Dragon Lords Books 1 - 4 Box Set: Anniversary Edition (45 page)

N
adja tried not
to stumble as she was pulled through the hall. “Olek, stop. What is happening? My slippers…”

He did stop. Only, it wasn’t to answer her question. Instead, he lifted her into his arms and ran faster. She had no choice but to hold on as she bounced in his arms. Her chest heaved from a combination of the short burst of exercise and stress. Olek carried her to the medical wing before setting her down.

“Please, tell me what’s going on. Is someone hurt?” She followed him inside. The royal family was already there. Ualan looked tortured, as he stared blindly at the operating room door. Yusef rested on the bed, his skin too pale and his entire upper body bandaged. To Olek, she said, “You said it was just a little accident.”

Olek didn’t have time to explain. There was a rush of talk she couldn’t understand. Queen Mede shook her head, speaking frantically to Olek and motioning at Nadja and Pia.

“Olek?” Nadja insisted, still confused.

“The doctor will explain.” Olek took her hand, ushering her forward to an awaiting doctor covered completely with protective gear, including goggles over his eyes. Zoran did the same with a confused Pia. Nadja trembled. This couldn’t be good.

“Follow the doctor, Nadja,” Olek insisted. “We’ll talk as soon as you’re done.”

“I’ll go with them,” the queen said, following the princesses to the back room. But, the doctor turned and motioned that she should stay out. The queen frowned but obeyed the man.

“But,” Pia protested Zoran’s insistent shove. “I feel fine. I haven’t been poisoned.”

Nadja’s eyes widened in horror at the statement and she spun around to stare at Olek. His lips tightened as he nodded for her to go on. Queen Mede’s hand was on her arm, pushing her forward.

“Go, dear,” the queen said. “Hurry.”

Nadja went into the room with Pia. The doctor turned to the women, taking out two handheld medic units. Without comment, he grabbed their arms and took a sample of their blood before going to the counter to test it.

“This may take a while,” the doctor said. “How are you feeling?”

“Terrified,” Nadja admitted at the same moment Pia answered, “Fine.”

O
lek waited
outside of the exam room. The fear was almost too much. He couldn’t lose Nadja. He’d only just found her. She was his blessing from the gods.

“Will someone explain how this could happen?” Zoran demanded. “In our home.”

“I have ordered all the food and wine tested, starting with Princess Morrigan’s,” the king said. “They think she must have ingested the poison for there to be so much in her system.”

Olek couldn’t meet his brother’s gaze. He felt responsible. As ambassador, he’d arranged for the Var to come.

“We all knew the risks in inviting King Attor and we all agreed to them,” the queen said.

“Princess Morrigan has fallen victim to poisoning and is possibly dying in the other room. Yusef is unconscious.” Zoran pointed to the door. “My wife is in there being tested.”

Ualan came forward and glared at his commander brother. He balled his hand into a fist in warning. “She will not die.”

“She survived enslavement,” the queen said, her tone calm in an effort to defuse the situation. “She is a very strong woman. The gods would not have given her to you otherwise. The same holds true for Pia and Nadja. You are all honorable and deserving, my sons. The gods would not bless you only to take your wives away so fast.”

Zoran’s voice deepened into a growl as his face began to harden with a shift. His eyes glowed with yellow as deadly fangs extended from his gums. “If any in our family die there will be blood.”

“There will be blood either way,” Ualan swore, his tone just as dark.

Olek nodded in agreement, staring at the door that kept Nadja from him. He would be unable to speak until he knew his wife would live.

“
W
ell
?” Olek rushed forward, nearly toppling over the doctor as he came from the exam room. Zoran’s footsteps sounded behind him. The doctor flinched, stumbling back as he was ambushed by distraught husbands.

“The princesses are fine. I tested their blood three times.” The doctor took a slow step back and to the side to get out of the way of the door. “You may go inside.”

Olek almost fell over with relief. The princesses came out of the door. Nadja was stiff as he pulled her into his arms, but she said nothing and didn’t pull away. Pia nodded at Zoran, not really showing any emotion.

