Sold to the Dragon Emperor to Bear His Heir, But I’m Secretly Infertile
Part 2
My tragic medical condition resulted from a brutal dragon attack when I was just a child.
Craig was expecting a fertile queen to give him the heir I could never provide.
I stepped forward from the line of trembling princesses with my hands curled into tight fists.
Letting my voice ring out across the marble floor, I demanded to know, “Is this how dragons shop for breeding mares at the market?”
The entire grand ballroom went dead silent as my words echoed off the vaulted stone ceiling.
Crossing the distance between us in three predatory strides, he hovered over me with a dangerous smirk and asked, “Do you object to my selection process?”
I tilted my chin up to meet his glowing golden eyes without showing a single ounce of fear.
“Human women do not enjoy being treated like mindless cattle,” I stated, locking my eyes onto his.
Leaning in so close that his warm breath fanned across my flushed cheek, he announced, “I will meet with one princess privately tonight.”
His intense gaze bored into mine as if he could read my darkest hidden secrets.
Holding my breath as I waited for his summons, I was stunned when he instead turned his broad back to me without saying another word.
He offered his large hand to Heather and escorted her away from the stunned crowd.
Humiliation burned my cheeks like a physical fire as the remaining nobles began to whisper.
I marched back to my empty chambers and angrily paced the floor for over an hour.
“You must be patient and wait for a better opportunity to strike,” my brother Brian warned from the shadows.
Shortly after midnight, a quiet servant knocked on my heavy oak door and whispered, “The Emperor formally requests your presence in his private quarters.”
Gripping my poison necklace tightly, I followed the nervous servant through the dark and winding stone corridors.
I pushed open his massive bedroom doors with a heart hammering a frantic rhythm.
He stood by the tall open window with no shirt covering his heavily muscled chest.
Firelight danced across his rippling skin and highlighted the faint scales hidden beneath the surface.
I swallowed hard as a sudden rush of heat pooled low in my trembling belly.
He turned around with a casual grin and asked, “Am I making you nervous?”
Crossing my arms defensively, I demanded to know, “Where did you send Heather after your private meeting?”
Stepping closer until our bodies almost touched in the sudden heavy tension, he whispered, “She was not willing to be my mistress for the night.”
He reached out to tilt my chin and asked, “Are you finally willing to surrender to the inevitable?”
Would you have surrendered to the enemy to save your kingdom, or would you risk it all to end his reign?
Part 3
Megan stood frozen under the weight of Craig’s burning golden gaze.
The air in the bedchamber grew thick with an electric tension that made her skin prickle.
Unable to look away, she dragged her eyes over the rigid lines of his bare chest.
Firelight cast flickering shadows across the intricate scales faintly visible beneath his skin.
Taking another deliberate step forward, his towering frame soon eclipsed the warm glow of the hearth.
Her heart battered against her ribs like a trapped bird.
The sapphire pendant resting against her collarbone felt heavy with its deadly secret.
Swallowing her rising panic, she forced herself to meet his piercing golden stare.
“Are you willing to share my bed tonight?” he asked again, his voice dropping an octave.
His voice rumbled through the quiet room with a deep resonance that vibrated in her chest.
Megan swallowed the sudden lump forming in her dry throat.
Driven by revenge, she had come to this palace with a singular mission to end the Dragon Emperor’s life.
Seducing him was supposed to be the easiest path to his vulnerable moments.
But the sheer physical presence of the man scattered her strategic thoughts into dust.
Craig tilted his head with a knowing smirk playing on his lips.
With predatory stillness, he studied the rapid pulse beating frantically at the base of her neck.
His dark hair fell across his brow in a way that seemed unfair.
Hoping to shield herself from his overwhelming proximity, she crossed her arms defensively over her chest.
“I have no intention of being your disposable plaything,” Megan declared.
“Human customs require at least a basic conversation before leaping into bed,” she informed him.
Craig let out a rich sound of genuine amusement that warmed the cold stone room.
Gesturing gracefully toward a crystal decanter of dark red wine, he offered her a drink to ease the tension.
“Perhaps a drink will ease your evident unease,” he invited, pouring a glass of wine.
