Page 20

Chapter twenty

Beatrice

Beatrice came down the stairs and made her way to Alexander's study. He was waiting for her at his desk, a frown on his face as he stared at the papers in front of him. They didn't have much time left, and she could tell the waiting was wearing on him. If only she could promise that it would be okay.

She sighed and made her way to him. “Hello,” she said when he didn’t seem to see her, completely lost in thought. “Are you ready for dinner?”

He looked up at her, and his eyes brightened for a moment. “Hello,” he said, running his fingers through his hair. “I would love to go to dinner with you. I need to get away from this for a minute.”

Beatrice smiled sympathetically and offered her hand as Alexander came around the side of his desk. She wasn’t sure if he would take it, but she thought maybe he could use the comfort. He stared at her hand for a moment before accepting it, his fingers twining through hers.

“I trust you had a good day,” he asked, “aside from the part where you tried to poison me?”

Beatrice giggled. “We weren’t trying to poison you,” she said. “I’m sorry that Guinevere is new at the illegal magic she practiced to try to break your curse, but really, she did the best she could.”

“I should be grateful that her best didn’t actually poison or maim me, I suppose,” Alexander said sarcastically.

Beatrice nodded in approval. “Exactly. It could have been so much worse.”

She chuckled at the look Alexander sent her way. “It’s true,” she protested. “You could have died.”

“Don’t remind me,” he said. “I’m never going to listen to you again.” But his fingers squeezed hers.

“I found something else interesting in that book,” Beatrice said. “I thought you might want to know about it.”

Alexander raised an eyebrow and waited.

“It seems that sorcerers can siphon power from dragon eggs,” she said. “The dragon retains more of the egg’s power as it grows, so there’s less for the sorcerer to use. And when the dragon is full-grown and ready to hatch, there’s no magic left for the sorcerer. So Rose’s theory that the sorcerer left her here is very plausible,” she continued. “If he couldn’t draw any more magic from her egg, he might have just discarded it.”

“Why would he throw it away?” Alexander asked.

“The only thing that makes sense to me,” Beatrice said, “is if he didn’t know the dragon inside survives the process. If he assumed it killed the dragon, then I can see why he would discard the egg and move on. He probably found another egg somewhere.”

Alexander frowned as they entered the dining room. “Where would he get more eggs?”

“My research indicated that many dragons are born in the north mountains, where the terrain helps hide them and protect their magic from unscrupulous humans,” Beatrice explained. “The question is how he could get there.”

Alexander thought about it for a moment. “If he’s living somewhere where magic isn’t illegal, such as Delthu, he would have to pass right by us to get to the north mountains.”

Beatrice nodded as Alexander pulled out her chair and helped her sit down. “So he would be able to keep an eye on you at the same time.”

Alexander shivered. “I hate the thought that he’s been watching us for so long.”

“I do too,” Beatrice said softly. “I wish I could know exactly what he’s been up to.”

“I think it’s probably better that we don’t,” Alexander said as he moved to the far side of the table and took his seat.

Beatrice frowned at the distance between them. It had been one thing to sit so far apart when they were merely married for convenience. She didn’t want to sit so far from him anymore.

She stood and walked around to the empty seat to his right.

Alexander raised an eyebrow at her as she sat down.

“That’s better, isn’t it?” she asked, smiling up at him.

“What are you doing?” Alexander asked.

“Sitting next to my husband,” Beatrice said triumphantly. “I would think that would be obvious.”

Alexander shook his head at her. “You amaze me,” he said.

“In what ways?” she asked, surprised at the sudden compliment.

“You broke my curse,” he said, “and I haven’t thanked you yet. I didn’t realize how heavy it was weighing on me that I couldn’t talk about the sorcerer and the curse until that weight was lifted. Without you, I never would have known I could be free of it. So, thank you, Beatrice.”

It took everything in her not to well up with tears at his words. “You’re welcome,” she said simply. “I couldn’t have my husband unable to talk to me,” she teased.

“You’re making light of the situation,” Alexander said, tilting his head, “and I’m trying to tell you how much it really meant. Thank you for pushing through when I had no hope.”

“I said we were a team, and I meant it,” Beatrice said, reaching for his hand and taking it.

“You did,” he admitted. “But I didn’t realize you took it so seriously.”

Beatrice gasped. “Have you ever known me not to take something seriously?”

Alexander chuckled. “I suppose that’s true. You do take everything seriously. It’s one of the reasons I—”

He stopped himself, and Beatrice’s eyes widened. Had he been about to say he loved her? There was a vulnerability in his eyes she hadn’t seen before. She leaned closer, and so did he, the distance between them closing inch by inch.

Beatrice’s heart thumped wildly in her chest. Was he going to kiss her? She would let him if he did. The closer she got to him, the more she wanted it. And there was nothing in the world that could—

The door burst open, and Dietrich strode in.

Beatrice and Alexander sprang apart. For not the first time in her life, Beatrice mentally cursed Dietrich. Blast him and his inconvenient timing.

“What’s for dinner?” he asked, strolling in as if he hadn’t noticed the near-kiss. “I’m sure it’ll be delicious, just like every other meal here.”

“Our cook is certainly good at what she does,” Alexander said, his tone sharp as he turned to Dietrich.

Dietrich’s arrival triggered a flood of servants bearing trays. They served the food and disappeared almost as quickly as they’d come.

“Thank you, Colette,” Beatrice said as the last maid left.

“Oh boy, this looks good,” Dietrich said, digging into his plate of roast chicken, mashed potatoes, and vegetables. “I could live here with you forever, right, Beatrice? You don’t need me to go back to my job.”

Beatrice shared a glance with Alexander, whose cheeks were flushed. It was probably a good thing she couldn’t see her own face.

“I think when this is over, you should go back home,” she said decisively.

She had a husband to kiss, and she didn’t need Dietrich here to ruin it anymore.