“Then I’ll see you at the aisle.”

Her cheeks flushed. “Yes,” she said.

Embracing one more time, we said goodbye and she left the room. I watched through the window as she left, chuckling as she raced down the mountain and sprinted into the woods at full speed.

Now, I had my own preparations to see to.

I took a quick shower, got dressed and left the cabin. I made my way down the mountain, whipping through the trees until I reached the Sanctuary. I listened at the door before knocking, wondering if Corrine and Ibrahim might still be sleeping. I heard voices coming from within so I went ahead and rapped on the door.

It was Corrine who answered. Her hair was tied up in a messy bun and she wore a short nightgown.

“Hi, Caleb. What brings you here?”

“Is Ibrahim around?” I asked.

“Yes. Why?” She looked at me curiously, and then a mischievous glint showed in her eyes. “Is this to do with Rose again?”

She knew me too well.

“Yes,” I said. “You know it’s her birthday in one day.”

“Oh, my gosh. No. I’ve been totally oblivious to the days passing. I-I can’t believe it’s come round again so soon!”

“Yes, well… I need Ibrahim’s help with something. It shouldn’t take up much of his time.”

“Okay,” she said. She turned around and called back through her home. “Ibrahim!”

A deep groan emanated from one of the chambers. “I’m sleeping.”

Corrine smirked and rolled her eyes. “No, you’re talking,” she shot back. “Get your butt out of bed. It’s important. You can go back to sleep later.”

I felt guilty as Ibrahim appeared at the door two minutes later. He wore pajamas, his hair was ruffled and he still had sleep in his eyes. Corrine squeezed his cheek before leaving the two of us alone.

“Hello, Caleb,” he said.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t want to disturb you—”

“It’s all right,” he said, stretching out and yawning. “What’s the matter?”

I began to explain what I had in mind, and by the end, the warlock was nodding.

“Sounds easy enough,” he said. “I can definitely help you with that. Come inside while I take a shower.”

He led me into their living room where I waited while Ibrahim got ready. Then the two of us left for one of the more remote parts of the island where we were least likely to be seen. Ibrahim helped me with what he could in the space of an hour, and after that, I was able to continue without him.

Darkness had fallen beyond The Shade’s boundary by the time I was satisfied with the result. I stopped by the ocean to splash my face with water before heading back to our cabin. I was expecting to find the place empty, since Rose had already informed me she wouldn’t be returning that night.

I certainly wasn’t expecting to find a dragon lurking in the shadows of our doorstep.

Chapter 37: Rose

As I made my way toward my parents’ penthouse, I couldn’t help but wonder what Caleb wanted to do. I could only assume that something was a surprise.

I knocked on the front door and my mother opened it after thirty seconds.

“Rose,” she said, giving me a huge smile, “you do realize that it’s your birthday tomorrow?”

Of course, Mom would remember my birthday even if the sky was falling.

“Yeah, I just realized this morning.”

She took my hand and pulled me inside. “How do you want to celebrate?”

“Not another trip to Hawaii, I hope,” my father said dryly, looking up from a pile of papers as he sat at the breakfast table.

“Not quite,” I said. Mention of that particular escapade made me wince. “Caleb and I want to get married.”

That knocked both of them speechless.

“Oh,” my mother said, her mouth hanging open.

My father dropped the piece of toast he was eating.

“What?” I said, amused by their reaction. “You already know Caleb and I are engaged.”

“Oh, I think it’s a good idea,” my mother said quickly. “It’s just… We weren’t expecting it to happen so soon.”

My father didn’t say anything as I took a seat at the table next to him. He just stared at me. Although he didn’t betray a lot of emotion in his expression, I could sense that he was crestfallen.

“Come on, Dad. You knew it was going to happen sometime.” I reached out and squeezed his arm. “And I promise, I will always be your little girl… even when I’m eighty years old.”

He rolled his eyes and I was relieved when he finally gave me a grin.

“And don’t ever forget it,” he said.

My mother looked up at the clock on the wall. “We’ve lost the morning already. That leaves us only the rest of the day to prepare for the wedding… That said, this island seems to have developed a tradition of last-minute weddings. We’ll pull it off.”

“Where are you going to hold it?” my father asked.

I paused. I hadn’t really given the location much thought until now. “How about in the forest? You know that clearing near Grandpa’s apartment—that would be large enough to fit a gazebo and as for the chairs and banquet table, we could position them among the trees. I think it would be beautiful.”

“I love that idea,” my mother replied. “And your dress, have you thought about it? I wish that you could have worn my wedding dress. It was so gorgeous.”