by Lea Doué
Keir had already sent Neylan one note that morning, asking her to meet him in the moonlight garden after sundown. Alone. Since their return, they’d spent a portion of every day either wandering the gardens together or continuing their search through the old king’s collection—a task Baz felt was worth the effort after learning about Idris’s plans.
She had a guess as to Keir’s intentions, and her hands became sweaty as she tried to complete the simple task of getting dressed. She took the note from Euna. It was in Mel’s handwriting.
The dressmaker hasn’t finished your gowns yet, so I rounded this up just in case. It’s his favorite color.
—Mel
Someone had found the spare gown.
“The note was pinned to the skirt. I thought you might want to wear something special tonight,” Euna said.
Neylan stepped into the gown, and Euna laced up the back. The entire thing, including the bodice and off-the-shoulder sleeves, was made of golden-yellow weaver dragon silk, unadorned. Light as air, it fluttered with the slightest movement.
“It’s perfect,” she said as she put on the slippers and walked around the room, admiring the soft flow of the fabric. A zing of anticipation shot up her spine that had nothing to do with spells in the garment.
“The burn on your back is showing,” Euna pointed out.
She nodded. After two weeks, most of the sting had gone, but Keir had said the scar might not fade completely. It was a small price to pay. A visible sign of her struggle to be with him.
Euna pinned up her hair and added a yellow geranium.
Neylan poked Wist, who sat on Majesty’s head where she lay recuperating on a blanket by the door. “You coming?”
After stretching his wings, he made a few circles around the room and then settled on her hair.
Now she was ready.
Starlight twinkled overhead as she walked through the avenue of pink dogwood trees, bronze lamps blazing from their branches. With the razor-tail threat over, musicians played once again in their gazebos, and dancers filled the spaces between the flowers and topiaries and fountains. She made her way to the moonlight garden, which she’d avoided since her return to the palace. It was as breathtaking as when she’d first seen it. The only change was the center flowerbed, now planted with bright yellow evening primroses.
While she walked to the fountain, Wist flew off for a snack.
“Eat all you want. I’ll get you access to the hothouse as soon as I can.” She couldn’t help lavishing him with treats for his help at the tower, though he seemed to expect nothing in return.
“I can make that promise a reality as soon as you give the word.” Keir strode under the archway wearing a black tunic winking with gold thread. He joined her and took her hands in his. “You look beautiful, as always.”
She smiled and traced one of the pale crescents on his wrist. With the breaking of the curse, his painful transformations had ended, but, like her, the scars remained.
He rubbed the back of his neck. “Actually, there’s another word I’m after tonight.”
“Is there?” She bit her lip to keep from grinning like an idiot.
He cleared his throat softly. “I love you, Neylan. More than anything. And I—”
Wist zoomed past their heads and headed straight for the archway with a scolding screech.
“I think we have an audience,” Neylan whispered.
Two faces ducked out of sight around the corner. Baz and Vanda.
She giggled.
“Just what a man wants at a time like this,” Keir mumbled. And then louder, “I know them. They’re hopeless romantics. Let’s give them something to talk about.”
There was no stopping her grin now.
Keir dropped to one knee and spoke loud enough for their audience to hear. “Princess Neylan, Sixth Daughter of Ituria, my… .” He looked her over. “My golden dragon girl. Will you marry me?”
She pulled him to his feet and wrapped her arms around him. “Yes, of course I will.”
The bushes at the archway burst into applause. Baz’s voice rumbled with a command, and a violin struck up a lilting tune.
Keir laughed, and Neylan leaned her forehead on his shoulder as he led her in a slow dance around the garden. Wist sprinkled them with fistfuls of moonflower petals.
She was the dragon girl, and there was nothing else she would rather be.
Acknowledgements
Thank you first and always to my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ for His love and grace and for blessing me with an awesome, supportive family and extended family.
This fourth book in the Firthorn Chronicles series is inspired by Beauty and the Beast, which is one of my favorite fairytales. While it is a stand-alone book, it also rounds out the story begun in Red Orchid, a short story inspired by Little Red Riding Hood (you can get a free copy of that on my website), and continued in The Red Dragon Girl (Firethorn Chronicles 3).
Thank you once again to Brian, best husband ever, and to our two boys, Caleb, my little birthday present, and Seth, my Christmas gift.
Big thanks to beta readers, H. L. Burke, Claudette Cruz, Heather Hayden, Margie MacDonald, Karen Martin, and E. Kaiser Writes. Also, thanks to the many others who read and offered valuable feedback along the way, including (but not limited to) Bokerah Brumley, Susan Lower, Veronica Lynn, Alex McGilvery, Shannon Pendergraph, and Amanda Welker.
I also have to acknowledge Sarah Ashwood Blackwell for naming Wist and Brandy Auten Crosson for naming Majesty. Thanks so much ladies!
To my awesome editor, Laurel Garver, thanks (and so much respect) for once again helping me find the right words to whip another story into shape.
And to my readers: you’re awesome! I hope you’ve enjoyed reading my latest story as much as I enjoyed writing it. If so, and you would consider recommending it to someone, please also consider leaving a review on the site where you purchased it. Having honest reviews helps indie authors tremendously in sharing our stories with more readers.
You can connect with me online—I’d love to hear from you! You’ll find links to my social media pages on my website, along with more information about the Firethorn Chronicles. Happy reading!
www.leadoue.com
About the Author
Lea Doué is the author of The Firethorn Chronicles, a fantasy series inspired by fairytales and other classic stories, as well as the Fairytale Dragon Riders series. A native of south Georgia, Lea currently lives in Nova Scotia, Canada with her husband, their two boys, and four cats. But, sadly, no dragons.
Read more in The Firethorn Chronicles
(Available on Amazon)
A kingdom of shadows. A soldier sworn to protect. A princess silenced by love.
Plagued by her mother’s matchmaking attempts, Princess Lily, the eldest of twelve sisters and heir to a mighty kingdom, struggles to prove herself worthy of her inheritance while avoiding the attention of unwanted admirers. Tradition forbids marriage with the man she loves, so she would rather rule alone than marry someone who only wants the crown.
Fleeing an overzealous suitor, Lily stumbles into a secret underground kingdom where she and her sisters encounter a mysterious sorcerer-prince and become entangled in a curse that threatens the ones she loves most. She must find a way to break the curse before time runs out, or risk sentencing herself and her sisters to a lifetime of darkness.
Fantasy, romance, and adventure combine in the fairytale-inspired Firethorn Chronicles, an interconnected series of stand-alone novels drawn from The Twelve Dancing Princesses and other tales. Follow the sisters on their journeys in a land where sorcery is feared and dragons fly.
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