The Dragon's Soul: Xan (Siren Publishing Classic)

by Kalissa Wayne

  “Lorann, I think she wakes.” Xan moved his hand over her forehead and then ran it down her body until it rested between her breasts. “Her heart beat feels more normal.” Xan kept his eyes locked with Remi as a shadow appeared next to them. Remi broke the contact as she rolled her head to the side. Lorann appeared tired with dark shadows and worry lines around her eyes.

  “The king?” Remi managed to whisper before realizing her throat felt like fire.

  “Easy, m’lady. The king is fine and resting, thanks to you. You’ve been ill since the incident night before last. It’s a few hours until dawn, and you’ve had a fever. Drink this, m’lady, and we can check your bandage once more.”

  Remi drank from the cup Lorann held to her lips, tasting the starflower tea potion she had instructed Lorann on how to make. It soothed her throat as she leaned her head back against Xan’s chest.

  “Little one? Do you think you could drink some broth? You need to regain your strength. I think your fever has broken.”

  She nodded her head. “I’ll try, but I’m just sleepy.”

  Xan adjusted her to sit more upright on his lap as Lorann brought another mug to the bed. “Lorann, can you get someone to get a bath ready? Once she’s finished with the broth, I’d like to bathe her and get her into the bed.”

  “Of course, Prince. If her fever is broken, she’ll feel much better once she’s clean and stretched out in a comfortable bed.” Lorann handed Xan the mug as she felt Remi’s forehead. “Aye, my prince. Her fever is broken. I’ll see that things are prepared.” Lorann left them, and now that Remi could see her surroundings, she realized they were alone in his bedroom.

  “Where is everyone?” Remi reached up to take the mug but was surprised at how badly her hand shook.

  “My father is in his bedroom, recovering nicely. Lorann has been running between the rooms overseeing everything. Apparently the young man who was in the room when I returned, Marcus I believe his name is, has been helpful.” Xan continued tipping the broth mug for her as he explained. “Once you and father were out of danger, we thought it would be better to let each of you have peace and quiet. There are guards posted on all the balconies and in the halls, but that is just precautionary. We still haven’t found who shot the arrows.”

  Lorann returned and stood beside the bed. “M’lord, the bath is being drawn. I’ve set a new poultice and bandages in the bathing chambers. If you’ll turn, m’lady, I’ll pull off the old ones before you go in.”

  Xan pulled the shirt open on the back, exposing the bandages for Lorann to remove. “You are healing well, m’lady. The cut is closed, so the bath water shouldn’t hurt it. But,” she paused and looked at Xan, “you’ll have to be careful washing it. I wouldn’t want it to pull open again.” Lorann folded the bandages and placed them to the side before assisting Xan with undressing Remi.

  Remi was too sleepy to be embarrassed about someone seeing her naked. When Xan stood up with her in his arms, she snuggled closer to his chest and closed her eyes. She vaguely remembered dreams that seemed important, but her body ached, and she just felt exhausted. Maybe after a hot bath and a full night’s sleep she could remember what those dreams were.

  Xan moved smoothly across the floors and into the huge bathing room. He jostled her a bit, sitting her on the bench. “Little one, you need to stay awake long enough to sit up while I disrobe.” At that, Remi felt his arms slide from around her, and she popped an eye open. She watched as Xan unlaced his linen pants and dropped them to the floor.

  “Little one, you had better not look at me like that. My dragon has been roaring to claim you since we returned from Merket and the only way I’ve kept him in control is by making him understand you were injured.” Xan smirked as he once more lifted her into his arms before taking the stairs down into the tub.

  The water eased up over her body, the heat easing the aches from her muscles and making her release a huge sigh of relief. Remi snuggled her head into Xan’s shoulder again as he moved deeper into the tub. When she felt him easing her into a sitting position on what felt like another bench, her eyes popped open again.

  “What are you…” Remi began to ask, but Xan placed a wet finger over her lips.

  “I need to bathe you, little one. We’ve done our best considering your condition the last few days, but you will rest much better when you are clean and in your own bed. Let me take care of you, let us take care of you. We need to make sure you are healing well.” Remi looked into his much-loved eyes and saw his dragon looking back at her.