Pride flared hot and fast in Megan’s belly at his condescending tone.
“I am not the least bit uneasy,” she snapped, her eyes flashing.
“I am perfectly comfortable in your presence,” she claimed, lifting her chin.
Craig laughed again and leaned casually against the window ledge.
“Then prove your confidence and seduce me right now,” he challenged with a smirk.
His arrogance shattered the last remnants of her fragile restraint.
Megan closed the distance between them with a surge of reckless fury.
Her palm connected with his chiseled cheekbone in a resounding slap.
The sharp crack echoed loudly against the high vaulted ceiling.
Silence slammed down over the room like a heavy iron gate.
Craig slowly turned his head back to face her with an expression of pure delight.
Stepping into her space without warning, he boxed her against the heavy velvet drapes.
His massive hands gripped her waist with bruising possessiveness.
“I possess powers far beyond your limited human comprehension,” he whispered against her ear.
His hot breath fanned across the sensitive skin just below her ear.
“My network of informants knows every secret hiding in these palace shadows,” he warned.
A shiver of genuine terror raced down her spine at the velvet threat lacing his words.
“You should find a more clever method if you intend to kill me,” he suggested softly.
Megan gasped as his thumb traced a slow circle over her lower spine.
“I have no murderous intentions,” she whispered in a frantic lie.
Craig arched one dark eyebrow in blatant disbelief.
Leaning down smoothly, he paused when his lips hovered a mere hairsbreadth from hers.
Megan surrendered to the magnetic pull and crashed her mouth against his.
The kiss ignited a terrifying firestorm in her blood.
His hands tangled roughly in her hair to angle her head how he wanted.
He tasted like dark wine and dangerous magic.
Her fingers scrabbled for purchase against the smooth expanse of his bare shoulders.
Craig groaned deep in his chest and walked her backward until her spine hit the stone wall.
Moving with fluid grace, he pressed the hard lines of his body flush against her trembling curves.
The cold stone against her back contrasted wildly with the burning heat of his skin.
She arched up into his touch with a desperate whimper she could not suppress.
Then he abruptly broke the kiss and stepped back.
He coolly bid her a good night and dismissed her from his chambers.
Megan stared at his retreating back while her chest heaved for oxygen.
She felt disoriented by the sudden loss of his overwhelming heat.
Her legs shook so violently she had to lean against the wall to stay upright.
He walked away as if their reality-altering embrace meant nothing.
Megan fled back to her quarters with her mind spinning in a chaotic whirlwind.
Slamming her heavy oak door shut, she leaned her feverish forehead against the cool wood.
Sleep evaded her as she tossed and turned in her oversized silk bed.
Every time she closed her eyes she felt Craig’s hands mapping the curves of her waist.
Waking the next morning, she felt utterly exhausted and profoundly frustrated.
Sunlight streamed through the tall glass windows and illuminated the untouched breakfast tray.
She splashed freezing water on her face to banish the lingering heat of her dreams.
A sharp knock on the door made her jump out of her skin.
Craig strolled into her room without waiting for a formal invitation.
Dressed in a tailored black tunic, he looked impossibly broad across the shoulders.
His golden eyes immediately dropped to the dark circles bruising the skin under her eyes.
Leaning casually against the doorframe, he wore an infuriatingly confident smirk.
He remarked that she looked unrested for someone who had retired early.
Megan shot him a withering glare that lacked its usual venom.
Folding her arms tightly, she tried to hide the sudden trembling in her fingers.
She demanded to know why the Emperor of the Five Kingdoms was loitering in her bedroom.
Craig pushed off the doorframe and stalked toward her like a predator cornering its prey.
Picking up a piece of toast from her tray, he took a slow, deliberate bite.
He claimed he came to check if she had recovered from her sudden bout of overwhelming desire.
Heat exploded across her cheeks in a brilliant crimson flush.
Raising her voice, she practically shouted that she felt no desire for a manipulative monster.
Craig stepped close enough for her to catch the clean scent of pine and smoke clinging to his skin.
Lifting his hand slowly, he trailed a single fingertip along the sharp line of her jaw.
With a knowing look, he pointed out that her pulse was currently hammering a frantic rhythm against her throat.
