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  Copyright 2018 by Selene Griffin - All rights reserved.

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  There’s Something About Dragons

  Dragon In My Heart Series Book 4

  By: Selene Griffin

  Table Of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  The End

  About The Author

  P.S. Readers

  Chapter One

  “Ugh, finally,” she groaned.

  Pressing her back against the massive, intricately carved front door she had just closed, Isidora let her eyes lift up towards the impossibly high, vaulted ceiling of the Grand Foyer. She let loose a heavy, exhausted sigh and shook her head before pushing away from the door. She had just spent the last four hours of her life entertaining one of the most boring Dragons she swore had ever walked the face of the Earth. Her boredom had gotten so intense that she could still feel the dull ache of it in her chest.

  She would never understand how a man with the ability to transform into a Dragon, with such a rich heritage behind his blood, could be so impossibly and utterly tiresome. At first, she had simply chalked it up to his nerves over meeting her. She understood that she was a rather intimidating figure, and never held a set of jittery nerves against one of her suiters, but as they passed the three-hour mark of their afternoon together she realized that he was simply drier than a piece of unbuttered toast… and he would die an unbuttered piece of toast.

  His natural ability to suck any and all life from the room, coupled with the fact that he was nearly twenty years her senior, had landed him squarely in the Rejected pile of suitors in her mind. There would be no second visit with Suitor #48… that was for sure.

  Up she went, climbing the triple-wide stone staircase that sprouted directly from the stone floor of the Balaurescu Estate, towards the upper floors. Generations ago, her ancestors had carved their family home directly into the mountainside of the South Carpathians in Romania for reasons of safety and seclusion. Each and every room, floor, ceiling, and stair was connected as one solid piece of stone. Time had slowly worn each surface to a smooth texture, but the higher up the walls one went… the more evidence of Dragon claw marks could be found. As she climbed, she let her dark eyes wander across the long, deep marks in the stone far above her head. It calmed her to know that a connection to her ancestors was so close all of the time.

  With another sigh and a shake of her head she picked up the pace and climbed the stairs to the third floor of their estate where she and her mother shared a suite of rooms. Her frustration and disappointment over this whole Suitors thing had begun to wear at her quite heavily and after this last failed little “date,” she felt the need to vent to her mother. Sorinah Balaurescu had always been the greatest listener in Isidora’s life and aside from being her mother, she was Isidora’s best friend as well.

  “Mom?” She called as she pushed open the door to their little apartment of rooms.

  “In here, Dear,” her mother called in return from her bedroom.

  Without hesitation, Isidora went towards her mother’s voice. She pushed open the door to find her mother settled up in a cozy chair by her large bay window, a book in her lap and a cup of something-or-another beside her on the table. It was a comforting sight that still made Isidora smirk a bit. Her mother was somehow both a little old lady and a feisty firecracker at the same time… and she was barely over the age of fifty!

  “How was your visit with Monsieur Ennuyette?” Her mother asked.

  “Painful,” Isidora answered, flopping down onto her mother’s bed like a teenager.

  “Painful?” Her mother asked with laughter in her voice. “That seems a bit extreme.”

  “Oh no, not at all,” Isidora insisted. “For a Frenchman with a heritage like his, that man was the most boring fellow I have ever met.”

  “Well, I do suppose that’s saying something.” Her mother quipped with a playful smile. “How many suitors have you met with now? I admit I lost track once we passed the thirty mark.”

  “Forty-eight,” Isidora answered with a groan. “Which is about forty too many, if you ask me.”

  Her mother laughed and shook her head. Both her and Isidora were in agreement that there really was no need for so many suitors. But they both also knew that neither of them had much of a say in that matter. Isidora’s Uncle, Geza, had made the choice to accept any and all eligible suitors for Isidora. That meant any Dragon heir or head of family who was not already engaged or married, and who fell between the ages of eighteen and dead.

  Uncle Geza claimed it was to keep the playing field fair and to avoid any points of contention between the Balaurescu family and any other in the Dragon world. Isidora understood the reasons… but that didn’t mean she enjoyed entertaining men old enough to be her father or grandfather as if they might stand a chance at becoming her mate. Not that weeding out the old men right off the bat helped her decision anyway.

  “Have you been able to narrow down your choices at least?” Sorinah asked her.

  “I believe so,” Isidora answered, sitting up a bit on the bed. “There are four who stick out from the rest, enough for me to consider meeting with them again.”

  “Oh! How romantic!” Her mother teased with a smile. “Do tell!”

  Isidora rolled her eyes at her mother, but she couldn’t hold back the laugh that spilled from her at the sight of her mother’s teasing, cheesy smile. It had taken Sorinah all of five minutes to soothe her daughter’s frustration and coax a laugh from her. Of course, Isidora still shot her mother a little bit of a scolding look before telling her mother about the four men she had narrowed things down to.

