I open my eyes again and see Conyac standing before me with his hands on his hips, a few paces back. I shrug, and he frowns. "It won't come out," I say. I don't want it to come out anyway, so I'm a little relieved.

"Give it time," he says, striding toward me. He takes my hand and pulls me against him as the sun glints in my eyes. I feel his hard chest against my breasts and smell his intoxicating scent.

"Perhaps this will entice her," he says, leaning down to press his lips to mine. I'm taken aback. I wasn't expecting him to kiss me. I push gently against his shoulders, trying to get away, but his tongue is pushing through my lips and slipping inside my mouth. My nipples prick, and a surge of desire flutters up and down my body, opening me up. I relent to his passionate kiss as his tongue leads mine in a writhing dance. He runs his hands down by back and grips my ass, pulling me against his growing hardness. I'm still about a foot shorter than he is, and much more delicate. He is strong and holds me so tightly; I know I'd never be able to get away.

He runs his hand down my thigh and lifts my leg up, to pull my pussy even closer to him. He rubs me against his thigh, exciting my hungry clit and making me so wet I could scream.

I think we're going to get down and dirty right here on the lawn. My inner dragon is going crazy with lust, rolling over, her ass in the air, her tail wagging. She's clawing the ground inside my mind, begging for his cock.

My elfin body is alive with lust, just like the dragon within. I am ready to let him take me wherever he wants to go. Rationality be damned. These men are making me crazy, and I'm ready to go along for the ride.

I feel hands behind me, pulling me away from Conyac's embrace. I open my eyes as my back hits a hard body. Hands wrap around my front, my breasts and my hips. I see Conyac's eyes darken with anger as he narrows his brows.

"How dare you interrupt," he bellows.

"She's mine," Trav growls. I can feel him harden against my back. Now that I smell Trav's scent, my inner dragon is yowling for release. I'm more turned on than ever. What is wrong with me? I try to turn in Trav's arms, but he holds me tight, his hand wrapped around my swollen breasts.

Conyac comes closer, grabbing my waist. He pulls me away from Trav, but Trav comes along with me. I'm sandwiched between two growling dragon shifters. My body is on fire, and I'm about ready to let them both take me right here and now. I almost suggest it when what's left of my human mind snaps me out of it.

"Let me go, you assholes. Right. Now," I screech, pushing frantically against them both.

They reluctantly let me out of their grasps, and I huff, brush myself off, and stomp away. I storm through the front doors and up the stairs. Running down the hallway to my chambers, I hear Gizmel call after me.

“Princess!” he starts. I didn’t even see him when I passed.

“What!” I scream, angry as hell with everyone and everything.

“Princess, please, I wanted to speak with you about your, your… transformation. If you would follow me to the laboratory. I’ve been able to retrieve more information from the scrolls.

“Fine,” I say with an irritated sweep of my hand. Gizmel hurries ahead of me down the hallway until we come to a narrow door that leads into a winding stairwell.

We take the stair up several floors to the laboratory. It seems cleaner today. Multiple scrolls are rolled out on the table, and a scrying bowl full of water glimmers in the sunlight.

“What have they told you about the dragon born queen?” he asks me as he shows me to a place to sit on a long wooden bench. He paces in front of me, wringing his hands.

“Not much,” I confess. “I’m supposed to choose the next king, and then somehow we both get our powers,” I say, shrugging.

“Yes. That’s right. Prince Trav’s dragon has the power of fire, and Prince Conyac’s dragon has the power of frost. We don’t know what your power is, my lady, but your mother was a sonic dragon.”

“Meaning?”

“She could use sound as a weapon. She could also heal and enchant with song. A very powerful skill. If she had not been promised to your father from before birth, I’m sure she would have been queen herself.”

“Go on,” I say. “Tell me about hilock and the power of the king and queen. What is that all about?”

“Ah. When dragons mate, they bond. When the king and queen mate, they also bond, but with the added bonus of an additional boost of power.”

“I’m sorry. I don’t understand any of this.”

“The king and queen are the alphas of all dragons. With that dominion comes a magical change that takes place between them during hilock. It unlocks the alpha powers dormant inside them.”

“So I’ll have this alpha power? What will that be?”

“Generally, it is an increased intensity of the power the dragon already possesses. Your mother’s power was quite rare. We do not know what it would look like as an alpha. But, if you pick Trav, his fire will be stronger. If you pick Conyac, his frost will be stronger. They would be able to use it without waiting.”

“Who do you think I should choose?” I ask offhandedly.

“That is not for me to decide, my lady. The reason I brought you up here was to ask you about your inner dragon. Have you felt it emerging?”

“Yes. I have. It’s…Ahhh. I don’t enjoy it.”

“You haven’t shifted yet, have you?”

“No.”

“Have you tried?”

“I did. It didn’t work,” I say, not really disappointed. I tried to let it out, but I can’t say I really wanted it to.

He rubs his chin in thought, a concerned expression etched in his comically wide face. “I wonder why not. At your age, the dragon should already be a big part of your identity. I need to think about this,” he says, moving toward his scrolls. “Excuse me, my lady.”

I stand just as Trav and Conyac burst through the door.

“There you are,” Trav says, reaching out to grab my arm. I try to pull away, but it’s useless.

“What?” I demand, irritated that I’m in their grip again.

“There has been an Org attack on Castle Warren. We leave now. I want you back in your rooms until we return.”

“No. I’m coming. I want to see what this whole Org thing is all about. If they are the reason I have to get married to a man I barely know, I want to see the threat myself.”

“No,” Trav growls.

“She’s a dragon born, Trav. She will be in the battle field soon enough,” Conyac says, coming to my defense.

I smile and pull out of Trav’s grip. “Maybe my dragon will come out,” I say, looking Trav in the eye.

He frowns. “Very well,” he grumbles, crossing his arms. “We leave now.”

We all hurry down to the entrance hall and through the front doors of my palace before walking over the hill to were the carriage sits. As I crest the hill, I take in the landscape. This island of rock, called Skyland, truly sits perched in the middle of nothing. It’s like some huge mesa in the Grand Canyon with a castle on top. My breath is taken away, and I stop short.

“Hurry,” Trav calls as he grabs my hand.

I growl at him, my inner dragon clawing in my brain. That’s new. The princes fight over who is going to carry my carriage. Finally, Conyac wins their battle of wills. I climb into my seat beside Gizmel as the dragons shift. Conyac grabs the handle of the carriage, and we are off.

As we approach Castle Warren, I see a horde of bodies crushing toward the fortress from the south. I gasp as Conyac sets me down in the courtyard and comes to sit beside me inside the carriage.

“It’s worse than we thought,” he says grimly.

“Will they overtake the castle?” I ask, gripping my seat until my knuckles are white.

“Not if I can help it. I’ll defend the keep with my life. Even if the keep belongs to my enemy.” He smiles at me, showing his long pointed teeth. Conyac never ceases to impress me. He always seems to do what’s right. Unless you count stealing kisses.

Trav lands beside the carriage and begins to bark orders at his staff. His people scurry in all directions as Conyac walks at his side into the keep. I scurry after them, trying to make sense of what is going on.