Page 29 of The Forsaken Heir
“You’re gonna catch a fly if you don’t close your mouth,” Elle said, grinning at me.
Clamping my lips closed, I returned her smile. “Sorry, I was surprised.”
She arched an eyebrow. “By?”
By how badly I want you in my bed and screaming my name,a tiny voice in my head shouted, and my inner dragon purred its agreement.
Instead ofthosewords, I said, “By how soon you arrived. I thought it would take at least another ten or fifteen minutes for you to get down here.”
“Oh, well, Mister Titus here is a slave driver,” Elle said, glancing at Titus. “Hurry, Miss Laurentthis, andquickly now, Miss Laurentthat. I almost worked up a sweat trying to keep up with him.”
Titus smiled and inclined his head apologetically. “My apologies, my lady. I have a fast walk.”
“That will be all, Titus,” I said. “Have the staff get the tea ready in the gardens for later.”
“Very well, Your Highness.” He bowed, then retreated back to the house.
Elle watched him leave and gave me a crooked smile. “You dragons arereallyinto this old-fashioned stuff, aren’t you?”
I sighed and placed a hand on her lower back to lead her to the horses.
“It’s partly because of our extended life span. Old habits diemuchharder.”
“Wolf shifters live a long time too,” she argued, then made a quiescent little grunt. “Though, not as long as you guys, so I guess that’s true—oh wow!”She gasped as the nearest horse lifted its head to look at us.
“She’s gorgeous,” Elle murmured and reached out a hand.
“He,” I corrected. “This is Shadowfax.”
Frowning at me she rubbed the horse’s nose gently. “Why does that name sound familiar?”
“I must admit, I am a big fan ofThe Lord of the Rings,” I said.
“Oh, shit,” Elle blurted. “That’s right. The old guy’s white horse, right?”
“Gandalf, yes. I enjoy fantasy literature. The other”—I pointed to the second chocolate-colored horse—“is Artax.”
“ShadowfaxandArtax? Did you make them rhyme on purpose? Where’s that name from anyway?” she asked.
“The rhyming was by accident. As for the name? Another fantasy book. A movie was made from it that’s more well-known, but either way, it’s very depressing. I’ll save you the story.”
“Fair enough. Can I brush them?”
“They wouldlovethat,” I said.
She picked up a brush from the table by the door and brushed Shadowfax, then Artax. After a few minutes, she turned to me and huffed out a little sigh. “Why the heck would dragons need horses? Can’t you guys fly wherever you need to go?”
“Interesting question,” I admitted. “I will say that I enjoy them more as pets than as beasts of burden or travel. I do ride them, but not often. We used them in the past to blend in with humanity. It’s even more difficult to stay hidden now than a hundred years before. When the humans gained flight, our lives grew ever more problematic. Now? We tend to only shift and fly late at night, or in the deep wilderness. At times, we do take chances during the day if there is enough cloud cover or rain. It’s part of why we like it in this part of the country. Lots of clouds to hide us. The last thing our kind needs is for someone to look out of an airplane window and see a thirty-foot-long dragon coasting through the sky beside them.”
She laughed and started to braid Artax’s mane. “Does your dad ride? I haven’t seen him yet.”
“He had to leave early this morning for some business in Los Angeles. A normal flight in a plane, unfortunately. He’s been made aware, though, so perhaps if he returns before you depart, the two of you will meet.
“As for the horses?” I winced. “Dad isnota fan. He kept them here for my mother and me. She was the real horse lover.She would ride them any chance she got. I wasn’t much for dressage, but she would actually enter and compete in human riding competitions. She was most at home on the back of one of these,” I patted Shadowfax’s flank. “Sometimes it seemed like she preferred to ride a horse instead of flying in her dragon form.”
“She passed away a long time ago, right?” Elle asked.
“Indeed. It happened when I was nine, only a couple months before I turned ten.”
