“You knew,” Darla hissed at Liam as she turned in her twenty pounds of jewelry to watch Breck march down the flower-lined aisle towards her.

Her heart gave a lurch at the sight of him, so handsome and so graceful… and so dear. She wanted this more than anything in the entire world.

And she knew she couldn’t have it.

“How could you let him do this?” she murmured to Liam.

Liam gave half a shrug. “How could I stop him?”

“You could refuse to concede,” Darla whispered frantically. “You don’t have to hurt him, just… step on him a little.”

“I’ve got to give him a chance,” Liam said quietly. “He said there was a plan.”

Breck had drawn up to the platform. “I will challenge,” he repeated, his eyes only for Darla.

“Are you sure?” Liam asked, pitched just louder than his whisper to Darla.

Breck’s gaze flickered to his. “I’m sure,” he said firmly. A cocky smile danced at the corner of his mouth.

“Don’t,” Darla begged quietly. “You know…” All her reasons crowded her mind: the home, Eugene, the resort, her mother’s revenge.

Breck’s eyes met hers. “I’m sure,” he said, and he smiled at her. “Trust me.”

He was so confident, so happy.

So trusting.

Darla remembered Eugene’s last words to her the night before… his greasy self-assurance that he was going to get everything he wanted.

But before she could stop him, Liam was saying loudly, “I concede the challenge and her hand.” He held out his wrist, as an afterthought, and the bracelet opened with a loud snap.

Darla looked down at her own, almost lost amid the jewelry she was wearing, but it was as solid and immovable as ever.

Liam held his bracelet to Breck, who closed it over his wrist. It gave a flare of light and clamped onto him almost eagerly, fading into an unbroken yellow gold, as Darla’s did the same.

This invited a wave of speculation from the audience and Breck stepped to Darla as Liam moved back.

“I never want to let you go again,” he said, taking her hands.

Darla was watching Breck’s face when Eugene stood and shouted, “I will challenge!”

Breck’s smile froze in surprise, and he jerked his head to Eugene. “You promised…”

Then Eugene was shifting, pieces of his clothing shredding from him as he charged forward without further warning.

“No!” Darla wailed, but Breck was already shifting and twisting away, drawing the fight away from her. She gathered up her skirts, full prepared to wade in and fight next to him, but her mother took an iron grip on her shoulder, holding her back.

“You can’t interfere,” Jubilee hissed as the contestant circled each other, Breck staying carefully out of reach of Eugene’s big paws. “This is part of the dragon tradition.”

“I won’t marry him,” Darla said furiously. “I won’t do it.”

“Madame Nadine foretold this,” Jubilee insisted. “This is how the dragon line continues.”

Eugene charged at Breck, who skirted the attack and dashed beneath the giant paw to circle behind the bear.

“I don’t care about the dragon line,” Darla said, watching the fight with her heart in her mouth.

Jubilee’s eyes narrowed. “You don’t marry by the dragon tradition, and you don’t get the hoard, either,” she reminded Darla. Eugene turned around, growling, to face Breck and charge again.

Tags: Zoe Chant Shifting Sands Resort Fantasy
Source: readsnovelonline.net