Page 2 of Dragon Detective

Once the coffee was done, I poured a big cup full and took it and a muffin out onto the back patio, sitting in one of the wicker chairs I’d strategically placed to enjoy the view of the sea in thedistance. Max followed me, rubbing against my legs, all forgiven until the next mishap.

Leaning back in my chair, I sipped my coffee, washing down bites of the muffin. There wasn’t much better than the sound of crashing surf, the salty-briny smell of the sea, and the opportunity to stroll along the shore.

If I hadn’t saved every penny I could, I would never have been able to scrape up enough to put a down payment on this place. A building on the ocean? I’d lucked out, making an offer before a big contractor got wind of it. After Justin’s death, it went into probate for years and fell into disrepair. His out-of-state daughter was grateful to unload it on the first person to offer—me.

With the small inheritance I got from Mom, who died when I was fifteen, I’d turn this place into a showpiece. Assuming nothing else happened to slow me down. The bathroom fixtures all needed updating, the walls needed fresh paint, and the kitchen hadn’t been renovated since the 1950s.

As it was, I had just enough money to get the building into the shape it needed to be in to open my B&B during leaf peeper season this fall. I’d advertised, and half my rooms had reservations already. The last thing I wanted to do was cancel.

While Max lounged in the sun by my feet, his tail swishing across the grass growing up between the bricks, another task that needed to be taken care of, I finished my coffee and muffin. I took my mug into the kitchen, then walked into town since the downtown area was only a mile or so from Blakemore House.

Pausing outside the building on Main Street, I smiled at the swaying sign statingMonsters, PI.

A few years ago, monsters slunk out of the woods, caves, and wherever else they’d been hiding, joining human society. Some people freaked out. Those who enjoyed alien and monster movies and romances grinned—me, included. Treaties wereformed, and monsters took jobs, bought property, and started raising families alongside humans. Some even started dating us. Now it was common to see a yeti riding a bike through town or a centaur buying boards at the hardware store, Shriek & Nail. The Mystic Harbor residents had gone all in on the monster theme, renaming their businesses to make monsters feel welcome.

I planned to stop in at Monster Morsels and Mystic Mocha once I was finished here to see if they were looking for someone to make pies and other bakery goods to supplement my renovation funds. With each mysterious mishap, I had to dig deeper into my bank account, and if I wasn’t careful, I wouldn’t have enough to finish.

Maybe I should’ve worked another year as a chef before quitting. But then it would’ve been too late to buy Blakemore House, and I adored the place even if it was haunted.

When I opened the door to Monsters, PI, the bell jangled overhead.

Melly, the owner of the local ice cream shop, Creature Cones, looked up from where she sat behind the reception desk.

Gossip said she and Elrik, an ice lord working at Monsters, PI, had met and fallen in love while solving her case. Her grandmother had been wrongfully accused of putting something toxic in the punch at a church social. Everyone had heard about that. Melly and Elrik discovered who’d done it, and the person was paying for their crime. Now, Melly and Elrik were engaged.

“I need help,” I said as I rushed over to her. “My B&B is haunted.”

“I’m sorry.” Frowning, Melly rose and walked around the reception desk to join me. “But did you say your B&B is haunted?”

“Let me back up a sec.” I flashed her a smile. “I’m Hannah Everett. I bought the old Blakemore place.”

“The one where Justin Blakemore died?” Melly winced.

I huffed but softened it with another smile. “That was six years ago. The building has been vacant since. It was tied up in probate. His daughter sold it to me a short time ago.” My smile grew. “I’m fixing it up, and let me tell you, it needs a ton of work. But I’m strong.” I lifted my arm and flexed my muscles. “My dad taught me how to do almost any kind of construction. My plan is to open in the next few months, but I’m floundering. I swear, the place is haunted. I think Justin is trying to keep me from opening it as a B&B.”

“Why do you think Justin’s doing anything? Ghosts don’t exist.”

I shrugged. “So says someone who’s marrying an ice lord.”

“Me.” Elrik strode down the hall to join us. He crossed the foyer and went around to stand at Melly’s back, wrapping his arms around her and confirming the rumors I’d heard. “She’s marryingme.” He kissed her cheek. “In two months’ time.”

“Naturally, I don’t believe in ghosts,” I said. “I need someone to help me figure out what’s going on at my soon-to-open B&B. Someone is sabotaging me, and I can’t let it continue. That’s why I came here. Detective Carter was kind enough to look around, but he couldn’t find evidence that anyone was doing something criminal. He thought you guys could get to the bottom of it.”

“We’ll be glad to help you.” Elrik slid Melly’s hair to the side and kissed the back of her neck. Her smile went dreamy, and she looked ready to swoon. Who could blame her? Elrik was cute in a slightly chilly way. I wasn’t exactly sure what an ice lord was, and it wasn’t something I could bring up without sounding impolite. I’d look it up online later.

“I’m working, sweetie,” Melly said, her voice fluttering along with the heady smile she sent him.

“I suppose I should get back to work as well.” He stepped away from her.

“This sounds like a great job for Reylor,” Melly said. “Katar recently hired the former detective dragon shifter, and Reylor just finished his orientation. He’s eager to take on his first case.”

Perfect.

“Let me go grab him,” Elrik said. When he strode down the hall, Melly stared after him.

“He’s cute,” I said politely. “I’ve met all sorts of monsters since I moved to Mystic Harbor, but I hadn’t met our resident ice lord, though I saw him around town. He’s not as chilly as I’d expected.”

“He can be abrupt at times, but he’s warm and squishy beneath his icy demeanor.”

---