Dragon Love

There weren’t always Dragons in The Valley. It was shortly after the summer solstice when the first one arrived, cruising through the sleepy little mountain town on his loud rumbling motorcycle, the obnoxious intruder disturbing the slow peacefulness of the place as he rode up to the Park and Sleep motel at the edge of town.

No one thought much of the stranger passing through, until he bought the Swanson house a few days later, a gothic revival mansion located on the ridge overlooking The Valley.

The house was vacant but well-kept, put up for sale several years before when old man Swanson went into a nursing home. With the hefty asking price in the millions, the mansion wasn’t expected to sell at all.

It’s difficult to imagine that someone would want to spend that much money to live in an old Colorado mining town.

Boasting a population of 1,045, with five restaurants, two motels, and one hot spring spa, The Valley wasn’t considered a destination location but catered instead to the pass-through tourists on their way to the ski resorts. It’s unusual for anyone to stay more than two nights, so any increase to the number on the population marquee, seen as you entered town, is cause for conversation amongst the locals.

Several weeks later the second Dragon arrived driving a Volkswagen van with a surfboard strapped on top. An odd sight to see since The Valley wasn’t close to the ocean. One week after that the third and final Dragon appeared in a chauffeured electric limousine.

The place was abuzz with speculation about the newcomers, each arrival creating a new crescendo of interest. Who were they, and what brought them here were among the most popular topics at the Chop Shop Barber Salon and Suds Laundromat.

Thena couldn’t care less, but she was glad for the work.

Regularly hired to do odd jobs by the town’s realtor and mercantile store owner, Ray Garcia, Thena was offered the prized position of part-time housekeeper, working Tuesdays and Thursdays up at the mansion. The pay was good for only two days a week, and the duty list looked ordinary: Vacuum, dust, shop, cook lunch and dinner, and run errands when needed.

She was thankful to Ray for sending it her way, but Ray was like that, always looking out for her--even before her dad died.

One of her dad’s oldest and best friends, Ray was a Cheech Marin look-a-like who sported a straw cowboy hat with cowboy boots and exuded a boisterous charm that was hard for anyone to resist. Ray liked everyone, and everyone liked Ray, which is how he earned the title of Unofficial Town Mayor. The town was too small to have an official mayor, but it would be Ray if it did. As such he was the person to go to when you needed something or needed to get something done, which is how he kept Thena employed.

Steady work like this was hard to come by. Even a born-and-bred resident like Thena had to make ends meet with multiple side hustles.

That was fine with her, the flexible schedule gave her time to work on the online courses for a master’s degree in criminal psychology. This new job would give her both the time and income she needed to complete her degree. Just a few more classes left and she could start applying for jobs with the F.B.I. as a profiler.

She was excited about having a real career and ready for her life to change.

____________

It felt like dawn arrived earlier than usual on her first day of work. She pulled the comforter over her head to avoid the morning light that slipped past the wafting curtains, as the crisp breeze flitted into her bedroom; sleepily thinking about the unfairness of life that the sun would be up before her alarm. Groggily rousing herself, she got ready for work.

Piling her long curly copper hair into a top bun she stared at her reflection contemplating if she should apply makeup or not. Looking at her large blue eyes surrounded by pale coppery lashes and the smattering of freckles across her small nose she opted for no makeup, after all this was work, not a date. Instead, she applied her face cream and some lip balm to ward off the arid high-altitude air, brushed her teeth, and put on work-appropriate clothing.

Dressed in service standard white shirt, black pants, and flat shoes Thena left a little early to make sure she arrived at the mansion on time. Having never been a housekeeper before it was important to make a good impression on her new employers.

Pulling her old rumbling Ford truck up to the multicar garage at the back of the mansion, she parked on the dirt just before the driveway began. Her truck had a chronic oil leak and staining the pristine cement that led to the garage certainly wouldn't make a good impression on anyone.

Pressing the clutch to the floor with her tippy-toe, she ground the vehicle into first gear, turned it off, and stomped on the e-brake for good measure. Being a small woman of five feet and one-half inch, the truck was hard to drive but she managed.

It was the one thing she didn’t sell when her dad died, he loved that truck, and she loved him. Every time she sat in the cab the familiar smell of dust, oil, and gas made her feel like he was still around.

