“Myrna has quite the gift.” I managed a steady tone. Almost. “I was near death.” I’d never met a trogg in person. Apparently, they had skills far beyond my own. Possibly even magic-based.
The beast inclined his head in a way that was strangely subdued compared to our first meeting.
It suddenly dawned on me while I heard his words in my mind. His lips didn’t move.
If I had brain damage, it would explaina lot.
“How is it I can hear you?” I tapped my temple. “Here.”
His thick brow furrowed.“A fair question. One I would also like answered.”
Not a head injury then. Maybe this, too, was magical. Could it be connected to the strange things that had been happening to me since my birthday? Goddess save me if anyone from the village found out.
Except they were gone, lost in the attack, while I was here. WhywasI here? Still alive. Speaking with a mystical creature that shouldn’t exist.
My frown mimicked the dragon’s. “You saved me.” Whereas the first time we crossed paths, he’d nearly made me his dinner while hunting the nerf. This encounter was far different than the last. The dragon far less…savage.
“I did.”
“Why?”
“Are you not happy to be alive?”
“No. I mean, yes. I mean...”Careful, Sera. Don’t anger the dragon. Don’t goad that dark hunter into emerging again.I exhaled a slow breath. “It’s not my intention to sound ungrateful. Thank you for the timely rescue.” At least I hoped it was a rescue.
“You are welcome.”He dipped his blocky head in a regal manner.“My name is Alaric, by the way.”
Oh, right. Introductions. How civilized.
“And I’m Ser… I mean. Lady Serafina.” At the lake, I’d worn a tiara and ball gown—both of which were missing. It was possible he didn’t gobble me up because he thought I was royalty. Best to keep up the ruse.
“Liar,” barked another voice from across the room.
With a startled yelp, I spun to face this new threat. The newcomer strolled toward me with a lazy confidence that sent my pulse skittering.
By the fates, the man was beautiful. Too beautiful. My breath caught in my throat, and I might have choked on my own tongue just a little.
What sorcery was this?
No mortal male had the right to look that good. Suspicion prickled my senses, and I narrowed my eyes, studying his smooth, predatory grace. Maybe he was some wicked creature bent on seduction. A poisonous flower crafted to lure in its prey.
An incubus, then.
Now I’d met a dragon, a sex demon wasn’t that far-fetched.
It would certainly explain the traitorous way my body reacted to him—the tight ache in my nipples, the swell of my breasts, and the rush of molten heat pooling low in my belly. Even the center of my chest warmed, a soft glow spreading outward. I’d never had such a strong reaction to meetingsomeone for the first time. Almost as though we shared some connection.
Piercing blue eyes peered back at me, framed by thick, sooty lashes. His firm lips were twisted into an arrogant smirk, set in a chiseled jaw. Athletically built and bare-chested, he wore his pants low on his hips, revealing a tempting glimpse of a sculpted V-line. Across his broad shoulders shimmered flecks of midnight pigment, faint but unmistakable—like dragon scales ground down to dust and scattered over his skin. Could it be the two were related in some way?
He studied me a beat too long, and when he finally spoke, his words cut.
“If you’re royalty,” he sneered, “then I’m the newly crowned Queen of Carcerem.”
The rejection registered slowly. Once it did, an odd sense of hurt dulled the warmth in my center. “Excuse me?”
“No.” He sauntered to the table and selected an apple from a bowl of fruit, examining it with a casual twist of his wrist. “I don’t think I will. Shame on you for treating those who saved you with deceit.”
Anger flared, hot and sharp, straightening my spine. “And who are you to place judgment on me?”
