“You don't ask for much, do you?” Adelle lunged for the cookies but Mrs. Wardarms raised the plate just out of reach.
“Fine,” Adelle said, defeated. “I’m pregnant and he’s promising me the moon and the stars and it’s just not realistic.”
“He offered to make you his mate. He offered you a fairy tale ending.”
Fairy tale was right, but girls like her, girls with no parents and abandoned on a crowded and impoverished orbiter with dirt under the nails, didn’t get the prince. They just got the frog. “I’m twenty-two and too old for fairy tales.”
“Exactly! You’re still a baby. You don’t know what you want.”
“I am not a child.”
“Then stop acting like one because there’s a good male on this ship who wants to do the right thing.”
Do the right thing. Were they in the dark ages? Plenty of women raised children alone. Plenty of human women raised human-alien hybrid babies alone. “I don’t want him to do this because it’s the right thing. I want him to do this because it’s what he wants.”
Mrs. Wardarms snorted. Yeah, that excuse sounded weak to Adelle, too. Honestly, Korven said he loved her and what did she do? Worry about his parents and gossip and ignore his exposed feelings. She was a bitch to him and she didn’t want to saddle Korven with a bitch if he was just trying to do “the right thing”.
There was no way to say all that without sounding like a spoiled brat so she kept her mouth closed.
Mrs. Wardarms returned the cookies. “Sort it out. He’s a good egg and you’re not half bad. You kids deserve to be happy.”
“I’ll think about it.” She liked Korven but marriage? Their worlds were so different. Would he still choose her if she wasn’t pregnant? No. Adelle felt certain about that. And she wouldn’t trap Korven into a marriage, or a nest. He might believe he wanted it now but in time their differences would become more obvious and too hard to overcome.
She’d refuse his offer. They’d have a child. They’d always have that bond and be in each other’s lives but not married. He’d be free to find someone more of his social standing and she’d… find something.
It was better this way.
Korven
Two weeks of pursuing Adelle and he was no closer to his quarry. Frustrating did not begin to cover the situation. Derix gave him a constant stream of updates on the nestling’s progress and Adelle’s health.
The ship approached Wye. His journey began nearly two years ago with nothing more than his warriors, his cousin pretending to be a prince, and a pile of credits. In that time, he’d acquired knowledge, contacts, a bleeding edge starship drive, a ship, a crew, a mate and a nestling. He should be returning home in triumph, not in this cloud of uncertainty.
“Ten minutes until we enter the atmosphere,” Providence broadcasted over the ship’s comms. “Secure yourselves.”
The only harnesses rated for an atmosphere re-entry were located in the bridge. The entire crew, all nine, crowded the space. Ragnar spoke to him but Korven did not hear. His gaze was fixated on Adelle fumbling with her harness.
Korven unsnapped his harness and crossed the short distance to assist her.
“I can do it,” she protested, trying to bat away his hands.
“I will not let your pride cause injury to yourself or our nestling.”
Her eyes narrowed and her lips pressed together, the look she got just before going on a vulgar-filled tirade. “Is that Wye?” She pointed to the blue and white planet on the view screen.
“Yes. I believe the water to land composition is similar to Earth.” Wye had smaller landmasses but the same percentage of water covered the planet.
“It’s beautiful.”
“I’m glad you think so. It is your home.”
“It is not my home,” she snapped.
“Perhaps you will feel better if you yell and curse at me,” he said, voice controlled and calm.
“Perhaps you should back off and give me space, like you agreed.”
He did as she asked, after securing her in the harness. In his own seat, he diverted his gaze to the floor, the ceiling, the monitors, anywhere but the true target of his concentration: her.
He made his situation plain to her. He asked her to be his mate in terms simple enough even a dimwitted Terran would understand, yet she denied him. No, that was not true. She had not accepted him. Yet.
She wanted time. She wanted space.
