“What?” She finally asked, making him grin down at her. She thought her brain might explode then, but he just shook his head and gave her the most alluring smile she’d ever seen. Fuck. She couldn’t think like this.
Ashley took a deep breath and pulled back a little, hoping the distance would bring back her brain function.
“Oh right, the plot. They think that someone is working to replace my brother’s chosen mate with someone else, and if I understood it all correctly, replace one of the dragon kings. Or maybe it was to take over all the kingdoms,” Ashley’s brain definitely wasn’t working, but then he stepped away and something else jostled out of her memory. “But I think Valys has a similar plan, to take over all the kingdoms, I mean.”
She stopped, hating the way she blushed as she realized how much she was stumbling over her words and what she’d revealed about her brother. Best to keep going, though, and maybe he’d forget that part. “There was something else about a prophecy, but they wouldn’t explain much to me about that either. Which is how most people treat me here. They only feed me enough information to make me curious and that’s about all.
Alexander leaned in towards her, his body pressing against hers and Ashley suddenly couldn’t ever imagine denying this man anything, or any part of her. The way he inhaled her scent, his nose moving up her neck and towards her mouth, before hepulled away, made her wonder if he was some kind of Casanova, and if he did this with all the ladies, but something told her he didn’t. That all of that barely controlled sensuality was all for her and she wanted to lick up every bit of it. And him.
Ashley swallowed hard, knowing she was on the verge of doing something really stupid like kissing him, so she forced herself to look away from him. “I have to get out of this place. I’m going to lose my mind, and maybe my life, if I don’t.” Alexander pulled her face back to his with his fingers on her jaw. He looked down into her eyes, making her a promise before he even spoke. “I will never, ever, allow that to happen, Princess.”
“Oh,” was all Ashley managed as she smiled up at him. Alexander was something that she couldn’t have. Ashley was well aware of that, just as she was well aware of the fact that her life had changed drastically. Just because she was attracted to this man didn’t exactly mean that she was destined to be with him. She knew that, but she couldn’t help but want so much more from him.
Besides, knowing better didn’t stop people from making mistakes.
“What else can you tell me, Princess,” Alexander asked in a low grumble that made her want to clamp her thighs together.
Fuck, he knew how to make her melt for him. She didn’t speak until she knew she could actually get the words out, instead of the ‘take me off and fuck me until we can’t stand up’ that she wanted to say.
“All signs point to someone wanting to rig the Dragon Games and force another mate mark on me in a chance to find their way to the winner circle. It has something to do with their being one dragon king or something like that. My brother seems overly concerned with the Opal crystal, and he’s had a bunch of local nobility over to talk about it. I’m fairly certain that has something to do with the Dragon Games. Maybe he’s made adeal with someone. Maybe he’s afraid that they’ll go back on their promise? I’m not exactly sure, but honestly, I can’t help but be just the slightest bit afraid.”
“Rightfully so,” Alexander said. And then, because the world could use a little realism, Alexander did the one thing that Ashley supposed she should have expected him to do: he offered to take her home.
“Well, if you’re done conspiring, that is,” Alexander said, and there was something about his voice that made Ashley remember that no matter how much she wanted it to be, Alexander could never truly be her friend, because he was loyal to her brother, his employer.
Chapter
Nineteen
Ashley supposed that she should have known they would have to walk back to the castle. Everyone was riding around in carriages and bullshit like that, so it only made sense that Alexander walked down here. She was pretty sure that, in just about every fairy tale she read, the only men who had horses outside the nobility were the highwaymen, and she was pretty sure that those men weren’t exactly the good guys.
Plus, all things considered, she could hardly complain when it came to getting more time alone with Alexander. Especially when she would soon meet the mate her brother chose for her, knowing exactly who she was meant to be with, and knowing exactly what she was giving up.
Ashley moved silently beside Alexander, but just because she was quiet didn’t mean there was no communication. There was a hint of a smile on his face every time he looked in her direction. Though Ashley would never admit it to anyone, the fact that she had caught him staring at her made her feel just the slightest bit good, like she was special. And not just because she was a princess of some kind.
Ashley’s thoughts turned to the prophecy. She wondered how special she would turn out to be. It seemed like everywherethat she turned, someone had something new to tell her about herself. While Ashley didn’t want to be a brat about it, she missed the good old days. The days when she was just Ashley, a normal girl just like everyone else, the type of girl who no one would ever look twice at. The type of girl who gets to live a peaceful life. Ashley really missed when she was the girl who didn’t feel her stomach sink down to her feet the moment she saw the rows of cars that stood outside of the castle. The classic cars mixed with a bunch of carriages pretty much spelled out her doom.
If one thing was clear to Ashley it was that the nobility never did anything small. They always flaunted their wealth. They were the sort of people who wore far fancier clothes than needed. With that taken into account, the fact that every carriage was jewel-encrusted and beautiful shouldn’t have surprised her, especially because she had already seen the Diamond King’s carriage in town. However, Ashley still made a sound of disapproval. “It’s like they’re just showing off at this point.”
In response to that, of course, Alexander raised a brow, making no secret of his surprise at the fact that Ashley wasn’t exactly impressed by all the finery. Maybe it surprised him that wealth didn’t impress her. She might be a princess, but she hadn’t been raised as a princess. The things she valued couldn’t be bought.
“You’re not impressed by diamonds and cars and all the finery?” Alexander asked, and Ashley could only snort in response, rolling her eyes at the very idea of it.
“Where I’m from, all that glitters is not gold,” Ashley said, remembering how, time and time again, her father had made a point of teaching her that just because something was beautiful didn’t exactly mean it was useful. The most useful things in this world, the things that mattered, weren’t always shiny and sparkly. Which was why Ashley never felt bad about herupbringing or the fact that she never looked wealthy. She didn’t sparkle and she didn’t shine and she’d always been damn proud of it. It meant that she was worth something.
Unfortunately, it turned out that she was worth far more than anyone had ever cared to mention to her. Ashley didn’t want to complain about that to Alexander or anyone, if only because she was pretty sure that he would judge her. Hell, if she were in his situation, she would judge her, too. Just thinking about all the things that she would do with the amount of money that her brother undoubtedly had and the amount of luxury that she was currently living in made her head spin.
“So, what does impress you, Princess,” Alexander asked, nudging at her with his shoulder.
Ashley didn’t have to think too hard about it. She wanted him, more than anyone in this world, to know who she really was and like her for it.
“People who are kind, who treat others, even the poorest, with respect. I’d rather be with a poor man who treats me right than a rich man who lavishes me with gifts but doesn’t have time to spend with me,” Ashley said, unable to stop herself from smiling at the idea of a man actually liking her enough to be kind to her.
“That’s interesting because the majority of dragons just so happen to prefer everything that glitters. It’s in their blood, some small part of their DNA. They can’t help but want gold and glistening jewels,” Alexander said, very obviously having an opinion on that, though never exactly choosing to share it, much to Ashley’s disappointment. He shrugged apologetically at her, in a way that said he was truly sorry that he could not offer her more insight as to why dragons were like that.
“Well, you know what? I’m not your typical dragon,” Ashley proclaimed, shaking her head at the idea of being any sort of typical dragon.
“In fact,” she noted to Alexander, even though she knew her brother would probably have her head for saying it. Still, Ashley wanted someone to know this little detail about her, if only because her brother had made great efforts to keep it secret. “I can’t even shift.”
