Dragon Dreams: Book 2: Prophecy of the Dragons Read Online Free Page A

if he got me anything, it might make you jealous. You know, since I was so special to him."
    "But it won't make me jealous if you get him something?"
    Now the look said Andi might be the slowest life form on the planet.
    "We both know you won't be. He has to be with you because…well, you know." Melissa had no idea Andi was actually a dragon and Ben her guard. After the incident with the zombies, she'd jumped to the conclusion that Andi and Ben were zombie hunters, and since Melissa wouldn't dare confess to knowing that, from fear of being ostracized by the popular cliques at school, they decided there was no need to correct her.
    "Right," Andi said. "Just wanted to make sure we were on the same page."
    Melissa's eyes lit up. "Oh, good. I knew you weren't as dumb as you were letting on."
    Andi had a hard time making pleasantries with the cashier because she was biting back laughter. Luckily, nobody noticed since Melissa regaled the staff on her scrapbooking prowess. Once the purchase was complete and they'd walked back into the mall proper, she wondered if everyone in the store high-fived for having gotten rid of Melissa. The thought forced her to bite back more laughter.
    "Ready to eat?" Melissa asked, pulling her towards the food court without waiting for an answer. "Maybe Randy or Kevin will be here. Neither said anything about it, but it'd be a nice surprise. Even you have to admit they're both hotties."
    Andi agreed to placate her, though she wasn't sure she could pick either boy out of a lineup. She glanced around to see if those shadowy figures were still around, but saw no sign of them. Maybe they had temporarily latched onto her at random. If they were here for a specific purpose, wouldn't they still be following her? It was a question for another time as they got into line at The Mongolian Fire Pit.
    *****
    Andi knew Ben was waiting beside the driveway before they pulled onto his street. He'd sensed her coming home and had exited the house a few seconds before. When Melissa pulled her sporty little red convertible, which of course her daddy had bought for her sweet 16, into the driveway, she waved at Ben and yelled out, "Hey, Ben! Looking good!"
    He gave her a weak smile and a half-hearted wave, which by Melissa's reaction of puffed-up shoulders and a smirk at Andi, had been much more heart-felt in her mind. Andi, on the other hand, saw his embarrassment of the situation and annoyance with Melissa.
    Once they'd wished Melissa a Merry Christmas and watched her drive off, Ben engulfed Andi in a hug, and she melted into him. If there was anything better than being in his arms, she didn't know about it. She didn't have much time to enjoy his embrace before he started trying to peek inside the bag.
    "Knock it off," she said, smacking his hand away from the plain white gift bag. She'd picked that up so he couldn't guess what his present was by seeing the Paper Paradise sack. "You'll get to open it tomorrow night after dinner."
    He tried a new tactic and nuzzled her neck. "Can't I have a little hint? Please?"
    "No," she said, her voice a bit more breathless than she would have liked. Great, now he'd think he had an opening and would never give up. "What did you do today?" She hoped the change of subject would buy her a bit of time to compose herself.
    "Not much. Doodled a bit." That was his code for writing. He grew embarrassed any time anyone but her asked him about it. "I was finishing up a short story when I felt you coming home."
    "Ooh, a shiny new story. When can I read it?"
    He kissed the top of her head. "You know the rules. I need to edit it first before I give you a crack."
    "Fine," she said, and didn't push further. All she'd wanted was to get his mind off the gift, and that had been a resounding success. His smirk, however, proved he was on to her, but would let it go. For now. It was hard, after all, to misdirect someone who could read your every emotion.
    "How was the mall? I take it Melissa didn't want to be