Nora slowly tried to open her eyes, but she felt like her head was swimming. She struggled to get more comfortable, and it was only until she attempted to move that she realized she was bound to what felt like a chair.

Oh, no, she cursed to herself. No, no, not again!

Her last memory was sitting on the plane from London to Las Vegas, chatting with an attractive British businessman. Someone had drugged her, and Nora had a very good inkling as to who had been responsible.

Dammit, Jerome! I’ll really have to kill you, won’t I?

But as her vision became sharper, Nora found herself sitting in the center of a room with two men staring at her, and she did not recognize either of them. It seemed like, for once, Jerome had not been involved in drugging her.

“Ah! Cara mia!” the fatter of the two men cried happily. “You’re awake now!”

“What is this?” Nora rasped, her mouth like cotton.

“Luca, get the lady a glass of water, will you?” the same man ordered, and the lumbering giant behind him hurried to oblige his request. “I am Tony, honey. I’m friends with an old friend of yours. Ansel Williams?”

Nora’s spine tensed.

“Is this how you treat mutual friends?” she demanded, annoyed.

“It ain’t personal, baby,” Tony explained, drawing closer to her. “Your boyfriend screwed me over pretty good. I’m just trying to regain some of my losses, you know?”

Nora did not bother to ask what he meant.

“Whatever business you have with Ansel has nothing to do with me,” she informed him as Luca approached with a glass of water in his hand. “Furthermore, I don’t take kindly to being kidnapped.”

Tony hooted. “You English broads are so fancy! You don’t take kindly, huh? You get kidnapped a lot?”

You’d be surprised, Nora thought ruefully, but she wisely said nothing. She wasn’t strong enough yet to unleash her hand.

Luca put the water to her lips, and Nora guzzled it thirstily.

Ansel, love? she called out to him. I think we may have a small problem. I’m being held in a room with an obese Italian man and his bodyguard.

“Listen, baby,” Tony said, “I just want you and me to be friends.”

“I have enough friends,” Nora bit back. “But I will make you a deal. If you untie me, I will walk out of here like nothing happened, and I won’t tell Ansel what you’ve done.”

Tony whooped, but his black eyes glittered with malice.

“Your boyfriend ain’t here to protect you now, sweetheart,” he rasped, pushing his face against hers. “He’s done enough damage to me for a lifetime, and I’m gonna take it out on your ass.”

“Are you?” Nora purred, smiling dully at him. “Are you sure you don’t want to reconsider?”

Tony glowered, his hand closing around her throat. “Maybe I will just kill you. Something tells me you’re gonna be more trouble than you’re worth.”

He reached into the waistband of his pants and pulled out a gun.

In her mind, Nora could hear Ansel saying something to her, calling out to her, but she couldn’t quite hear it over her anger. Her brown eyes turned amber, glinting in the low lighting of the room, and Tony gasped, firing the weapon at her. The bullet hit her cheek, and a searing pain tore through her face.

“Holy shit!” Tony screamed, firing off another round. “She’s one of them, too!”

Luca found his firearm, and together, they continued to empty rounds into her stationary body.

A low, terrifying growl emanated from Nora’s body, and she began to shift into a fearsome iridescent beast. The men fell backward as a high-pitched scream of pain radiated from Nora. Her head flipped downward, and she bared her teeth, nipping at Tony’s face as he screamed in terror.

Luca tried to flee, but Nora released a blast of fire, catching him mid-run and turning him into a charred ball. Blood poured from Tony’s face, and Nora flipped her tail, sending him flying into a wall.

Suddenly, another dragon appeared on the balcony, and Tony howled like a terrified baby. Ansel burst through the doors, snatching Tony by his teeth and dangling him over the edge of the twenty-fourth story balcony.

Nora fell back, the searing holes in her body immobilizing her as she tried to catch her breath. Despite the black spots dancing before her eyes, Nora gritted her teeth.

You will fight through this, she told herself. Just take deep breaths until you begin to heal.

The agony was almost too much to bear, but she had been through worse. She had just grown weaker after not being engaged in battle for hundreds of years. Ansel would think she had become a pathetic beast. They were only a few wounds—Nora could fight them. She could fight them.

She faded into unconsciousness before she could realize it.

The clink of a tray caused Nora to immediately sit up. As her eyes flew open, she expected to see Collette sitting at her side, carrying a tray with her breakfast. Instead of her old housekeeper, she saw Ansel.

