Chapter 15
FIFTEEN
LILA
Morning light poured in through the obsidian-framed windows of Draven’s private chambers and cast golden geometric patterns across the rumpled silk sheets.
Lila’s naked body was wrapped securely in Draven’s powerful arms, her back pressed against his chest as his breath warmed her neck.
The events of the previous night replayed in her mind like a fever dream—Veyra’s venomous words in the library, the guilt gnawing at her over crossing professional boundaries, and Draven’s patient reassurances as he’d convinced her to stay the night.
I’ve never slept with a client before. Never even been tempted.
Yet here she was, skin to skin with Draven, feeling happier than she had in years despite the turmoil churning in her thoughts. The mate bond hummed like a live wire, carrying echoes of his emotions—contentment, protectiveness, and something deeper that made her heart ache.
Last night, before they’d fallen asleep tangled together, she’d pressed him about Veyra. The conversation had revealed disturbing details that now festered in her mind like an infected wound.
Veyra had harbored feelings for Draven since he was a young king.
Recently, she’d escalated her pursuit, pressuring him to mate with her.
Most concerning was the so-called antidote she and Corin had supposedly discovered—a cure for his fire madness that only worked if he mated with another dragon shifter.
Lila had told Draven it sounded suspicious, but he’d brushed off her concerns, saying he was too focused on their relationship and therapy to investigate properly. That dismissive attitude frustrated her more than she cared to admit.
Something’s wrong with that woman. Every instinct I have is screaming warning bells.
The jealousy that coursed through her at the thought of Veyra pursuing Draven was foreign and fierce. She’d never been the possessive type, but the idea of that calculating blonde anywhere near her mate made her want to bare teeth she didn’t have.
My mate. That thought sent a thrill through her even as it terrified her. When did I start thinking of him that way?
Draven stirred behind her, his arms tightening around her waist as his consciousness returned. His lips brushed the sensitive spot behind her ear, sending shivers through her.
“I can feel you overthinking through our bond, you know,” he murmured, his voice husky and impossibly sexy. “You need to just enjoy the moment. Isn’t that what you told me to do?”
She turned in his arms to face him, drinking in the sight of his tousled black hair and golden-brown eyes still heavy with sleep. Even rumpled and drowsy, he looked like a god carved from living stone.
“I’m just worried about Veyra,” she admitted, tracing patterns on his broad chest. “I don’t want you to have to deal with political drama because of me.”
His expression grew fierce, alpha dominance radiating from every line of his body. “You shouldn’t worry about all that. I’ll take care of it.” His deep voice carried the absolute authority of a king who’d never had his word questioned. “I just want you to focus on us and my therapy right now.”
Typical alpha male response—dismiss the problem and expect me to trust him to handle everything.
“Fine,” she said, forcing a smile. But privately, her resolve hardened like steel. Her intuition had kept her alive through her father’s death, her mother’s emotional absence, and years of dealing with traumatized clients. It was screaming at her now, and she wouldn’t ignore it.
If Draven won’t investigate Veyra properly, then I will. Nyra and Jarek might have insights he’s missing.
Draven’s hand cupped her face, his thumb stroking across her cheekbone with devastating gentleness. “What’s that look for?”
“Nothing,” she lied, leaning into his touch. “Just thinking about how surreal this all is.”
His eyes darkened with desire as he pulled her closer, her breasts pressing against the hard planes of his chest. “Surreal in a good way, I hope.”
“Definitely good,” she breathed, her body responding instantly to his proximity despite her racing thoughts.
Turn your brain off, Lila. You can investigate Veyra later. Right now, enjoy this perfect man who makes you feel like a queen.
But even as Draven’s lips claimed hers in a kiss that made her forget where she was, one thought remained crystal clear in her mind. She would protect him from whatever scheme Veyra was orchestrating, even if she had to do it behind his back.
The silk sheets twisted around their naked bodies as he deepened the kiss, his tongue exploring her mouth with a possessive intensity that made her core clench with need.
God, the way this man kisses should be illegal, Lila thought, her body melting against his muscular chest as heat pooled between her thighs.
Suddenly, the wooden doors to Draven’s private chambers burst open with a loud bang, causing them both to spring apart like guilty teenagers caught by their parents.
“Draven, I—” Jarek stopped dead in the doorway, his green eyes widening as he took in the scene before him. “Oh, hell. Sorry, I didn’t think you had company.”
Lila grabbed the silk sheet and yanked it up to cover her breasts, her cheeks burning with embarrassment.
Of all the moments for an interruption.
Draven’s expression darkened with alpha irritation as he sat up, the sheet pooling around his waist and leaving his broad chest gloriously exposed. “Jarek, what’s the first rule of entering someone’s private chambers?”
“Knock first,” Jarek said sheepishly, though his mouth twitched with barely suppressed amusement. “But this is important. The Queen didn’t come down for breakfast, and that’s not like her.”
The irritation in Draven’s eyes shifted to concern. “She probably just slept in. She had quite a bit of wine at dinner last night.”
“Maybe, but I thought you should check on her,” Jarek said, his tone growing more serious. “She’s never missed breakfast without sending word.”
