Page 15 of Taken By the Naga King

He smiled at her before taking another sip of his soup. He was sure of it now. Azha would fit in well here.

He couldn’t wait to show her all Nirum had to offer.

Chapter 6

Azha

Azha woke the next morning to the bright Nirum sun shining on her face. When she opened her eyes, she saw her new room in all its luxurious glory.

The carpets were a deep purple, and the walls were a shade of white that had sparkles embedded in the paint, although she was pretty sure the sparkles were actually diamonds.

Everything about the room screamed opulence. She knew she should feel thankful, even happy, but for some reason, all she could do was wonder if she had made a terrible mistake hiding on Gravon’s ship.

When she woke yesterday, she was dirty, hungry, and didn’t have a single thing to her name. She did not even belong to herself. When she woke up today, she was well-fed, well-rested… and she still did not belong to herself. It was an obvious trade up, but still, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she had made a mistake that could never be rectified.

She was in a strange world where everything was unfamiliar to her—the food, the residents, her surroundings. And she had no way out of the castle or off the planet. She was stuck, and she wondered just what Gravon planned to do with her. He was king. He could do anything he wanted, and no one would, or could, stop him.

Maybe he had only been nice to her yesterday to get her right here, in this very vulnerable position. Maybe the real hell would begin today, and yesterday had been a trap.

A knock sounded at the door only seconds before it opened. Vespira and Xenia slithered in, one of them heading toward the huge walk-in closet that she had yet to explore and one of them moving toward her.

“Good morning,” Vespira said as she peeled back the blanket that Azha was nestled under. “I will take you to your bath now.”

Azha said nothing but slid out of bed and followed the female Naga to the adjoining bathroom. She had seen and used the bathroom yesterday, but she was pretty sure she’d never get used to its size and opulence.

It was huge. Definitely the largest bathroom she’d ever seen. She didn’t even know why someone would need one this big. Everything about it was stunning—from the clear tiles that gave view to the water rushing underneath, which she didn’t know if it was real or just a visual, to the mirror that showed her all sides of herself without her even needing to turn.

But best of all, at least in her eyes, was the bathtub. It was enormous and hovered in the air with absolutely nothing visible holding it off the ground. She didn’t even see a tap for the water to come out of, but just as she had yesterday, Vespira tapped a button on the side of the tub, and it simply filled with steaming hot water that appeared out of thin air.

She stripped out of her pajamas, not feeling the least bit self-conscious about being naked in front of a stranger. She was very used to that from her life back on Noxxa.

“You have thirty minutes to bathe. Once you are done, Xenia and I will get you ready and escort you to the dining room for breakfast with the king.”

Once alone, Azha carefully lowered herself into the steaming water, closing her eyes at the feeling of it embracing her skin. She could definitely get used to waking up like this though she could do without the babysitters. Would she ever spend a day alone again?

An hour later, Azha was sitting next to Gravon at the table, some sort of bread in front of her that was slathered with jam. It tasted nothing like the bread and jam that she had eaten on rare occasions back home. Nothing here seemed to be even remotely similar to Noxxa.

Dare she admit, she was feeling a little homesick?

“How did you sleep?” Gravon spoke up, breaking her out of her melancholy.

“Very well, actually. The blankets in there are softer than anything I’ve ever felt.”

“Mine are even softer.”

She avoided his gaze. He obviously wanted her to join him in his room, and he had said as much yesterday when they’d arrived. But she didn’t know when she’d be ready for that despite what they’d done on the Imperial Nirum.

Sure, they’d shared a moment on the ship, and Azha had enjoyed it more than she would ever say out loud. She’d even replayed that moment in her head last night while she was falling asleep. But now, here on Nirum, she was feeling overwhelmed. So for the time being, she was grateful for her separate room.

“Today I will show you around the wing. You probably will not leave the royal quarters, at least not today. But there is plenty for you to do here while I attend my meetings.”

She perked up at that but tried not to show it on the outside. “You’re going to leave me here?”

“Yes,” he said, “but do not worry, Vespira and Xenia will be there for you should you need them. And I will send a messenger back and forth between us in case I need to update you on anything or in case you need me.”

“Oh, okay.” She tried to pretend like this saddened her, to be away from him, but truth be told, she was looking forward to the time alone. She needed to gather her thoughts and familiarize herself with this place she was now to call home.

“I will be back by dinner, and we will share the meal together.”

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