Page 15 of Dragon Mine (Dragon Kings 2)
“I was in Norway.”
“Ah. Your fascination with the Vikings.”
It was her turn to flatten her lips. “With how they treated their women. How they allowed them to fight alongside the men. Another culture also did that.”
“The Celts.”
There was no heat in Brandr’s words, but Eurwen wasn’t fooled. It was something else he got from their father. “I watched two warring Celt clans fight one day. It was brutal and vicious. A woman led one, the clan I had been studying for some time. They won, and without any interference from me. That night, they celebrated.”
Brandr shrugged. “And?”
“Someone new arrived. Someone who wasn’t part of the clan.”
“You wouldna be telling me this if it was just a human you took to your bed. Which means, it was a King.”
Eurwen drew in a deep breath and then released it. “The minute I saw him across the fire, I was drawn to him. Like invisible strings connected us, and some unknown force was pulling us together. I couldn’t have turned away had I tried. But…I didn’t want to go. That night was…everything. I knew that he would realize who I was or start asking questions I couldn’t answer once the morning came. So, I left. Not a day goes by that I don’t think about him. Fight the urge to go to Dreagan and find him.”
“Why did you no’ tell me this before?”
“We promised each other that we’d never be around the Kings.”
Brandr swallowed and looked out over the view. “Yes, well, that was a one-time thing.”
Astonishment jolted through Eurwen as she looked in disbelief at her brother. “Did you not hear what I said?”
“I heard that you’ve no’ gone to him.” Brandr glanced at her. “That’s all I need to know.”
“No.”
He swiveled his head to her, his brows drawn together. “What?”
“I said, no.”
“To what, exactly?”
She got to her feet. “I told you that story to lead into another, but you’ve made your stance perfectly clear.”
“We doona need the Kings. We never have. We never will,” he stated calmly.
Which only enraged her more. Eurwen fisted her hands as she glared at her twin. “We don’t need them, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be in our lives.”
“That’s exactly what it means.” Brandr slowly got to his feet and dusted off his hands before facing her. “Plenty of dragons would do anything to be your mate. Pick one.”
She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “What the bloody hell are you on about? You know we can’t just pick a mate. That isn’t how it works.”
“This is our realm. The Kings had their chance on theirs, and they buggered it all. I’m no’ stepping aside for them to come and take over. Ruin what we’ve done. Perhaps you need to think about whose side you’re on.”
“I’m on my side,” she retorted.
His nostrils flared, a sign that he was fighting his anger. “Are you telling me that Dragon King is your mate?”
“I don’t know what he is. What I want is your support, no matter what happens.”
“I love you, Eurwen. We’ve been through a lot together, but you know my stance. If your mate is a King, then you willna be ruling Zora any longer.”
Her eyes widened in incredulity. “You can’t be serious.”
“I willna give them a foothold here. And if you’re mated to one, that’s exactly what will happen. If that means I banish you, then so be it.”
“You forget we rule together. You can’t banish me anymore than I can banish you.”
“Figure out what is more important.” A muscle ticked in his jaw before he walked away.
“Why is everyone walking away from me today?” she asked herself.
Eurwen faced the view and took a deep breath, but that didn’t alleviate her emotions that had been in upheaval since the start of the day. It felt as if everything were falling apart when she had believed this first step in a new direction was what she was meant to do. How could she have been so wrong?
It wouldn’t have mattered if she and her parents had shared an amazing conversation and bonded because nothing would change Brandr’s mind. He’d laid it out for her. She could choose Zora and him, or she could have their parents and Earth.
And possibly Vaughn.
Very few times in her life had she not known what to do. Where she felt as if she were adrift in a sea of uncertainty and doubt. But today, she was drowning in that ocean with no way out.
Zora was her home. She hadn’t had a conventional birth or upbringing. Nothing about her and Brandr had been normal. She wasn’t sure of anything anymore, and she was beginning to wonder if she had ever known anything.
She did know one thing. And that was how Vaughn made her feel. But could she decide about the rest of her life based on one night that’d happened lifetimes ago? She didn’t know Vaughn, and he didn’t know her. They had physical chemistry, but that didn’t equal compatibility. Maybe she was overthinking things. Perhaps she thought there was something between her and Vaughn that really wasn’t.
There was only one way to know for sure.