He noted the slight parting of her lips and the rapid rise and fall of her chest.
Megan slapped his hand away with a frantic burst of defensive energy.
She insisted her physical reactions were the result of his unnatural dragon enchantments.
Craig laughed softly and stepped even closer to crowd her personal space.
He murmured that his magic had nothing to do with the chemistry burning between them.
Tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear, he moved with a gentleness that made her breath hitch.
He confessed that her fierce defiance amused him more than anything had in centuries.
He admitted he found her terrible lies utterly fascinating to unravel.
He promised to make her his mistress if she would only stop fighting her own instincts.
Megan stared up at him with a heart full of conflicting emotions.
Torn between violence and lust, she wanted to plunge a dagger into his chest just as badly as she wanted to rip his tunic off.
Pressing her palm flat against the solid muscle of his chest, she desperately tried to keep him at bay.
She declared she would never settle for being a temporary distraction in his bed.
Craig went incredibly still under her touch.
The golden rings around his pupils expanded until his eyes looked almost black.
“What do you want from me?” he asked in a gravelly whisper, pulling her closer.
Megan threw caution to the wind and grabbed the lapels of his black tunic.
She pulled him down and smashed her lips against his in a desperate clash of teeth and tongues.
Craig groaned in surrender and swept her off her feet in one fluid motion.
He carried her to the massive four-poster bed and followed her down into the silk sheets.
His mouth devoured hers with a starving intensity that wiped away every logical thought.
His hands mapped every inch of her body with reverent urgency.
He stripped away their restrictive clothing until nothing remained between them.
Megan gasped as his skin brushed against hers in a friction of pure heat.
A sudden rush of fierce masculine pride blossomed in the center of her chest, completely alien to her own mind.
A sudden surge of fierce masculine pride and overwhelming satisfaction echoed in her chest.
A jolt of shock rocked her body as his emotions began bleeding directly into her own mind.
Craig kissed the hollow of her throat and whispered her name like a sacred prayer.
He pushed inside her and the world shattered into a million blinding pieces of light.
The foreign emotions intensified into a cascading waterfall of shared pleasure and desperate need.
She clung to his broad shoulders as the connection pulled them both over the edge.
They collapsed together in a tangle of sweat-slicked limbs and gasping breaths.
Craig wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her flush against his side.
He buried his face in the crook of her neck and let out a long sigh of absolute contentment.
Megan lay awake listening to the steady thud of his heart against her ribs.
She tried to understand the impossible magic currently humming beneath her skin.
The next few weeks dissolved into a feverish blur of stolen moments and insatiable hunger.
Megan practically moved into the Emperor’s private quarters without either of them acknowledging the shift.
Caught in a dazed romantic haze, she spent her days shadowing him through the sprawling palace.
Her original mission of assassination gathered dust in the back of her distracted mind.
She kept the sapphire pendant safely hidden away in the bottom drawer of her vanity.
Every time she resolved to execute her deadly plan she found herself lost in his golden eyes instead.
One humid afternoon she wandered down to the royal training grounds to watch the soldiers spar.
The clang of heavy broadswords and the shouts of commanders echoed across the dusty courtyard.
She leaned against the wooden fence and searched the crowd for a specific head of dark hair.
Craig stood in the center ring battling three seasoned royal guards simultaneously.
He wore nothing but loose linen trousers that clung to his sweat-drenched thighs.
His muscles bunched and released with a terrifying liquid grace that mesmerized her.
He disarmed all three opponents in a flurry of blindingly fast strikes that left them gasping in the dirt.
Craig flipped his sword to catch the hilt and turned to scan the sidelines.
His gaze locked onto Megan with the precision of a hunting hawk spotting its prey.
He tossed the heavy weapon to a nearby squire and marched directly toward her.
The guards parted like the red sea to let their imposing Emperor pass.
He grabbed her hand and hauled her away from the training ring without speaking a single word.
Without uttering a single word, he dragged her into the dim coolness of an abandoned armory.
He slammed the heavy iron door shut and pinned her against it with his massive frame.
He crushed his mouth to hers tasting of salt and leather and unbridled adrenaline.
