Sassy Ever After: Twinkle, Twinkle, Sassy Little Star (Kindle Worlds Novella) (Dragon Guard Series Book 23) Read online

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  Twinkle, Twinkle, Sassy Little Star

  Dragon Guard Series #23

  by

  Julia Mills

  There Are No Coincidences.

  The Universe Does Not Make Mistakes.

  Fate Will Not Be Denied.

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  Cover by Linda Boulanger with Tell Tale Book Covers

  Edited and Proofread by Tammy Payne with Book Nook Nuts

  Formatted by Charlene Bauer with Wickedly Bold Creations

  Milly – THANK YOU SO MUCH! I LOVE writing in your Sassy world!

  Cheers to many, many more!

  My Readers – YOU MAKE MY DAY! THANK YOU from the bottom of my big old southern heart! I simply could NOT do it without YOU!

  DEDICATION

  Dare to Dream! Find the Strength to Act! Never Look Back!

  Thank you, God.

  To my girls, Liz and Em, I Love You. Every day, every way, always.

  Index of the Original Language of the Dragon Kin

  The Dragon with the Girl Tattoo

  Mo chroi’………. My heart

  Mo ghra’………. My love

  Mo stór………. My darling

  Mo mac tíre beag………. My little wolf

  Mo maité………. My mate

  Demon bheith imithe……….Demon be gone

  Dhíbir go deo……….Banished forever

  Go hIfreann gach dit a tháinig tú……….T Hell, whence you came

  A bheith imithe……….Be gone

  Deartháir beag……….Little Brother

  Ta’ mo chroi istigh ionat……….My Heart is Within You

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Sassy Mates

  About Julia

  Also by Julia

  Chapter One

  “What’s up with you?”

  “Nothing,” Grey shrugged, grabbing the doorknob in an attempt to escape before the interrogation began. He loved Noah, his confirmed brother from another mother, but once the questions started, there would be no end.

  “Yeah, right. That’s why you damn near jumped across the table when Rian asked for a volunteer to go to Florida,” the brown dragon scoffed. “Thought you hated that place?”

  “If I remember correctly, the quote was, ‘You couldn’t pay me to go back there. Angus is crazy for staying, mate or no mate. It’s hotter than Hell, even my dragon was sweatin’,” Pearce, an older and much more Zen dragon than all the others chuckled with an all-too-knowing grin.

  “Maybe our boy here just wants to help out,” Kayne, one of the elite Enforcers and the son of Lugh, the Celtic God of the Sun, grinned from ear-to-ear as he slapped Grey on the back. “I especially thought it was valiant how he offered to go alone.”

  “I agree,” Pearce chimed in. “But it sounds like the wolves may need more help than that.”

  Grey knew they were taunting him, maybe even baiting him, nothing got past his older, wiser, infinitely more perceptive brethren. They knew he had ulterior motives for taking to the skies and returning to the swamps and would stop at nothing to make him admit it.

  Hell, Kayne was a demi-god and Pearce, well…he was just creepy. There had been times he’d known what other Guardsmen were thinking practically before they did.

  I really need to get outta here…the sooner, the better…

  Picking up the pace, determined to get rid of his three shadows, the gray dragon groaned when they were joined by Declan, the Joe Friday of their Clan. Never one to mince words, Dec asked, “Why are you going to Florida alone? You said…”

  “Yeah, I know what I said,” Grey stopped dead in his tracks, turned on his heels and shook his head. “But things have changed. I want to take on more responsibility, grow within the Clan, follow in my father’s footsteps.”

  It was the truth and a small percentage of why he was returning to the muggy swamps. He was the son of the last and greatest Leader of the Gray Dragons and had been trying to live up to Grannus’ legacy since the day the hunters decimated their Clan and left only Gray and his brother alive.

  Now, if I could only find Garrett. It’s been eighty years, and I still have no idea where he is…

  “And that’s all well and good,” Kayne’s words pulled Grey from his thoughts. “Your dad was a damn fine man. I’m proud to say I fought by his side and hate that I wasn’t there the day those filthy bastards attacked.” The demi-god looked at the ground, took a deep, calming breath and after a few seconds looked up and nodded, “One of many regrets I have from my time in Hell.” Throwing back his shoulders, Grey watched one of the strongest warriors he’d ever known shove his pain aside and get a wicked gleam in his eye as he added, “But, as far as you’re concerned, I know there’s more than you’re saying going on here.”

  Needing to distance himself more in that moment than ever before, Grey laughed, “Seriously, y’all need to get a hobby. I want to be seen as a leader and figured what better way to do that than going to help our newest allies. Besides, I’ll be with Angus, and Drago since he’s still there.” Turning on his heels, he added over his shoulder, “A good word from those two will go a long way with Rian and the Elders.”

  Nearly jogging, listening for footsteps behind him and blessedly hearing none, Grey made an abrupt detour. Heading towards the mountain behind the Lair and the Cave of the Ancients, the place he felt closest to his father, he worked hard to calm his turbulent thoughts.

