mean and scary so no one will realize he’s really a cupcake.”

“You
like
him?”

She nudged him with a soft laugh. “I like you more,” she said huskily, looking down at her lap. “William, why didn’t you seal your box?”

“Because I trust you with my secrets.” He gently nudged her back. “Are ye ready to trust me with yours, Madeline?”

She took a shuddering breath. “In a minute,” she whispered. She reached up behind her on the bed and took down her purse. “I’ve decided to stop carrying my gun,” she said, fumbling with the zipper on the side.

“But I thought you felt safer carrying it.”

She looked over at him and smiled. “I don’t need it anymore; I have you.”

William dropped his gaze, not wanting her to see how deeply she affected him.

She reached inside the compartment but then softly gasped, her hand emerging covered in short golden hair. She shook it off her fingers, and then drove her hand into the opening again, moving it around as if searching for something.

But all she pulled out was another fistful of hair. “What is this stuff?”

William picked some of it up and softly chuckled. “It’s tiger fur.”

She snapped her gaze to his. “Your friend turned my gun into fur?”

William nudged her shoulder again. “I believe he’s your friend now, too, whether you want him for one or not.” He chuckled. “Unless all those MacKeage women ye sent him after decide he’s pond scum.”

She made a harrumphing sound and shook the fur off her hand. And then she brushed it off herself, even spitting some out of her mouth as it floated through the air like milkweed. She finally set her purse on the floor, picked up his small wooden box, and went silent again.

William took a painful breath. “Go ahead, Madeline; open it.”

He saw her hands were trembling as she slowly worked the lid free, and then she went perfectly still as she stared down into the open box.

“Do ye have any idea what that is, lass?” he asked, his heart pounding so hard it hurt to breathe.

“It’s . . . I believe it’s a dragon’s claw,” she whispered. She reached in and picked up the three-inch-long, razor-sharp claw. “It’s . . . this is what you used to be.”

“Nay, Madeline, it’s who I
am
.”

Her snort sounded like gunshot, and William actually leaned away from her thunderous glare, and then flinched when she suddenly thrust the claw in front of his face. “This is what you think you
are
?” she asked through gritted teeth, shaking it at him. “Some ugly, badass,
heartless
monster that sends everyone scurrying under their beds in fear?”

His mouth so dry he couldn’t even swallow, William merely nodded.

She threw the claw across the room. It ricocheted off the wall, and before it had even clattered to the floor, she rolled onto her knees and slapped her hands on his cheeks; getting right in his face, her glare so fierce that he flinched again.

“What you are, William Killkenny, is an idiot. You also happen to be the badass,
big-hearted
sap I am in love with. And if I ever catch you calling yourself a monster again, I will shave off every damn last hair on your body.” She suddenly smiled. “Except on your arms—that hair makes me hotter than Lucifer’s bride on her wedding night.”

It took him several heartbeats to realize that somewhere in that little tirade, she’d mentioned something about loving him, and judging by her sudden look of horror, she also just realized what she’d said.

Where she’d been red with anger, she suddenly paled. William hauled her into his arms when she tried to bolt, and buried his face in her hair. “I won’t let you take it back,” he growled. “You are
my
woman now.” She was trembling so violently she started making him tremble, too. “Say it again,” he demanded thickly. He clasped her face in his hands, locking her gaze to his. “Again, Madeline.
Say it
.”

“I love you.”

Christ, he thought his chest was going to explode. He used his thumbs to brush the tears on her cheeks, but when he tried to speak and couldn’t, he pulled her forward and claimed her mouth.

He kissed her like a man deeply in love, hoping she wouldn’t realize the difference even as he wondered how long he could deceive her. And Madeline kissed him back like a woman deeply in love; her trembling hands running through his hair, her body melting into his, her sweet lips tasting like heaven.

But when she moved to straddle his lap, William broke away and tucked her face against his neck, muffling her cry of protest. “We will stop now, before we scandalize your daughter and mother.”

“You can’t just leave me
hanging
,” she cried. “I want to feel you inside me.”

He chuckled—though it held no humor—and held her looking at him again. “Get used to it, lass, as you will probably be hanging for months.”

She went utterly still. “M-months?” she whispered. “You’re
leaving
?”

“No, Madeline, I’m not going anywhere. But if ye wish to walk down the aisle at your grand church wedding, wearing your mama’s gown and not be heavy with child, then you’ll not feel me inside you again until our wedding night.”

She tried to rear away, her face paling in horror. “You peeked! You looked in my hope chest!” she cried, struggling to get away.

William held her facing him, this time his chuckle was sincere. “Ye left me here all alone this morning with nothing to do but wander through your house. And when I came to your bedroom, your secrets called out to me.”

“But that’s not fair! I didn’t peek in your box.”

He sighed. “Madeline, a man stands no chance against a woman if he plays fair. It’s our nature to use whatever we can beg, borrow, or steal to capture your hearts.” He smiled. “Did Mac not tell you that it’s something we all want but cannot buy?”

