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I stepped closer to Zachary. He looked so lost and yet so in charge, and the combination of vulnerability and strength pulled at my heartstrings.
I glanced down at my clothing and winced. I looked just as bloodied as Zachary. “We both need to clean up and we need a change of clothes.” I met my father’s gaze and he nodded, snapping his fingers in the air.
Like magic, a man and girl skittered to his side.
“Take him to the guest quarters and find him something suitable to wear.” King Henrick addressed the man and then waved at the girl. “This is Anna, your lady-in-waiting, and she will take you to your quarters.”
Anna bowed. “My lady.” She waved toward the hallway beyond the throne.
“One moment.” I put up my finger while Marabel, Felicity, and Autumn came to me, doling out hugs. When Autumn wrapped her arms around me, I whispered in her ear, “Please make sure the dragon queen is not touched while we clean up. Okay?”
“No one shall touch a scale. You have my word,” she said.
I peeled out of her arms and stepped to follow Anna and the man my father had charged with making sure Zachary was taken care of. The two of them walked side by side, chatting as if they knew each other. Zachary kept in step with me.
We passed by the closet we had been in earlier and the memory ignited a heat inside me that rose to my cheeks. I glanced sideways at Zachary and his lips formed a sad smile when our eyes met.
At the end of the hallway, his man turned left, and Anna turned right. All the heat in my face faded and a chill gripped me as I took a few steps in Anna’s direction. I did not want to be away from Zachary. My heart jump-started in my chest and I stopped to turn back toward him.
He had stopped as well and turned in my direction. Neither of our guides seemed to notice we had stopped.
“I don’t want to be separated from you,” he said.
I nearly melted into the floor on the spot. His vulnerable admission matched my exact sentiments. I reached my hand out and nodded my head in the direction Anna went. He didn’t hesitate. He crossed the distance and took my hand. Warmth radiated from the spot our skin made contact. His eyes still held a haunted sadness that made me want to wrap my arms around him and hug him until that look went away.
When we reached my room, I nearly stalled in the doorway. It was bigger than the entire cottage in the enchanted forest.
Anna gasped at the sight of Zachary standing with me. “He’s not supposed to be here,” she said, wide-eyed.
“I won’t tell if you won’t.” I pulled him inside, still gawking at the room. Zachary didn’t seem as impressed as I was until we stepped farther inside, and the bathing pool came into view. It was larger than the acid swamp had been, and steam rolled slowly off the water like a silent invitation.
He dropped my hand and headed toward it, ripping his clothes off as he went. As each piece of clothing dropped, more of his golden skin appeared. He was as perfect as a god, and I followed, stripping my clothing off despite Anna’s faltering protests.
“Can you get us some clothes?” I asked and then I stepped into the warm pool. Zachary was already submerged under the water, surrounded by a rust-colored haze. I looked down at the water as I walked, leaving the same rust-colored trail as he did. The dried blood dissolved around me, and I dunked under as well, running my fingers through my hair to clean what I could.
I surfaced and Zachary stared at me.
“The chill that settled into my bones in the dungeon is finally gone.” He splashed water on his face, still looking like Adonis.
I glanced away from him, afraid that I wouldn’t be able to control this need to feel him inside me. A pyramid of soaps on the other side of the pool caught my attention, and I used it as a distraction to the building heat. There were several different scents, from flowery, to sickly, to refreshingly citrus. I chose the latter, but before I could start scrubbing the rest of the blood stains from my skin, Zachary snatched the soap from my hand.
I glanced over my shoulder at him as he began to run the soap over my back. His touch was light, and his brow knit, as if the soap could erase the horrible memories of the last twelve hours. I closed my eyes and indulged in his gentleness.
Disappointment bloomed when he handed me the soap and moved away. I scrubbed my stomach and breasts, soaped up my hair, and then rinsed off before turning to find him sitting on the steps, looking out the window. I bit my lip at the sadness radiating from him.
His wet skin glistened and his hair dripped unchecked. I crossed and took a seat next to him, reaching out to touch his forearm. He sniffled and glanced at me. His eyes glossed over and he blinked. A single tear slipped out of the corner.
