Page 42 of Dragon Heir

“Of course,” Sinetar says, squaring his shoulders with pride. “I’m a wind-caster from the Sky Clan. We can direct the wind channels. We’re also the fastest and strongest fliers of all dragons.” He drops his voice and leans in. “You can ride me sometime if you don’t believe me.”

“Oh, I believe you,” I say, feeling a little lighter with his teasing, which I’m guessing is his intent. A tendril of heat coils in my core at his crude words, the way it always does.

“You did listen during my lectures, didn’t you, Vynessa?” Master Sinetar asks. “I went over the dragon clans in class.”

“Of course,” I say, which is only halfway true. I tried to pay attention in class, but it’s hard to listen intently to a person when you’re daydreaming about them railing you over a desk. I close one eye. “Sun, Moon, Sea, Ice, Smoke, Lightning, Stone, and Flora.”

“And Sky,” Sinetar says with a wry smile. “We’ll work on those. But basically, each clan still exists, although some are more rare than others. Your job will be to produce an heir for each clan, one of which will be the next queen. It’s a system that has kept equality among dragonkind for thousands of years. Not all clans are friendly, so forming alliances will be essential. There’s one kingdom that might need to be kept out of your mating rotation—a kingdom that doesn’t want peace or equality.”

“Okay,” I say slowly. “If I do this mating thing and produce the required heirs, then can I go home to my family?”

He considers me, and I see something in his strange light eyes, pity maybe. Then he shakes his head. “You’ll need to stay out of the way of ordinary humans and let them live their short lives without interference. Besides, it’s not safe for a queen out there. Your place is here.”

“You don’t get to tell me my place.”

“They are not your people anymore,” Sinetar says, taking my elbow and guiding me back toward the palace. “They never were, but you were allowed to think so. Now, you know you’re a dragon, so you’ll leave behind your old life. The future of dragonkind rests on your shoulders, Vynessa.”

“What about my studies?” I ask. “I want to learn, not just sit around making babies all my life. What about my family?”

“Don’t worry,” he says. “Once you find a proper male from each clan to breed you, you’ll leave an egg in that clan’s keeping until they are hatched. When your time comes, one will take the throne from you.”

I balk so suddenly I almost trip on my own dress, and Sinetar takes my other arm so I won’t fall. But my legs seem to have locked up, and my head is spinning. The doors to the veranda burst open, and True sprints toward us, the wind slamming into his side so hard his hair comes free of its mooring and whips out like a flag, streaming past him as he fights against the force. The wind only dies when he’s feet away, his arms catching me when I begin to sway.

“Princess. Are you all right?” he asks, his forehead creased with concern.

“I’m going to have to mate with nine dragons?” I ask, a note of hysteria creeping into my voice. “I’m going to lay eggs?”

“Of course,” Sinetar says with an amused smile. “What did you think you’d do, give birth?”

“Mother of mermaids,” I mumble, my head spinning. “I wanted to lose my chastity this year, not get gangbanged by a dozen dragon dicks.”

“Give her space,” True growls at Sinetar, supporting me when I crumple into his strong arms. “Back off and let her recover. It’s too much to take in right now.”

“Don’t coddle her,” Sinetar says. “A queen needs to be tough.”

“She’s not a queen yet,” True growls. “She’s still the princess, and a week ago, she was a human for all she knew.”

“She was never a human. Vynessa was born to take the throne,” Sinetar says.

“I—I’m okay,” I say, forcing myself to stand, though I’d rather spend another minute in True’s arms. Okay, that’s a lie. I’d rather spend the rest of the night there. We may not have become as close as I am with Pax, but I trust him too. Though I don’t know him well, I know that he’ll protect me no matter how surly he seems on the surface. Now I know why he was so protective all that time. He did a damn fine job, even if he was kind of a dick about it.

True brushes the hair back from my forehead, his eyes searching my face. “Are you all right, Your Highness?”

His arm is tight around my waist, and I focus on the pleasure of his body pressing against mine and the gentleness of his fingers as he tucks my hair behind my ear. I’m supposed to be acting queenly, but right now, I don’t give a damn. I want to go back to being roommates who hung around in our favorite worn-out shirts and ate burned hotcakes together. I want to sit on the porch and drink coffee and read books in companionable silence with him. I want to be his roommate, not his queen.

“If you’re at my command, then I command you to call me Vynessa again,” I say, smiling up at him.

His jaw tightens, and his throat works. His eyes take on their usual, detached watchfulness. “I cannot do that, Your Majesty.”

“Please,” I say, raising my hand to cup his cheek. His short beard is softer than I imagined, his skin cool and soothing to the touch. “It’s the only thing that will get me through this. Having you and Pax here with me, so things feel almost sane, almost normal. I need that, True. Can you do this for me?”

He swallows, his eyes softening. “For you,” he says softly, his gaze dropping to my lips.

I want to kiss him so bad I think I’ll do it right there in the veranda, in front of Sinetar and my whole entourage. But before I can, he draws back, releasing me.

“Perhaps we should let you get back to your room for a rest,” he says, straightening his uniform. “You haven’t slept all night.”

“Maybe later,” I say. “Sinetar has more to teach me about this place.”