Page 13 of The Forsaken Heir

I winced inwardly. I didn’t have any friends I’d spend the night with, and Delphine knew that.

“Uh, yeah. It’s actually Lorraine’s house. She’s, uh, not there. A big emergency, and she wanted me to, uhm…” I glanced around the room for something to help my story, and my gaze landed on a massive potted plant beside a window. “She, uh, wanted me to take care of her plants.”

“Plants? Really?”

“Yup,” I said, putting a hand over my eyes in embarrassment.

“And you decided to water her plants at one in the morning?” Delphine asked dryly.

“Sure did. Honestly, I forgot I told her I would and decided to head over now, rather than wait. I’ll crash here and be back tomorrow. I didn’t want you to worry.”

There was a long pause on the other end of the line, and when she spoke again, I thought I could almost hear the smile on her lips.

“Honey, are you with a guy?”

My eyes bulged in surprise at her jumping to such a conclusion.

Then, without meaning to, I imagined Aurelius kneeling before me, those strong, muscular arms with those sexy veins crisscrossing over them, expertly slicing the ropes off of my body.

I recalled the way he’d looked up at me, those ocean-deep blue eyes studying me.

A sudden, shocking heat flared between my legs.

“No!” I nearly shouted into the phone, trying to push all thoughts of Aurelius from my mind.

“If you say so,” she said, but there was a dubious tone to her voice. “Be careful. Use protection.”

“Oh, God, Delphine. Stop. I’m hanging up now. See you tomorrow.”

I shoved the phone back into my pocket. The two attempted do-gooders hadn’t returned with the wine yet, and my curiosity was rapidly getting the better of me.

With nothing else to do, I shrugged and headed for the door, deciding to get a closer look at my surroundings.

The stroll from Aurelius’s room to these quarters hadn’t given me a chance to really get my bearings.

Taking a right, I made my way down the hall, my sneakers making no sound on the lush carpeting.

The house appeared even more massive inside than it had from the outside.

Very majestic. The hallway ended at a banister that overlooked what must have been the entrance hall below.

The ceiling arched up nearly three full floors above the massive front doors and sweeping double staircases.

“See anything you like?”

I gasped and spun around. Aurelius stood behind me, a faint grin on his lips. He’d appeared so fast that I hadn’t even registered his scent or the sound of his approach. Impressive.

Regaining my composure, I smiled back at him, feeling a bit like my old self now that my imminent death or torture wasn’t in the cards.

“Just wanted a little look around,” I said. “Am I in trouble? You… You gonna, er, I mean, are you going to make me go back to my room?” I’d almost said are you gonna spank me , but the mental image of that had heat rising up to my cheeks.

Aurelius chuckled, a deep baritone sound that sent a shiver up my spine. What the hell was wrong with me?

“The only trouble you’ll be in is from getting lost.” He walked over and placed his hands on the banister.

I looked at his hands and arms. The thick muscles of his forearms flexing and twisting as he grabbed the mahogany rail. His fingers were long and slender, like a musician’s. I could imagine them flashing across piano keys, or gliding across skin?—

“Do you like my place?” he asked, dragging me kicking and screaming from the mental images that wanted to play across my mind.

“Oh, it’s great,” I said, tearing my eyes from his hands to look at his face.

That wasn’t any better. His strawberry-blond hair was pulled back in a half ponytail, with some of the curls framing his face His lips looked soft and full as they twisted into that cocky grin.

Then there were those eyes. They seemed a deeper blue whenever I looked at him.

“It’s really great,” I repeated, not quite referring to the house this time.

“Where did my two genius friends head off to?” Aurelius asked.

“To get me some wine. It was taking them a while, so I decided to explore.”

“Well, as penance for what they did, can I give you a tour of the manor? It’s the least I could do for ruining your night.”

“You didn’t ruin it,” I said. “This is far more exciting than my usual Friday night. I typically get food drunk on cheesecake and fall asleep binging a TV show.”

“Come along. I’ll give you the whole tour,” he said.

“Seriously?” I said. “You aren’t worried the enemy might learn some deep, dark secret?”

Aurelius chuckled, and his lips twitched. The horny bitch deep inside my mind swooned, despite my wishes to stay professional in the situation I found myself in.

“I think, given the circumstances, my family deserves to have a few secrets get out. I mean, we did kidnap you, right?”