“I must check on Morrigan.” Nadja pushed away from him and went to follow the doctor.

Nadja questioned the doctor extensively about Morrigan’s illness. Olek watched as his wife assisted in rolling the woman onto her side as she threw up in her sleep.

Ualan put his hand on Olek’s shoulder. “Your wife has a gift for caretaking.”

The others sat quietly by the motionless Yusef. Morrigan fought bravely and in the end she won the battle for her life—albeit barely. Ualan seemed to breathe easier with the news and took his post by his wife’s side, where he clearly intended to stay until she opened her eyes.

By the time Olek walked Nadja out of Morrigan’s room, it had been discovered that the poison was in a goblet Morrigan had drunk from. The servant responsible for giving her the drink had been dealt with. The man wasn’t at fault. One of King Attor’s men had distracted him as he was preparing to serve the royal drink.

The drink had been meant for the king and queen. But, when King Attor went up to speak, the servant had placed the goblet before Morrigan instead, so as not to get in their way. The Var king couldn’t have realized Princess Morrigan wouldn’t recognize the Draig king’s seal and would take the drink for herself. If Queen Mede or King Llyr had taken a sip, they would have died instantly. The poison worked slower on humans.

Just when Olek thought the family could relax after the long night, the soldier Zoran sent to gather Yusef’s wife came back alone. He looked worried, standing in the doorway, eyeing the royal family.

“Where is she?” Zoran demanded, as soon as he saw the man. Nadja jumped at the noise.

“My lady is gone,” the soldier said. “There looks to have been a struggle. We smelled Var blood, but no human. She could still be alive.”

The king growled.

“We picked up their scent in the forest. I ordered the others to follow it,” the soldier said to Zoran.

“You should call the soldiers back and get one of your best trackers on it,” Olek stated, calmer than his brother. Inside his stomach was tight. “Let them think they have escaped with her into the shadowed marshes. Once we find their location, we’ll go after them alone and reclaim her for Yusef.”

“Send Saben. He has experience with the shadowed marshes,” the queen said.

“Olek’s right,” Zoran stated to his father, switching his language in deference to the listening women so they wouldn’t hear what he had to say. “If they wanted her dead, they would have killed her right then. They took her for a reason. If they hear the men coming after them, they could get rid of her to escape.”

The men nodded in agreement, knowing revenge was going to be theirs.

N
adja remained quiet
, though she didn’t like the idea of Olek going out to do battle. Whatever Zoran was saying couldn’t be good if he felt the need to change his language to say it. The sooner she learned their language the better. She hated being talked around like a child unable to handle reality.

When it was determined nothing else could be done, the royal family departed for their homes. Only Ualan stayed to sit vigil over his wife and brother, promising to send news if there were any changes.

Nadja yawned as Olek called open their front door. She stepped inside first, her feet dragging as she walked in front of him. As the door slid shut locking them in, he tugged her into his arms, resting her back against his chest. He tenderly leaned his chin on her head.

“I’m so glad you’re not hurt,” Olek whispered, giving her neck a light kiss.

Nadja stiffened.

“Nadja?”

“Get away from me, Olek,” Nadja said, pulling free. She turned to stare at him. Anger seeped from every pore, but her voice was deadly quiet. “You lied to me about your brother and thrust me at the doctor without so much as an explanation as to what was happening. I can’t talk to you right now.”

She left him standing in the hall, going to the bedroom. With a long, tired sigh she unbuttoned her overdress. She threw the formal gown over a chair, sliding into more comfortable clothes before crawling into bed.

O
lek’s body
stung with the rejection. Slowly, he walked over to his office. Running his hand over the wall, he opened a hidden liquor cabinet. He poured himself a stiff drink and sat down, sipping at it wearily.

He knew Nadja had never wanted to be a princess. She’d told him that from the beginning, but he had foolishly hoped she’d come around. This was not how married life was supposed to be.

Finishing his drink, he went to the bedroom and changed his clothes. He debated whether or not he should sleep on the couch, but then decided that his bed, by his wife, was where he belonged. He slipped next to her beneath the coverlet.