Slipping the keys into her pants pocket along with her cell phone, Thena hopped down out of the truck and walked towards the front entrance wearing a big smile. Over the years she’d imagined all kinds of magical stories about this fairytale-looking place. She felt excited to finally see the inside.

Ringing the doorbell several times with no response, she tried the door handle, which to her surprise was unlocked. Pushing hard on the door, the large carved heavy oak slowly swung open into the great hall.

Hesitantly stepping through the doorway, she called out, “Hello. I’m the new housekeeper. Anyone home?”

Inside were tall Corinthian columns, marble floors, and art displayed everywhere. It looked and felt like a museum. Numerous silk scroll paintings of dragons hung on the walls in the formal dining room, several portraits of what looked like family members from different eras decorated the grand staircase, and just beyond, in the great room, vases and sculptures were strategically placed for viewing from the various chairs and sofas stationed throughout the enormous room.

This must have taken years to collect. I wonder if he’s going to want me to dust all of this… probably. I’ll have to do it in sections.

Not seeing anyone, thinking it rude to keep the front door open, she turned back to the door, pressing it with both hands and pushing it gradually closed until the door latch clicked.

“Ahem.”

A masculine voice sounded behind her. Still facing the door, feeling awkward about entering the house uninvited, she pasted on a smile and turned to meet her new employer.

“Hi, I’m Thena. Thena Day.”

Extending her arm as she turned, not anticipating his close proximity, her hand caught the inside edge of his robe and inadvertently slipped under the loosely hanging silk above his snuggly tied sash. Unable to stop moving, guided by the material, her fingers unavoidably caressed his skin as they skimmed across his muscled abdomen and around his lower waist, coming to rest on his upper butt. Her arm was trapped, pressed against his warm damp body.

She looked up at him in horror.

The face that met hers was elegant and sensual. Rich velvet-brown angular eyes and thick black lightly-arched eyebrows were veiled by wet black ruffled hair that fell forward stopping at his cheekbones, his prominent nose giving way to lips that naturally pouted. The double stud piercing on his right eyebrow and small thin ring piercing the right side of his soft, berry-colored lower lip created an erotic dichotomy between rough and refined.

He was the sexiest man she’d ever seen.

Thena’s mouth went dry. Losing all will and ability to speak she just stood there, stunned and mortified at her predicament. Her brain was unable to function with her arm pressed against him, making her fully aware of his body and her rising desire to kiss him.

He smelled like pine needles and allspice.

“Would you mind removing your hand from my robe please Ms. Day,” he said in a low masculine voice that made her think of rolling thunder. Placing his hand on her elbow he gently squeezed and began removing the offending arm from his robe.

Coming to her senses she stepped back, retracting the rest of her arm in a panic, both of her hands flying to cover her nose and mouth in a physical display of shock.

“Mr. Dragon, I’m so sorry!” Her muffled voice spoke through her cupped hands, which still carried his scent.

“It’s my fault,” he said smirking, amused by her discomfort. “I shouldn’t have come down here like I did.” His eyes briefly traveled down his short partially-wet robe to his bare feet standing in a small puddle of water. “I wasn’t expecting you for another 20 minutes, and my brothers are away on a trip, so when I heard the noise down here, I came to investigate not thinking to dress. One of them must have left the door unlocked. You can call me Yong, by the way. Mr. Dragon sounds so formal and I think we’re a bit past formality at this point, don’t you think?” He extended his arm to shake her hand.

“Yes, sir, Mr. Yong, I mean Yong.”

Visibly flustered by the situation, she took his warm large hand in hers, clasped it firmly and gave it an exuberant shake.

“You can call me Thena,” she responded with her best pretend smile, embarrassment exuding from every part of her being.

It made him smile to watch her struggle with the awkwardness of the situation. She was cute. Most human women would be overcome by his natural pheromones by now, making them sexually aggressive--the reason why he usually masked them. This time he didn’t bother, expecting something other than a cute young woman with copper penny hair standing in his great hall. She, however, didn’t seem to notice them.

On the contrary, a furious blush highlighted the smattering of freckles on her nose and she regularly averted her eyes to avoid looking at his body. It was as if they did not affect her at all. Even so, why she didn’t want to look at his body was a mystery to him.