Megan wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back with equal ferocity.
He hoisted her up by the thighs and she wrapped her legs securely around his waist.
He growled a warning against her lips to stay quiet unless she wanted the entire guard to hear them.
She bit down on his bare shoulder to muffle her own desperate whimpers of pleasure.
Their secret encounters became a daily necessity that neither of them could go without.
Ignoring the diplomats arguing in the next room, he cornered her behind a towering shelf of ancient leather-bound tomes.
He slipped his hands beneath the layers of her silk gown while diplomats argued in the next room.
They spent countless midnight hours wandering the labyrinth of the glowing luminescent gardens.
Craig showed her silver flowers that only bloomed under the light of the three moons.
He kissed her under the weeping willow branches until her knees gave out.
The strange magical connection between them grew stronger with every passing day.
Megan found herself sensing his approaching footsteps long before he ever entered a room.
Flashes of his irritation during long council meetings manifested as a sharp ache behind her own temples.
She experienced his bursts of joy as a warm golden glow radiating from the center of her chest.
The constant emotional bleed terrified her almost as much as it comforted her.
She knew she was falling dangerously in love with the enemy she had sworn to destroy.
One evening they sat together in his opulent private dining room for a late supper.
The table groaned under the weight of roasted meats and silver platters of exotic fruits.
Megan was mid-sentence describing a book she had read when she noticed Craig had stopped eating.
His fork clattered against the porcelain plate in the sudden heavy silence.
He stared at her with an intensity that made the fine hairs on her arms stand straight up.
He stood up so abruptly his heavy oak chair scraped violently against the stone floor.
He crossed the room and pulled her out of her seat by her waist.
He lifted her up and set her squarely in the middle of the dining table.
Crystal goblets tipped over and spilled dark red wine across the pristine white linen cloth.
He buried his face in her neck and confessed that she was driving him insane.
He muttered that he could not focus on running an empire when she consumed his every waking thought.
His desperate need washed over her through their shared bond like a tidal wave crashing on the shore.
She tangled her hands in his dark hair and pulled him closer.
Later that night they lay tangled together amidst the ruined silk sheets of his massive bed.
Megan rested her cheek against the steady rise and fall of his bare chest.
Tracing aimless patterns over his fever-hot skin, she asked, “Can you explain this strange magic connecting us?”
She admitted she could feel his emotions echoing inside her own mind.
Craig stroked her hair with a slow and rhythmic gentleness that lulled her into a false sense of security.
He explained that the phenomenon was a mating bond unique to true dragon pairs.
Brushing a stray lock of hair behind her ear, he revealed, “Our souls recognized each other the moment you stepped into the ballroom.”
His voice trembling with raw emotion, he whispered, “I knew instantly that you were destined to be the other half of my spirit.”
His thumb traced the delicate line of her cheekbone with reverent care.
He explained that the bond allowed true mates to share every sensation and emotion.
He looked at her with a raw vulnerability that she had never expected to see from a conquering emperor.
His face lit up with a sudden bright hope that made her stomach twist into painful knots.
“This bond proves you are the one meant to bear my royal heir,” he declared with shining eyes.
Megan went rigid at the mention of a child.
Ice flooded her veins and chased away the lingering warmth of their intimacy.
Craig remained oblivious to her sudden panic as he stared up at the painted ceiling.
He spoke of his profound loneliness stretching across a thousand years of isolated rule.
He described the heavy burden of duty and the desperate ache for a real family.
His voice dropped to a soft whisper as he imagined watching a child grow up in these halls.
He turned his golden eyes back to her with a look of absolute adoration.
“Marry me and become the true Empress of my people,” he asked, kissing the back of her hand.
The monumental question hung heavily in the quiet air between them.
Megan stared at him in horrified silence while guilt clawed viciously at her throat.
As her hesitation stretched on, his mounting anxiety bled across their bond in frantic pulses.
His confident smile faltered and broke into an expression of genuine fear.
“Do you not want to marry me?” he asked in a painfully quiet voice.
The sheer heartbreak radiating from him shattered her resolve.
She wanted to scream the truth about her barren womb and her murderous intentions.