Korven did not believe that on the other side of time and space would be the answer he wanted. She was distancing herself from him, trying to remove herself from his life, because she did not believe his intentions were sincere. No, he corrected himself. Adelle did not believe he knew his own mind. She believed he would regret claiming her as his mate.
She doubted his resolve. His will.
His love.
The ship shuddered as it entered Wye’s atmosphere. His hands gripped the armrest, digging into the synthetic fabric.
Korven had never been so sure of anything in his life and she doubted him.
When they arrived at the palace, his parents would fuss over Adelle and the nestling but they would pressure him to take a mate. The long-standing plan was to hold a Fever Celebration, a grand ball, after his return. He would be expected to select a mate from the females presented.
His Fever was long resolved but they would insist on the celebrating and everything else that came with it.
He had until the ball to convince Adelle to accept him.
If not—
There was no room for doubt. His heart was for Adelle and their nestling and them alone. He would not fail.
Chapter Thirteen
Adelle
It was one thing when Korven said he was a prince. Abstract. Adelle knew it but she hadn’t really absorbed what his royal status meant. Wings? He was an alien. Anatomical differences were expected. A luxury yacht? Bodyguards? Whatever. That was wealth on display.
But this… This was something else. Something out of a fairytale.
White clouds obscured the view screen as the Firestar descended through the atmosphere. Turbulence ceased and the clouds parted, revealing a mountain range. The tallest peak dominated the view screen, increasing in detail until Adelle could make out a stone dragon curled possessively around a mountain peak. Snow dusted the highest peaks. Mist hung in the valley below. The rays of the setting sun caught in the stone, setting it alight with a gentle orange glow, wondrous and terrifying in the same breath.
“Is that Sunstone?” Adelle asked. What other mineral could trap and amplify the light like the legendary stone?
“A type of feldspar. The light reflects off the copper inside the crystal.”
Windows covered the dragon’s body at regular intervals, like scale platting, and a soft illumination glowed from within. Green, shimmering glass served as eyes. The creature’s massive maw was open mid roar, a bonfire burning. The sunstone dragon was too massive to comprehend. The feat of engineering… it was a marvel.
As the ship grew closer, it became apparent that the dragon was no simple, if enormous, statue. It was carved from the mountain.
Korven squeezed her hand. “The Celestial Mother.”
Adelle glanced down, and realized that the mountain dragon was the same emblem on Korven’s signet ring, the ring Ragnar wore during his masquerade as prince. The same dragon was on the badges of Olver’s and Derix’s uniform. The same dragon was the royal crest decorating the Firestar.
The dragon was not just a monument hewn from a mountain. The dragon was the palace.
She gasped and squeezed Korven’s hand back. Their worlds were so different. “Don’t you dare say it’s not much but its home.”
He chuckled, light and easy. “Wyverns are not known for subtly.”
Unable to resist, Adelle grinned at him. She liked this side of him, the side that joked and didn’t take himself too seriously.
The stone dragon filled the screen, growing larger and larger, until the d
etails of masonry and windows blotted out everything else. The Firestar circled the dragon. Every maneuver seemed far too close to the mountain. Widget seemed unconcerned at the helm. Finally, the ship rounded around twist of the dragon’s coil and the dark cavern, gouged out of the mountain, yawned open. The ship pierced the darkness, emerged into a well lit hanger and landed without the slightest bump.
Korven removed his harness before unfastening hers. Everything moved at a speed Adelle was unable to process. Ragnar, no longer a prince but a mere lord, lead the party down the ramp, Olver and Derix flanking Korven, the actual prince. And it was the genuine prince who gripped her hand tightly and refused to let her be more than an arm's reach away from his person.
The air was cool at the elevated altitude and tasted thin.
She could taste the air. Suddenly her lungs didn’t seem to work properly, like she couldn’t get a deep breath. Was this the fresh air everyone went on and on about? It was weird and scratchy.
