“That’s exactly what I’ve been saying,” Vivienne said, sheathing her sword. “He’s drawn to trouble like a fish to water.”
The dragon shifter snorted. “That he is. My middle child is the same way, always looking to get into things and bend the rules. The first time her magic came in, she nearly destroyed an entire wing of our home.”
Vivienne chuckled. She could get used to this shifter, especially if he was willing to commiserate about the prince’s uncanny propensity to find trouble.
“I’mrighthere,” Marius huffed. “Alive and well, as you can both see.”
No thanks to his own efforts. Vivienne was honestly shocked that he had survived this long. He really was a magnet for trouble, and he seemed to waltz into dangerous situations without a second thought.
“Yes, you are.” Xander clapped the prince on the shoulder. “Come on, it’s time to go.”
Vivienne’s stomach twisted into knots at those six words, and she paled. Never mind. She didn’t like dragons at all. She’d distracted herself from what the dragon’s arrival meant, but that was no longer possible.
Feeling lightheaded, she turned to the prince. “You mean, we’re actually?—”
“Riding the dragon,” Marius finished the sentence for her, glee filling his voice. How unrelatable. “This will be amazing.”
Those were not the words she would’ve used. Her stomach flip-flopped, reminding her that she despised heights. As if she’d forget her biggest fear.
There was no time to propose an alternative form of transportation, though. The dragon was back, Xander’s clothes were in a ball on the ground, and the beast’s spiked tail flicked back and forth like an eager, oversized, fire-breathing puppy.
Gods.
Marius reached over and took her hand in his. Even the warmth of his touch and the sparks that ran through her didn’t unravel the knot of unease that had taken up residence within her.
She stared at the creature of fire with trepidation.
Could this night get any worse?
It did,in fact, get worse.
It shouldn’t have been all that surprising, considering the course Vivienne’s life had taken since she first started guarding the prince.
The dragon ride itself was… interesting.
Marius insisted that Vivienne sit in front of him. Too concerned with the fact that she, a vampire who was afraid of heights, was about to ride a fire-breathing dragon, she didn’t bother arguing with the prince. There were bigger problems at hand.
She climbed on first, sitting in front of the dragon’s wings. Her fingers curled around a spike protruding from its spine, and she tried not to think about the fact that she was on a creature who literally breathed death.
It was rather difficult since heat was radiating from the scales beneath her.
As Marius could sense that she was about to hop off the dragon and insist they find another ride, he quickly climbed on behind her. He moved with ease, drawing her against him and wrapping his arms around her middle. His warmth ran through her, different from the dragon’s heat. Comforting. Pleasant.
Vivienne’s shoulders were tense, and her back was rigid. Her mind wouldn’t stop picturing all the brutal ways she could die. Of all the ways vampires could meet their final end, fire seemed like one of the most painful. Add in the fact that they’d be flying through the clouds, and her fear was nearly crippling.
How well did Marius know this shifter, anyway? What if?—
“Relax, Viv,” the prince whispered, moving his hand long enough to draw her head back to gently rest against his shoulder before holding her around the middle once again. “I’ve got you. You won’t fall.”
A tremor ran through her as she looked at the ground. “I don’t know.”
His lips brushed her forehead. “Trust me.”
The deep tenor of Marius’s voice, devoid of its usual playfulness, sent shivers running down her spine.
“I’ll try,” she exhaled. Inch by inch, she relaxed until his natural heat enveloped her.
“That’s it,” he breathed encouragingly in her ear. “You okay?”