Once everyone finished eating and the waitress had brought Zelda’s To Go box, Fabio settled the bill while Zelda and the rest of the women went to the ladies room. When they returned, it was agreed that Zara, Cole, Stefano and Sarah would return to The Bellagio parking lot to pick up Betsy Lou and Sarah’s things while the rest of the gang returned to Fabio’s Love Machine. The plan was to meet up at the hotel and then they’d head back to Bass Ackwards, TN. Unfortunately, when they stepped out of the restaurant, all hell broke loose.
The streets were littered with frozen humans and time seemed to have stopped. The cloud of Dark Magic swirling over Vegas caused the hairs on the back of Zelda’s neck to go on full alert. She’d already survived one encounter with Bermangoggleshitz and wasn’t looking forward to another one.
“Houston, we have a problem,” Fabio said.
“What the hell is going on? Do you think its Bermangoggleshitz again?” Zelda asked.
“I don’t know who this Bermangoggleshitz is you speak of, but I can assure you it’s not him,” Sarah said.
“How can you be so sure?” Cole asked.
“Because my dad is the cause of all of this. He’s here. I can feel him,” Sarah said, as she frantically searched the streets. It wasn’t that hard to finally pick him out given that everyone was frozen in place.
“Hello, Princess. I’ve missed you,” her father said as he walked toward them.
Sarah was momentarily stunned speechless, as she watched her once handsome father approach. Not only was his hair darker than she remembered, but his light gray eyes were now cold and dark. In addition, the right side of his face was jet black, an indication he was no longer just dabbling in Dark Magic and the Dark Spirits, but had dived in head first, literally.
When Sarah finally regained her composure, she said, “I wish I could say the same and don’t call me that.”
“What? Princess? You’ll always be my Princess no matter how far you run away from your father.”
“Someone better start explaining and fast,” Zelda said angrily.
Ignoring her, Jacob O’Malley looked at his daughter as said, “I see you’ve picked up a band of misfits along the way. If you want them to live, then I suggest you tell them to stand down. I promise not to hurt them if you willingly agree to come with me.”
Before Sarah could respond, Cole stepped in front of her and spoke. “There’s not a snowballs chance in hell I’m letting her leave with you, so go crawl back under whatever rock you slithered out from under.”
“Careful boy. You don’t know who you’re speaking to.”
“You’re right, I don’t. Nor do I care. Like I said before, Sarah’s not going anywhere with you. Not today. Not tomorrow. Not next week. Not ever. She’s under our protection now.”
Laughing manically, Jacob O’Malley finally said, “I could slit your throat with a flick of my hand if I wanted. Don’t test my patience, boy. I promise you won’t like the outcome.”
“First of all, I’m not your boy. Second of all, you make one move and I’ll burn your ass to a crisp and personally deliver you to Hell where you belong.”
Cole watched from the corner of his eye as Zelda, Zara and Zoe moved closer to one another. He sure hoped they had a spell in mind to deal with this asshole or things were about to get ugly in Vegas, again. Either way was fine with him because the one thing he wouldn’t back down on was letting Sarah go with this maniac, father or not.
“Dad, I’m not going anywhere with you, so you need to leave,” Sarah said in a stern voice.
“That’s not for you to decide, Princess.”
“We disagree,” Fabio said, any trace of the earlier humor in his voice gone.
“Look you Elvis wanna be. I’ll tell you like I told the boy over there, mind your own damn business.”
“See, that’s where you’re confused. Sarah’s our friend and she doesn’t want to go with you, which makes this our business. So, we can do this the easy way, or the hard way. The choice is up to you,” Fabio replied.
Anticipating Jacob O’Malley’s next move, Fabio created a protective shield around the group, which deflected his fireball. Unfortunately, the Dark Magic coursing through Sarah’s father was stronger than he had anticipated, which meant he wouldn’t be able to hold the shield for long.
“Cole, we need you to get Sarah the hell out of here. Can you shift?” Zara asked.
“Yes. Where do you want to meet up?” he asked, quickly shifting.
“Meet us at Zoe’s. We’ll be right behind you. I promise,” Zara said as she prepared to blow Sarah’s father to Hell.
Sarah appreciated her new friends trying to help, but if something happened to them, she would never forgive herself. Just as she was prepared to surrender to her father, Cole shifted and momentarily stunned her into silence.
“You. You’re. You’re a dragon?” she asked, dumfounded right before he lifted her and flew away.
Once Cole and Sarah were out of the line of fire, Fabio lowered his shield and the fight began. The first blow came from Zara, who was mad as hell some asshole had the nerve to attack her family. She was fierce, focused, and on point with her shots, which caused Jacob to seek cover. Max and Jax had shifted into hellhounds and were anxious to go after their prey, but Zoe held them back so Mac, Stefano and Nicolai could shift.
With the help of the Baba Yaga, who appeared out of nowhere, Fabio protected the innocents who had been frozen by Dark Magic. Each shifter held off Jacob’s minions while Zara, Zoe and Zelda focused on the evil before them. Zara wasn’t sure, but the longer they fought, the stronger Jacob became. There had to be some way they could tip the balance of power, but she wasn’t sure given how much Dark Magic Jacob had obviously been hoarding over the years.
