I blinked rapidly, refusing to let him see me cry. Lifting my chin, I sank back into my lordly ways to give him my most scathing look before I turned smartly on my heel. Vashana turned with me, and we walked away with as much dignity as I could muster.
“Galin!” Rian came running after me.
I kept walking.
Then the Dragon King made a big mistake. He grabbed my arm.
Snarling was all the warning he got before Vashana took him down, her jaw locked around his wrist. Rian cried out and thrashed, trying to dislodge the dog, but she held on. A few seconds more, and he'd have to defend himself.
“Vashana!” I called. “Here!”
Vashana obeyed immediately, releasing the King and returning to my side. Seeing Rian grasp his bleeding wrist gave me a measure of satisfaction, but it didn't ease the ache taking hold of my chest.
“I trusted you,” I said. “But you're just like him. Worse, even. At least King Dhrostan was honest with me.”
I turned around again and left Rian there.
“Rianvar!” I heard running feet.
It must be the King's new lover. Or his old lover, rather. Geris could fawn over Rian now, and they would shake their heads over me in disgust later. The bitter Argaiv man scorned by the Dragon King. Fuck them both. I was done with royalty for good now. No exceptions.
“Galin!” Rian shouted.
I kept going.
“Gods damn it, get the fuck off me, Geris!”
My footsteps faltered.
“Galin!” Running footsteps, these belonging to Rian. He caught up to me, coming to the side opposite Vashana. He didn't reach for me but he did keep pace. “Galin, what the fuck?”
“What the fuck?” I stopped to look at him. “What part of me walking away from you after finding you with your ex-lover is confusing, Your Majesty? Or is it my new companion who has you outraged? From her perspective, you attacked me. It's her job to defend me. She did her job.”
“It'smyjob to defend you,” Rian growled as he stepped in front of me.
Vashana met his growl with her own.
“No,” I said to them both as I kept my stare on Rian.
She settled. He did not.
“Yes,” Rian said firmly and took my hands. His wrist had already healed. Fucking Dragon healing. But blood stained his shirt cuff. “Galin, whatever you think you saw, it's not romantic.”
“So, I didn't just see you in an intimate situation with the man you told me you loved?”
“I don't love him anymore,” Rian said gently. “I love you.”
“Do you?” I broke his hold on me with a sharp downward push. “I couldn't tell from the brief note you sentovertwo weeksago.”
“Geris arrived a little over a week ago. There's an issue in the Riscavik Enclave. We've been trying to work out what to do about it.”
“And you've had no time to visit me in between these brainstorming sessions with your ex-lover? Sessions that involve holding each other and staring longingly into each other's eyes?”
Rian blinked. Then he laughed.
“Fuck you, Your Majesty,” I said and pushed past him.
“Galin!” He grabbed me and spun me around.
