Second Chance with the Dragon King

Chapter Seven

RIGEAN'S POV

Elizabeth was fast asleep in my bed. Outside, the sun had just begun its ascent. The first rays broke through the morning clouds and shone through the window, lighting up her face.

She's beautiful. Absolutely beautiful.

Her hair was the exact shade of the red leaves in the fall and her skin was cream and roses. And those eyes. . . more subtle than emeralds but fierce, captivating even. The kind of eyes that you could drown in.

And she was all mine, as she always had been. My mate.

With that thought, I got up and, after giving her a soft kiss on the cheek, left the room. I was in the kitchen in no time at all, leaning casually against the wall near the door, watching the head cook, Rosa, hum to herself as she gathered ingredients. Her silver hair was up in its usual bun, a freshly washed apron tied around her plump waist. I cleared my throat. Rosa spun, her hand going to her chest.

"Good Goddess! How many times have I told you not to do that?!" she gasped.

I chuckled. "This time makes it at least three hundred."

She threw a pear at me, which I caught and took a bite of. Her eyes rolled heavily behind her glasses. "What do you want, Rígan?"

I brushed off her attitude; after so many centuries, I was used to it. "Don't be sour. I have a surprise for you."

"Oh, goody." She turned back to her task. "The last time you said that, I ended up with that awful Whimper Tree."

I grinned behind her back. "I did apologize for that."

"Yet it's still in my garden attracting all those annoying little. . ." she trailed off, muttering irritably.

"I need you to make a special breakfast. Actually, make it a brunch. Have it delivered to my room around noon."

She turned slowly now. Her grey eyes narrowed in first suspicion, and then disgust as she processed my mood. "So, you finally succumbed to wicked temptation. Ugh. Why am I even surprised?"

I tossed the pear into the garbage across the room. "It's rude to make assumptions."

She placed her hands on her hips. "You're telling me that she is not in your bed right now?"

"That is exactly what I'm telling you."

The suspicion returned threefold. I simply smiled and turned for the door. "I'll introduce you later," I promised on my way out.

"You'd better!" she called after me.

I walked to the great hall alone, my mind on the girl upstairs with every step. As I took my seat at the head of the long table, I replayed the events of last night. It had been all I could do to stop myself from taking Elizabeth, but I wouldn't—couldn't—until she knew the truth. Because she clearly did not know I was her mate, even though her previous bond had been broken. I pondered over this puzzle, running through different theories until the person I was anxious to see walked into the hall.

"I figured you'd be here," Nicholai said.

"Sit. We need to talk." I gestured to the seat on my left. The seat on my right would always now be reserved for Elizabeth.

He pulled out the chair and yawned again. "I take it you want a full report?"

I nodded. "Every detail."

The air stirred. I blinked and nodded at Victor who sat beside Nicholai as if he'd been here the whole time. His red irises were alight this morning.

Nicholai sniffed. "You're up early."

Victor grinned. "How could I not be?" He looked at me. "Is it true? Did you sweep a young girl off her feet and into your private quarters?"

I ignored the question. "How did you find out so fast?"

"By the destraught ravings of poor Alex, of course." He snickered. "I doubt I would have missed it, even without vampiric hearing. She was most unhappy."

I turned back to Nicholai, unbothered by his assessment. "Go ahead."

"There isn't much to tell, actually. I was on my way back— oh, by the way, the Phillip problem is taken care of. Anyways, I was driving back and she jumped out into the road. Then she got in the car and told me to drive. A few wolves followed her scent, but we were already gone by then."

"Why did you bring her here?" Victor asked before I could. He produced his flask from the inside pocket of his jacket and took a swig. The smell of blood hit me, but I'd gotten over it a long time ago.

"I wasn't going to at first," Nicholai admitted. "She told me she rejected her mate, but then she realized she didn't have anywhere to go. I thought I could bring her here for a night and you could help her," he said to me.

"Why did she reject Alpha Cole?" Of course I knew who her mate was. I thought back, trying to remember if I'd ever met Elizabeth before. I was sure I hadn't.

"She told me it was because he took a mistress. But I think she's not telling the whole truth."

"What makes you say that?"

He gave a play-by-play of their conversation. When he got to the part of her failed transformation, my hand balled into a fist on the table. "She tried three times?" I hissed.

Victor's alabaster face was hard. "That's not possible."

"She should be. . .she should have. . ." I couldn't force the word died out.

Nicholai nodded. "I know. I don't think she realizes that."

We three looked at one another in stunned silence. How on earth did she survive three failed transformations? And why would she keep trying? And then, to reject the mate she did that for. . . It defied all reason.

"That might have been the catalyst," Victor murmured. "Going through that. . . just for him to find someone else."

Nicholai shook his head. "I don't think so. There's something else she's not saying. Something big."

"Whatever it is, I'll find out. Enough for now," I said, jerking my chin toward the door. People were filing in now, followed by the maids carrying platters. Behind them all came Allie, who stormed into the room as if she owned it. She found me instantly, her brown eyes sparking with frustration.

"Uh oh," Victor muttered.

Allie strode right up to me. Her audacity was impressive, I had to admit. She stopped a foot away and crossed her arms. "May I speak with you?" she asked quickly.

I met her gaze evenly. "Go ahead."

She rose one brow. "Can we speak alone?"

Best to get it over with, I thought. I rose, but before I could move, Allie turned on her heel and walked away. Anger flared in my stomach. I took off after her, ready to reprimand her for her show of disrespect. I waited until we were halfway down the hall, away from curious ears.

"Who do you think you are?" I demanded.

She swung to face me, her expression incredulous. "Me? How can you say something like that after what you did last night?"

I met her glare with one of my own. "I didn't do anything last night that should offend you."

"Oh, no? Then would you care to explain what I heard through your bedroom door? Because it sounded an awful lot like fucking."