When Zoe was nicked in the shoulder and it seemed their defenses were getting weaker by the minute, Zelda closed her eyes and channeled the Dark Magic she had received from their mother. It was a rush like non-other, which was the reason she was always cautious when using it. When her hands started to spark with energy, she screamed, “Enough.”
A split second later, everyone watched as Zelda floated in the air and released a bolt of power that would have knocked an immortal on his ass. While Jacob’s minions were distracted Zara and Zoe started blowing them to pieces one by one and then the fight continued. She had to give it to Sarah’s father, he was turning out to be a formidable opponent. Engrossed in the fight, she was shocked, yet relieved when bolts of fire appeared from the sky.
Cole had taken Sarah to the only place he knew she would be safe. He had never been a man who turned tail and ran when the going got tough and he wasn’t about to start now. He knew he had promised Zara that he would stay out of the line of fire, but they needed his help because from the look of Sarah’s father, there was no way in hell the man was backing down.
He picked off a few minions, who were dangerously close to the protective barrier Zara and her sisters had created. Then, he placed a line of fire between his family and Jacob. The minions who were unfortunate enough to end up on the same side as his family were dealt with swiftly. Zelda was still floating in the air and aiming all of her power at Jacob who was slowly but surely retreating one-step at a time. He was tempted to kill Sarah’s father, where he stood, but he didn’t want to leave her alone for too long. Once Jacob retreated to whatever dark hole he had crawled out of, Cole flew back to where he had hidden Sarah.
* * *
Sarah was beyond pissed. “How dare he just leave me here? This is my battle not his,” she yelled to no one in particular.
Cole had dropped her off at a place called The Phony Sword, which looked like a magic shop, but she wasn’t sure. The beautiful redhead had assured her that she was safe and that he would return shortly. Instead of arguing with the innocent bystander, she simply nodded and paced back and forth like a caged animal. The longer she had to wait, the more nervous she became, which meant the more she paced.
What if they get hurt because of me? Sarah thought, knowing she would never be able to live with herself should her nightmare come to fruition.
“I can’t believe he had the nerve to leave me here. I’m not helpless,” she groused to Claire.
“I know you’re not helpless. I left you here to keep you safe. I told you in the parking garage that I could and would protect you, but you didn’t believe me,” Cole responded from behind her.
Sarah whirled around and glared at the man who had become a royal pain in her ass. “I have been dealing with my father for years. I know how to handle him. I didn’t need your help.”
“No, you’ve been running from your father for years, and it’s about time you stopped. For the record, I never said you couldn’t handle yourself, Sarah. But from what I saw today, you need our help whether you want to admit it or not,” Cole countered as he moved closer to the woman who was driving him crazy. The more she yelled at him, the more he wanted to kiss her succulent lips into submission.
“You are one of the most frustrating men I have ever met,” Sarah exclaimed.
“Tell me something I don’t know,” Cole said in a husky voice as he gave in to his desires and took her mouth in a smoldering kiss that only ramped up his protective side. She was warm, soft, and delicious. The way their bodies melded together as one, only made him hungry for more. When she opened her mouth on a moan, he deepened the kiss. She tasted like strawberries, sex, and sin. His head was spinning when they finally came up for air.
Cheeks flushed with pleasure and breathing heavy, Sarah scowled at Cole and said, “Don’t ever do that again.”
“Why not? It’s obvious you enjoyed it as much as I did,” Cole replied with a knowing smile.
“That’s beside the point,” Sarah snapped, as her traitorous body yearned for more.
“No, sweetheart. That is the point,” Cole said before turning and walking away.
Sarah had never met a more infuriating, yet intriguing man in her life. He was sex personified and she loved the way he moved with such confidence. It was obvious he was comfortable in his own skin. Not only was she curious about the man, but also his dragon. When he’d shifted and they took flight, she had never felt so exhilarated and free in her entire life.
She watched with curiosity as he thanked the store owner for helping them. She wasn’t sure what his relationship with Claire entailed, but every time he flashed his pearly whites at the gorgeous redhead, her green-eyed monster wanted to come out and play.
Cole knew Sarah was watching him and Claire intently, which was the reason he leaned over and gave her a soft, platonic kiss on the cheeks. He knew there was nothing but friendship between them, but Sarah didn’t know that, and he wanted to throw her off balance a little the same way she had done to him. The kiss they had just shared rocked his world and his dragon was hungry, no starving for more. In fact, he ached for her right now and knew kissing Claire was childish, but he wanted her to yearn for him as much as he yearned for her.
Once he had said his goodbyes to Claire, he returned to Sarah, who looked like she wanted to murder him. “Ready to go?” he asked nonchalantly.
“Yes. I think I’ve seen quite enough for one day. Thank you very much,” Sarah replied, as she stomped out of the store.
“You do realize you’re in the dog house now, right?” Claire asked with a knowing smirk.
Hanging his head in defeat, Cole nodded and finally said, “Any idea of how long it’s going to take her to forgive me?”
“Nope. But I can confirm that you’re in for a long, bumpy ride with that one. However, if you stay your course and hang in there, both of you will reach your true destiny.”
“Will we reach it together?”
“That’s a decision you’ll both have to make and it won’t be easy, Colrath. Good luck and blessed be,” Claire said before walking into the back.
Sighing audibly, Cole walked outside to face the wrath of his mate. He had a bad feeling things were about to get even colder in Happily Ever After land.