When Auburn awoke, Eli was still asleep. Not surprising given how late he’d worked. She studied his face, hard and handsome even as he rested. So odd, Auburn thought. Any Qumarefi would have already stripped her of her virginity, taking her and using her for their pleasure. But not this dark, forbidding foreigner.

Disappointment warred with relief. He was handsome, and while he wasn’t kind, he wasn’t cruel either. She suspected he would be a demanding lover, and the idea of him focused on her like that warmed her insides and flushed her cheeks.

She bit her lip. It was foolish to want his attention. So much easier and less dangerous to pass unnoticed, especially as he’d already promised to take her to Tamryn.

A shiver stole through her as she remembered the heat in his kiss and the way it had left her wanting more. Auburn hadn’t known a kiss could do that, hadn’t known her body could respond to his as it had. Hadn’t imagined she’d want anyone to kiss her again, or that she’d want to touch a man’s bare skin and feel the muscles of his chest tighten under her fingers.

Heat slid through her veins, and she pressed closer to the prince.

He felt good beside her. Not safe, she would never call Prince Eli safe, but protected. It was a strange feeling, as strange as his clothes, his words, and his mannerisms.

Yet familiar.

She’d seen him in her visions, waking dreams that both warned and guided her. Time had taught her to believe in the visions and to act on them. While images of Prince Eli were more recent, she’d seen the dragon crest he wore in her visions for as long as she could remember.

Her fingers trembled as she stroked the gold buttons on his jacket, each etched with that dragon crest. The symbol of Tamryn.

This was the first time she’d seen the crest in person, the first time she could touch it. The gold dragon was a symbol of Dracor. God of justice. Righteousness. Integrity.

Tamryn worshipped the Dragon God and embraced His ways. While books had taught Auburn about Dracor and his role in the Holy Trinity, most people in Qumaref did not pay homage to Him.

Auburn suspected that had much to do with Rashalee’s influence. The goddess of envy, lust, and greed had a strong foothold in the desert kingdom. While most would say they worshipped Thalia, little of Her mercy or compassion illuminated Qumaref.

Whispers among the sultan’s court said the Dragon God was unforgiving, and those who worshiped Him were even more unyielding. It’s why Tamryn hadn’t been their first choice of trading partners.

But her visions had never been wrong, no matter how unlikely they seemed. They’d shown her over and over that her only chance at freedom, her only opportunity to have a family and a child of her own, was if she followed Dracor’s path.

The vision of a boy dressed in a red tabard bearing Tamryn’s gold dragon flashed through her memory, and her chest tightened. The child’s face was alight with youthful enthusiasm. He was so happy, so proud, and he called her momma. She squeezed a pillow to her as she yearned to hug him.

Tears filled her eyes. A family, a home, a child who loved her. A child who was free, and who’d never know slavery. That’s why she’d made sure the sultan had picked her to dance. Why she’d risked her life to see the Tamarian delegation. Why she would do whatever it took to please the foreigner beside her.

She wanted to bring the boy from her visions into the world.

Eli brushed away an escaped tear.

Pressing a hand to her chest, Auburn stifled a gasp. “I’m sorry, master. I didn’t mean to wake you.”

“I’m a light sleeper. One of my many bad habits. And don’t call me master.”

“What would you have me call you?”

“Eli’s fine.”

“Eli, do you want me to help you get back to sleep?”

“How would you do that?”

“We were taught...” Her cheeks colored. “Taught that after pleasure, men like to sleep.”

Eli caught her hands before she could do anything with them. “Taught you that, did they?”

Auburn glanced up at him, and her breath caught in her throat. By the gods, he was handsome, especially with his hair tousled from sleep. Handsome, motivated, and unforgiving. A whisper of desire tempered by apprehension skittered down her spine. “A good slave allows you to sleep, waiting quietly for you to awake so we can serve you again.”

“Do you believe that nonsense? Or do you speak it because you were taught that would please me?”

Auburn paused, unsure the answer he wanted.

The prince thumbed over her lips. “I prefer partners who are willing. Eager. Demanding.”

Confusion knit her brows. “Of course I’m willing. You’re my master.”

“You recite the words they taught you, but you don’t mean them.” She opened her mouth to speak, and he touched a finger to her lips. “If you believed them, you wouldn’t want to escape to Tamryn.”

Auburn turned away from his penetrating blue stare. It didn’t matter what she believed. Her visions had shown her the only future worth having was in Tamryn.

He brushed away another tear. “What else did they teach you?”

“I’m fully trained as a consort to serve my master and bring him happiness. I can sing, dance-”

“I saw that last night.” Eli brought her fingers to his lips.

Excitement mingled with fear and both slid along her nerves. “I can play several instruments. Speak, read and write your language as well as Qumarefi, Elven, and Dwarven.”

“Very useful,” Eli said. “Few have such language mastery.”

Color warmed her cheeks. “I’m glad that pleases you.”

“The truth, for once.”

She stared down at her hands. “I was also given instructions on how to touch my master, how to use my hands and mouth, how to offer myself to him.”

“Instruction? No practice?”

“I’m chaste. For the sultan to give you anything less as a gift would be an insult.”

