Page 72 of To Charm a Dark Prince

When her heart was no longer racing a million miles an hour, and she felt as though her head wasn’t spinning anymore, she rested her fingers on his cheek. He had just the barest amount of stubble. It was a little prickly, but she decided it was pleasant.

He broke away, those molten, rust-colored eyes finding hers. He smiled. “Welcome back, firefly.”

That was a hell of a way to get her out of a panic attack. But hey. It worked. “Thanks. Cheater.”

“If it works, I will not complain. And that was not entirely for your benefit.” His smile twisted into that lopsided, almost roguish expression that he used so readily. “But you are welcome.”

She went back to holding onto his arm to feel secure, but no longer felt like she was about to drop to her death. “I wasn’t kidding when I said I was afraid of heights.” She couldn’t help it. She looked down. Squeaking, she leaned back against him and wished she could hide from what was happening.

“So I see.” He laughed, and wrapped his paneled cloak around her, further insulating her from the wind whipping past them. “If I must distract you from another panic attack, I suppose I can be convinced to make that sacrifice.”

Her cheeks went warm. “I—I think I’m okay now.”

“Damn.”

The dragon beat his wings from time to time with a loudwhoomf,the action lurching them slightly as the animal kept them high above the treetops. When Gwen finally had the nerve to look around her, what she saw was astonishing. Waterfalls cascaded down the side of a cliff to their left. She could see the mountain that dominated the center of the island off in the distance, its top disappearing into the ever-present clouds. Forests stretched in all directions, dotted with clearings and the tiny structures of villages. Smoke curled up from several of the chimneys. Winding dirt roads snaked in and out of the woods.

It all looked so quaint.

So quaint but…bleak. All the colors were faded, even the orangey-reds of the fall leaves that dominated the trees. It was like late fall, when everything was starting to turn brown just before winter.

It was a terrible reminder of what the man behind her had done to the world in the name of saving it. He had taken all the vibrancy away.

They approached what she supposed passed for a city in Avalon. It wasn’t huge, but certainly bigger than the villages or little collections of houses they had flown over. She clung to Mordred as the dragon circled the town before finding a place to land on the outskirts of the city center. The buildings in the city were built from stone, but still had the same strange, warped, and twisted appearance as everything else she had seen. Nothing seemed like it had been built in a straight line.

She cringed as the dragon landed with a hardka-thud,the trees near the little town square creaking from the wind from the creature’s wings. But Gwen was more than happy to be on the ground again.

“I will warn you, firefly—visiting the city with me may not go as you had hoped.” Mordred unwrapped his arm from around her waist and dismounted from the saddle. “I am not loved.” He climbed down, landing gracefully on the packed dirt, his paneled cloak pooling around his feet.

She knew he meant that in more ways than one. He meant he wasn’t loved, not just by the villagers—butat all.That twisted a knife in her stomach. She knew he saw in her some kind of hope for companionship.

Damn it.

Damn it all.

Dismounting from the saddle—careful to make sure her skirt didn’t ride uptoofar—she carefully climbed down the side of the dragon. The creature was watching her again with its white, glowing eyes.

“Thanks for the smooth ride.” She smiled up at it. “Tiny.”

It let out aharumphand laid its head down, clearly intending on taking a nap while they went to do their business. The animal took up most of the area between the buildings, and she couldn’t imagine how terrifying it must be for the people who lived there to suddenly have it snoozing out in front of their homes. Especially because it was clear the dragon could nuke the whole place if it wanted to.

“He thinks you are adorable for thanking him for doing what he was ordered to do.” Mordred chuckled.

“It never hurts to be polite. Especially with something that can eat you.” She pulled her own cloak tighter around her shoulders. She wondered if Avalon had been this chilly before the magic of the world had been locked away. She sincerely hoped not.

“That is a very wise point.” He gestured for her to follow him as he walked down the cobblestone street toward what she assumed was the center of town. She fell in step beside him, and tried to take in the details of everything around them.

What she noticed was how…quiet the city was. There was barely anybody else out and about. And those who were took one look at Mordred and either began walking twice as fast or ducked back into their homes and shut the doors.

He hadn’t been kidding.

“Lancelot told me about how you make your armored people.” She frowned. “And the dragon, too, I guess.”

“I suppose he would seek any reason to turn you against me.” Mordred’s expression was fixed into a stern but otherwise unreadable one.

They walked in silence for another long minute. Gwen wrapped her arms around herself under the cloak.

Mordred let out a breath. “Magic leaks and coalesces from the Crystal. I have to keep careful watch, for it often cracks and threatens to shatter. It forms shards that, if left unchecked, combine and could form some manner of terrible amalgam. I opt to put it to better use.”

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