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Dear Princess …

No, Mia scratched the words out, then set the fine paper aside. She didn’t want to waste it, but her friend had told her to stop calling her princess. It was very hard, however, especially since she was currently in the opulent sitting room in the Nova Castle that Stella’s family owned.

Or one of the castles. But this was the main one and gorgeous didn’t even begin to cover it. There were stained-glass windows everywhere depicting dragons in various states of battle. Sometimes they were simply flying, but for the most part the scenes were full of carnage.

Years ago, when supernaturals had come out to the world in what became known as The Fall, Mia hadn’t been surprised. She was from New Orleans after all, and had known about some of the things that went bump in the night already.

Not dragons though.

That had been a whole new discovery.

Then new non-human realms had opened themselves up to certain human territories, including the Nova realm, run by a fierce matriarchal line of dragons.

And Mia had been lucky enough to be invited to live here as long as she wanted because of her artistic talent. She couldn’t see herself ever wanting to leave, even if this place was ridiculously cold. Even their spring and summers were chilly.

Which was why she was sitting near a roaring fireplace that was three times her size at least, curled up with hot tea as she waited for Starlena, who had asked her to meet at the castle.

Since she had time to kill, she’d decided to write a letter to Stella, the reason Mia was here at all.

Dear Stella,

I received your last letter and couldn’t help but laugh at Christian’s antics.

I’m so happy that you and Rhodes are settling in and that you’re keeping Christian company.

He shouldn’t be in that big house by himself anyway.

It sounds as if the city has welcomed you with open arms. And I must confess I miss New Orleans every time I read one of your letters.

But not enough to return just yet (maybe ever).

There’s so much to explore in your realm and I feel as if it will take a hundred years to even scrape the surface.

The artists’ enclave has welcomed me to the point where they all feel like family.

And I know you were worried about the way dragons would react to having humans in the realm, but no one has made me feel othered because I’m human .

Mia paused in her writing, her face growing hot. Then she continued.

Well, no one except a giant jerk named Tiber.

I know I shouldn’t care, but I guess after having known so many supernaturals who have been so welcoming, it just jarred me to hear him saying horrible things about humans.

One bad apple out of the hundreds of dragons I’ve come in contact with isn’t terrible, so I hope that sets your mind at ease.

Mia wondered if she should have mentioned the annoyingly good-looking Tiber at all, but whatever, she needed to vent.

And she and Stella had developed a genuine relationship where they filled each other in on the comings and goings of their respective territories.

She loved hearing about everyone back home and Stella had told her she enjoyed the same.

So Mia filled her in with the little tidbits she’d heard around the castle, including new matings, new births, and what Starlena, Soleil and Juniper were up to. Stella’s grandmother, mother and sister, respectively. Three royal dragons who were terrifying but also wonderful.

Once she was done, she sealed her letter and set it in her bag. At first it had been a novelty to send handwritten letters, but she could admit that she loved it now.

Just as she stretched her legs out, Valentina, the right-hand woman to Queen Soleil strode in wearing a long, dark-blue tunic and matching pants.

Along both hems were intricate silvery embroidery that shimmered against the firelight and sunlight streaming in from some of the high windows.

Her long dark hair was pulled up in a complicated coil on top of her head and she had two blades strapped to her thighs.

She might be a badass warrior, but her smile was warm.

“Mia, I hope you didn’t mind the wait.”

“Not at all,” she said as she stood, smothering a yawn. “I took the time to write a letter.”

“I can post it for you if you’d like.”

“Oh, no, I couldn’t bother you.” Mia knew how busy Valentina was. Mailing letters couldn’t possibly be on her list of things to do.

The other woman simply held out her hand. “You are one of the few people in this castle who isn’t a bother to me. I would be happy to.”

She laughed lightly and reached into her bag. “Well, okay then. I can’t say no to that.”

“Are you excited about the auction?” Valentina asked as they headed down the long stone corridor lined with gorgeous art and more stained-glass windows.

“Ah, yes.” Mostly. She got a little overwhelmed in large crowds and this coming week, starting tonight, was five full days of art festivities, including an auction of sorts. Which would feature her newest paintings. Putting her work on display for a bunch of strangers was terrifying.

“Don’t be nervous. Queen Soleil allowed some of your work to be shown early and most of the castle patrons are foaming at the mouth to buy all the paintings they’ve seen so far. If they have their way you’ll never leave our realm,” she said on a laugh.

Mia laughed with her but couldn’t squash the tension in her stomach. She really, really hated crowds and making small talk. She just wanted to paint, to create.

Not talk to a bunch of strangers. No matter how nice they were. She was good one on one, enjoyed it even. It was just that when there were more than ten people, the noise tended to make it hard for her to focus on what people were saying.

But that was the price of being allowed to live here.

Or that was what she told herself. She thought that if she let Starlena know how she felt she could probably miss some of the “festivities” but she didn’t want to rock the boat.

Not when things were going so well and she was staying here as a guest.

Valentina finally stopped in front of a doorway and knocked once before pushing it open. “Starlena will show you the way out once you’re done.” She patted Mia’s arm gently before heading back down the corridor and disappearing from sight.

“Come in, come in. And she’s right. I’ll make sure you don’t get lost this time.”

Mia found herself flushing in embarrassment even though it was true. And she knew it was the reason Valentina had escorted her to Starlena’s office—because she’d gotten lost the last three times. “This place is a maze,” she murmured.

“True enough.” Starlena was tall in the way most dragons were, with grayish-silver hair, pale blue eyes that occasionally flashed silver, and possessed a deep magic that even Mia could feel.

