“I just go in and rub a giant dragon and it’s easy peasy.”
“No peas here. Just moss.”
“It’s an expression. I just … okay. That globe lights up and I go into sunscreen mode.”
Panzan nodded and left her alone in the room. She wasn’t sure what to do first, but the tub was soon calling her name. Her body was sore from all the walking she’d done in the last couple days and a hot soak would offer much needed relief.
Madeleine turned on the nozzle and let the water run while she undressed. She stared in the mirror and held her arms out wide, flapping them slowly. “I’m a dragon,” she whispered. “A naked dragon about to cover herself with edible moss.”
The warm water was delicious against her skin. She sank in up to her chin and blew bubbles from her mouth. “This is heavenly,” she said out loud.
The green gel was cool in her hand as she squeezed it from the bottle. “Scrub,” she said, mimicking Panzan. She had just coated her body with a thin film of the moss soap when the globe above the second door grew bright.
“Shit!”
Chapter 4
Madeleine dunked herself up to her chin again and quickly rinsed the soap off. She hadn’t bothered to locate a towel before getting wet and now splashed along the floor until she located them on the wall behind the mirror along with some white, flowy tunics. She threw one over her head and was relieved to see it reached to her knees. Her hand froze on the doorknob for several moments until she was able to get up the nerve to turn it.
“I’m coming in,” she called out as the door opened into a short hallway. She took ten steps to clear it before emerging into a rock cavern with an extremely high ceiling. He had his back to her.
Madeleine gasped when she saw the massive tail resting along the floor. “Beast Lightning?”
“Don’t call me that,” he said with a deep, booming voice.
“The chameleon … he said…”
“My name is Javelin. And you are?”
“Madeleine. Pleased to meet you.”
“Did Panzan tell you what to do?”
“He just said to rub the green stuff on your scales, but is there a specific technique?”
“There’s a long brush you can use if you need it. Otherwise, just as you normally would apply it on yourself.”
“Yes, sir.”
Madeleine wasn’t sure if she wanted to laugh or cry. It was hard to wade through the jumble of emotions now controlling her body. Visualizing herself as a dragon almost caused her to burst into laughter, but the sight of this massive creature made her want to run with fear. The guilt was the worst. She had just enjoyed a leisurely soak while her father was struggling in the valley below. Madeleine was also offended that he hadn’t turned around. She was all about doing the job to the best of her ability, but the role of servant was going to take some getting used to. At least look me in the eye. Sheesh.
Javelin had actually caught a glimpse of her when she entered. Zara had selected just as he hoped, but he wasn’t aware his caretaker would arrive in a white tunic that was nearly see-through after she’d sloppily dried off from her bath. He was afraid if he looked at her again, he wouldn’t be able to stop an erection from forming and would scare her away forever.
“Are you satisfied with your quarters?”
“It’s lovely. Thank you.”
“Is there anything you need?”
She paused while concentrating on the cool gel dripping into her hands. “Do you know when we might receive our gold?” She began applying it to his tail, causing him to twitch in response to her bare hands. “I should use the brush. Hold on…”
“It’s fine,” he said quickly, not wanting her to stop. “You’ll have to work the gold out with Zara. I don’t know anything about that stuff.” His words came out with an extra staccato as he tried to control each breath and keep himself from sounding excited. Her hands were small against him and nimbly worked their way along each scale, tracing underneath and between with her fingers. Javelin ha
d never felt anything so soft against his body.
“Why do they call you Beast Lightning? What happened to the woman who had the job before me?”
“She was fired for asking too many questions.” He felt her hands pull back in response and instantly felt bad about his curt tone. “Sorry. I’m not used to being around others. The nickname is a long story and as for your predecessor, there wasn’t anyone.”