Chapter 7 The Woman Who Wanted a King
( Cassian pov)
“Take your hands off me.”
Selene Arden’s voice sliced through the inside of the car like broken glass, I said nothing, outside the tinted windows, New York blurred into streaks of silver and black beneath the rain while the city lights reflected against the sleek interior of the Rolls-Royce, the atmosphere inside the vehicle was suffocating enough to choke weaker men, unfortunately for Selene I was not a weak man or a man at all.
“You embarrassed yourself tonight,” I said coldly.
Selene let out a bitter laugh as she leaned back against the leather seat across from me, the movement unsteady from the alcohol still clouding her system.
“Embarrassed?” she repeated mockingly. “That’s interesting coming from the Dragon King publicly obsessing over a human waitress.”
The temperature inside the car dropped instantly, Roman, seated in the front passenger seat, slowly glanced toward the rearview mirror before wisely deciding silence was safer, beside him, Knox kept his attention fixed on the road, though even he looked tense now, because the last fragile thread of patience I possessed tonight was already snapping, Selene noticed it too but instead of backing down, she smiled dngerously.
“You looked at her like she mattered,” she whispered.
My jaw tightened.
“That is none of your concern.”
“It becomes my concern when the entire Council starts whispering that Cassian Sinclair is losing control over a human.”
Her voice dripped venom, jealousy, humiliation and rage, I could smell it on her, for years Selene Arden had convinced herself she belonged beside me, she is the daughter of Elder Magnus Arden, Pure dragon blood, beautiful, powerful, everything dragon society considered worthy of a king, everything I had never wanted.
“You should have left when I told you to,” I said quietly.
Selene laughed bitterly again. “And let her stand there touching you while you stared at her like she was the answer to every curse you’ve carried?”
My dragon stirred possessive, restless and violently beneath my skin, dangerously aware of Anna even now, the memory of her scent still clung to me, her soft skin, fast heartbeat, fear mixed with desire she was mine, the thought slammed into my mind with terrifying force.
Mine.
I closed my eyes briefly, I needed control because the moment I cornered Anna in that hallway tonight, everything inside me nearly broke loose, my dragon had recognized her instantly not as prey, not as temptation but something worse and ancient, the bond was forming far too quickly and yet every instinct inside me already revolved around her existence telling me to protect and claim her, burn anyone who touches her, the violence of those instincts unsettled even me, Selene’s voice cut through my thoughts sharply.
“She’s human, Cassian.”
I slowly opened my eyes again, gold flickered briefly beneath my vision, Roman stiffened immediately in the front seat, he noticed of course he did.
“You forget yourself,” I said softly.
Selene leaned forward suddenly, anger flashing across her face.
“No,” she snapped. “You forget yourself every time you look at her.”
There was heavy deadly silence, rain hammered softly against the windows while tension wrapped around the car like tightening chains.
“She is changing you.”
My expression hardened instantly.
“That conversation is over.”
“No,” Selene whispered. “It’s just beginning.”
Before anyone could react, she moved across the seat toward me, fast and desperate, her hand gripped my jaw while her lips crashed against mine violently, the scent of alcohol hit immediately, I grabbed her wrist instantly and ripped her away from me hard enough to slam her back against the seat, he car shook slightly, Roman cursed under his breath, Knox tightened his grip on the steering wheel, Selene stared at me in shock, pain crossed her face, not physical pain something uglier.
“You rejected me,” she whispered.
My voice became ice.
“You forced yourself on me.”
Her eyes glistened furiously now.
“For centuries I stood beside you!” she snapped. “I defended you before the Council when they questioned your rule! I waited while every other female in our world threw themselves at you!”
I remained silent, because none of it mattered not anymore, not after Anna, even thinking her name settled something savage inside me, Selene noticed immediately, that hurt her more than my rejection ever could.
“You love her already,” she whispered in disbelief.
The words settled heavily inside the car, Roman slowly looked away, Knox muttered something under his breath that sounded dangerously close to a prayer, and me? I said nothing, because I did not know what this feeling was yet, but I knew one terrifying truth already, If Anna Lawson died, something monstrous inside me would burn the world for it, Selene laughed shakily, tears threatening her composure now.
“A human,” she whispered bitterly. “After centuries, the mighty Dragon King falls because of a fragile little human girl.”
“She is not fragile.”
The darkness in my voice silenced the car instantly, Selene stared at me, then slowly understanding crossed her face, not understanding of Anna, it was understanding of me, of what I had become and for the first time that night she looked afraid, good, because she should be.
“You would kill for her,” Selene realized quietly.
My dragon growled beneath my skin, ancient, violent and possessive, without hesitation I answered.
“Yes.”
Silence swallowed the car completely after that, the rain outside intensified, even the city itself felt darker tonight.
Roman finally cleared his throat carefully. “We’ve arrived.”
Knox pulled the car smoothly toward the massive iron gates of the Arden estate, ancient dragon symbols lined the black stone walls surrounding the property, glowing faintly beneath the rain, Selene looked toward the mansion through the window before turning back to me one final time.
“You’re making a mistake.”
I held her gaze coldly.
“No.”
She shook her head slowly.
“You think this girl is your salvation.” Her voice cracked slightly now. “But humans die, Cassian. They age. They break. And when she’s gone, your curse will destroy what remains of you.”
A dangerous silence followed her words, because beneath the bitterness, there was truth there, Anna was human, Fragile and mortal, while I had lived for centuries, the realization had haunted me from the second my dragon recognized her, my fists tightened instinctively, because the thought of losing her already felt unbearable and that terrified me more than war ever had, Selene noticed the shift in my expression instantly, her jealousy twisted into cruel satisfaction.
“There it is,” she whispered softly. “Fear.”
My eyes darkened.
“Get out.”
The command carried enough force to make the air itself vibrate, Selene flinched slightly before recovering then she smiled sadly.
“You’re already doomed.”
Without another word, she opened the car door and stepped out into the rain, the gates slowly closed behind her as she disappeared toward the estate, thick silence filled the vehicle again, Roman finally exhaled loudly from the front seat.
“Well,” he muttered carefully, “that could’ve gone worse.”
Knox snorted. “Barely.”
I leaned back against the seat slowly, exhaustion grinding through my bones, not physical exhaustion, something deeper, my dragon had been unstable since meeting Anna, it had become restless and wild, every instinct screamed at me to return to Inferno Club right now and drag her away from every living thing, protect her, hide her, claim her. Mine.
The possessiveness slammed through me again violently enough to make my jaw tighten, Roman noticed immediately in the mirror.
“She affects you worse every day.”
I remained silent, because there were no words strong enough for what Anna was becoming to me, an obsession, a weakness and need, dangerous things for a king to feel, especially a king carrying an ancient curse, Knox finally spoke from the driver’s seat. “The Council will find out soon.”
“I know.”
“And when they do?” Roman asked quietly.
I slowly lifted my gaze toward the rain-covered city outside, toward the direction of Inferno Club, toward her.
“They’ll try to kill her.”
Neither Roman nor Knox argued because they knew dragon law, a human capable of affecting the Dragon King threatened the balance of every supernatural kingdom, fear would spread quickly and fear always created violence, my expression darkened dangerously.
“They can try.”
Roman looked back carefully. “Cass…”
Violent gold flashed beneath my eyes briefly.
“If anyone touches her,” I said softly, “there won’t be enough left of them to bury.”
The car fell silent again because they believed me, they had seen what I became in war, they knew exactly what kind of monster sat in the back seat tonight pretending to still have control and the terrifying truth?
Anna Lawson had no idea how close she already was to the fire or how completely the Dragon King was beginning to belong to her.
