“While your queen may not mate with the beast of any rider you favour, every man in the keep knows he will increase the odds of his dragon finding a mate if he gets close to you.”
I had started so strong, not wavering until now. My hands gripped the arms of my chair, my nails snagging on the velvet. My jaw worked, ready to say something, anything, but I couldn’t form words, not as my mind raced.
I thought I was free of this.
Of having men cluster around me, not because of who I was, but because they wanted something.
I was on my feet in seconds, performing a little curtsey without thought.
“Thank you for your concern.” My tone was as stiff as the way I held myself now. “Auren and I will fly out in the morning.” He started to rise, but I shook my head. “If having Lieutenant Axton along for the ride will put your mind at ease, then…” My tongue flicked over my dry lips. “Then let him know we fly at daybreak.”
Without bothering to say goodbye, I made for the door, not able to take a full breath until I was outside.
“Are you alright, Fern?”
Lance rushed over, but that look of concern. Was it real or just the emotion he needed to feign to create a bond between us? Viridian was obviously smitten by Auren. Was Lance trying to court me to ensure his dragon’s chances at mating Auren when she rose? Part of me was tempted to ask my dragon to read his mind, but the other?
“I’m fine, but…” I looked back over my shoulder to see the general standing in the doorway. “I think Rex wants to talk to you.”
I pulled away from Lance with a polite smile, not bothering to stop to see if he did what I bid. Instead, I rushed downstairs as fast as I dared. Too caught up in my own head, I didn’t see I was on a collision course, not until I walked straight into a very tall, very hard body.
“Oh gods!” My hand went to my mouth as I went to pull away. “I’m so…”
Sorry, I wanted to say, but I looked up as hands went to my arms, holding me still as dark eyes glared past long falls of white hair.
“Rushing right into Dain’s arms?” I didn’t even need to turn around to know it was Kael. “Finally worked out where you belong, lass?”
That sly voice, I’d know it anywhere, but it felt like it was only now I realised why he spoke in such a smug tone. Ever since he laid eyes on me, he’d made clear he thought I belonged to him, but that arrogance came from somewhere. The far off roar of a dragon had me looking up, then jerking back. Dain didn’t say a word, but his fingers clamped down for just a second, clinging to me before I pulled free. Then my feet were moving, faster and faster, until I was back in Auren’s den.
The general is insisting Viridian and Lance go with us, I said as I paced back and forth.
I know.
Her head was laid down on the floor as she watched me move.
If you don’t want them to come?—?
Viridian is a green dragon, she replied.His affinity to the earth is strong. He will be an asset if we need to dig our way down to the tomb.
Then its settled. With a nod, I came to a stop, consciously slowing my breath.I’ll pack a bag and get ready for tomorrow, as Lorien said we should leave at dawn.
Take what you need, she said, uncharacteristically quiet.And if anyone dares to say no to you, I’ll make clear what a mistake that is.
I rushed forward then, wrapping my arms around her neck and pressing my face into her scales. The furnace-like heat of my dragon was exactly what I needed. For one breath, several, it felt like Auren was the entire world and I needn’t worry about anything else. Of course, that wasn’t the case, so I was forced to step back.
I’ll be back in the morning, I replied,waiting for you on the keep roof.
What about the gifts the males brought you?
As I turned to go, Auren plucked the roses from the shelf in her den and held them out to me. The flowers had started to wilt, the petals soft and floppy from lack of water. I touched the browning edge of one rose bud, then walked over to the exit of the den.
The mountain looked out over all of Nevermere and the exit was Auren’s launching point. Being given flowers was a lovely surprise when I thought they were a spontaneous gesture, but now I knew they had strings attached? I cut myself free of them. Letting the roses fall, watching them spiral down, down, down until they disappeared from sight somewhere far down the mountainside.
“You’re back!”Sparrow launched herself at me the moment I entered our suite, and that brought a rush of shame. “The whole keep is talking about you and Auren. Someone said you fell from the saddle.” Her hands patted me all over, seeking reassurance I was in one piece. “And that a rider saved you and that’s when they stories diverge. Some said it was Lance, and some said it was that bastard Kael, or the big white-haired one, but that didn’t seem plausible. The only thing I’ve ever seen him do is scowl.”
“It was Dain.” I grabbed her hands and gave them a squeeze. “And I promise to tell you all about it, but right now, I need to pack.”
“You’re going again?” She looked as mournful as a puppy that’d had its nose smacked. “You have all the exciting adventures. Is it something to do with Lance because he went sliding down the main stair balustrade, trying to get to you as fast as he could? Or Lorien? That bitch, Seraphina, she said the two of you were caught kissing in the library and got kicked out by Christian.”