Mia had heard rumors about the female, that she possessed a power that could control some supernaturals, force them to speak the truth, that her magic could pull beings back from Hell portals.

Considering Mia had seen the dragon release magical glowing chains from her wrists while in human form, she believed everything she’d heard about the ancient female.

“Is everything okay for tonight?” she asked, unable to stop the nerves spreading through her.

And why wouldn’t she be nervous? Starlena was the mother of the queen, had been leader herself centuries ago, and now governed an elite guard of assassins who lived in the shadows.

As far as Mia knew, she’d never met any of them.

Except Tiber, and he didn’t count. Because he sucked.

“Oh yes, of course. I’ve never seen some of our patrons so excited.” She motioned to a plush-looking sofa that was large enough to hold three dragons in human form. “Sit, sit,” she said as she bustled around the militantly neat office, opening the doors to a large armoire.

Smiling, Starlena pulled out a long, elegant green gown with glittering embroidery along the deep V between the breasts and along the hem. She held it up and looked at Mia expectantly. “What do you think?”

Mia was surprised the warrior was asking her at all. She figured the woman had people for this, but she nodded. “It’s a beautiful dress. Stunning. You’ll definitely slay in it.” To be fair, Mia was pretty sure the woman would kill in anything she wore.

Starlena blinked. “It’s for you.”

Now Mia was the one to blink and once again she felt her cheeks flushing.

She hated feeling like a charity case. Though her brain absolutely knew that this wasn’t what this gift was about.

But it brought up old insecurities. “It’s lovely, beyond so, but I have a dress.

” One of her artist friends had created an equally stunning gown for her.

“I know, but Soleil has decided that since you are representing the crown, you should match.” She motioned to the embroidery of silvery dragons.

“We have invited some outsiders to this week’s festivities and none of them are human.

It’s simply a sort of… precaution to let everyone know that you are considered one of us. ”

“Oh… is there a threat?”

“Not at all, but my daughter and granddaughter adore you. As do I. It’s just a precaution, that’s all.” She shrugged. “We look out for our own.”

Warmth spread throughout her middle as she grinned at the ancient woman. “That’s the kindest thing you’ve ever said to me. Thank you for this gift. I will wear it with pride.”

Now Starlena looked uncomfortable and cleared her throat. “Yes, well. I won’t keep you long—”

They both paused as her door flung open and in stomped Tiber.

And for just a moment, Mia’s heart skipped a beat at the sight of him. But come on, she was an artist, she was simply enjoying his form. For purposes of art only .

The male was six-five at least and looked as if he’d been carved from marble, though nothing about him was cold.

His skin held a light bronze hue and there was just so much of it on display since he was only wearing loose pants and no tunic.

Nope, he simply had some sort of leather satchel thing over his incredibly sculpted chest.

And he was staring at her, his amber eyes wide. “Oh, I did not realize you had company.” His tone was overly formal and stilted.

And since he was close to Starlena, she would never be anything but ridiculously polite to the male.

“It’s no interruption.” She turned back to Starlena and gave her a real smile.

“Thank you again for the gift. I’ll just see my way out,” she said as she plucked the dress from the outside of the armoire.

And she only cursed a little that she had to go up on tiptoe to grab it. Why was all their furniture so big? Gah.

“If you don’t mind, Tiber will show you out?” Starlena said. “I didn’t realize he was stopping by and he’s going to make himself useful for the interruption.”

Tiber simply stared hard at Starlena, but nodded.

Of course, he didn’t want to walk her out or be anywhere near her. Mia got it, he hated humans. They were weak and beneath him. Weak and pathetic, he’d once said. “I’m fine, I promise.”

“Mia.” Starlena lifted an eyebrow.

Okay, so she wasn’t fine. She had the world’s worst sense of direction.

It wasn’t just embarrassing, it was a bit debilitating.

In fact, it was how she’d overheard a hurtful conversation between Tiber and one of his friends.

Months ago, she’d been lost and had ended up in some random training center instead of the art studio she’d been looking for and had overheard his hurtful words.

He already knew how terrible she was with directions. It was probably one of the things he held against her. She was (gasp) human and had no sense of direction. Ugh. Whatever. Screw him.

She pasted on a pleasant smile and turned to the intimidating and far too attractive male. “If you could walk me to the main waiting room, I’ll be good from there.” Probably. This place really was a labyrinth of corridors and rooms, and everything was just so damn big.

He nodded politely and took the dress from her, holding it up off the ground so the hem wouldn’t drag.

“Thank you,” she murmured.

And then he proceeded to not say one. Single. Word. For the entire walk out to the courtyard, he didn’t utter one.

Though she was grateful he’d walked her to the courtyard because she’d been planning to head in the wrong direction once they passed the room Valentina had picked her up from. Not that she’d ever tell him that.

“Thank you,” she said again once they were outside in the waning sunlight.

“Are you good from here?” he growled.

Her cheeks flushed hot from embarrassment—and a little anger. Okay, a lot of anger. Even if it was a fair question. She simply didn’t like the way he asked, made her feel less than. He might have a poor view of humans in general, but she’d done nothing to him.

“Yes,” she gritted out. Luckily, the walk from the castle to the artists’ enclave was a very easy one. She couldn’t get lost if she tried.

He grunted again and disappeared back into the castle.

“Good riddance,” she muttered, before tucking the gorgeous dress up and under her arms. She had more important things to deal with—like preparing for tonight’s party and trying to get her anxiety under control until then.

She wasn’t going to waste another thought on the big dragon with amber eyes who despised her.