Page 10 of The Baby Dragon Cafe
It was not until she had put the drink in front of him that she realized the heart design was probably a bit too much. She cringed inside.
“It’s my usual,” she explained, cheeks warm. “It’s the easiest, and I’ve done it the most, and everyone likes it, and—”
“It’s cute,” he said, putting an end to her misery. His gaze went from the heart up to her, and her heartbeat kicked up a notch. He didn’t look as if he thought she was weird. She really didn’t want him to think she was weird, or too much. She could be a bit overenthusiastic sometimes, and he had already shown himself to be more of the strong and silent type.
But he didn’t look as if he minded; he looked pleased.
She smiled.
“Okay, now try it,” she said, watching carefully as he tooka sip. She watched the long line of his throat move as he swallowed, getting a little distracted.
“It’s really good.” He looked surprised. “I’ve never had this before, but I like it.”
Saphira clapped to herself. “Yay!”
She took a sip of her drink then, as well, the both of them quiet for a moment in her cafe, and she was startled by how comfortable it felt, even though she hardly knew Aiden at all, and he certainly did not know her.
“To business: what am I supposed to do with Sparky all day?” Aiden asked.
“The cafe runs from eight to five,” she said after a pause, “so I can train Sparky afterwards, wherever is convenient for you.”
Aiden thought about it. “I’d figured Sparky could hang out here during the day,” he said. “Since you have the beds and nooks and other baby dragons for Sparky to socialize with.”
“Well, if he was trained, yes, that wouldn’t have been too difficult,” Saphira replied, thinking about it. “But since he isn’t trained, from what I can tell, that might be hard. The big three things for training a baby dragon are learning to control fire, learning to socialize, and learning to fly.”
Saphira’s intense desire to have a dragon of her own had led her to acquire this knowledge, the better to furnish her daydreaming with concrete details.
A little shiver ran through her as she realized those very daydreams would be becoming a reality with Sparky, now.
“Yes, he doesn’t know any of those things, and he really is terribly behaved,” Aiden said, voice turning to a grumble. He rolled up his sleeve, showing Saphira a bite mark on his forearm as evidence for his claim.
Saphira frowned. It was a small wound, nothing nasty at all, but even so, the sight made her unhappy. She resisted the urge to reach out, touch a finger to his skin.
She cleared her throat. “Because he isn’t trained, I don’t think it’s a good idea to leave him at the cafe,” she said, refocusing. “I’d need to keep a constant eye on him so he doesn’t get hurt or lost—he’s a baby!”
Dragons needed to be looked after as closely as babies by humans because they were so vulnerable to predators, such as fully grown other magical animals like chimeras or griffins, or even other dragons. Mature dragons could handle themselves, which was why they were allowed to roam freely in the protection of the mountains and hills surrounding the valley.
The cafe was safe, but outside, riders needed to be careful of poachers—there were those who kidnapped dragons and sold them on the black market for the highest price. Because basalta dragons were so rare, Sparky would be even more of a target.
Saphira had heard that those dragons then got used for dragon racing. She wasn’t sure if the rumor was true, but when it came to safety, one could never be too cautious.
“You’re right,” Aiden said, releasing a sigh. “I should have considered that. I don’t know what I was thinking …” He seemed upset with himself.
“What have you been doing with Sparky all this time?” Saphira asked, drawing his attention. “Can’t you just keep doing that?” She stopped, realizing something. “Whatdoyou do, by the way?”
She didn’t know a lot about him, no one did. He was a very private person, and she was dying to know everything, now. She wanted to know who he was.
Saphira told herself it was simply because she was a curious person who liked getting to know people, but she couldn’t deny that there was something about Aiden in particular that made her more interested than usual.
They would be working together, after all; that was probably it.
“I have my own landscaping business,” he said, looking a bit reluctant to talk about himself. “I design gardens.”
“Oh, cool! Like The Bloomsmiths?” she asked. “I always see their sign around town.”
He scratched the back of his neck, looking away. “Uh, yeah … actually, that’s me.”
“Oh my god!” she exclaimed, thoroughly impressed. “That’syou? I LOVE your work! Spring is my favorite season in town because of all the flowers.”