“What… what happened to—?” The realization that she had fainted after being shot a few times with mortal weapons rushed back to her, and she slapped her own forehead. “Ah, damn it!” she cursed, throwing the blankets aside to look at herself. Her wounds had all healed perfectly, and there was not a single scratch on her.

“How are you feeling?” Ansel asked with a small laugh.

“Well, my pride is wounded,” Nora admitted. “But I’m fine.”

Ansel perched at her side, brushing a strand of dark hair out of her face. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there sooner.”

“It is not your responsibility to take care of me,” she growled, pulling her head back. “I am a dragon. I can take care of myself.”

He nodded agreeably.

“Yes,” he replied. “You are, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have someone watching out for you.”

“Like you?” Nora retorted.

“Yes, like me,” Ansel said. “I have always had you to look out for me. I can’t remember a time when you weren’t at my side, even if you were fuming mad or fighting me about something.”

Nora’s face fell into a smile, but it looked like Ansel had more to say, so she let him gather his thoughts.

“I… I have been stubborn and blind,” he started. “I should have told my father centuries ago to get stuffed, but I didn’t because I was afraid. It took me this long to realize that the only thing I should have ever feared was losing you. You are the only thing that has ever been right in my life.”

Nora narrowed her eyes at him. “Have you been drinking?”

“No,” Ansel declared. “I am in love with you. If we have learned anything over these last few days, it’s that we can overcome anything together, no matter what kind of mess we find ourselves in.”

Nora laughed lightly. “I thought you had learned that a long time ago.”

Ansel smiled at her. Then he reached into his breast pocket, and Nora’s eyes widened when he opened it, revealing a ring inside of it.

“In some ways,” Ansel said, “I already feel as if we are married, but I think it is high time we make it official. Nora Chambers, will you marry me, finally?”

Nora gaped at him in amazement before turning her glance to the ring.

“Are you sure about this?” she asked. “If we do this, your father will never allow you back into the Kingdom.”

“I disowned that life a long time ago,” Ansel told her. “As you said, I do well enough for myself, and for both of us. I could build you that art studio you always wanted in the house in London, or we could move to the countryside. I just want to go anywhere you are.”

Nora thought of her isolated art studio at the chalet and shuddered.

“I am perfectly content being in the city,” she assured him. “Maybe you can hire me as your boxing manager.” She winked to show him she was only joking, but Ansel did not smile.

“I would give it all up to be with you,” he said, his eyes intense upon hers. “And I will for eternity, Nora. I swear it.”

Nora sat up and stroked his dark hair, pulling him in for a tender kiss.

“I believe you,” she said. “And I accept your proposal. I should warn you that while I do not come with a dowry, I do possess a lot of baggage.”

Ansel chuckled, and Nora joined in. He reached for the ring and slid it on her ring finger, smiling at her with affection.

“We are officially betrothed,” Nora murmured, smiling back at him. “Although, I daresay we will have a very small guest list.”

Ansel fell onto her with a laugh, nuzzling his nose into her neck. “I don’t care if it’s the two of us and a justice of the peace. We are the only ones who matter.”

“I think this calls for a celebration,” Nora commented, glancing at the tray he had brought in. “No champagne?”

“I ordered room service, but I held off on the champagne. I wanted to make sure the answer was positive before I popped the cork.”

Nora stared at him for a long moment.

“Did you really believe that I wouldn’t accept?” she asked in disbelief. “I have longed to be with you forever!”

“I thought you may have finally come to your senses,” Ansel replied, and Nora laughed, placing another kiss on his forehead.

“At least we live in an era now where divorce is commonplace,” she joked, causing Ansel to laugh again. “Hey, by the way, whatever happened to Tony?”

Ansel waved his hand dismissively. “Tomorrow, we deal with the aftermath of today, but tonight, we celebrate.”

“Why do I feel like that is going to be part of our wedding vows?” Nora asked, raising an eyebrow as Ansel picked up the phone to order champagne. She fell back on the bed, inhaling deeply, and she waited for a sense of unease to follow. She was ecstatic to find that there was nothing but a deep, warm pleasure radiating through her body.

Things are finally the way they’re supposed to be, she thought happily. It has taken seven hundred years, but we are precisely where we should be. Some things are worth waiting for.

Nora stared at the glittering gem on her finger. It fit perfectly, of course.

Ansel hung up the phone.

“They will be right up,” he assured her, nestling back against her.

“Do we have time for a quickie?” she teased.

“There is always time for a quickie,” he replied.