“Hmmm.” I tapped my finger to my chin and eyed him speculatively. “That’s true. Though, I don’t think people are supposed to walk around strange houses with dark and dangerous men.”

“Do I look dangerous?” he asked, his eyes darkening and the grin becoming an almost predatory smile.

It wasn’t intimidating, though. Quite the opposite, actually.

I didn’t know what had gotten into me, but if he’d told me to drop my pants and bend over the railing, I’d have done it.

Gladly. Maybe it was the stress? Or maybe it was him?

What the hell is wrong with me?

“Not really, but I’m warning you,” I said, holding up a finger. “Try anything weird, and I’ll make you regret it.”

He cocked an eyebrow. “Does that mean I’ll get a spanking?”

Heat flooded my cheeks, and for the briefest second, I imagined myself bent over, Aurelius thrusting into me from behind and slapping my ass hard enough to leave a handprint. The pain would mix so deliciously with the pleasure. I blinked, shoving that fantasy aside, and extended my hand to his.

“Yes. Let’s have a look at this place. I accept the prince’s offer.”

He rolled his eyes and held out his hand. “Please don’t call me that. I’m just Aurelius.”

When I slipped my hand into his, I almost let out a sigh of delight.

He had a few calluses, but for the most part his skin was smooth and warm against mine.

His heat melted into my palm, and for a single instant it felt as though our hands had become one.

If Aurelius felt the same thing, he didn’t show it.

As he led me down the hall, I wondered why I knew so little about this man.

Delphine had always tried to stay updated on all the drama and discourse going on with shifters and fae.

Even then, with the tidbits she liked to drop, very little was known about Aurelius Decimus outside of the dragon shifter world.

He was mysterious. An unknown shrouded in more questions than answers.

“Where are we going first?” I asked.

“I thought you might like to see the original castle,” he said. “It was built not long after the royal family made the move to the new world.”

Unsure what that meant but curious, I followed along, peering into the rooms we passed and eyeing the décor.

Soon, it became clear what he was talking about.

The interior of the manor house was modern, if overly luxurious, but it became more ancient as we went, until we were in an old entryway deep within the house.

“Is this…” I trailed off, looking around at the ancient stone walls, the flagstone floors, and the dusty tapestries.

“This is actually a freaking castle,” I finally managed to say.

“It is, indeed,” Aurelius said with a smile. “Built into the very bedrock of the surrounding mountain. It’s been here for centuries. We only added the outward mansion facade in the late eighteenth century.”

I pointed down a stone stairwell. “What’s down there?”

Aurelius’s smile faded a bit as he looked down into the dark lower floors.

“Down there is the hatchery. It’s the deepest part of the castle, and the most guarded.

It’s where every female dragon came to give birth, whether they were part of House Decimus or not.

Then, for the first several years of life, all young dragons would live here, studying and learning about our history—how to shift and fly, how to be the dragon they were born to be.

At least, this is where that used to happen. ”

“Your numbers are shrinking,” I said.

“They have been.” He glanced at me. “There hasn’t been a single dragon birth in over twenty years. In fact, you’ve met the last dragon to be born with the ability to shift.”

“You?” I asked, frowning at him.

He shook his head and chuckled ruefully. “No. Not me. Vincent. He was the last to be born. His father, Benedictus Beatrix, sees him as a bit of a stain on the family name.” Aurelius looked at me warily. “You’ve probably noticed he’s a bit different.”

That was an understatement. Vincent was an intriguing person, that was for sure, but I didn’t think there was anything wrong with that.

Hell, I was peculiar myself. I guess everyone was in their own special way.

Vince was nice and polite—for a kidnapper, that is.

Sure, he had strange tendencies like repeating his movements, and hyper-fixating on certain things, and he lacked tact and subtlety, but that was no reason to dismiss him as a stain on the family. Although, I could relate to that.

“I noticed,” I said.

“He’s become like family to us here, which is strange since his father is one of my father’s biggest rivals.

His father loves him, of course, but he’s…

” Aurelius sighed and shook his head. “He’s disappointed in the man Vincent is.

He’d have been happier with a more strait-laced politico or businessman like himself.

Vincent is more of a free spirit. Possibly a bit on the spectrum. ”

“Interesting.”

It looked like there was even more about the dragons that I didn’t know.

“Come on,” he said, taking my hand again. “There’s more to see. It’s not getting too late for you, is it?”