“My mother is dead.”
The sorrow strangling his voice shot straight to my heart, and I squeezed his arm.
He blinked again and his lips twitched into the saddest smile I had ever seen. It wasn’t until his gaze ripped from mine to scan my form that interest wiped away the devastation. When he looked back into my eyes, the same heat I had been feeling resonated.
I did not resist when he pulled me to him, and his lips crushed against mine with blissful demand. The moment was broken by a small squeak behind us. We pulled away as if touching each other burned. My gaze snapped beyond his shoulder, at Anna with an armful of clothing.
I cleared my throat. “Thank you, Anna. You can leave that on the bed. And if you would be so kind as to make sure we are not interrupted again, by anyone, even my father, I would be ever so grateful.” I sent her a smile.
“I, um...”
I raised an eyebrow and Anna stopped fidgeting. Her gaze kept bouncing to Zachary and I couldn’t blame her. He was beautiful to look at when he was dressed, but impossible to tear your gaze from dripping wet.
“Yes, m’lady.” She averted her eyes. Blush painted her cheeks and she dumped the clothing on the bed before scurrying out and closing the door behind her.
Zachary turned toward me and cocked his head. A smile toyed with his lips and the blaze igniting in his eyes thrilled me. He stood, giving me a full view of his exceptionally chiseled form, and offered me his hand.
I took it, expecting to be taken right there on the pool steps, but he pulled me from the water and handed me one of the towels from the bench. He took the other towel and started drying off his body. I did the same, towel-drying my hair as I mulled over his reserved actions. It was as if he had a change of heart from earlier. As if all this pain and death had stripped him of being able to be attracted to me.
He wrapped the towel around his waist and turned. I hadn’t bothered hiding my form from him and dropped the cloth on the ground, hand-combing the knots out of my hair. His chest rose with a great inhale as he scanned me from tip to toe and back.
“Damn,” he whispered and met my gaze.
I stepped forward and licked my lips as I cupped his cheek. My other hand landed lightly on his chest. The pounding of his heart against my palm told me all I needed to know. I slid my hand into his wet hair and pulled him to my lips. This time, the kiss was magical enough to slow time. I stripped him of his towel and was rewarded with a low groan in his throat.
Zachary’s hands gripped my cheeks as he deepened the kiss and he maneuvered me to the wall before he broke the kiss. His green eyes flared bright as he stared down into my face, searching my gaze for any doubt. “Are you sure?”
I smiled up at him. I had no doubts about this moment. “I want all of you.”
His smile rivaled the heavens above, and his hands slid from my face, down my throat to my breasts. His touch sent tendrils of heat tingling through my entire form. I reached for him, but he stepped out of range.
“Not yet,” he said, and his lips followed his hands.
He gently sucked my nipples until they were so hard, I thought I’d scream. He sent a sly grin up at me as he trailed down my stomach, stopping to delve into my belly button. His hands slid to my hips as he dropped to his knees in front of me.
He drew his knuckles across my sensitive bud, and I gasped at the sensation. Zachary lifted my leg and hooked it over his shoulder, running his fingers from my knee to my core in a tease that left me breathless. When he leaned in and licked me, I ran a hand into his hair, keeping the other against the wall to maintain balance.
When he said he wanted to devour me, I never guessed that I would be so incredibly satisfied. He built me up to the breaking point and then dialed back until I was too crazed to reason with.
“Please, Zach. Please, dear God,” I panted.
“Come for me,” he whispered and then went back to his masterful ministrations.
My entire body felt as if it were on fire. And when I finally did come, it was a rush that nearly blinded me with its force. All I wanted was him inside me, and he obliged, standing and entering me in one motion as he wrapped my legs around his waist.
I didn’t have a chance to catch my breath at my body’s reaction to Zachary. It was like stepping into heaven. We moved in frantic thrusts until his muscles tightened and he groaned, and another wave of heat filled me.
He panted in my ear, with his weight pinning me to the wall. We stayed that way until both of our breaths evened out. When he finally unwrapped his arms from around me and pulled away so I could see his face, the sadness had returned to his eyes.
I swallowed hard and tried on a smile.