Eli let go of her hands and pulled back from her. Desire and something else, something that almost looked like fear, teased across his face before he locked all emotion behind his expressionless mask.

He was distancing himself, erecting a wall between them. She reached for him, but decided against it and folded her hands in her lap. “You can teach me. I learn quickly.”

“I’ve seen your tears.”

“They weren’t about you.”

Eli stroked her cheek. “Don’t bothering lying. I was born doing it.”

“I didn’t think Dracor allowed Tamarians to lie.”

“Royal courts are much the same all over the world. Tamryn is different in some ways, and very much the same in others.”

He was withdrawing, pulling back more than just physically. She didn’t want him to leave her, to distance himself and retreat under the icy façade he wore.

Her pulse raced as she closed her eyes and touched her lips to his. Heat bloomed as his lips move against hers, the warmth sliding through her and erasing everything that wasn’t him. Madness, perhaps, but it was intoxicating and left her wanting more.

His hand tangled in her hair as he returned the kiss. His mouth was hot and hard on hers, taking all she offered as he plundered her soft lips. Parting her, his tongue surged inside, claiming her as he held her against him.

He tasted dark, exciting, and wholly male. The hard planes of his body pressed against her soft curves, sending sparks of desire skittering along her nerves. Yielding to him, her body softened as heat teased through her and settled into a molten ball at her core.

His hand slid under her bodice and cupped a full breast. His fingers were hard and lightly calloused, a sensual contrast compared to the silk of her skin.

A soft whimper escaped from her as his thumb teased over her ruched peak and sent jolts of pleasure searing through her and adding to her growing need.

Eli cursed and let go of her. He sat up, swung his legs off the bed, and reached for his boots.

Auburn gasped as the cool air replaced the warmth of him. She swallowed and forced her voice to stay even. “You should come back to bed. You went to sleep late, and that was after a very long day.”

Eli yanked on a boot. “Don’t know why the gods are tempting me. They already know I’ll give in.”

“But you’re from Tamryn. You’d never ‘give in’ to something.” Auburn watched him pull on his other boot. “The books say you must follow your code.”

“Don’t mistake me for a Knight of Valor.”

“What’s a Knight of Valor?”

“A thorn in my side,” Eli said.

A frown puckered her brow.

He glanced back at her. “You really don’t know?”

“You overestimate how much Qumaref knows about Tamryn.”

“Knights of Valor are men and women in service to the Dragon God. They are a powerful force in Tamryn politics.”

“Servants of the Dragon God?”

“People who’ve sworn to uphold Dracor’s ideals. They take an oath and follow a special code. They’re some of our most powerful soldiers and healers, and they’re what most people imagine when they think of Tamryn.”

“Have you ever met one?”

“Too many. Their code may serve their god, but they’re dogmatic, and it’s difficult to get them to compromise. You’ve lived in a royal court. You know how important compromise is.”

“Did any come to Qumaref with you?”

Eli stilled, and she’d have thought jealousy flashed across his impassive face if it wasn’t such an absurd notion. “No. They’d have made negotiations impossible. As a matter of fact, they were against this entire meeting.”

“But you’re here anyway.”

“They answer to the Crown and their god. Only under extreme circumstances would they disobey the king. A diplomatic mission to Qumaref is not an extreme circumstance.”

She considered the vision of her yet-to-be-conceived son wearing a dragon tabard. “When we get to Tamryn, would you introduce me to a Knight of Valor? I’d like to learn more about them.”

“Perhaps,” Eli said.

Auburn recognized the unsaid “no” in his tone, but she didn’t understand why he wouldn’t want her to meet a Knight of Valor. Perhaps he was at odds with them. He had come to Qumaref against their wishes.

Pushing the idea away, she slipped on her dainty cerulean-blue slippers and padded over to the window. “It’ll be some time until the sultan wakes.”

Eli frowned and glanced at the clock. “Meetings are supposed to begin shortly.”

“The sultan won’t be there, and he’s the only one with the power to agree to anything. He won’t trust his retainers, so anything you discuss you’ll need to be repeat when he arrives.”

“I’d rather not waste my time.”

Auburn nodded as she gazed at the rising sun and tried to hide the strange sense of confusion and disappointment filling her. “I recommend you send someone to sit in your place.”

“He can’t negotiate anything.”

“Neither can the Qumarefis. When the sultan arrives, have one of your men come get you so the real discussions can begin. Keeps your standing at the same level as the sultan.”

Eli cursed under his breath. “Is Qumaref serious about negotiations?”

“Yes, but they need whatever advantages they can get.”

“Which means they want something they don’t think I’ll give them.”

“Any trade agreement with Tamryn will be difficult. The sultan knows that.”

Eli walked to the door, called to Sligo, and made the arrangements.

“Now will you come back to bed?” Auburn asked.

The prince sucked in a breath.

“I’ll take care of things while you rest.”

“What things?”

“Arranging meals to the tastes of you and your men, having my clothes brought over, and informing the housekeeping staff of your schedule.”

“You’re not a slave anymore.”

“I am under Qumarefi law, but that’s not what this is about. I’m a member of your retinue, and I want to make you as comfortable as possible.”

“Do what you must.” Eli shook his head and lay back down on the bed.