“Are you well?” Guards and technicians and attendants and servants all wearing the emblem of the wyvern surrounded them, all wanting his attention, but his eyes were only for her.
She knew Korven believed they could make their situation work but she really couldn’t see how. Forcing a smile, she nodded. “The air is dry. I’m use to life support and recycled air, I guess.”
A tall, slender male with ruby red scales and a bald head approached. He wore the stiff brocade jacket Adelle recognized from the decoy prince’s party. His eyes skimmed over her and he gave a curt bow to Korven. “Your Highness, Her Majesty, your grandmother, is most pleased you have returned home. She wishes an audience as soon as it is convenient for you.”
A set of guards arrived and separated Adelle from Korven. They grabbed her by the arms, grips firm but not painful. The bald male continued, “We will see that your crew is settled into their accommodations.”
“Where are you taking my mate?” His voice thundered. Not a question. A threat.
“The Terran female is crew—”
“She is my mate. She remains with me.” Korven’s wings unfurled, extending to the limit of their impressive width. He pulled Adelle into his embrace, arms and wings wrapped around her.
The male bowed deeply. “Of course, my apologies, Your Highness.” With a snap of his fingers, the guards released Adelle and backed away. “Do you require a rest or refreshments?”
“Take me to the Queen,” Korven said. Ah, angry. She knew that mood.
“Into the belly of the beast,” she muttered under the breath.
Korven
Korven suffered the Queen’s displeasure. No one greeted him on his arrival home, gone for two years and returned a fully mature male with a mate and a nestling. Not his mother, the Princess Searra. Not his father, Prince Venn. Not even one of his many cousins or uncles. The Queen’s guards were sent to fetch the wayward princeling.
Korven did not ruffle his wings. He would not worry. Adelle, and his nestling, remained within easy reach. He was calm, the placid model of how a prince behaves.
The guards separated Korven from his crew, peeling back even Olver and Derix. The guard captain, a male with golden scales and a square jaw, informed Ragnar that his orders were to deliver Prince Korven and no one else.
Ragnar folded his arms over his chest. Masquerading as prince may have been a falsehood but it was not much of an act. Ragnar was a lord and could be haughty when needed. “No.”
The guard huffed but could not argue. There was some privilege in rank after all.
The journey to the throne room was swift. Korven knew his grandmother, the queen, rushed the meeting to catch him on the wrong foot. No time to rest. No time to change into court appropriate clothing.
Adelle’s head swiveled to catch all the sights. There was no time to give Adelle the tour of the structure that would be their home, to appreciate the palace through her Terran eyes. “We’re in the dragon now? Not the mountain?”
“The Celestial Mother, yes.”
“The sunstone—”
“A thin layer of sunstone covers the Celestial Mother. The inside is outfitted with humbler materials.” State of the art technologies, ancient artifacts and treasures, but the floors were not paved with precious gemstones. Humbler.
“I would love to see how this thing is powered.”
“I can arrange for a tour of the facilities.”
“Hardly seems right, though. I’m inside a giant fairytale castle and all I want to see is the boiler and the maintenance passages.”
He waved a hand. “You are curious and that is good knowledge to have.”
They headed toward the throne room. Her head swiveled as they walked pasted a cluster of winged attendants. “Are they part of your family? How big is your family, by the way?”
“They are nobility. Distant relations. Very distant. And large enough. I am my mother’s only child, but I have many uncles and they have several children.”
“Lots of cousins.”
The guards came to a halt. They stood outside the throne room. Adelle squeezed his hand and leaned in, whispering, “I wish we had time to change or clean up. I’m not dressed to meet a queen.”
She wore a pair of stretchy black trousers and a long sleeved black tunic. It was the sensible, practical clothing she always wore. “I like the way you look.”
They were announced. A hush fell over the crowd as they approached the throne. Noble wings fluttered as they noticed Korven and Adelle holding hands. His own wings flexed in response. Let them look. He had a fine mate to present to his grandmother, the queen.
