Chapter 19 Raoul
CHAPTER NINETEEN
RAOUL
Iwoke to find Adele stroking my chest, her finger following the lines of muscle with an expression of deep concentration that made me smile.
“Studying dragon shifter anatomy?” I asked, my voice rough with sleep.
She looked up, startled, and smiled. “Maybe. You’re very symmetrical.”
“Is that your professional assessment?”
“Extremely professional.” Her hand splayed across the area above my heart. “Accelerated heartbeat. Elevated body temperature. Increased respiratory rate.”
“All very scientific observations.”
“Mmm. I wonder what conclusions I could draw from this information.” She kissed my chest, right above where her hand rested. “Though I should probably conduct more tests. For thoroughness.”
I laughed and rolled us, pinning her beneath me. “I love how your mind works.”
“Do you?” Her eyes searched mine, vulnerability flickering there.
“Every brilliant, scattered, impossibly sexy bit of it.” I kissed her. When I pulled back, her cheeks were flushed, her lips swollen. “Though we should probably get moving. Long flight ahead.”
She groaned. “Can’t we stay here forever?”
“Tempting. But babies are counting on you.”
She sighed. “You’re right.”
We dressed quickly, packed our few belongings, and shared the last of our provisions. After I’d packed the bed, returning things to the trunk, I stepped outside, shifted, and she climbed onto my back.
The flight to Emberforge took most of the day. I kept expecting Adele to fall asleep like she had before, but she stayed alert, her mind churning through problems I could feel through our connection.
I keep thinking about ice, she said several hours into the flight. But I don’t know why.
Ice as in frozen water?
Maybe. Or ice formations? Glaciers? A sigh rippled through her. It’s like trying to remember a dream. The harder I reach for it, the faster it slips away.
It’ll come to you. Don’t try to force it.
We don’t have time.
I know, sweet.
We approached Emberforge’s territory, and I took in the volcanic peaks, the lush valleys, and the palace carved into the mountainside.
Home.
Except now it felt different. Because Adele would be there with me, and that had changed the place I’d lived my entire life into a place I craved to be.
I landed in the main courtyard as the sun was setting. The moment Adele slid off my back, I shifted. A familiar yelping bark echoed across the stone. Fletcher came barreling toward us, his short legs pumping, his long ears flying behind him. He threw himself at Adele, nearly knocking her over.
“I missed you too,” Adele laughed, crouching to put him down and rub his ears. “Yes, I know. I’ve been gone too long. No, I didn’t forget about you.”
Fletcher transferred his attention to me, circling my legs, making grumbling sounds.
“He says it appears you’ve taken good care of his girl,” Adele said, grinning.
“I took excellent care of her,” I said. “She ate regularly, slept when forced, and only almost fell off a cliff once.”
Fletcher’s head whipped toward Adele, his jowls quivering.
“I didn’t almost fall,” Adele said. “Raoul’s exaggerating. I was perfectly safe the entire time.”
The hound gave me a look that suggested he didn’t believe either of us, and trotted back toward the palace entrance, his tail held high.
“He’s very dramatic,” I said.
“He’s protective.” But Adele was smiling as we followed Fletcher inside.
Demi intercepted us in the main corridor, her expression harried. “There you are. Things have been wild here.”
“We haven’t been gone that long,” I said. “What happened?”
“Everything.” She thrust a scroll my way.
“The Summit is in six days. Six days, Raoul. And we’re not ready.
The seating arrangements are a nightmare because Silvervale and Goldwing are both insisting on positions of prominence, and if we put them near each other, they’ll probably start fighting.
The entertainment committee is threatening to quit because nobody can agree on the performances.
And don’t even get me started on the menu. ”
I opened and scanned the scroll. “This doesn’t look bad.”
“That’s just day one.” Demi handed me another scroll. “This is day two. And this is day three. And—”
“I get it.” I held up a hand. “It’s complicated.”
“Complicated doesn’t begin to cover it.” She turned to Adele. “Please tell me you solved the baby mystery. Because that’s the only thing that might prevent Silvervale and Goldwing from using the Summit as an excuse to start a war.”
Adele’s expression tightened. “Not yet. But I’m close. I think.”