He gently kissed me and let go of my legs, uncoupling and letting me slip to my feet. My legs couldn’t hold my weight and his grip tightened as he turned and pressed his back against the wall, with me firmly pressed to his chest.
“Dear Lord, you are amazing. I could stay in this room with you forever,” he said with his head back and his eyes still closed. By the time he regained normal breathing, that bliss that covered his face faded. He glanced down at me. “But I have to go bury my mother.”
His words were like a cold slap of melancholy.
“Will you come back?” I asked, afraid of the answer. He had a kingdom to run now, and I was his enemy’s daughter, despite what he had said in the closet before we both almost died.
He smiled and wiped my hair from my face, planting the softest of kisses. “Of course. I plan on marrying you.” He gave me another peck and picked up the towel, wiping off the sweat from his chest before he crossed to inspect the clothing.
I used the towel I had discarded to clean up before I stepped next to him, mildly disappointed that he was covering up his god-like form. I pulled the dress over my head and smoothed it over my skin. This was a different gown than what I had been wearing. The midnight-blue satin was sleeker and hugged my form more than the ballgown from earlier.
I turned toward Zachary, and he was staring at me, with his hands paused on the buttons of his shirt.
“What?” I looked down at the dress. “Is this not to your liking?”
He laughed. “Oh, it is very much to my liking.” He finished buttoning up his shirt. “As a matter of fact, I don’t know how I am going to walk out the door with you looking like that.” He pulled me close and delivered a kiss before he slipped on the dinner jacket that was left on the bed. He put on his boots and took one last look at me.
“Can I go with you?”
Zachary bit his lower lip, contemplating, and then shook his head. “It’s too dangerous. My people will be angry when I bring my mother’s body back.”
Danger didn’t bother me. Besides, he had stepped into this castle tonight knowing the dangers. “And you coming here wasn’t?”
He looked up at the ceiling and then back at me. “I’m not sure you are really seeing this from our side. Imagine if I had killed your mother and father, and then you brought me here. How would the people of your kingdom react?”
“I didn’t kill your mother or your father.”
He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Okay, what if my mother killed your parents and you brought me, the offspring of the person who killed their king and queen, here.”
It finally sunk in with a cold certainty. I was the child of the people responsible for their kingdom’s monarchs’ deaths. I did not think the people of the Kingdom of Light would take that lightly if the tables were turned. They would think I was a traitor and string me up along with him. “Your kingdom already hates our kind.”
He nodded.
My chest tightened. “I don’t want to be separated from you,” I whispered and met his shimmering eyes.
Zachary cupped my cheek and gave me the softest peck on the lips. “I don’t want to be separated either, but I have a duty to my kingdom and some serious damage control to do before I can think about us. My mother instilled a vicious degree of hatred into every heart in the kingdom. I need to undo that before there is any hope of peace between our kingdoms.”
I knew he was right but that still didn’t stop the tightening in my stomach or the tears misting my vision.
“You have work to do here as well.”
I blinked and focused on his eyes. “What work?”
“Humans hunt dragons for our blood. That practice has to stop.”
I couldn’t argue with him. I couldn’t see taking the life of a living, breathing animal just for healing properties, but I was a minority in my thoughts. People would still want the magical healing qualities and if it wasn’t given, it would be hunted. People were awful that way. My thoughts zeroed in on a possible solution. “What if your people were willing to donate blood?”
His lips twitched into a smirk. “Out of the kindness of our hearts?” He raised a brow.
“There must be something we have that you need.”
He cocked his head and studied my face. “There may be some bartering power there. In certain seasons, food is scarce, so that is a means of trade.”
“We have plenty of farms.” I smiled.
He laughed. “Honey, we eat meat, not rabbit food.”
Heat filled my cheeks. I forgot for a moment that he was a dragon at heart. Still, it was something that our kingdom had an abundance of. However, with the dragons eating all their meat, what would the people of the kingdom live on? It was all giving me a headache, so I stepped close and hugged him tight.
“Come back to me.”
“I will always come back to you, Rory.” He kissed the top of my head and then peeled out of my grip. “Always.” He turned and walked out of the room without so much as a glance back.