  “Well out of all four, the one who I seemed to get along with most was Orochi Suoh of Japan,” Isidora started. “He and I are the same age, only a few months apart actually, and he strikes me as a man I could become good friends with.”

  Isidora paused for a moment in thought, which had her mother giving her a look that attempted to prod her into continuing. Which she did.

  “He claims that his family can trace their lineage back to Tama Ryouma,” she added. “From what I could gather, the tie is a thin one… but they seem very certain of it, and I believe him.”

  “But?” Sorinah asked, sensing the overall hesitation from her daughter.

  “But… I don’t like the idea of moving to a country so different from the one I know,” Isidora admitted. “And I don’t like the idea of moving so far from you.”

  “Not to mention,” she continued. “I would have to learn an entirely new language… and I don’t know how well I would fair at that.”

  “But you already speak three!” Her mother chimed in with pride. “You could learn a fourth without any issue, I’m sure of it.”

  “Thank you, Mom,” Isidora said with a smile. “All of that knocks him down
on the list a bit though, so I don’t know if I’ll choose him in the end.”

  “Well, who else do you have in mind?” Her mother asked.

  “I doubt Uncle Geza would approve, but I believe Ormarr Fraenir, the fellow from Norway, would be a good fit.”

  “Why don’t you think Geza will approve?” Sorinah asked.

  “Aside from him being three years younger than I am?” She asked with a smirk. “He is a bit rambunctious and his family has a pretty violent history.”

  “How so?” Her mother continued to prod her along.

  “Well his clan seems to be the only remaining family of Dragons in the entirety of the Netherlands,” Isidora said, admittedly impressed by the story Ormarr had told her. “Apparently a combination of Dragon-hunting Vikings and fighting amongst the various clans decimated the Northern Dragon populations. All that remains is his family… and he was the only son born to this generation.”

  “Oh well then I suppose it’s quite important he marries a good woman, hm?” Her mother quipped, quirking a brow to emphasize her comment.

  “That’s honestly what I thought too, Mom,” Isidora admitted. “I almost got this strange sensation that we could revive the Northern Dragon population together. But… I don’t want to make my choice based on something so basic as that.”

  “So, there is nothing else about this Ormarr that catches your interest?” Her mother asked. “Aside from the ability to be the savior of their kin.”

  “Honestly? No,” Isidora confessed with a shrug. “He is attractive, of course. But I get the sense that I would be playing the role of his nanny more than that of his wife.”

  “Mmm.” Her mother mused in thought. “Well, that is no good then. Who else?”

  Isidora laughed again, shaking her head. Her mother was rather persistent in her need to know about these selected suitors. Though she didn’t mind it so much, it was fairly obvious that her mother was living vicariously through her during this entire Suitor process. It made Isidora wonder, for the millionth time, about her father and who he was. She knew better than to ask though. She never got an answer before and she knew she wouldn’t get one now. No sense ruining the light-hearted mood they had going on.

  “Enzo Visconti.” Isidora offered up.

  It was almost as if someone had just pricked her mother with a pin. Her happy expression faltered slightly and a mild look of annoyance washed briefly across her face. Or was that concern? Either way, it was such a fleeting thing that Isidora didn’t have much time to process it… so she just continued on.

  “He is the oldest of the four I have narrowed my choice down to, but I don’t think that it works against him in any way,” Isidora went on. “He just recently took control of his family who are based out of Milan, Italy, within the past few years. He seems sure of himself, yet still seeking out guidance. I like that about him.”

  “Why is that?” Sorinah asked, trying to hold back the tension from her voice.

  “Well… he didn’t strike me as arrogant or too entitled,” Isidora said. “He seems like his main concern is his family, which I like.”

  Her mother remained silent. Rather than thinking too deeply about it or wondering why her mother was all of a sudden mute, Isidora took the psychological bait and just kept talking.

  “I suppose it also helps that he is not too handsome, but also not what I would call ugly. He has a scar across his right cheek just beside his mouth, though I’m not sure what it is from. Not to sound rude, but I think it humbles him.”

  “And what of this fourth suitor? Tell me of him,” Sorinah said.

  “Ah,” Isidora said, with a bit of a smirk. “Ladon Drayce, out of England.”

  “Oh… an Englishman.” Her mother quipped, back to herself again. “I have always loved their accents.”

  “As do I,” Isidora agreed with a smile as she pulled her knees up to her chest, her arms wrapping loosely around them as she went on. “But I think he knows it.”

  “You think he knows what?” Sorinah asked with a slight tilt of her head.

  “That he has an accent I find attractive,” Isidora answered. “Either that, or he is just naturally a very self-absorbed sort of man.”

  “If he is that bad, how has he made the cut so far?” Her mother questioned, reaching for her cup on the nearby table.