“You think?”
She frowned. “I read something in the archives, but I can’t remember what. I need to go back through the records, cross-reference with geographic surveys—”
“The archives are still where you left them,” I said. “Go. I’ll handle the Summit preparations with Demi.”
Adele looked between us. “Are you sure? I should probably help—”
“Your expertise is weather and atmospheric phenomena, not diplomatic seating arrangements.” I squeezed her hand. “Go find your answer. We’ll manage this.”
She kissed my cheek, grabbed Fletcher, and hurried off toward the archives.
Demi watched her go before turning to me with a knowing smile. “Things went well on your trip.”
“We investigated two courts and collected extensive data.”
“Uh-huh. And?”
“And what?”
“And you’re looking at her like she’s your everything.” Demi’s smile widened. “Don’t think I haven’t noticed the way you two are around each other now compared to when you left. It’s different.”
“We’re partners. Of course we’re comfortable together.”
She snorted. “Right. Is that what we’re calling it?”
“Demi—”
“I’m happy for you.” Her expression softened. “Genuinely. I haven’t seen you this content in years. Maybe ever.”
She was right. I felt more myself than I had since our parents died. Maybe since before that.
And I wasn’t even worried about losing her. Funny how finding the right one could make all the difference.
“She’s amazing,” I said.
“She is. And she clearly adores you.” Demi bumped my shoulder with hers. “Let’s go to the council chamber. We have a Summit to prepare for, and I need your authority to override some terrible decisions the planning committee made.”
The next several hours were a blur. As we ate a meal I had brought to the chamber, resolving the seating arrangement by creating a round table configuration where no position was more prominent than another.
We addressed the entertainment concerns by having each court contribute one performance.
And simplified the menu to accommodate different dietary preferences and cultural traditions.
By the time we’d finished, it was well past midnight.
Demi had gone to bed hours ago, but I’d stayed, working through the last of the preparations because sitting still meant thinking about Adele alone in the archives, and thinking about her meant wanting to be near her.
Regular reports had told me she was still working there.
I finally gave in and made my way to that level.
The door stood ajar, light spilling into the corridor. I pushed it open.
Adele sat at the main research table, surrounded by a fortress of open books and scattered papers. Her head rested on her folded arms, her breathing deep and even. Asleep after hours of relentless searching.
Fletcher lifted his head from where he’d been sleeping beside her chair, gave me a look that suggested I was late, then got up and plodded across the room.
I approached her, keeping my footsteps light. She’d pulled the volumes we’d gone through together and seemed to have focused on geological surveys, historical records, and agricultural reports. Notes covered pages of paper, her handwriting neat even as exhaustion set in.
I gathered the papers carefully, stacking them without disturbing their order. Then I lifted her into my arms, cradling her against my chest.
She stirred, mumbling.
“Shh,” I whispered. “Just taking you to bed, sweet.”
“Ice,” she said, her head lolling against my shoulder. “Sublimation. The peaks… Ice sublimation…”
Even in sleep, her brilliant mind was working on the problem.
I carried her through the silent corridors to our rooms, Fletcher padding along behind us. She didn’t wake as I laid her on the bed, removed her shoes, tunic, and pants, and pulled the blankets over her.
But her words echoed in my mind. Ice sublimation.
I went to the sitting room, grabbed paper, and wrote down exactly what she’d said. I placed the note on her nightstand so she’d see it first thing in the morning.
Maybe it was nothing, but she may have forgotten what she was thinking about by morning.
I stripped down and slid into bed beside her. She immediately curled into me, seeking warmth, and I wrapped my arms around her, holding her close.
“You’re going to solve this,” I whispered into her hair. “I know you will.”
She made a soft sound, settling deeper into my embrace.
I lay awake for a long time, holding my sleeping wife, thinking about ice sublimation and baby dragons and how much I’d come to care for this woman.
She’d crashed into my carefully ordered life like a thunderstorm, and I wouldn’t change a single moment of the uproar she’d brought with her.
Tomorrow, we’d save those babies and prevent a war. But tonight, I held her, grateful that she was mine.
Even if the future was uncertain and much too complicated.