Lila felt a flutter of unease in her stomach. Queen Serenya had seemed perfectly fine the night before—gracious, welcoming, even giving her blessing to their relationship.
But people can have medical emergencies without warning.
“I’ll go with you,” she offered, already mentally shifting into her professional mode. “If she’s not feeling well, I might be able to help.”
Draven nodded, his kingly authority taking precedence over their intimate moment. “Alright. And Jarek, next time knock before barging into my chambers.”
“Duly noted,” Jarek said with a grin before disappearing back down the corridor.
Five minutes later, Lila walked beside Draven through the castle’s ornate corridors, her yellow sundress from the previous day wrinkled but decent. She’d hoped the Queen wouldn’t notice she was wearing the same clothes.
Please let this just be a late morning. Please let her be fine.
They reached the Queen’s private chambers, and Draven knocked gently on the carved obsidian doors. “Mother?”
Silence.
He tried the handle and found it unlocked, pushing the doors open to reveal a spacious suite decorated in rich burgundy and gold. The late morning light filtered through heavy curtains, casting long shadows across the room.
Queen Serenya lay still in her massive four-poster bed, her hair spread across the silk pillowcase. She looked peaceful, as if she were simply enjoying a late sleep.
“Mother,” Draven called softly as he approached the bed. He reached out and gently shook her shoulder. “Mother, it’s—”
His hand jerked back as if burned, his face draining of all color. “She’s... she’s not breathing.”
The words hit Lila like a punch to the gut.
She rushed to the bed, her emergency medical training kicking in as she pressed her fingers to the Queen’s neck, searching for a pulse she already knew wouldn’t be there.
The skin was cool to the touch, with the waxy pallor that meant death had come hours ago.
“No, no, no,” Draven whispered, his breathing becoming rapid and shallow. “This can’t be happening. She was fine yesterday. She was laughing at dinner. She was—”
Lila’s shouting for Jarek pierced the air, desperate cries that carried down the corridors. She needed Jarek here now, before Draven’s panic attack spiraled completely out of control.
Draven collapsed onto the chair beside the bed, his powerful frame shaking as his breathing became erratic gasps. “I can’t... I can’t breathe. This isn’t real. This isn’t happening.”
The sound of running footsteps echoed in the corridor, and Jarek burst into the room moments later. His gaze swept the scene—Lila kneeling beside the bed, Draven hyperventilating in the chair, and the Queen’s still form.
“The Queen is dead,” Jarek said quietly, his voice heavy with grief and disbelief.
“Draven, look at me,” Lila commanded, dropping to her knees in front of him and grasping his face between her hands. “Focus on my voice. Breathe with me. In for four counts, hold for four, out for four.”
But he was too far gone, lost in the grip of panic and grief. “This can’t be happening. I should have been here. I was thinking about you, and you got me distracted, instead of protecting her, and now she’s—”
The word ‘distracted’ hit Lila like a slap, even though she knew trauma could make people lash out at those closest to them.
He doesn’t mean it. He’s in shock.
“Draven, your mother’s death is not your fault,” she said firmly, maintaining eye contact as she continued the breathing exercises. “Sometimes these things happen without warning. Sometimes there’s nothing anyone can do.”
Jarek called for the castle healer on his communicator while keeping a watchful eye on Draven’s condition. “The healer’s on her way, though I suspect it’s too late for medical intervention.”
After what felt like an eternity but was probably only ten minutes, Lila finally managed to get Draven’s breathing under control. His golden eyes were red-rimmed with unshed tears as he slumped in the chair.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do now,” he whispered. “I just don’t understand what happened to her.”
“She probably had a heart attack in her sleep,” Jarek said gently. “It happens, even to people who seem healthy.”
The castle healer, an elderly woman with kind eyes and gentle hands, arrived and confirmed what they already knew.
“Based on her condition, I’d estimate she passed around two in the morning.
It appears to be cardiac arrest. Sometimes the heart simply stops, even in those who seem perfectly healthy. ”
Draven’s expression grew dark and troubled. “Something feels off about this. My mother was in excellent health. And this... this feels like the same weird energy I felt when my father died mysteriously.”
Lila’s blood ran cold at his words. The timing was too convenient—Veyra’s anger the night before, her presence in the castle, and now this sudden death of the one person closest to Draven.
Could Veyra really be capable of something this horrible? Of murdering the Queen?
The thought seemed too monstrous to contemplate, but Lila’s intuition was screaming.
After the healer and Jarek carefully removed Queen Serenya’s body, leaving them alone in the empty chambers, Draven stood abruptly.
“I need to get out of this castle,” he said, his voice rough with barely controlled emotion. “I’m taking you to my cabin. I can’t think clearly here.”
Lila wanted to suggest he stay close to his support system and the council, but the raw pain in his eyes made her reconsider. Sometimes healing required distance from the scene of trauma.
“If that’s what you need,” she said softly, “then that’s what we’ll do.”
As they prepared to leave, one thought kept echoing in her mind.
I’m going to find out what happened to Queen Serenya, even if it means investigating Veyra myself.