I blinked.
“Excuse me?” I leaned in. “You betrayed me. You don't get to be angry with me. I warned you. I told you what a relationship with me would involve. And it's not merely my rage you must placate. There are laws against such disloyalty, Captain.” I grabbed the front of his coat and yanked him closer. Lowering my voice, I said, “Betraying a Dragon King has consequences. Deadly consequences.”
Oh, fucking great!the Eye huffed in my head.Now, you've threatened to kill him? What the fuck is wrong with you? Oh. Yeah. Never mind.
Her words did help. I released Aras but didn't step back. I did, however, take another breath. “I am not the kind of man who demands loyalty without giving it. I was going to dismiss my lovers from court.” I paused, then mimicked him with, “For you.”
“You weregoingto?” Aras crossed his arms, making his chest seem twice as large. “So, you haven't ended your other relationships either. And don't think I didn't catch the plural form you just used. How many lovers do you have? How many men think they'restillyour lover?”
I grimaced and looked around. It had finally occurred to me that I was having a very private conversation in a very public place. “Can we take this somewhere else?”
“Oh, now you're concerned about witnesses?” Aras threw his arms open. “Now?”
“I was overtaken with rage,” I ground the words out. “I am a Dragon. You will forgive me for my outburst.”
“Will I?”
“Yes.” I leaned in aggressively. But then I softened my expression and my tone. “Because I regret it, Aras. I apologize for my outburst. Now, can we speak privately?”
Aras blinked. His stare shifted to his crew and my knights. After releasing a deep breath, he nodded. “This way, Your Majesty.” He turned on his boot heels and led me through the same doorway his ex-lover had used.
The scent of that other Hulfrin made the hair on the back of my neck lift. It took all of my control to keep from tracking and killing him. I focused on the back of Aras's head. Onhisscent. On the way his tail twitched with agitation. Yes, that helped. It helped very much.
Here, kitty kitty.I licked my lips.
I don't think he's in the mood for fucking,the Eye said.
We'll see.
You could try a little romance.
I will be romantic. I'm going to invite him to the theater tonight. Right after we fuck.
How sweet,she drawled.Are you really that dense?
He's a sailor. He doesn't care about flowers or chocolate.
How do you know?The Eye shot back.Maybe he longs for those things because no one has given them to him yet.
I snorted.
Aras looked at me over his shoulder.
“Sorry, I just had a silly thought,” I said.
“Silly?” Aras showed me into the room at the end of the corridor. “I assumed you murdered every ounce of silliness that dared to enter your mind.”
“If only,” I drawled.
I know that was aimed at me,the Eye said.
It's good to be self-aware,I said to her, then paused, my thoughts stolen by the room we entered.
The bed was neatly made, the corners crisp, and anything breakable was set into some kind of holder, be it leather straps or wood brackets. Crystal decanters, luxurious rugs, and a gold writing set were just some of the extravagances I spotted. But it wasn't the things in the room that caught my attention. Aras's musky, masculine scent permeated the space. It was soaked into the wood and bed linens. Everywhere. An aroma of pure rapture. The sort that made me close my eyes and breathe deeper.
But the other man's scent was there too.
The dragon inside me had withdrawn but not fully. He'd been waiting. Watching. That scent brought him snarling back to the surface. I bared my teeth at Aras, barely keeping the beast in check.
