Chapter 19
Chapter Nineteen
VIZARIOS
Ihave a plan to convince my wife to fall in love with me.
The next morning, I stalk to my office with Ragnakor in tow, full of purpose. Syzari is already there eating breakfast. She works nearly as much as I do.
“Your Majesty,” she says, standing up in surprise when I come in so early.
“Sit down, sit down.”
Ragnakor takes his position outside the door, but he’s listening with interest. Syzari obediently sits, and I plant myself across from her.
“I need to send a pigeon,” I tell her. “To the human kingdom.”
“What?” She leans forward suspiciously. “What for?”
“The queen had a handmaid.” I try to be as patient as I can, even though I am impatient already to launch my idea. “A woman named Ari. I want her sent here as soon as possible.”
Perhaps this is something I can do to endear Nissia to me. I know I have little in the way of charms, so I have to make up ground where I can.
Syzari stares at me as if my scales have changed color in front of her.
“So you would like me to write a letter to the human king,” Syzari says slowly, “requesting the queen’s handmaid come to Selvumrrest.”
“Did you not hear me the first time?”
A disbelieving laugh escapes her. “No, I did. I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t losing my mind.” She gets up. “I’ll go take care of it right now, Your Majesty.”
I wave her off, and she has a smile I don’t like as she departs the room. It will be some weeks yet before the requested handmaid gets here, and I don’t know if I can last that long, but I will try.
Nissia is clearly shocked when I come to eat dinner at the same time she does, dressed in something more casual.
My cock responds immediately to seeing her.
Her brown puppy is friendlier with me, bounding up and licking my hand with its filthy mouth.
She doesn’t seem to mind it at all, though, picking up the creature and nosing its little wet snout.
“Who’s a good girl?” she says to the dog before setting it on the ground to eat its own dinner. “You’re a good girl!”
“You ought to start training it,” I say as Ragnakor stands guard. “Teach it good manners from the beginning.”
“Aw.” She pets the dog’s head. “But Daina’s just a baby. She doesn’t need training yet.”
“Dogs need training from the very first moment.”
She cocks her head at me. “How do you know so much about dogs?”
“My mother had many of them. She liked dogs very much.”
It hurts to remember how happy she looked whenever she was with them, her trail of hounds following her around the castle.
She was not a hunter, like Nissia, but she kept them for their companionship.
Mother began training them from the first day, teaching them how to answer to a treat so they would be primed later in life to follow her commands.
Nissia lets out a thoughtful hum and sets the puppy on the floor as a servant arrives with our meal.
“And how was your sparring last night?” I ask, trying my best to appear interested. I suppose it does interest me to a degree that she enjoys sword fighting. Perhaps I should take up Ragnakor’s invitation sometime to watch.
Her brows arch high on her forehead. “Oh, um. It was good. Right, Captain?” She turns to Ragnakor, and he ducks his head to agree. “I got him on the ropes a few times.”
I glance at the captain, surprised by this. He’s one of the best fighters in the kingdom. It’s one of the reasons I chose him to be my personal guard.
“Indeed,” Ragnakor says, reluctant to interrupt our dinner. “The queen is agile on her feet and thinks quickly. I have to stay on my toes when we are in the training yard.”
And then, he smiles. It’s small, just at the edges of his mouth, but it happens the moment his eyes connect with hers.
I’m flabbergasted as Nissia quickly turns her head back to me. “See, I’m not totally useless.”
“I see you are not.”
She leans forward on the table, propping her chin up on one elbow. “Do you still think it isn’t right for queens to sword fight?”
I bite my lip. She is goading me into acknowledging my former slight against her. I sigh, knowing what I need to do in order to stay in her good graces.
“I apologize,” I say, the words feeling like barbs as they emerge from my throat. “I was just trying to discourage you.”
A surprising smile crosses her face. “Oh, I know. You failed, though.” Her laugh is bright, and then she goes back to eating, patting her dog on the head whenever it whines for some of her food.
“It will learn to beg if you do that,” I say. “Dogs ought to go lie down away from us during mealtimes.”
She raises her eyes to mine, and they are surprisingly fiery. “Oh?”
“It keeps them out from under the servants’ feet, and then you don’t risk them trying to take your food out on the road.”
Nissia ponders this for a moment, then rises. “Come on, Daina,” she calls to the puppy, who already seems to know its name and runs after her. She gestures to the floor and then sets down the dog’s dish of dinner there.
“Happy?” she asks me as she resumes her seat.
I smirk. I didn’t think she’d listen to me.
“It teaches healthy respect. My mother always said a dog should not be underfoot trying to take your meal.”
The queen nods agreeably. “I can see the wisdom in that. Your mother was smart.”
“She was.”
“Mine was, too,” she says, setting her fork aside. “It always felt like she knew the answer to everything. Much smarter than my father. I think she secretly ran the kingdom behind his back.”
This amuses me, given what I saw and heard of her father in the short time I was there.
“And she was a woman of the people,” Nissia goes on, examining her nearly empty plate. “More than he is. She understood what they needed. She always made sure I knew, too.”
This reminds me of my own mother, who always seemed to have her hand on the people’s pulse.
“That is the only way to be a good ruler,” I say. “If you are too detached, too high up in your tower, someday they will overthrow you.”
It appears I’ve managed to surprise the queen.
“You don’t seem to be one to mingle with the common people,” she says, arching a brow.
“Not necessary. You just have to listen and surround yourself with the right conduits.”
“Hmm.” She looks thoughtful as she rises to her feet. “Lovely spending time with you today, husband.” She says it with a twitch of her lip. “I must go to bed. I hope to see you tomorrow.”