He had a fine body.

Another curious thing about her was how she was able to open the door and enter the house. Multiple wards were still in place which should have prevented anything from entering. She felt human and didn’t seem to be a threat.

I wonder how she would have reacted if she saw me teleport?

He almost blew it, teleporting behind her dressed in only a robe. It’s one thing to know the myth of dragons, but another thing to personally meet a half-naked one, even if he’s in human form.

“Perfect. Well, I’ll let you roam about the place to get yourself acquainted with the house, while I go get changed into something more appropriate.” Bowing slightly with his smirk still in place, he turned and moved towards the stairs.

Thena watched him leave until he was out of sight then exhaled a sigh of exasperated relief.

I’m going to be fired before I even start the job… for molesting my boss! I can’t believe this is happening to me.

Whimpering a little as she bent her head, rubbing her fingers across her brow to fend off the tension headache she knew was coming, she noticed the small puddle of water on the floor where Yong was standing.

The least I can do is clean up this water.

Instinctively moving towards the kitchen, she found some paper towels and assorted cleaning supplies in the broom closet next to the kitchen entrance. Returning to the spot, she wiped up the puddle and looked for the other wet footprints in the vicinity. Finding none, she sat on her knees for a moment pondering how it was that there were no other water spots or footprints on the polished marble floor.

“I see you found the cleaning supplies.”

Looking up she watched him take the last few steps on the stairs and walk toward her. Tall and well-shaped, his black hair was now brushed away from his forehead, exposing his refined features and piercings.

He looked stunning.

Dressed all in black, his long-sleeved button-down shirt was painted with a golden dragon on one arm, its head resting on one shoulder while its tail wrapped itself down his arm to the cuff. Unbuttoned at the neck, Thena could see his collar bone and a portion of his smooth muscular chest, with just a hint of a tattoo peeking through the opening.

Her mouth went dry again, her stomach flip-flopping.

I can’t keep doing this, I can’t keep reacting this way. Pull yourself together Thena! You need this job. Think of him as your older brother, I mean he looks about 35 and you’re 29, so that could work, right? Do you want to kiss your older brother? … No, no you don’t that would be gross.

The emotional cold shower worked. Thena’s stomach started to settle and calmness flowed over her.

“Yes, thank you. I was just wiping up the water so no one slipped.”

Able to look directly at him now, all feelings of the prior awkwardness faded as she continued to pretend he was her long-lost older brother.

“Thank you for doing that. Let me show you around the place, while we talk about your duties.” He noted the shift in her demeanor, watching her shyness fade, as Thena followed him into the great room. “You can see that there are a lot of things to dust.”

A mischievous half-smile played on his lips, as his arm swept outward like a showman to convey the numerous sculptures and vases throughout the vast room.

Thena noticed that every sculpture and vase was either solely of a dragon or had a dragon in it. There was a clear theme to all of the art--it was ancient, expensive, and about dragons. She supposed it made sense, the family name was Dragon after all.

“Not to worry, I’ll make sure to dust a few of them every day and keep them all dust-free. How long has your family been collecting art? It seems like a while.”

Casually looking around she noticed one piece that had prominence over by the fireplace. A large jade sculpture of a rising dragon holding an orb in its claw, it was almost as tall as she was.

Curious about the sculpture she moved towards it to inspect it more closely when Yong captured her wrist to stop her from bumping into a table.

A current of power instantly shot through her body, her vision became tunneled and enclosed by darkness, then suddenly she was watching what looked like a movie in her mind. But it wasn’t a movie. It felt like an early memory. In it, she saw two people in the distance embracing each other sitting at a water fountain looking very much in love. Their clothes were an ancient style; he wore a hanbok of Korean tradition and she wore the peplos of Greece. Releasing their embrace, Thena saw a glowing orb sitting between them, resting on the man’s lap. The scene felt familiar, full of love, and sadness like something was lost.

It was too ancient to be a memory, but what could it be then? It didn’t make sense.

Yong felt the shock run through his body but kept ahold of her as her head was thrown back, her body stiffened and her eyes turned a milky white. In his mind’s eye, he could see what she was seeing. It was a memory of his first love Themis, goddess of justice. The scene at the water fountain was the last time he saw her.