  Lifting her hand from the water, she brushed it along his jawline and cupping his cheek, pulled him down to her. Her lips met his in a gentle kiss as her other hand moved to his chest. She felt a rumble begin deep in his body just before he pulled away.

  “Little one, can you rest here while I take care of you?” Xan eased her back against the side of the tub. Looking down, it appeared that one of the marble benches had been moved into the shallow end against the wall of the tub. She was sitting with the water barely covering her nipples. She heard a deep rumble and looked up to see Xan’s gaze fixated on her breasts.

  “As much as I’d love to do more, I need a bath and a bed, Xan.” Remi watched his dragon’s eyes as the lust was banked and concern filled them. “Since you are insisting on washing me, tell me what I missed while I was out.”

  Xan reached for a washcloth and soap. “Little one, we have other things we need to discuss. The Mating Ceremony has been put back a day, until Saturday, to give both you and Father another day to rest.”

  Xan went quiet as he concentrated on washing her. Remi felt loved and cared for as he gently rubbed her aching muscles.

  After he finished, he threw the cloth to the tile floor and picked Remi up once again. Climbing out of the tub, Xan placed Remi on the bench and began drying her hair. As he wrapped another towel around her shoulders, he took a deep breath. “Remi, there are things we need to discuss about the Mating Ceremony. Things I had planned on telling you two days ago.”

  Remi reached up and touched his hand where it was drying her shoulders. “Just tell me, Anaxandros. How bad could it be?”

  Xan gathered his thoughts and began explaining how the Mating Ceremony would work…

  Out in the hallway, two guards stood at the end of the hallway talking. Suddenly, a screech of “Whhaaaaattt?” was heard from Prince Anaxandros’s apartments. The guards exchanged worried glances, but when nothing but silence followed, they shrugged and resumed their duties.

  Chapter 23

  Saturday morning dawned bright and clear. Remi sat on a stool in front of a large dressing mirror as Lorann and several other ladies fussed over her hair and makeup. She had tried to explain to Lorann that she could take care of herself, but no amount of talking, pleading, or begging had cleared the room since before dawn. Lorann insisted that she shouldn’t be bothered with details like taking her own bath or fixing her hair.

  They had rolled her out of the bed in her private rooms before the sun was up. Three women she didn’t know had bathed her, washed her hair, and rubbed sweet-smelling oil into her skin. Every. Inch. Of. Her. Skin. She had been embarrassed, but they just laughed and told her she was the new princess, she should get used to such treatment.

  They had bundled her into a soft white robe and hurried her into the room to get ready. Lorann had sat her at a small table containing hot tea and breakfast pastries, but before she could even take a sip of tea, someone had pulled a stool up and began to give her what Lorann called a pedicure. Someone was actually trimming her toenails and rubbing more oils into her feet and legs. While she thought it felt wonderful, she wasn’t sure she liked someone else taking care of her personal grooming.

  Another woman pulled up a stool and began filing the nails on Remi’s hands. More oils followed with a pale pink paint color being applied to both her fingernails and toenails. It was a good thing her nerves kept her from being hungry because she couldn’t move with all the attention.

  B
eb was sitting by the bed, needle flashing in the early morning sun as she finished up on some kind of outfit. There were supposed to be two outfits—one for the private Mating Ceremony that would only be witnessed by the Dragon Guard, and the public Marriage Ceremony that would happen later in the day.

  Remi was more concerned with the former. From what Xan had told her, the Mating Ceremony was just that. The Dragon Guard would stand witness to her and Xan’s mating. Remi still shuddered at the thought of all that would happen. As Lorann began combing out and trying to fix her unruly hair, Remi let her mind wander to what Xan had told her of the mating rituals of dragons.

  She had to accept Ad’har as her paladin because it was preordained by fate or something. She knew nothing of the ancient tradition until Xan had explained last night. Apparently, not only her deceased grandmother but the great white dragon said she must mate or bond with two overbearing, overprotective men. She didn’t know if she were strong enough to tackle one, let alone two!

