Aboard the Glory, life dragged as if time had frozen in place. Or so Dragon thought, watching the galaxy drift by as he lay in a recliner in the observation deck.

The spaceship was the largest of his fleet and built to sustain a full crew and up to five hundred passengers in luxury and comfort. Communal bays connected the private quarters through floating gardens and pools. High ceilings broadcast the Solarian sky and its suns and moons, following the same day and night cycle of the planet.

The entire ship had been built to give the idea of spaciousness and freedom, but Dragon had never felt as caged just one day into the voyage.

A month had passed since, and his mood hadn’t improved. If anything, he felt like slaying enemies would be a rather welcome diversion.

One of the reasons for his atrocious humor, the most important one, was Lauren’s and Gilda’s presence on the ship. More Lauren’s than Gilda’s, but they were one package, after all. Where one went, the other followed.

“Good morning, High Lord.” Lauren’s voice reached him from over his shoulder.

Dragon reminded himself that the princess was a victim of the Solarian system and that he had to be patient with her. Lately, it seemed like he had to repeat the words over and over in his head before he started any conversation with her.

“Good morning, Lauren.” He turned and opened his arm to indicate the vacant lounger by his side.

She sat and turned to him. With her hands on her lap and her perfect posture, she looked at peace. From the outside, they could have been old friends, enjoying the quiet of the deck. Nothing was further from the truth.

Once a day for the last month, they’d had this conversation where she would try to convince him that the best course of action would be for him to impregnate her. Since her family lawyers had accepted Dragon’s generous settlement—something she wasn’t happy about—she couldn’t ask for a wedding any longer, but that didn’t stop her from coming up with other requests. Lauren wanted to become the mother of dragons and wouldn’t take no for an answer. All that talk about starting a new life on Celestia had been a ruse to travel with him.

“Have you thought of my last proposal?” she asked in a deceptively low tone.

The day before, she had come up with a slightly different reasoning, involving advanced medicine and the greater good of Solaria and the shifter race, and asked him to think about it.

“My answer is still no, and it won’t change tomorrow or ten years from now,” he said. “But I have a question for you.”

Lauren tilted her head. “And what would that be?”

“Why are you so hell-bent on traveling a road that won’t lead you anywhere?” he asked, tired of trying to understand this woman. “You could have anyone.”

“I was promised I would become the most powerful woman on Solaria, and that my name would be forever remembered,” she answered without missing a beat.

“But you are a powerful woman and can still carve a path of your own,” Dragon said, feeling the sense of guilt that always accompanied their conversations rearing up. He braced for her reaction.

This time, though, Lauren shrugged off his answer with, “We’ll talk about it again tomorrow.”

Usually, her response would be explosive, followed by threats. For the entire month of the journey, vicious and vindictive had been the tenor of her interaction with him. He had on good authority that she treated the other passengers with more grace, reserving all her venom for Dragon.

Lauren raised a brow at the surprised expression he couldn’t hide. “What?” she asked.

“Nothing,” he hurried to say, knowing when it was best to skirt a battle.

“I have a question for you as well,” she said.

He cautiously nodded his assent.

“What is it about that woman that would make you renounce your progeny?” she asked without preamble, playing with her pocket watch, snapping the lid open and close.

Dragon wondered if she had switched tactics and taking him by surprise was her new approach, but decided to answer her question anyway. “It won’t make sense to you, but since the first moment I saw her, I knew she was the one for me.”

“Organic versus manufactured,” Lauren said. A tinge of sadness colored her statement. “My scent should have worked as a beacon to you. I was built to entice your senses.”

“I am truly sorry.” He didn’t venture into the realm of the it’s-not-you-it’s-me spiel, and decided to change subject altogether. “We’ll reach Celestia tomorrow.” He pointed his chin at the window bay.

A brilliant blue and green globe sat in the middle of the black outer space. White swirls rotated around the planet. Gabriel’s homeland shone as bright as a diamond, mesmerizing for millennia the travelers who wandered this corner of the Fifth Moon System.

“Gabriel told me once that Celestia is like a siren from the ancient Terran tales, drawing spacefarers in, but never letting them go again,” Dragon said, relaxing against the plush back of his recliner.

“I’m looking forward to visiting it.” Lauren leaned sideways.

“Vampires chose that planet because it’s the sunniest one in the galaxy, and it’s made mostly of water,” Dragon said.

“Is it true that vampires couldn’t walk under the sun?”

Dragon nodded. “On Earth, they were relegated to the shadows.”

“That must have been a very constrained existence.” Lauren’s voice was soft.

“I suppose it was,” he said.

It hit Dragon that the first time Lauren had ever left King’s Ridge was when he escorted her to Sol Manor. From one guarded citadel to another. Growing up in one golden cage only to be moved into a slightly different one. He couldn’t even fathom what passed through her mind as she observed Celestia getting bigger and bigger. The world must have looked different through her eyes.

“I’ll ask Gabriel to take you sightseeing.” He angled his body to face her instead of the window wall.

Tilting her chin up, she gave him a raised brow that was much more reminiscent of her usual warlike attitude. “While you try to reason with the Assassin Academy to save your assassin’s life.”

“As well as my own, but yes,” Dragon answered. He was ready to barter his life to save Jade’s, but Lauren didn’t need to know about his plan.

“At least, you aren’t the deceiving type.” Lauren swung her legs to the floor and unfurled with the elegance only extensive training in the art of seduction could impart. “See you tomorrow.”

Her parting words read like a menace, but her tone lacked the sharp edge Dragon was accustomed from her. He focused back on the sight outside the Glory, wishing he were already on Celestia.