“It was still a rotten thing to do,” she muttered, the color returning to her cheeks.

“Have I not repeatedly warned you that I’m a selfish bastard?” He pulled her forward and kissed the tip of her nose, then held her facing him again. “So knowing that I will never play fair, do you still wish to love me?” he asked softly.

She dropped her gaze to his chest, her eyelids hooding her expression from him as she took a shuddering breath. She reached under his hands and pulled a chain from her blouse, making him let go of her so she could take it off. She slid the chain down over his head and then patted the medal against his chest with a sigh.

“I tried as hard as I could not to fall in love with you, but it happened anyway. And no matter how hard you try to discourage me when
you
get scared, I’m never going to stop loving you.” One corner of her mouth turned up. “Did I hear you say I’d be hanging until our wedding night? Was that a marriage proposal, Mr. Killkenny?”

“No, it wasn’t,” he snapped. He gestured toward her hope chest. “I believe a modern proposal involves candlelight and flowers, music and dancing, and an engagement ring. And then
months
to plan a wedding with flowers and music and
two
rings, and enough people to fill a cathedral.” He cupped her face again. “And after your grand day, you would move into a house with enough bedrooms for four children, surrounded by a white picket fence. And I believe there was also a puppy on your list, a couple of cats, and a pony for each of the children.”

“I-I was thirteen when I started that list,” she whispered, two big fat tears running down her cheeks. “When I still believed dreams really could come true.”

Instead of using his thumbs to brush them away, he sipped each tear off her cheek. “Ah, but they can, Madeline, when fate gives us a second chance.”

She reached down and lifted the medal hanging around his neck and studied it for several silent heartbeats before she lifted her gaze to his. “I bought this because I wanted you to know exactly how I see you. It had a knight in shining armor riding to my rescue. I don’t need candles and flowers and an engagement ring, or a big wedding, or a picket fence and ponies. Those are the dreams of a naïve young girl, and have nothing to do with love, really. But that little girl grew up, and the woman she became wants . . . just you,” she ended on a whisper.

“Nevertheless, you are getting those things,” he told her just as softly. “Only the ponies will be warhorses, and the house will be a keep with
eight
bedrooms. And instead of a knight in shining armor, you’ll be getting a devious, possessive strong arm who will demand more than you think you can give.”

“Oh William, for a ninth-century warrior, you are such a romantic sap,” she said, melting into him.

He stiffened. “How do you know what time I’m from?”

“Mac told me,” she murmured against his chest, her own chest expanding on a sigh. “But I already guessed you weren’t from this century.”

“Ye did? How?”

She sat up to frown at him. “You’re over thirty years old, and you can’t even
drive
.” She snorted. “And you own a
sword
. And you’ve asked me to explain everything from Wonderbras to airbags to
going parking
. Then I remembered a dragon had walked into the library carrying Mabel, but
you
walked out carrying her. And with Eve warning me that you were even more old-fashioned than Kenzie—who acts like he just stepped out of the Middle Ages—it didn’t take long to figure out what was going on. Mac just filled in some of the missing pieces.” She snorted again. “For someone who’s supposed to be a powerful wizard, he sure is insecure. He spent the whole ride from Ellsworth telling me everything you’ve done, trying to dissuade me from loving you.”

William reared away. “He told you
everything
?”

“Not everything. I stopped him when he started listing off all the women you’d been with, and where you’d been with them, and what you’d been doing with—”

He covered her mouth with his hand. “Exactly how did you stop him?”

She smiled behind his hand, and he quickly pulled it away when her tongue darted out to lick him. “I swerved off the pavement toward a bunch of mailboxes.” She frowned. “Only I didn’t notice the sheriff’s car following me. When he stopped me for driving erratically, and then asked to see my driver’s license and registration . . . well, imagine my surprise when I found out the truck was registered to
me
.” Her smile returned, and her chin lifted. “I’ve decided I’m keeping it.”

“Oh, ye have, have you?”

“Yup,” she said, her chin lifting higher as her smile disappeared. “Even if you suddenly end our affair, I’m not giving it back just so you can give it to some perky-boobed, gold-digging hussy who only wants to take advantage of you.”

William arched a brow. “So we’ve gone from having a wedding night back to being only lovers?”

“You told me that wasn’t a marriage proposal.”

He pulled her down to his chest so she wouldn’t see his smile. “I did say that, didn’t I? What else did Mac tell you about me?”

He felt her toying with the medal she’d given him. “He tried to explain why you’ll never be able to love me.”

William’s blood suddenly went cold. “And?” he whispered.

She nearly clipped his chin when she popped her head up. “And I shut him up again. After checking my rearview mirror, I slammed on the brakes and made him spill ale all over himself.” She scowled. “He must have stolen the three cases I bought you; they weren’t in the truck when I went out to get them this evening.”