  “Well it’s not that bad,” Isidora admitted. “He is very handsome, comes from good breeding and a financially lucrative family in England… and he is very charming. There was just something about him that struck me as arrogant. I’m not sure why, but I was less than fully impressed with him. But I feel like given another chance, he would score better.”

  “Oh, so you have been keeping score!” Her mother teased with yet another smile.

  Isidora just rolled her eyes at her mother and snorted out a small laugh. Not that her mother was wrong… she had been keeping something of a scoreboard for all of these various suitors. Most of them never even made it onto the scoreboard… but for those who had, she kept very close track. This was going to be one of the most, if not the most, important decisions of her life. She wanted to make sure she did it right.

  “It’s just a figure of speech, Mom,” Isidora scoffed with a smile. “But… sort of. Yea.”

  Sorinah just smiled, took a sip from her cup and set it back down again on the table with all the casual calm in the world. Isidora adored her mother. Since as far back as she could remember, her mother had gone out of her way to provide the most normal life for Isidora that she could manage. Which was quite the task, considering who and what Isidora was.

  “Well, from what you have told me, it seems like you have narrowed things down to an acceptable group.” Her mother said. “Are you going to begin arrangements to meet each of them again? Give them all another chance, as you said?”

  “I am,” Isidora said with a nod. “Since Ladon Drayce was the first of the four I met, I plan to arrange a second meeting with him first. I believe he returned back to England after our initial introduction and meeting, so it will likely be at least a week until I see him.”

  “Then you have plenty of time to decide what you would like to do during your time with him.” Her mother said as she stood up from her chair. “I suggest the gardens. They are lovely this time of the year, you know.”

  Isidora nodded to her mother’s suggestion. It was a good one and she would probably take it. Thoughts of a garden date slipped from her mind, though, as she noticed a tense look pass across her mother’s face once again. Isidora’s brow furrowed a bit, but before she had a chance to open her mouth and ask her mother what was wrong, Sorinah spoke again.

  “I’ll go and tell your Uncle Geza that you’ve narrowed down your choices,” she said, almost tightly but still with a smile. “I’m sure he will be just as pleased with them as I am.”

  “Thank you,” Isidora said, though she was still wondering what was suddenly bothering her mother. “I hope so.”

  Sorinah stepped closer to the bed where her daughter sat and pressed a warm kiss to the top of her head, stroking her daughter’s dark hair softly for a moment before leaving the room. Isidora sat there for a moment, thinking about the four suitors she had narrowed herself down to. They all had their notable points… just as they all had their drawbacks. She hoped that, after meeting with them all a second time, she would be able to make a definitive selection and be happy with it. Or at the very least… not utterly miserable.

  *

  Sorinah did her best to keep a casual demeanor as she left the suite of rooms she shared with her daughter, but the moment she closed their main door behind her, the façade fell and an intense feeling of worry and dread enveloped her. By the time she made her way down to the second floor and across the estate to Geza’s office, she had barely taken two breaths and her heart was pounding. Without any sort of announcement whatsoever, she pushed open the door to Geza’s office and walked right in.

  “Geza!” She shouted a
little louder than she intended. “We need to talk.”

  Geza was sitting behind his desk, a marble and oak monstrosity that had been in that exact spot for nearly 150 years at this point, when Sorinah exploded into the room. He looked up at her, at first sporting a confused look that morphed into one of concern when he heard her words.

  “What’s wrong?” He asked, setting aside the work he had been focused on. “Are you alright?”

  “No, Geza,” she snapped unintentionally before sighing. “I’m not alright. Isidora has narrowed her choice of suitor down to four.”

  “Well I would think that is a good thing, don’t you?” Geza said with a bit of a smirk, though he tried to temper it because he realized his sister wasn’t in the best of moods.

  “For three of them yes, I do,” she said as she came to sit in the chair across from him. “But one of them is the recently elevated head of the Visconti family. Enzo.”

  The tense silence that suddenly gripped the room was thick enough to cut, but it only lasted a moment before Geza sat back in his chair and let out a long, heavy sigh.

  “I never thought a Visconti would make it to her final cut,” he said, to the utter shock of his sister.

  “What?!” She demanded, sitting forward in her chair. “You mean you knew the Viscontis had sent a suitor for Isidora? How could you let one of those deceitful, thieving lizard bastards into the running for her hand in the first place?”

  The more she spoke, the harsher and more demanding her tone became. A fierce rage was starting to burn in her eyes and Geza could see it. He sighed again and leaned forward to clasp his hands together on top of the desk.

  “As much as I would have liked not to, Sorinah, I had little choice,” he explained in a gentle tone.

  “No choice?!” She snapped. “You are the Patriarch and head of our family! The family which has born the first female Dragon in nearly five hundred years! How can you say you had no choice in the matter?”