He stopped walking to look at me. “Yes, unless you're my mate or you decide to stay.”
But if I weren't Falken's mate, staying would be bad for both of us. What a terrible twist to our contract. If he mated me, I'd feel forced into being with him, even if I wanted to. And if I wanted to stay, but he didn't mate me, someone else would eventually take him away. I didn't mention that to him. I didn't want to talk about it. Especially with the way it made me feel. Yes, I had agreed to be honest with him about my feelings, but he hadn't asked.
Walking away from King Falken would be a lot harder than walking away from Arril. I knew that now, but I wasn't ready to say it aloud, much less to him.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Choosing members for the audit team took all of five seconds—the exact time it took for the Dragon King to command his steward to do the job for him. At least he gave Torli some direction. He had to choose two people from every race to join the team, courtiers if possible.
As we left Torli behind, I grimaced up at Falken. “I thought you wanted my help in choosing the auditors?”
“I wanted your presence.” Falken glanced at me. “Would you like to fly with me?”
“Fly? I don't have wings.”
He chuckled. “Yes, I noticed. I meant I could carry you.”
“Carry me? You'd carry me?”
“If you'd like.”
“I would! I've never flown before.”
“I think you'll enjoy it. Shall we?”
I nodded, so excited that I didn't mind when he took my hand.
The King led me out to the courtyard. Horns scrambled out of our way until he motioned one over.
“Yes, Your Majesty?” The Ricarri woman bowed.
“Ring the bell.” Falken unbuckled his belt.
“The bell, Sire?”
“Yes, the bell. Ring it. I will address the city.”
“Yes, Sire!” The woman ran for the stairs that led up to the wall walk, shouting, “The King is taking flight!”
The horns came to attention as the woman headed for the bell tower while the Dragon King undressed.
“Ah, shouldn't one of your knights accompany us?” I took his clothes from him as he removed them.
“I'm just flying around my city. I'll be fine.”
“Oh.” I looked back at the palace just as two Dragon knights emerged.
The King rolled his eyes at them. “I'm making the announcement.”
“We will join you, Your Majesty,” a knight said.
“No, it's not necessary. Stay here.” He kicked off his boots and then removed his pants. “Give them my clothes, Master Sevarin.”
With an apologetic wince, I handed a knight his clothes. The King tossed his pants at the other knight. Then, stark naked, he strode to the center of the courtyard. Everyone watched as the King shifted—his body expanding, bronze scales spreading over his skin, wings sprouting from his back, and a long tail whipping about. I wondered if the tail language of dragons was similarto that of Volpers. When the transformation was complete, he lifted his head and roared.
“They won't need to ring the bell after that,” a knight muttered and dropped the King's clothes onto the palace steps.
Despite the roar, the bell rang. A minute later, more bells in the city joined the first until the entire city echoed with them. They rang for two reasons: a warning of danger, or the imminent flight of a dragon.