Nadja mumbled, but didn’t wake. Olek was glad she didn’t resist him when he pulled her into his arms. His body curled intimately around hers and the thickness of their cotton clothing wasn’t enough to keep the softness of her body from stirring him to full attention. Cursing his one-tracked erection, he refused to let her go. No matter how much holding her made him ache, the alternative was so much worse.

N
adja awoke
, startled from her erotic dreams by Olek’s fingers twitching under her breast. His arm draped over her body, lightly holding her to his chest. The hard impression of his cock molded against her ass. Even breathing told her he slept.

In a sleepy daze, she turned in his arms. She reached up the side of his body, unable to see his face in the dark room. Her fingers glanced against his naked waist, tripping on his shirt as they moved up to feel him. She rocked her hips naturally closer to where his arousal stood tall and ready. She moaned to feel the hard length of his body and she searched blindly to kiss him.

He had been in her dreams again. Maybe she was still dreaming. She didn’t stop to think as she opened her mouth to lay claim to his.

Olek gasped, instantly waking, only to groan as Nadja’s softer body rubbed into his harder one. She parted her lips against his in a tender, sleepy kiss. Her hands were on his chest, stroking up to his neck as she urged him to her. Her thigh draped over his hip, her foot restlessly digging along the back of his calf to pull him closer.

She stayed quiet, wrapped in the spell of their lovemaking. He let his hand roam over her body, as if unable to resist the hot passion she awoke in him. She touched his waist, lazily urging the shirt from his chest. Her fingers inched over his muscles, grazing over his tight nipples. Olek lifted and threw off the shirt, before resting against her once more.

Nadja moaned lightly as his warm arms embraced her. Hands explored in aimless directions. Their intermingling breaths created intimate music. He rolled her onto her back and placed kisses on her mouth, her cheeks and throat, before tugging her shirt off and tossing it aside.

“I love the feel of your skin,” he whispered. “So soft, so fragile, so warm.”

Nadja discovered the delightful curve of his lower back as it sloped to his ass beneath the loose pants. She dipped her hands beneath the cotton material causing him to groan against her breast. The sound sent chills over her body, shooting like fireworks throughout her skin. His hips jerked and flexed as she worked her way around to the front. He lifted his stomach to allow her access. Soon, her hands were on the source of his fiery heat, stroking him, feeling him, discovering him.

Nadja wasn’t scared. She’d never be scared of such a wonderful dream. Her eyes were closed, so she had to be dreaming.

“The whole kingdom might come to our door, but I’m not stopping this time.” The soft words barely penetrated her ears over the sound of her fervent heartbeat.

“Olek,” she moaned, wanting him to touch her as she touched him. He was so hot against her palm.

He answered her plea with supernatural speed, ridding them both of their remaining clothing, so there were no boundaries. Her smooth legs ran against his hair-roughened thighs and the sensation was almost more than she could bear.

As if wanting to make sure she was ready for him, Olek kissed a fevered trail down her stomach. Nadja gasped in surprise when his tongue flicked her navel. His mouth pressed a light kiss onto each hip before he dipped lower to taste her sweetness. Nadja tried to close her legs, but his hands strayed to her thighs, parting her wide for him.

He tested her wetness with his tongue. She gasped in astonishment at the sensation. Her sex was more than ready to accept him. Olek’s kiss only deepened and he drank deeply from her, causing her legs to tense and her hips to arch against his mouth. She let loose a ragged moan of approval. A soft tremor started deep inside her body. She pressed her thighs against the side of his head, trapping his face against her pussy. Tiny quivers of pleasure radiated each time his lips moved. She pushed up on the bed, unsure if she was trying to move closer or pull away because the building torture was too much.

Olek pushed back, gasping for breath as his lips were freed from her smothering hold. He swiftly crawled over her, rising up on his hands as his cock sought to burrow naturally into her. Nadja felt a momentary wave of apprehension. She’d felt how big he was against her hand, and had seen the size of him. The heat of his arousal seared her thigh, edging ever closer to stake claim.