  Dropping to his knees as soon as he crossed the threshold of the most holy of all places, the gray dragon dipped his hand into the stone fountain and said a prayer to the Ancestors. Rising to his feet, his head still bowed, eyes still closed, Grey touched his temple before laying his hand over his heart.

  Memories of doing the same thing with his family all those years ago flooded the Guardsman’s mind. He could feel his parents standing to one side and his younger brother on the other as if it had happened mere moments before.

  The same anticipation and excitement that filled Grey on that special day returned. He could feel Grannus’ hand on his shoulder, guiding the way to the Alter of Commitment. Felt his mother’s love and Garrett’s admiration lending him the strength he needed to commit his life to the way of the Dragon Guard. It was the last step in a long, arduous journey that had begun on the day of his birth and would only end when he traveled to the Heavens.

  Not allowing himself to be haunted by further memories of that day and what he’d lost, Grey opened his eyes, lifted his head and squared his shoulders. Echoes of his boots striking stone preceded him down the long, sparkling, crystalline cave walls as he strode towards the grotto containing the
Reflection Pond.

  Leaving his clothes and boots on the stone bench just inside the cavern, the gray dragon crossed the cool granite floor, slowly walking into the fresh mountain water that flowed down the far wall. Stopping when the water reached the bottom of his chin, Grey inhaled deeply, held his breath and simply let the weight of his body pull him the rest of the way under the water.

  Doing just as Grannus had taught him on his thirteenth birthday, the Guardsman let all thought flow from his mind, keeping only the vision of his one true mate, the woman the Universe had made just for him front and center. He longed to look into her deep hazel eyes, to run his fingers through the long, silken strands of her blond curls and most of all, to have her acknowledge their connection.

  He had no doubt she felt it, too. Had seen her pupils dilate. Watched her subconsciously take in his scent. Felt her wolf reach for his dragon.

  Without another thought, the image of a proud gray she-wolf, a black patch of fur the shape of a star on her chest, superimposed that of his beautiful mate. He smiled, continuing to mediate as a whisper of her name warmed him from the inside out, “Star.”

  Dammit, I need to see her… talk to her… to convince her we’re meant to be together…

  Calming his turbulent emotions, Grey followed the growing mating bond that had been formed the first moment he laid eyes on his sassy little wolf. Happy to find her sleeping, the Guardsman instantly focused all his mental energy on quickly slipping past Star’s strong mental blocks then sat watching her dreams play out like a video before him.

  His heart soared, and his dragon roared as she relived their first meeting, Grey’s senses filled with the warm, wild scent of the forest at night. She was aroused - confirmation of what he’d already known, that she indeed knew they were meant to be together.

  Then the scene changed. No longer was she in Wolf Hall, the large log-cabin lodge in the center of the Lair of the Gaelach Lán Pack, but now his Star was sitting on a wooden bench with her best friend and Angus’ mate, Olivia. Not even being surrounded by blooms of every color, shape and size imaginable, cooled the strained mood or his mate’s irritation.

  “I can have Angus call him back. Come up with some reason why he needs to stay.” Olivia grabbed Star’s hand. “Don’t let him get away. This is the chance at happiness that you deserve. To have all those pups you keep talking about. To have a man who adores you. To…”

  Pulling away, Star jumped to her feet and spun around, glaring at her friend with her hands on her hips, “Do I? Do I deserve happiness and a man who adores me after what I’ve done?” She shook with rage. “How can you think I would be a good mother after…”

  The scene disappeared and without a second’s notice Grey was expelled from Star’s mind with a shouted, “Stay the hell away from me!” Blasting through his mind.

  Leaping out of the water, spitting and sputtering and gasping for air after being ejected not only from Star’s dreams but also his meditative state, Grey took several deep breaths before making his way to the side of the pool of water and taking a seat on one of the steps. Looking into the water, he once again saw Star’s face, not the smiling, sweet expression he’d seen on that first day, it was instead the sad, angry one she’d had in her dream.

  His heart ached and his dragon pushed against the confines of his mind, the need to comfort the pain in the depths of their mate’s soul almost overwhelming. Tracing the delicate lines of her face in the water, Grey murmured, “The past doesn’t matter. All I care about is the future. You deserve all the happiness in the world, and I’m just the man to give it to you.”

  Getting to his feet and exiting the pool, the Guardsman was dressed in the blink of an eye and heading out of the Cave of the Ancients, a man on a mission. Stepping into the sunlight, he looked up at the sun’s position and nodded, “Only four hours until sundown then it’s scales up and wings out.” Smiling to himself as he walked the trail down the side of the mountain, he added, “Stay the hell away from you, my sassy little Star?” Then laughed out loud, “Oh no, mo mac tíre beag, that just won’t do…not now, not ever.

  Chapter Two

  “Crap, no sugar, again,” Star growled, slamming the cupboard door and leaning against the counter. “Could this day get any worse?”

  “Well, sure it could,” Olivia laughed, entering the breakroom and stopping at the coffeemaker. “That door could hit you back.”

