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“Sure.”
Evander pushes himself off the side of the pool. I swim over to the ladder to get up. He extends a hand, offering to help me up. I grab it and he effortlessly pulls me from the water. The wind gusts again, so I use my magic to dry myself, not wanting to feel the cold anymore.
“What? How?” Evander’s eyes are wide as they look at me.
“Magic,” I answer, sending my magic toward him. He dries instantly.
“Okay, that’s it. We need a second marriage alliance. I need a fae wife too.” He turns to march toward the house, like he’s going to go demand it to happen now. He stops half way there and turns toward me. “Are you coming? I was serious about the coffee.”
“Coming.” I run to catch up with him. He gives me a smile that reminds me so much of Stellan, which has me wondering what my husband was like as a teenager. Then again, I imagine Stellan has always had a strong sense of duty to his kingdom. He was raised to be a king, just like I was raised to be an empress.
My heart feels even lighter as I think about my old title. I may be a princess now, to be a queen someday, but somehow it feels less heavy.
Maybe because the dragons aren’t expecting me to save them…
When I catch up to Evander, he slips his arm around my shoulders. He may be five years younger than me, but he’s a good foot taller.
“I’ve never felt short in my life until I came here,” I comment.
Evander laughs. “Youareshort, but isn’t that a fae thing?”
“Unfortunately,” I mumble.
“Thankfully that trait never passed on to dragon shifters when our people first made this alliance.”
Long ago, after the Supernatural War ended, the dragon shifters were nearly wiped out of existence. To preserve the dragons, fae made an alliance of sorts. I can’t even imagine a world where the fae would do something like that, but it was so long ago. Things were different then. So, dragon shifters and fae married. There were so few dragon shifters that there was no way they could’ve preserved their bloodline without mixing. And it turned out, mixing dragon shifter blood with fae blood made the dragon shifters stronger than they ever were before. That is why I now find myself married to a dragon prince—because my ancestors deemed it so.
“Isn’t it strange that dragon shifters don’t have the same magic as fae, even though your ancestors were fae?” I ask.
“Not really.” Evander shakes his head. “After a couple of generations, the mate bond came back, and dragon shifters typically only have mates that are dragon shifters. The magic passed to us by fae was, naturally, bred out, even if our greater strength remained.”
“Do you think Stellan and I will have children whocan’tshift? What happens if our oldest son is more fae than dragon shifter?” I ask.
Evander wiggles his eyebrows at me. “Already thinking about my future nieces and nephews? Should I be expecting good news soon?”
I roll my eyes at him, but can feel the heat crawl up my neck and cheeks. “Stellan and I are still getting to know one another.”
Evander opens the backdoor of the house, motioning for me to walk in first. “If my brother is as smart as I know him to be, it won’t take him long to figure out that you’re perfect for him.”
Perfect for Stellan?
I walk inside and turn as Evander follows me. “I don’t know about all that. I think your brother would prefer a dragon shifter.”
Evander shrugs, not bothering with a response. He likely knows that I’m right. The thought stings a little.
He stops, right in front of the door that leads to the massive garage and turns to face me. “Stellan might not realize that you’re perfect for him, but he will someday soon. He has a lot on him, and he still has to face a lot. Just be patient with him.”
His family keeps saying that, but I don’t understandwhy. There must be something that I’m missing. Maybe Idoneed to be patient and wait for Stellan to open up to me.
“Do you want to take one of Stellan’s cars?” Evander opens the door, turning the light on.
Inside the massive garage are rows of cars. Everything is so clean, the cars are parked in a perfect line.
“Stellan lets you drive his cars?” I raise an eyebrow at Evander. Didn’t Stellan tell me that his younger brother was a terrible driver? Certainly he doesn’t lend his expensive cars to him.
“No, but you can drive. He wouldn’t dare say no to you.”
I clear my throat. “He told me not to tell you, but I can’t drive. I don’t know how. We can take one of Stellan’s cars though. I’ll tell him it was my idea if he asks.”
