Page 35 of The Soul of the Dragon

I turned to face him, despite the struggle. "You don't know? How is that possible?"

"Know what?" He opened his eyes and loosened his arms, but didn't let go completely.

"Magnus is the King's pet dragon. I mean I've never seen him fully shifted like you, but I've heard him in the forest and I've certainly heard stories told about him in the kingdom. Everyone fears him."

Isaac grunted. "I believed as much. But I could also tell that he is not my equal."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because the Ferguson dragons are the originals. We were the first. And while many more have been born since, none can rival our abilities."

"That's an arrogant assumption. This is a completely different realm than yours. There are dragons here too, and to underestimate the fae would be foolhardy."

He shrugged and rolled onto his back, placing his arm under his head. "Then I shall deal with him when the time comes. Until then, I don't plan on borrowing trouble."

I sat up and rooted around on the floor in search of my undergarments. They weren't as fresh and clean as the dress I'd washed the night before, but they'd work.

"Wear the clothes I brought you."

I stopped with my undergarments halfway over my head. "I couldn't. They are far too nice for what we have to do."

"That's ridiculous. I purposely picked that dress because I knew it would be perfect for you . I'd like to see how it looks on you."

I bristled against his bossiness, and the words to tell him where he could stick his commands sat on the tip of my tongue. But I remembered well how luxurious the fabrics had been in my hands. They would be soft and comfortable to wear.

"Fine." I made a show of pretending I didn't want to wear them by making it an ordeal to put them on. But I'd been right. The moment that fabric brushed against my skin, I took a deep breath of relief. I may not need fancy clothes to get by day to day, but a quality material transformed my comfort in a way nothing else did.

By the time I had the lacings halfway done, he was out of bed and dressed for the day as well. I’d missed the entire thing with my back turned to him and I had to admit I’d been looking forward to seeing him naked in the bright light of the day. The muscle that covered his body was impressive and I wanted to study him. He stopped and stared after putting on his boots.

"You look beautiful. I was right about that color."

I could feel the heat of a blush crawling up my neck, but I ignored it. I wasn’t going to swoon like a simp over a basic nicety. Although it did warm me from the inside out knowing that he enjoyed the way I looked in the dress he’d picked out.

“You never did say where you got this. Wasn’t it expensive?”

He shrugged as if it wasn’t important. “The innkeeper pointed me to a small clothing shop next door. I needed some items for myself and it was easy enough to grab something for you too.”

I stared blankly. He’d done more than simply grab the first dress he saw. This one not only complimented me in color and style, but it had to have come at a high cost. That fact left me with more questions than answers.

“Thank you. I will need more clothes eventually, but for now I need to travel light. I don’t know how long it will be before I can settle somewhere.”

He approached me slowly, his eyes narrowing as he got close. “And where exactly are you planning to go?”

“Another realm eventually. Once I have my magic back, I can seek asylum in another realm.”

“And if you can’t get your magic back?”

“I can’t even consider that. Fae with no magic are—“

“You two need to stop talking and get out of here.”

We both whirled at the voice to find the imp standing in our now open window.

“What are you doing here?” I tried to keep my alarm under control as to not alert the dragon, but his sharp eyes were glaring at the female who wouldn’t seem to go away.

“There’s no time to talk. The King’s guard is here and they are searching the village for you.”

“Oh no.” I whirled back around. “I knew the village was a bad idea. My stepfather has eyes everywhere.” I grabbed my clean dress from where I’d left it hanging and dove for my leather boots. They were the only item of clothing the King had allowed me to keep in his dungeon.

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