Page 36 of Devoted to the Dragon

I don’t bother answering. I simply stare. It’s a battle of wills that I refuse to lose. I keep up my icy gaze until he backs down, looking away from me and signaling to the room. The wolves scurry, rustling papers about as they quickly stuff them into bags and trip over themselves to leave.

The woman takes her time, her sharp eyes measuring me as she speaks to the king. “We will iron out the details later, Liam, but this first draft appears in order.”

“Thank you, Sloan.” He nods to the woman as she passes on her way out, and ambles toward the bar cart in the corner, dominance rolling off him in waves. “A drink, at least, before we begin?” he asks me.

“No.”

That answer doesn’t please him, but he laughs as if it does anyway, pouring one for himself and pointing at Gunnar hanging back near the wall. “And you?”

I answer for him. “What are you doing about the wolves in the tents?”

He sips his drink, moves to the window, and looks at the dark mountains. “The villages are dying quicker than we can relocate the wolves. Most of our time is spent trying to fend off ferals. The forest is a minefield of our traps and feral packs that will attack anything in their path encroaching closer to the city each month. We’re practically surrounded. Tell me, what do you expect me to do?”

“I expect you to take care of your people. And if you want me to work with you, then you better come to the table with a more solid plan than a tent city and wolves dying in underground fights. I owe you nothing. My loyalty is with the shifter races.” I grit out the words, not bothering to wait for his answer.

Chapter 17

Knox

The white-haired dragon looks like a bomb set to explode as she levels the king with a withering gaze, challenging him to stop being such a selfish fucker. White horns twist from her hair, sharp claws extend from her hands, and the fire she’s keeping in her throat makes her white scales glow an eerie red.

She’s terrifying and fucking gorgeous. Thank fuck she can’t see me hiding in the shadows.

Immediately, my serpent is intrigued, inching toward her and trying to taste.

Seeing a dragon—though not even fully shifted—ready to blast the Alpha King is top five on my life list. I know we’re here to form an alliance with the king, but I can’t help but wish she would unleash her fire. The Alpha King is a prick, and it would be something to watch the fucker burn.

She doesn’t though. Without waiting for him to explain himself, she turns on her pair of black spiked heels and leaves the room. Her hot Viking bodyguard follows her, and I watch the flex of his ass as he moves. That pair would taste delicious.

The king curses. The sound draws my eye back just in time to watch him launch his drink at the wall. The glass shatters andsends a river of dark liquid dripping down the wood.He picks up his phone, and I can just barely hear another person pick up on the line.

“The dragon arrived early and in a mood. She’s going to be a problem.”

“I’ll have a set of wolves we trust see to it. We only need to subdue her long enough to take a few scales. The snakes have promised the rest,” the man on the line says.

I recognize the voice on the phone as the man I’ve dealt with for shipment transfers: Jesup. He’s a councilman, and his use of the termsnakepisses me off.

“See it done.” The king ends the call, pacing before letting out another roaring curse.

I slip through the shadows and walk the blur, emerging in the living room of the suite the Council has assigned my sister and me during our stay. Sloan is seated in one of the ugly-ass fur chairs, a mounted bear hanging creepily above her head. She types furiously on her phone, not looking up when I enter.

“The dragon is pissed,” I state the obvious. “But also seriously hot.”

My sister’s lips curl into a smile. “Not my type. Imagine the heartburn from her spice. It’d be painful for days.”

I shrug. I bet her energy would be deliciously hot and spicy. It’s a shame it’s a conflict of interest to convince her to let me have a taste. “The king will use Stef’s dart to knock her out. He’s planning to steal her scales.”

That causes my sister to pause her rapid fingers and throw me a questioning look.

“I don’t know when. Possibly tonight, but I doubt it. It would be an act of war if they could manage to take her down at all. If the king is smart, he’ll try to get her to agree to give up a scale before trying to capture her.”

“And the Council? What did you learn today?” She sets down her phone and leans back in the chair, side-eyeing the mounted bear.

I lean against the table. “Most are unaware of our presence. Only a handful know about the weapons. The territory leaders are unhappy with the king’s response and lack of resources, but most guards seem to favor the king. They talk of the dragon like she’s a gatekeeper withholding all the answers to their problems. They need her power, but as usual, they’re condescending dicks about it.”

My sister seems to decide something, returning to her phone. She’s always buried in it. Beyond her role as heir, her job as head legal counsel for our family’s hotels, clubs, and other human-facing businesses means she’s always working. “Follow the dragon tonight. See what she knows. Mother didn’t have any intel. She couldn’t even confirm for sure that the dragon was actually alive before we traveled here.”

She dismisses me, going back to her phone.

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