Long-forgotten feelings of heartbreak and loss came back to him like crushing waves pounding at his soul. Confusion and anger followed, as he cursed the Universe for making him relive the happiest and most horrific time in his life. It was too painful for him to watch. Not wanting to witness any more he teleported Thena up to his bedroom and laid her on his bed. The psychic connection severed the moment he removed his hands from her.

Shaken, Yong pulled up a chair next to his bed and sat down. Leaning back he rubbed his hands over his face and through his hair trying to clear his mind.

He hadn’t thought about Themis in over a millennium. He’d driven himself crazy for the first thousand years after her disappearance, asking everyone at every pantheon about her hoping for a clue, worried that she was injured or worse. But he couldn’t find a thing--no information at all.

She was just gone.

Not knowing what happened was torture. There was no explanation, no closure, nothing. Then there was the orb, their manifested wish together to have a child. Yong still kept it safe and cared for as he had for the last five thousand years, wishfully waiting for her return and to complete their child’s creation.

What does this all mean? Who is this woman? How was she able to pull out my memory, could this be Themis? Did she get thrown into the Karmic wheel of reincarnation?

So many questions raced through his mind. He needed answers and this woman obviously was the key to finding them.

Thena came out of her trance. The vision faded and her eyesight cleared to see a rich purple and gold canopy above her. Disoriented for a moment, she realized she was laying on a large bed.

Great, I fainted and he carried me up to his bedroom. Ugh! Could this day get any worse? I give up Universe, I give up!

Feeling defeated and embarrassed Thena moved to sit up, turning on the big bed and dangling her legs off the side to hop down when she came eye-to-eye with a very pensive Yong sitting in a chair next to her. He was watching her intently with a look of concern and confusion on his face.

Leaning forward, elbows planted on his knees, his fingers tapped together methodically. He looked as if he was thinking deeply about something.

“I’m so sorry. I don’t know what happened. I was just going to look at your beautiful sculpture and I guess I blacked out. I haven’t eaten this morning, maybe it’s low blood sugar.” She nervously chatted. “This has never happened to me before.”

That was a tiny white lie. It wasn’t uncommon for her to get flashes or pictures in her mind about people’s pasts or knowing what they were thinking, although it was never consistent. She could touch a person 10 times and never get a vision and the next time see pictures of their childhood. It seemed like it was more about her emotional state at the time. She noticed it happened more often when she was relaxed and receptive, though she’d never watched a scene or blacked out before.

“Stop!” Yong commanded, seeing her move to jump off the bed.

Not knowing who or what she was bothered him. At the same time, she didn't seem to know what she was either, he needed to find out more about her. He could only do that if she kept the job and kept coming to the mansion. Concerned that she would quit after today's events, he decided that he would have to convince her to stay.

Stunned by his order, Thena paused. Not saying more, he continued to stare intently at her still tapping his fingers together. Thena became uncomfortable under his scrutiny. He looked deep in concentration as if he was puzzling out some unsolvable theorem. Unsure of what was causing this intensity in him, she attempted to relieve the tension.

“Mr. Dragon, I assure you that I’m fine. Really.” Switching back to formal speech to reestablish some emotional distance between them.

Somehow this seemed to do the trick. Yong’s manner suddenly changed as he stood up from his chair. Gone was the intense pensive looking man and in his place was a smiling concerned employer.

“Thena, I hope I can still call you that. I’m very concerned about your well-being. Let’s exchange information so that we can coordinate our schedules and then I’ll take you home for the day.”

Centering his god powers, making sure the psychic connection couldn't be renewed, he extended his hand to help her off of the bed.

“Oh, no. That’s ok. Don’t worry about me, I’m fine. I feel bad about what’s happened today. I usually don’t have these kinds of issues, really.”

Not willing to touch him again, Thena pushed off the bed ignoring his outstretched hand and landed just to the side of him.

His familiar smell of pine needles and allspice was heavy, stronger than before, invoking feelings of comfort and loss within her. Confused by her reaction, but not having the time to ponder it, she shrugged it off to the stress of the day.

Yong noticed she was avoiding his touch.

After exchanging phone numbers, he insisted on driving her home. Concerned with her riding on the back of his motorcycle in her condition he drove her truck for her instead.