The throne of Wye was a simple, high backed chair perched on a sleeping dragon. The dragon coiled around the base and rested its head on an armrest. The queen stroked the wooden dragon’s snout, contemplating her grandson and his mate.
His mother, the Princess Searra, stood at the right of the throne. To the left were courtiers. Korven recognized the pale figure of Frei. His mother had advocated her as a possible mate before he left. He found Frei cold and snobbish, more interested in his position than in him.
“It is always good to see you, grandson,” the queen said. “I hope you found your years away to be enlightening.”
“It is always a pleasure to return home, Your Majesty.”
“And your Fever? Lord Ragnar said you suffered tremendously. Your mother, the Princess Searra, has organized a celebration for you. I believe you are familiar with her plans.”
The plans to marry him off to some noble daughter? Yes. “My Fever has been resolved. I present Adelle Scott, of Earth, and my mate.”
“You joined with a Terran and created a nestling?”
“Yes.” He lifted his chin and squared his shoulders. The amazing creature beside him accepted him and together they created a new life. Let the court stare and gossip. They should envy his fortune.
The queen turned her fiery gaze to Adelle. Her face remained passive and blank, giving no hint to her thoughts. “And does this Terran have an occupation? Is she accomplished? Of a good family? Does she have something to recommend her other than her ample fertility?”
“She is a highly skilled mechanic.”
A titter of amusement went through the court. The queen silenced her courtiers with a wave of her hand. She leaned back in her seat. “Has the mechanic accepted your claim?”
Korven’s instinct was to say yes. Adelle agreed while they were stranded, awaiting retrieval, but she did not know to what she agreed. Her acceptance was not valid. The truth left a bitter taste in his mouth. He should have realized that at the time but the Fever clouded his mind. He was too eager to hear what he wanted, to believe that all he desired was true. “Not yet. She asked for time to consider.”
Adelle
Queen Lasar of Wye was terrifying and beautiful to behold.
Tall, statuesque with an ageless grace, she wore a simple silver circlet over her long, dark hair. Clad in a gown of citrine, she shimmered under the interior lights. When she stood, h
er green and yellow wings unfurled. They extended all the way to the floor and reached a massive span. Every inch of her was regal and every perfect part of the Queen reminded Adelle that she wore yesterday’s trousers and needed to clean the grease from under her fingernails.
Beside the throne stood another Wyer woman, just as devastatingly beautiful with pale hair piled on top of her head and wearing a cool blue dress cut to emphasize her willowy figure.
“She must consider your proposal?” The incredulity in the Queen’s voice make the court titter. But not the beautiful woman at her side. Her cool eyes bore right into Adelle, as if calling her out for a fraud. She had to be a fraud. What was Adelle compared to that elegant female? How could Korven prefer Adelle’s pudgy figure to such perfection?
He couldn’t, that’s how. He might not admit it now, but he didn’t want her. Not really.
“The nestling will be confirmed by the royal physician,” the queen said, returning to her seat. “And since your offer is not enough for this Terran, the celebration Princess Searra has planned will go forward.”
“I do not need or want—” Korven started to say.
“All aspects of the celebration will go forward. You will select a mate, grandson, from the candidates your parents have carefully selected.” The Queen’s eyes darted to Adelle. Yes, she knew the Queen was taking a jab at her expense. Nothing careful about Korven’s selection of her, just chance and isolation. She continued, “I am very glad to see you again, Korven. We will hold the celebration tomorrow and then I will be more than glad to greet you and your recognized wife.
Yup, that was a jab at her expense.
***
The royal physician confirmed what Derix had already told her. It was a human-Wye baby. Korven held her hand and stroked her hair during the exam. She tried to shy away but he kept pulling her back. Didn’t he know that it would be better to distance themselves now? Why did he have to shower her with affection? It was only going to hurt when he decided he was done with his grubby little mechanic and left.
Korven's Fire: Dragon Prince of Wye Page 10
