I wake as the morning light streams through the window. I feel hung over from crying and fighting with my inner monster. As I stand, my head buzzes with dizziness. I put my hand to my temple and groan. I need some of that morning tea stuff Uria brought me yesterday.

Since I'm still in my underwear, and the clothing I wore yesterday is too tight for my new body, I look for something else to wear. I manage to find a bathroom and a huge closet full of clothes.

After a quick bath, I go to the closet and find dresses and tunics much like those in my closet in Trav's castle. I pick a casual, more athletic tunic and shorter skirt with tights underneath and put my hair and face together how Uria showed me the morning before.

I don’t feel like being touched right now, so I do it all myself. When I'm finished putting myself together, I stride into the hallway. I have no idea how to get to the kitchen for my morning tea, but I find Uria sitting outside my door as if she's been sleeping there all night.

"Uria, what are you doing here?" I ask her.

"Waiting for your command, your majesty," she says.

"Didn't Hammon give you a room?" I ask, incredulous.

"No, my lady, he told me to wait here."

"I'll make sure you get your own rooms. Now, could you show me to the dining room? I'm starved and need a cup of morning tea," I tell her.

"I can bring your morning meal to you, my lady. It's no trouble."

"No. I want to get out of this room. I need to speak with the princes and the wizard as well. Show me."

Uria leads me downstairs and into a comfortable dining room where the princes are already enjoying their morning meal. The table is set for a feast, and the men stand as I enter the room. I nod at them and tell Uria to go get some rest as I sit. Both of the men try to help me, but I shoo them away.

"Where is the morning tea?" I say looking around the table. Conyac is already pouring me a cup and hands it to me. Trav frowns, and I take a sip of my tea with a sigh. I put some fruit and bread on my plate and eat slowly as I drink the bittersweet, warm liquid. I need to think about what I'm going to say to these men. No matter how much I want to get out of this whole princess thing, I don't think I can. I have to make the best of it and that means getting a handle on them.

After my head has cleared, and I have food in my belly, I look up at the princes and meet their intense gazes staring straight at me.

"Now. We need to come to some kind of arrangement. I understand it is my responsibility to choose one of you as my husband. Since I know nothing about either of you, my role as a princess, or anything about Endor, I will need some education on the subjects. As far as this choosing goes, I will have complete control over who I spend time with and what we do. Is that clear?" I ask them, looking them both in the eye.

Trav narrows his eyes at me, and Conyac smiles as if he's already won the prize. If I had my way, I wouldn't be involved with either of them. They could have told me why they were pulling me through the portal. I might not have believed a word they said, but still. It's the principle. They kidnapped me. And I can't just forgive that, even though I realize now that I do have to marry one of them.

My inner dragon is rumbling inside me. She isn't fond of my reluctance to take on my responsibilities. But she isn't in control. I am. I will have a say in whom I spend time with and whom I marry.

"I agree," Conyac says.

"So do I," Trav says right after.

"Good, then we have an understanding.”

"I will spend a few hours a day with each of you. You can tell me your history and educate me about Endor and my family. I need to understand who I am and what the power of the dragon queen is. I want to make an informed decision," I give Trav a meaningful look.

"But my three days aren't up," Trav protests.

"As I said. I will decide who I spend time with. You already agreed."

He sits back in his chair and grimaces. He doesn't have the most winning personality, and he knows it.

"I will spend the rest of the morning with Conyac, since I haven't gotten to know him at all yet."

"Fantastic," the black-haired prince says.

"Fine," Trav acquiesces.

After I'm finished eating, I stand and invite Conyac to walk with me outside. As we exit the grand entrance doorway, I say, "Show me my land, Conyac."

"Of course, my lady," he says offering me his arm.

We walk out into the sunlight. I hold his heavily muscled arm in my long fingered hand. He smells like a dream, and my inner dragon reverberates throughout my body, awakening my desire.

Conyac leads me down the front stairs of the castle and through the grounds. I see the grazing animals on the hillside, beyond which can see the handle of our flight carriage. I hold his arm as he guides me around the palace on a path of finely cut stone.

Lawns and gardens that have seen better days stretch out around us as we walk under the shade of a cascading tree. We sit on a carved stone bench a hundred yards from the stone wall that overlooks the sheer drop of the cliff face. Just thinking of it makes me shudder.

Conyac takes my hand in his and gently kisses my knuckles. I feel my face heat as he looks up into my eyes from behind his thick, long black eyelashes. His lips pucker as he holds my hand on his thigh, caressing my fingers with his thumb. A tingle goes through me, and I'm caught off guard.

The events of the last twenty-four hours have changed everything for me. I'm no longer a kidnapped captive being fought over by two alien beings. I'm a princess of this world, and it is my duty to choose one of these men. That makes all the difference in how I allow myself to feel.

I smile back at him as he reaches up to brush a lock of flowing hair away from my face. "Your human form was lovely, but now you are stunning, my princess," he says in his silky smooth voice.

"Thanks, I guess," I say, looking into my lap.

He puts his finger under my chin and tilts my face up so that I am looking him in the shining blue eyes. "I would have loved you either way," he assures me. I nod. He lets go of my chin.

"Tell me about yourself, Conyac," I say, changing the subject.

He grins and leans back, putting his arm on the back of the bench and behind me. "I am the son of Lord Car Blackwell, son of Darrek, son of Ur. My people have been royalty for hundreds of generations going back to before the last Org invasion. The upstart Warrens stole the throne in the last two generations. They are thieves and liars."

"Let's keep politics out of it, okay?" I say. Trav isn't here to defend himself, and even if he were, I wouldn't want to hear about it. I'm making this decision based solely on my own feelings for each man and nothing else. "Tell me about your childhood. Your life. What do you do for fun?"

"I grew up in Castle Blackwell. I had a sword in my hand before my first shift at age five. My father trained me to be a great warrior. The Blackwell skill is a mighty, deep frost that can freeze all living things with one blast. In the form of a man, I am a match for fifty common men. I rule my kingdom with compassion and justice. My people thrive and respect me for it," he says, looking proud of himself.

His black hair and blue eyes contrast against the white fur of his cloak that hangs over one shoulder, leaving the other bare. He wears a tight, short sleeve leather tunic underneath with strips of leather that bind around him like some kind of S&M costume. It's hot as hell, with silver studs that accentuate the dangerous look.

I bit my lip. A crisp alpine scent is pouring off of him. I could let myself fall into his arms right here and now. My inner dragon is hissing and scraping inside my brain. She's whining to mate.

I put my hands to my temples and try to drawn out the horrific sounds she's making in my head. Squeezing my eyes shut just makes the racket worse.

"What's wrong?" Conyac asks, his voice tender.

"The dragon. She woke up when I transformed. I can't make her go away."

He laughs, the sound warm and inviting. "She wants to come out. Perhaps you should let her," he raises and eyebrow. "Come." He stands and takes my hand, leading me to an open space in the overgrown lawn. "Change now. Your clothing will be spared. Don't worry about ripping them."

I look down at my clothes and wonder how that works. Then I look back at Conyac who is gazing at me expectantly. How in the hell am I supposed to shift into a dragon? I close my eyes and focus on the beast within. Do I even want to let this thing out from inside of me? It doesn't seem like a good idea. What if I never get myself back? Changing into a weird alien elf was bad enough.

I think hard and see a vision of myself standing in front of a massive silver dragon. She puffs air at me and shows her teeth. "Well, come out, then," I say to the dragon within. She looks away and lays her head back down on her front feet.

Nothing happens.