‘Is buried so deep, we can’t get to it anyway,’ he said. ‘And those old mining tunnels below ground are unsafe. Not to mention far too narrow for my soldiers.’
‘Elias seemed to do all right.’
Alarik frowned. ‘What are you talking about?’
Her eyes went wide.
‘Iversen?’ he pressed. ‘Have you been sneaking around with my spymaster?’
Why did that thought bother him so acutely?
Of course, he knew why.
She shook her head. ‘No. I … I’m just … I’m worried about the creature. It’s in distress.’
‘Forget about the creature,’ said Alarik, sterner now. In truth, these past few weeks, it was becoming harder to shove aside his own curiosity about the beast. There was a part of him that longed to discover its identity, to see if the dragon from his father’s bedtime stories might be real. But with war prowling ever closer, it was not a risk he was willing to take. He would sooner face down Regna and all her troops than a temperamental, fire-breathing dragon hell-bent on revenge. No matter the wrangler’s confidence in being able to subdue it.
It was not worth the gamble.
She glared up at him. ‘It’sfrightened.’
‘Not as frightened as you’ll be when that tunnel caves in on you. And that’s if it doesn’t eat you first.’ He grimaced at the thought.
She squirmed between his legs,trying to get free. Heat roared through him at the unexpected friction. He slammed the snowball into his own face to cool himself down.
‘What are you doing?’ she cried, grabbing his wrist. ‘You’ll hurt yourself!’
Alarik was already hurting himself. Being this close to her – no,on top of her– was like leaping into a bonfire.
‘Now, we’re even.’ He rolled back to his feet and helped her up. ‘Sorry for hitting you in the face.’
She shrugged, dusting herself off. ‘I’m the one who started it. Your bride-to-be is far too persuasive.’
‘One of her many talents.’
‘I’m sure,’ she said, looking away.
‘I enjoyed it,’ he said, sensing the strange shift in her mood. ‘It cheered me up.’
She canted her head, gazing at him in confusion. ‘Do you really need cheering up, Your Majesty?’
‘Alarik,’ he corrected her.
She swallowed. ‘Why do you need cheering up, Alarik?’
He hesitated, not wishing to make her feel awkward but wanting to answer her earnestly. Because she had asked for it, and the truth was, there was very little he wouldn’t give her. ‘Today is the anniversary of my father’s death.’
Horror dawned across her face, her eyes growing so wide he could see his reflection in them. ‘Oh no.’ She covered her face. ‘I’m so sorry. How thoughtless of me …’ She whimpered into her hands. ‘I can’t believe I just threw a snowball at your head.’
‘Andrightin front of my father’s statue.’ He clucked his tongue. ‘Talk about dishonour.’
‘No!’ she cried. ‘I am a terrible person.’
Alarik couldn’t contain his laughter. ‘Calm down, Iversen. It’s not like you stabbed me.’
‘I’d stab myself right now if I could,’ she muttered into her hands. She peeked at him through her fingers. ‘I’m going to run away now. Please may I run away?’
‘No, you may not.’