“Olek.” Nadja’s breath hitched in her throat. She wanted to trust him but was frightened.

Olek moaned. His words came out in a hoarse whisper, as he said, “You feel so good. I have to have you.”

He guided himself to her. Nadja’s eyes widened. Her sex tightened around him as he eased his way in. She gripped his arms. Olek groaned in obvious ecstasy, as he fitted himself deeper.

A burning sensation flooded her as he stretched her pussy. Tears threatened and she bit her lip. He delved deeper and she panicked, hitting at his arm. “Stop.”

Olek blinked in surprise. Her tight muscles clenched him. His expression tightened and she knew he wanted to thrust deeper, but he held still, allowing her body time to get used to him. Her mind tried to adjust to the idea that she could feel so full and hot, and so wickedly wet at the same time.

“It’s all right, solarflower,” he whispered against her neck, his voice unsteady. “Try to relax.”

“I don’t think this is working,” she said.

Olek’s laugh sounded painful. He eased a little deeper. “You were made to take me like this.”

Nadja stayed tense, not so sure. Olek pulled back, taking shallow thrusts as he tried to stretch her to accept him. Oh, but it was bittersweet agony.

“That’s it,” he urged, moving his hips a little faster. “I’ve waited too long to have you, have been pushed too far without release. I can’t tell you how hard it is to keep from delving fully into your silken depths. I can barely stop to think, but if you tell me to right now, I will find a way to stop. I never want to hurt you.”

Nadja couldn’t find the words to answer him. She didn’t want him to stop.

The fire began to change and she moved her hips as pain turned to pleasure. It built inside her. He gave a shallow thrust, completely replacing the white heat of his initial testing. “That’s it, solarflower. I just want to go a little deeper, just a little—
oh, ye-ah
.”

Nadja trembled at the sensation overtaking her sex. Before she could discover the true depths of what her body was trying to show her, Olek tensed. His sweaty skin slid beneath her hands, shuddering violently. His yell resounded over her, loud and conquering.

Nadja’s hand fell away at the sound. She panted for breath. A tiny ripple unlike anything she had ever experienced caused a curious warmth to spread over her limbs, making them weak. Her sex hurt, but it wasn’t all bad.

Olek groaned as he slid himself from her, completely sated. Reaching for her, he pulled her into his arm, tiredly kissing her temple. He brushed her hair with his nose, snuggling into her, curving his body to fit hers.

“I’m told the first time is always a little rough,” he whispered into her hair. “As your body gets used to me, it will be better. I promise you, my sweet solarflower.”

Nadja shivered, not sure she could take any more of what he had to show her. Olek held her as they both fell asleep.

W
hen Nadja awoke
her body stung. Her first thought was,
It is way too early to be having another womanly cramp.

Her second thought was,
What happened to my clothes?

The third thought, as her eyes popped open and she became wide awake, was,
Why is someone kissing my neck?

“Fire,” she croaked. Nadja sat up as the fireplace lit. Grabbing the blanket to her chest, she looked over at Olek in the dim light. He lay next to her on the bed, grinning like a fool.

Nadja stared at him, her mind trying to focus on what was happening.

“Lie down,” he urged her, reaching for her naked body. Her skin lit with memories as he ran his palms over the flesh of her back. Bumps rose over her skin, though she wasn’t anywhere near chilly.

Nadja gave a tiny jump and inched her way to the side of the large mattress. She pulled the blanket with her as she stood to get away from him. When she turned, Olek lounged on the bed naked, wearing nothing but a confused frown and a very disturbingly ready arousal.

“What are you doing?” she asked hotly. Her stomach muscles twinged as she tried to move. She let her gaze travel over his form, trying not to stare at the most predominant part of him, vying for attention.

“Nadja?” Olek sat up, clearly confused by her reaction.

The full force of what they had done hit her like an asteroid to the head. She swallowed nervously. Her attention went to a telltale red stain on the bed where she’d been sleeping. She shook her head in denial. He was gloriously naked and she tried her best not to look at his handsome body. Eyeing the stain, she said in disbelief, “I was dreaming. That wasn’t real.”