I get to my feet, too, opening my mouth to beg for her to take pity on me and lie with me—but I know that won’t help my cause, so instead I duck my head once.
“Goodnight, wife.”
For a moment, her eyes get bigger, and a faint, hopeful smile teases her mouth. But then she seems to recover her senses and calls her puppy to her side before departing the room.
I watch her go, wondering what I missed.
NISSIA
Vizarios is only doing it to get under my skirts. Or robe, as it were, in dragon fashion. He has only been kind to me, only listened to me and made conversation with me, because some part of his natural biology requires it—and because he needs an heir.
It is not because he likes me. Though I am ashamed to say I hope it is because he likes me.
I remember how it was there on the pedestal during the ceremony. How those reptilian eyes had bored into my soul while he was inside me. I’ll never forget that, and it’s hard to be better than my base urges. This is a dragon who has treated me like dirt on his shoe from the first moment.
Still, I think of those eyes, the way his body moved, how he claimed me, and my skin buzzes all over.
After Zephala has tied on my bonnet and then left for the night, I pull up my shift and find my way down between my thighs, where that buzzing is at its most powerful.
It doesn’t take much to wind me up as I recall how wonderful Vizarios felt, how perfectly he fit, how impossible my climax had been.
And then... that image is joined by the vision of Ragnakor on top of him, grunting as he took Vizarios roughly, sharp teeth bared.
My hand speeds up, and soon I’m writhing and shaking, almost too erratic to finish myself off.
I manage to crest, but it’s only a fraction of the bliss I felt during the ceremony.
I wonder what would happen if I gave in, if I let Vizarios into my bed. Would it be so bad?
Furiously shaking my head, I curl up under the blankets. No, he will have to show me that he truly cares about me, that I’m more to him than just my value as a bed partner. I need to know he feels some of what I feel before I cut off even a small piece of my heart for him.
My thoughts stray to Ragnakor. Someone like him... he would be safe for me. I know I’d be able to trust him. He would never lie to me or discard me when I wasn’t useful anymore.
But he’s not mine. He loves Vizarios the way I wish someone loved me.
I bury my face in my pillow, and it takes ages to fall asleep.
The following day, Vizarios is busy all day with work, leaving Daina and I to fend for ourselves.
“What will you do today, Your Majesty?” Quillion asks as I emerge from my quarters that morning.
“I want to teach Daina to be a hunting dog.”
“Hmm.” He nods agreeably. “The stablehands might be of help.”
I’m grateful for the tip. Together we head to the stable, where I find the dragon who had given me the puppy once upon a time, and ask him what he knows about training dogs. He offers to assist me, and I happily accept.
By that afternoon, my new dog is eating out of my hand, following as many commands as her little mind can handle. She gets distracted easily, which is adorable, but she tries her hardest.
I’m crouched down, getting her to sit on her back haunches, when I hear a voice over my shoulder.
“I see you took my advice.”
I get to my feet to find Vizarios in a long gold robe that makes his greenish blue scales glimmer. He stops in front of me, Ragnakor standing a few paces behind him.
“It was sound advice,” I admit. “Start early. She learned a lot so quickly.”
“Dogs are smart.” His voice deepens, and he takes a step closer. “You were wise in getting one. She will make a good companion.”
He’s talking about my dog, but the look in his eyes says something profoundly different.
“I think so, too. She wants to be a good dog. Don’t you, Daina?” I pick her up, kissing the top of her head.
Vizarios’s brows jump. “You’re treating it like a baby.”
“And why not? She’s as cute as a button, and so small still.”
I think perhaps he’s going to dress me down for how I’m treating my dog, but instead, he smiles.
“You will make a good mother.”
I freeze where I hold the dog. Ever since I was a girl, I’ve known that having children was in my future, as it is in the future of all royal women capable of it. I knew when I married Vizarios that would mean having his children.
But somehow, in that one sentence, everything shifted direction. His eyes are softer than before, that usual spark of obstinance muted.
Reflexively, I hold out the dog, offering her to him. She wriggles a little, and Vizarios stares at her.
“Hold her,” I say, a surprising amount of command in my voice.
Obediently, he takes the puppy, drawing her to his chest. She licks his arm, her little tail wagging as he pets her head. He lowers his snout, brushing just the tip of it over her soft fur.
So he does have a tenderness in him.
“You could make a good father,” I say thoughtfully. “But I’m not convinced.”
His gaze snaps up to mine. “You doubt me?”
Ragnakor tenses, like he’s ready for an argument to break out. But I say nothing, simply watching Vizarios with the puppy in his arms. He plays with her a moment longer before setting her down on the floor. He looks more... relaxed now, I think.
“To be a good parent, one has to be open with their love,” I say as Daina runs back over to me.
Vizarios furrows his brow. We both know what I’m talking about, and I’m curious as to how he’ll respond today.
“I...” he begins, but then his mouth seems to struggle to form words. After a moment, he sighs and dips his head. “A fair criticism.”
He didn’t argue with me or try to puff himself up.
“But I can learn,” Vizarios goes on. “I am also trainable.”
I gawk at him, and the very edge of his mouth turns upward.
“I would like to come watch you tonight,” he continues. “Your training with the captain.”
“Watch us?” I’m so surprised by this turn of events that I sound like a parrot. I glance at Ragnakor for confirmation, and he dips his head.
Vizarios nods. “I’ll see you both after dinner.”
With that, he moves on to his next task, golden robe swishing across the floor while Ragnakor trails after him. I stare at his back until he disappears around a corner, wondering which dragon has taken his skin.