Loved by a Dragon (Mate Me Book 1)

8

"Mom, Dad! What are you doing here?" Roxie asked, tying her robe, making sure it hid her tattoos.

"You haven't answered our calls all week, and it worried us," her mother said. Her mother was a thin woman with shapely hips and fine skin. She had the same blond hair and blue eyes as Roxie, but now dyed it to keep it the same shade as when she was younger. She'd always worried about Roxie being a plus-sized girl. Today she wore a fifties housewife dress of white with bright red flowers splashed all over. Her hair had been curled to perfection; her makeup flawless. Another reason her mother was disappointed in her all the time. She did not take as much pride in her appearance as her mother thought she should.

"I've seen Dad every day this week. Why do I have to answer your calls?" Roxie huffed. She kept herself between the back hallway and her parents, trying to hide any sign of Xander.

"We wanted to talk about your art. We think it is time you put it aside and focus on another career," her mom continued, undeterred by Roxie's callous response.

"What? Why?" She was shocked. Her mother had taken little interest in her choice of a career, not like she did with Elizabeth, her older sister.

"It's why Mitch left you," her mother commented. She felt punched in the gut. Leave it to Mitch to ruin her life even after their divorce.

"Where did you get that idea?" Furious that her mother always took Mitch's side.

"We spoke at his engagement party last week. He said he'd found a woman who would put his needs first and care for him." Her mother looked at her as if Mitch's words were law.

"Get out," she growled. Her mother gave her a surprised look.

"Excuse me? Roxanne Leigh Jones. Did you say to get out?" Her mother tried to puff up, but at five foot two, she wasn't imposing.

"You heard me. Mitch is not your family. I am! He cheated on me with that woman because she was thinner and younger. I will not stop painting, and I quit Dad. I do not need to work for you if this is how Mom will treat me." She held open her apartment door, waiting for them to leave. Her heart racing a mile a minute, she'd never lost her temper on her parents.

"You will never make it as an artist. You were told by Mitch and he is a well-renowned art dealer," her mother hissed and marched out of the apartment.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart," her dad whispered, patting her on the shoulder. He followed her mom out. She slammed the door, pressing her head against it, biting back tears. Her mom never understood her need to paint. This just proved how much Mitch had influenced her family. She remembered the day she found out he was cheating on her.

She had just gotten off work as a secretary for a local law firm. Usually, her boss made her stay late, but today he had a date with a famous heiress. She parked her car under her apartment building and walked into the lobby.

"Good evening, Mrs. Jones, good to see you're home early for a change," Sal the front doorman called.

"It is nice to come home during daylight hours, Sal. Has Mitch come through?" she asked, pressing the elevator button.

"He did, with his secretary. I heard him say something about giving her a contract he needed to be sent to a new artist," Sal replied. She nodded. It was common for Barbie to come over and collect work from Mitch. For the past few months, she had been coming in when Barbie was leaving. It never sat right with her that Barbie and Mitch were alone a lot in their apartment, but he was her husband. He loved her. Didn't he? She went up to her apartment and pushed her key into the lock. She heard soft music playing, the music she knew to be Mitch's make love playlist. Maybe he had finally done something romantic for her and was waiting for her to come home. She pushed open the door and stopped dead. On the coffee table were two glasses of red wine, one had red lipstick around the rim. A pair of sky-high heels were lying on the floor and a flimsy dress was draped over the couch. She followed the trail of clothes, picking each one until she made it to her bedroom door.

Pausing, she was afraid of what she would see on the other side. She knew in her heart Mitch had cheated; she knew this hadn't been the first time. She bet it was every time she came home and Barbie was leaving the apartment. Furious with her husband for breaking his vows, she slammed the door open. A scream came from Barbie's throat as Roxie threw her shoes at her head. Mitchell was lying on the bed, Barbie had been riding him. His eyes went round with shock when he saw who was standing at the door.

"Get out!" she roared at Barbie. Grabbing her by the hair, she pulled her off of Mitch, not caring when he cried out from the pain of her being pulled off his cock awkwardly. She shoved Barbie's clothes into her hands and dragged her down the hallway and out the door. Pushing her into the hallway naked, she slammed and locked the door, then went to deal with Mitch.

"Roxie," he began, his hands were out in a gesture of surrender.

"How dare you!" She picked up the book she kept on the nightstand and threw it at Mitchell's head.

"If you didn't want to be with me anymore, you could have just asked for a divorce. I never want to see your lying, cheating ass ever again!" She grabbed a suitcase and quickly threw her clothing into it not caring about the mess she was making. Going into the bathroom she gathered all her items and any time Mitch tried to talk to her she would shove past him.

"Fine, get your way, but know I will never be out of your life Roxie ever. Your mother loves me more than you," he hissed and stormed out of the apartment. She had dropped to the bed and cried. Her one relationship had shattered around her, and she caught none of the telltale signs of cheating. She felt humiliated and needed to go home. She called up Evelyn and planned to go home that very night.

"She is wrong, you know," Xander's soft voice came before he enveloped her in a tight hug.

"No, she is right." Roxie turned in his arms to rest her head against his chest.

"No, I may have peeked at your painting while trying not to listen in on your conversation. It is beautiful and I can tell you are not done yet. Let me take you to brunch on a date. I won't push you into letting me show your work, but know this, I think we could sell anything you show." Xander rubbed her back, and she sighed,

"Could we do dinner? I've pulled an all-nighter doing that painting." She looked up, worried he'd be upset.

"Sure thing beautiful. I can always do laundry and clean my home." He kissed her nose, and she giggled, her body slowly fighting her to get some sleep.

"Come on." He picked her up in a princess hold, walking her to bed.

"I can walk." She yawned and felt his chest rumble with laughter.

"I enjoy being able to hold you." He dropped a kiss on her lips and shot her a smile. Her panties instantly wet, she didn't want to sleep now, she wanted him in her bed making her feel good.

"I can smell how turned on you are, but you need sleep and I want to sweep you off your feet on our date. Where have you always wanted to go? Anywhere in the world." He set her down carefully laying her among the many colorful blankets she kept to stay warm.

"Uh, um, Rome. I've never been able to travel internationally, but I have my passport. I keep it in hopes I'll earn enough to go one day." She lay her head down and felt a soft kiss on her temple.

"Good night, my princess. I'll be back at seven to take you out."

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