Olek smiled, as he moved to sit, completely unembarrassed. Nadja turned her eyes away as she rushed into the closet to find clothes.

“Nadja?” Olek laughed, obviously in very good spirits. “It’s all right, come back to bed.”

Nadja grabbed clothing, not really paying attention to what she chose, before she came out of the closet still sporting the bedcovers around her naked body. She shook her head in denial. Her arms laden with clothes, she hurried past him to the bedroom door.

O
lek’s body
sung with released tension and he felt like he’d actually slept instead of tossing and turning all night. If his wife wasn’t too sore, he was more than willing to go at it again. Then she ran out of the room. Well, “ran” was a strong word. She mostly tripped on the bedding-turned-dress as she tried to run from the room.

“Nadja.” This time his voice was sterner.

She stopped a few steps from her goal and turned to glare at him. To his surprise, her volume actually rose as she yelled her irritated answer. “We shouldn’t have done this. I’m still mad at you. Oh, how could you do this to me?”

“Nadja,” he tried to reason. “
You
woke
me
up. You were kissing me.”

“I told you I was dreaming. If I had been awake I would never have kissed you. I don’t even like you right now. Why would I kiss you when I don’t like you?” She turned away from him, but didn’t leave.

Olek got out of the bed, going to stand behind her without bothering to cover his nakedness. At the sound of his footsteps, Nadja propelled into action, slipping on the covers as she tried to get away from him.

“What are you so mad about?” he asked in exasperation, at a complete loss. He tossed his arms into the air as she disappeared out of the door.

She returned, kicking the bedspread as she walked. “You lied to me about Yusef. You said it was no big deal.” Then turning, she left again. This time he followed. She kept ranting. “You’re always so secretive about what you do—your oh-so-important princely duties. Let’s not tell Nadja about them, she obviously can’t be trusted!”

“I didn’t want to burden you with it.” He followed her as she stormed into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her. He heard material drop on the floor as he reached for the handle. As he barged in after her, she was reaching for the door lock. She snatched her hand back.

Nadja clutched the blanket. Her clothes were piled on the floor at her feet. “You didn’t have to lie about it. You said he was in an accident. I saw his wounds, Olek. What happened? Did he fall onto a knife about fifteen times?”

Her beautiful blue eyes stared at him in obvious disbelief.

“I was trying to protect you. I know you hate being a princess and I didn’t want you to be frightened by what happened to Yusef.”

“That isn’t your decision to make. I have every right to know if my life may possibly be in danger.”

“I am your husband,” he said, feeling his face redden in anger. All he wanted to do that morning was make love to her again and again, and now he found himself in a full blown fight. “It is my job to decide what is best for you.”

“What’s best for me?” She howled with laughter. The bitter sound held little humor. “You just want to control me. You may talk sweet, Olek, but you’re just like my father. You just want to tell me what to do, where to go and who to be. Soon you’ll be telling me what I can and can’t eat, who I can talk to, what I can be, what I can wear, what I can say, when to smile and laugh and walk and… Well, I’ve had it with being controlled and I don’t need you or anyone trying to protect me.”

Olek detected the strange tone that came to her voice as she said the words. He had known the calm dam inside her would eventually break. She was raging mad. There was nothing he could say to fight that kind of raw anger, not until she cooled and could hear him, not until she could listen to reason.

“Now get out!” she screamed. “I’m going to take a bath and then I’ll go check on Morrigan to see if she’s awake and….”

“Fine.” He growled in the back of his throat.

“Fine!”

Olek slammed the door behind him and he heard her lock it. He needed to put distance between them. His dragon surged to the surface, shifting his fingertips into talons and his face into a hard mask. Tilting his head, his hearing became powerful enough to hear the whisper of material as she dropped the covers before climbing angrily into the bath.

Perhaps it was best if he left. Battle awaited him. Princess Olena needed to be rescued. The possibility of fighting the cat-shifters in battle was preferable to facing his angry wife.