  “Ha ha ha.” Star rolled her eyes, pushing away from the counter and opening another door to see if there was anything to eat. “It might be better if someone knocked me out, at least I’d get some sleep.” Finding a granola bar, the gray wolf grabbed a bottle of OJ from the fridge and took a seat at the far table, closely followed by one of her two very best friends, Olivia.

  “Another rough night?”

  “Yeah,” Star nodded, avoiding eye contact while staring at her uneaten breakfast. “But not because of the nightmares.” She finally looked up and with a frown added, “I had a visitor.”

  “Ohhhh, really?” Olivia waggled eyebrows. “Anyone I know?”

  Nodding with a scowl, Star tapped her temple. “Oh yeah, you know him alright and if he does it again, I’m gonna scale him like a catfish outta the pond.”

  With her shoulders bouncing from barely contained laugher, Olivia snorted, “I told you those dragons are relentless.” She laid her hand on Star’s. “And I also told you that if you recognized him as your mate, there was no way he didn’t feel the same thing. Hell, look what Angus and I went through.”

  “Sure, like I could forget, but you always have been special,” Star winked when she said the word, only because she knew that if she didn’t Olivia would go off on a tirade about how she was just like everyone else…as if.

  Who else but her best friend and sister of their Pack Alpha could travel clear across the country, hear the voice of her mate in her dreams, and then find him in a mudslide? Only Olivia.

  And as if that wasn’t enough, the guy ended up being a centuries old Dragon Guardsman who had been trapped by some crazy ass wizards over a hundred years earlier. The stuff of fairy tales if Star had ever heard it, screaming of how special Olivia truly was. And no one deserved their happily ever after more, she was a princess and Angus was her Prince Charming.

  But not me, nope, no way. I’m a lone wolf from the wrong side of the tracks, who barely escaped with her hide intact…

  “I am not special,” Olivia insisted. “Just lucky and incredibly blessed.” She patted Star’s hand. “And you are, too.”

  “Stop,” the grey she-wolf shook her head. “You know…”

  “Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Olivia held up her hand for Star to hush. “I’ve heard it all before. Listened to the stories. Heard the tales from more than just you.” She slammed her palms on the table, the eyes of her auburn wolf staring out of her lovely face as she growled, her tone growing more ominous with every word, “And you need to get the hell over it. The past is the past. You can’t change it. You’ve paid your penance. Lived a model life and helped everyone you could.” Leaning across the table, her voice now more wolf than woman Oliva ended with, “Put up or shut up.”

  Pushing up from her chair, the red-headed she-wolf spun on her heels and headed out the door damn near knocking down her seven-foot, well-muscled brother in the process. Looking at Star, her Pack Alpha shrugged, “What gives? You two have a fight?”

  Blowing out a long-suffering breath, Star nodded, “I guess you could say that.”

  Sitting in the chair his sister had just vacated, Marrok asked, “Anything I can help with? Need me to talk to her? I have a lot going on, but in order to keep peace between you two and avoid getting Isabella involved, I’ll make the time.”

  “No,” Star tried to smile at the mention of the other woman she considered a sister but failed. “This one’s on me.” She let her head fall forward and mumbled, “The damned thing is, I know she’s right.”

  “She usually is,” the Alpha chuckled. “Always has been.
Probably always will be and the worst thing is, she knows it.”

  Raising her head, Star couldn’t help but snort when she and Marrok said, “Goddess bless, Angus,” at the same time.

  “Jinx, you owe me a coffee.”

  “Hey,” Star protested. “Isn’t that supposed to be a Coke?”

  “Yeah, but I need a refill.” He pointed at the mug in front of him that she hadn’t seen until that moment.

  Grabbing the cup despite his objections, Star filled it and after setting it back in front of him, returned to her chair and sighed, “Mind if I ask you something?”

  “Shoot,” Marrok answered, looking her right in the eye over the rim of his mug.

  Taking a deep breath to calm her nerves, Star asked the one question she’d avoided for nearly eighty years. “Can you tell me about the day you and your dad found me?” When the Alpha continued to drink his coffee while refusing to look away, she hurried on, “I mean I’ve heard the story a thousand times. Listened to every version from the shadows, but I’ve never had the nerve to ask you directly. And now…” She swallowed the bile that was rising in her throat. “Now that I’ve…”

  “Now, that you’ve found your one true mate, you need to know if you were responsible for what happened to your Pack.” He set his mug down and leaned his elbows on the wooden surface of the small café table. “Will it make any difference? You were cleared of all wrong doing. Dad knew. I knew. Finn knew. Everybody that fought the fire that day and tried to save the members of your Pack knew…there was nothing you could’ve done. You didn’t know you were being followed. You were young and caught up in the call of the Full Moon.” He leaned the slightest bit forward. “We’ve all been young, all been foolish, all let our Wolf run free, especially after being told not to by our parents. I can’t tell you the number of times I had to go fetch Olivia from the swamps to save her from getting her ass whooped.”