For Thena, it felt comforting and somehow familiar to let him take care of her, to let him take her home. “I live above the mercantile store on Main St.” Nodding, he made his way towards the center of town.

Parking the truck on the side of the mercantile building in front of her apartment stairs, Yong turned in his seat to face her and spoke softly so as not to alarm her.

“Thena, I want to talk to you about today. Did anything happen to you while you were unconscious? Did you see anything? Feel anything?”

Not sure where this line of questioning was going, feeling uncomfortable and unwilling to share any of her intimate details with someone she didn’t know, she dodged his questions by opening her door and hopping out of the cab.

“Thank you, Yong, for driving me home. I better get inside; I’m feeling a little tired. You can leave the truck keys in the glove box.” Speaking up to him through the open door, she gave him a pleasant smile, shut the door and turned to leave.

Feeling like he would never see her again if he didn’t find a way to talk this out, Yong moved swiftly around the front of the truck to catch her before she reached the stairs.

He was almost to Thena’s side when out of the store came a blond, well-built man with a chiseled chin and cobalt blue eyes wearing a mercantile employee apron. Walking somewhat aggressively towards Yong, with an outstretched hand in greeting.

“Hi, I’m Zachary, Zachary Swanson, you can call me Zach.”

“Hello, I’m Yong Dragon.” Annoyed by the interruption, Yong shook his hand firmly.

Zachary looked at Thena and back at Yong as if assessing the situation. “Is everything ok here?” The question was clearly meant for Thena to answer.

“Yes, its fine Zach. This is my boss, Yong. He was just giving me a ride home. I wasn’t feeling very well.”

“Nothing serious I hope.” His hands moved to his hips, as he stared at Yong waiting for her response, looking like he was ready to fight if Thena gave him the slightest indication of displeasure.

“Nope, just feeling a little faint. Nothing to worry about.”

Yong coughed to conceal his chuckle at her extreme understatement of the situation, and continued to watch the exchange between the two of them, trying to work out their relationship.

There was something curious about Zach, something familiar that made Yong feel uneasy and territorial. He had a strange smell, like the air was electrified, dry and unpleasant. He couldn’t figure it out, but he definitely knew he needed to keep an eye on him.

Zach backed down. “O.K. Thena. I’m glad to hear it. You let me know if you need anything O.K.?... I’ll see you on Saturday for our movie date?”

“Yep, I’ll be there." Pausing a moment, Thena added "Bye Zach.” She waved at him, letting him know he could go.

Taking the hint Zach waived back, smiled and headed back into the store.

As soon as he was out of sight, Yong moved closer to Thena to talk more privately. Handing her the keys to the truck, his fingertips lingered on her palm to slowly trace swirls on her bare skin around where the keys sat, smiling a rich smile full of sincerity, kindness, and enough wickedness to make her knees feel a little weak.

“Look Thena, I’m touching you and nothing’s happening,” he explained in a low seductive voice. “I hope you’ll continue to come to the mansion as our housekeeper. I can’t control the things that happened today and I’m sorry if you feel embarrassed, but I don’t feel that way. So, I’m hoping to see you on Thursday. You’ll get to meet my two crazy brothers, they’ll be back from their trip by then. You’ll like them.”

The familiar scent of pine needles and allspice surrounded her, as her other senses were overcome by his touch and oh-so-sexy smile, all working together to mesmerize and seduce her.

“Sure, no problem. I’ll be there Thursday at 9:00 a.m.”

“Excellent. Thank you Thena. I’ll see you on Thursday.” Yong softly closed her hand over the keys, bowed slightly to her, turned and walked away in the direction of the mansion.

Thena stood there for a moment still mesmerized as she watched him head for home. The spell broke as soon as he rounded the corner and was out of sight.

Giving herself a little shake to snap out of her daze, she went upstairs to her apartment to make herself some chicken soup.

Maybe it is just low blood sugar.

Zach watched them from the store window and he didn’t like what he saw. He could tell that Yong didn’t know who she was and he was going to keep it that way. He wasn’t worried about being discovered himself, his god powers were masked and he made sure his aura was dampened to human levels. It would be difficult for even another god to figure out his identity.

Damn it, why did that bastard dragon have to find her! Well, no matter I’ll just have to speed up the plan. I’m not losing her to you again.