Serafina’s lips parted, an answer guaranteed to enrage me, taking shape on her tongue. Two steaming plates clunked onto the table in front of us, both mounded with piles of meat and roasted vegetables.
“Eat up. More where that came from,” our server said before sauntering away.
Rather than respond to my question, Serafina tucked into her meal. After several mouthfuls, she leaned closer, eyes gleaming. “I saw the high ruler’s wagon. You know where.”
“Did you now?” I polished off my ale, ignoring the food.
“Yes, tell me. Did the high ruler cry like a babe when you flew over?”
I too leaned in, my manner conspiring. “More like a squealing hog being castrated.”
Serafina smacked the table, her head falling back as she burst out laughing. “I knew it.”
For a moment I stared, transfixed by the way her face lit up, her eyes sparkling. Something inside me wanted to see more, to have her look at me with pleasure instead of hate.
I proceeded to share the story of my impressive feat in explicit detail, enjoying the spark in her gaze. While she hung on my every word, it didn’t occur to me to also share Alaric’s tales of daring. Not when I had her full attention, and dare I say, a sliver of her admiration.
By the end of my account, she wiped tears of hilarity from her cheeks. Despite the mental block I’d placed between us, her joy hummed along our shared thread, the sensation stoking my dragonflame.
Between the warmth in the room and my rowdy tale, a heady blush darkened her cheeks. Oil lamps flickered beneath the ceiling, setting her untamed curls aflame. Her forest-green eyes were far from ordinary, flashing like precious gems.
Her brow furrowed the longer I stared.
“What’s wrong?” She tucked a crimson curl behind her ear.
“Nothing is wrong.” My voice turned husky.
“Then why are you looking at me like that?”
“You're quite beautiful when you laugh.” At my compliment, her cheeks darkened.
“If you’re trying to seduce me, it won’t work.” The breathy tone in her voice said she’d lied.
I trailed a finger over the back of her hand, her skin delightfully soft. Goosebumps raised along her arm, and triumph sang in my veins. My heavy gaze fell to her plump lips. As though sensing the direction of my hungry stare, she licked her lip, leaving a delectable sheen behind that called to me.
Closer and our breaths mingled, hers sweet with honeyed ale. Closer again, and her stuttering exhale brushed my skin, the delightful scent of spiced apples filling my senses. Closer and her hooded gaze lowered to my mouth, urging me to—
“Excuse me, sir.” A firm hand landed on my shoulder.
My breath hitched, a low growl rumbling in my throat. I’d been so caught up in Serafina that I’d paid little attention to my surroundings. It was no minor mistake.
I stiffened, leaning back in my chair while Serafina shook her head, seeming to come out of a daze. She glanced up and paled.
Her reaction had me tensing, and I twisted to see who had dared to place their hands on me.
“What?” I snarled, causing the man to retreat a step.
He was an awkward and gangly fellow. Tall but soft in the middle, with limbs that hung too loose like a puppet without strings. He reminded me of an oily vulture, eyes glittering with anticipation, eager to tear into his prey.
When met with my glare, he hesitated—just long enough to reveal his uncertainty—before that smug superiority slithered back into place. His nostrils flared as he looked down his angular nose, wiry hairs twitching like antennae.
“Apologies for the interruption, sir. However, I must inform you that your dinner companion is, in fact, a runaway slave.”
I cast an arched brow at Serafina, noting the way she clutched the meat knife beside her plate. While her hand trembled, her eyes shot venom.
The dragon inside me writhed, scratching against my sternum. “Is she now?”
He drew himself up, a muscle twitching beneath his eye. “The woman who sits before you is the property of High Ruler Edmund Richwell from Nefarr. She escaped during the recent attack. As steward of Rottbarry Manor, it is my duty to collect this slave and return her to her rightful master.”