  Xan had explained that his dragon would be extremely possessive of her with the exception of Ad’har. He had further stated that while his dragon didn’t have a problem with Ad’har being her paladin, his dragon reacted even more possessively than the man did when other males were around. Remi hadn’t had time to talk more with Ad’har since he’d been busy trying to track the unknown assassin. She hoped she’d get a chance before she saw him at the ceremony.

  Remi shook her head at the fact that Xan had knocked on her door last night to say good night and he’d been covered in cuts and bruises. He refused to say where he got them, but she had heard through the grapevine that he and Ad’har had been in the exercise yards having a “discussion” about how life in the Keep would proceed. She snorted, knowing the discussion was probably about the situation between the three of them and how “life in the heir apparent’s apartments” would proceed.

  Remi mentally shook her head as Lorann continued braiding her hair. She didn’t know if she would survive the embarrassment of public sex in front of the guard, let alone binding to two men she barely knew.

  But the second part of the dream revelations, about being instrumental in monumental change, she didn’t really comprehend. She still considered herself a simple country healer, no matter what a dragon said. What could she possibly have inside her to change the course of history? She could easily see it in both Xan and Ad’har, they were born warriors and leaders.

  Again, Remi mentally shook her head. Life was too complicated in the palace. She could take care of herself, but Xan would be busy with whatever was to come as well as trying to rule, so she would help in any way she could.

  It all came down to the fact that she was in love with Xan. She had fallen fast and hard, even without the mating pull. She felt both Xan and his dragon tugging at her heart and soul, the connection was already there, it just needed the formal ceremony to seal it. But, to be honest, she was also drawn to Ad’har. She would have never thought to be in a ménage before now, but according to the white dragon, it was a possibility. She would worry about that later. She had discussed it with Xan, and they had agreed to hold off on any discussions about “all that” until such time as Remi was comfortable with talking about it. Remi took a deep breath and tuned back into the conversation around her.

  The ladies had finished with her hands and feet, while Lorann had finished with her hair. Both she and Beb were shooing the females out of the room so they could finish dressing her. Remi hid a smirk at the fact that they wanted privacy. Some of those ladies had already seen, and washed, every bit of her skin.

  Lorann closed the door and turned to her.

  “Remi, we need you to talk to us. You’ve been extremely quiet all morning. Is something wrong?” Lorann began twisting her hands together as she moved forward. Beb paused in straightening a fold of material to look over at Remi.

  “No, ladies. I’m fine. There’s just a lot going on today, and I’m trying to wrap my head around it. This whole week has been almost too much to bear, but after today, it will be much quieter.”

  Lorann and Beb looked at each other, then back at Remi. “M’lady…Remi, you do know when this is over you’ll be the princess, soon to be queen, right? I don’t know if your life will ever be simple again,” Beb, with all her outspokenness, told Remi.

  Remi sighed and flashed a grin at the two ladies. “I know, but a girl can dream, can’t she?” All three ladies laughed until a distant bell chimed the hour of nine. Remi looked toward the windows then back at Lorann. “Well, ladies, we have half an hour before I need to be absolutely perfect. What do we need to do?”

  Lorann brought her a vial of scented oil. When Remi opened it and brought the stopper to her nose, she smelled the same lilacs that had been in both the bath and the oils used on her body. She dabbed drops behind her ears and along her neckline, afraid to use the expensive oil. When she tried to hand the stopper back, Lorann raised an eyebrow. “You need to spread this a little more, Remi. Down between your breasts and…lower…” Lorann waggled both eyebrows at her while Beb giggled. As Remi opened her mouth to reply, a heavy knocking sounded at the door. All three women looked at the door with a frown.

  When Beb opened the door, Prince Jarok stood there. Dressed in warlike leather pants, a sword belt, and a skin-tight leather vest with no shirt under it, he looked more like the pirates in the history books than a prince. His hair was flowing around his shoulders instead of in its usual tail, and the lights from the hall reflected off the blond strands.

  “Mistress Beb, may I speak with Her Highness, Princess Remunada?” His deep baritone was polite, but Remi could feel her nerves shooting skyward as she listened. Jarok was here for a reason, and she was afraid she knew that reason.

  Beb looked over her shoulder, and Remi nodded while tightening the sash of the robe. She stood and walked toward the window as the ladies headed out into the hall. When she heard the door click shut, she turned and faced the prince.

  “Good morning, Sister. I trust you slept well.” Jarok walked into the room and stood next to the table containing the breakfast platter. He poured himself a cup of hot tea, adding honey to it before sipping on it and eyeing her over the rim.

  “I really don’t think calling me sister is appropriate quite yet considering you’ll be watching Xan and I having sex within the hour,” Remi replied tartly, crossing her arms and staring right back at him.

  Jarok choked on his tea and set the cup down as he cleared his throat. “You really don’t back up saying anything do you, Remunada?”

  “No. I find that honesty always works for the best. It’s when you try to hide things, lie, and cheat that life becomes complicated.”

  “Ah, yes, honesty. In that case, I’ll come right to the point.” Jarok’s expression took on a stern, calculating look as he walked toward her. “Why?”

  “Why what?”

  “Why did you choose Ad’har as the Queen’s Paladin? Is it so you can get your hooks into two royals?”

  Remi thought she wasn’t the only one who went for blunt honesty in this room but knew that Jarok was going for shock value.

  “If you really thought that, why didn’t you try to stop the ceremony plans? Probably for the same reasons we three have agreed to be bonded.”

  “And what reason is that?”

  He was standing directly in front of her now, and she craned her neck to keep eye contact. “Because I love Xan and fate has decreed it.”

  For the first time since she had known him, Jarok looked anything but in full control. Shock and confusion filled his face for just a few seconds before he regained control. “You’ll have to enlighten me further on that answer.”

  Remi stepped back and continued her explanation. “I love Xan. I know it was fast, I know it seems impossible, but I do love him. I want what’s best for him, and since he will be king, what’s best for the kingdom. I’m sure Xan has told you of the…information passed on to us during your father’s illness.” At this, Jarok snorted and a
ppeared to want to argue. “Whether you believe it or not, I refuse to take chances. Ad’har is a perfect paladin, trained in defense and magic. I have feelings of…strong friendship toward Ad’har and he’s proven he is capable of protecting me. I had accepted that I was Xan’s True One and had feelings for him. I want the best to protect Xan, as well.”

  When she paused for breath, Jarok interrupted. “You do realize that the last royal couple who were involved in a ménage relationship was almost three hundred years ago, correct? From all the histories, it didn’t end will with the two dragons eventually fighting each other,” Jarok asked with a note of concern in his voice. Remi smiled gently and replied.

  “If you look at things with a biased view, you’ll always see the worst in every situation. Look at our situation, Ad’har has a dragon spirit guide but has never shifted. He says his dragon is fine with sharing. Xan says his dragon is fine with sharing. I can only sense the dragons in either as a shadow of the men’s personalities. I’ll only sense both fully after we mate. I think the discussion they had yesterday helped to clarify the situation for them both. Ad’har will use the ancient title of Queen’s Paladin. It’s no one’s business but Ad’har, Xan, and myself as to what our ‘relationship’ entails. If anyone wants to dispute the validity of the relationship, we can point out the law for a legal basis.”

  Remi leaned against the window frame as Jarok seemed to mull this thought over. When he looked back at her, she saw an open face with no polite mask, no pretense, just an openness that she had only seen when he was speaking to his family.

  “Jarok, I know you don’t care for me, and if you had your way I never would have been brought to the city. But I am your brother’s True One. If fate or the gods or whoever declared it so, we can’t fight fate. But I need to ask you for your help.” Remi took a deep breath and continued. “I need you to assist me in navigating the ins and outs of the court. I don’t play the political games, and I don’t like the currying of favor that happens. I respect you because you would do anything for your family and you’re honest about that. I know you will protect me even though you dislike me because it means you are protecting your brother and his legacy.”