She wanted to beg for his forgiveness before he discovered the monster she was.
Instead she silenced her own conscience and kissed him with desperate fervor.
Craig accepted the kiss as her joyful acceptance and relief washed over them both.
They made love again with a slow and tender reverence that felt like a goodbye.
His overwhelming love poured into her mind until she thought she might drown in it.
She let him fall asleep believing he had found his perfect future.
She watched his chest rise and fall in the pale moonlight for a long time.
She finally admitted to herself the terrifying truth that she had fallen in love with him.
Tears spilled over her eyelashes and tracked silently down her cheeks.
She carefully slipped out of his embrace and pulled a heavy velvet robe over her shivering shoulders.
She crept out of his chambers to return to her own neglected rooms.
Megan closed the heavy door to her own chambers and leaned against it with a heavy sigh.
A familiar voice drifted out from the dark shadows sitting in the corner of the room.
Her brother Brian stepped forward into a narrow beam of moonlight.
He looked ragged and furious as he demanded to know where she had been.
He pointed out that she had left the Emperor’s bed for the past two months.
Megan defensively insisted that the bond between them was a real and powerful magic.
Brian scoffed loudly and crossed the room to grab her by the shoulders.
He shook her slightly to snap her out of her romantic delusion.
He reminded her of the countless human sacrifices the dragons had demanded over the centuries.
He dragged Brenda’s name into the argument like a weapon designed to inflict maximum pain.
He argued that killing Craig would shatter the entire dragon hierarchy and save their people.
Megan protested fiercely that as Empress she could forge a lasting peace without further bloodshed.
She claimed Craig loved her and wanted her to stand by his side forever.
Brian let out a harsh laugh that held no genuine amusement whatsoever.
Brian cruelly asked, “How will the mighty Emperor react when he discovers you are infertile?”
The question struck Megan like a physical blow to the stomach.
She staggered backward as the ugly reality of her situation came crashing down around her.
Brian pressed his advantage and revealed a secret he had uncovered in the palace.
“Craig made the exact same promises to all the other human princesses,” he told her with a sneer.
He claimed the Emperor had courted Heather and Kelly behind her back just in case she failed.
He argued the dragons were slowly dying out and desperate for any human capable of bearing young.
He insisted Craig was playing a numbers game to secure the survival of his own race.
Doubt seeped into Megan’s mind like a slow-acting poison tainting her every happy memory.
She remembered the line of beautiful women at the ball and Craig’s calculating stare.
She remembered his obsessive focus on their bond producing an heir.
Brian shoved the tiny vial of dragon poison into her trembling palm.
He ordered her to finish the mission tonight before the Emperor’s manipulation destroyed her.
Megan stared down at the deadly blue liquid swirling inside the glass container.
A cold wave of resolve washed over her as she chose duty to her kingdom over her own foolish heart.
Forcing herself to turn around, she walked back down the long corridor toward Craig’s chambers.
The guards bowed respectfully and opened the massive doors without questioning their future Empress.
Stepping quietly into the dark room, she found it illuminated only by the silver light of the moons.
Craig lay sprawled across the bed with one arm flung over her empty pillow.
He turned his face toward her lingering scent even while lost in deep sleep.
Megan approached the edge of the mattress with hands shaking uncontrollably.
Uncorking the glass vial, she leaned over his peaceful sleeping form.
Touching his lips lightly with her fingertips, she offered a silent and tragic farewell.
Craig opened his eyes and smiled sleepily up at her.
His gaze drifted to the vial hovering inches above his mouth.
The warm smile instantly vanished from his face as comprehension dawned in his golden eyes.
Grabbing her wrist with lightning speed, he stared at the poison in sheer disbelief.
“Did you intend to murder me in my sleep?” he asked, his voice breaking.
Megan ripped her arm free and screamed accusations about his deceit and his other potential brides.
She shouted that she knew about his secret meetings with Heather and Kelly.
Craig scrambled out of bed and desperately tried to deny the horrifying allegations.
He swore on his throne and his life that she was his only lover and his only true mate.
He insisted he had spoken to the others before recognizing the unique bond they shared.
Seeing the cold distrust in her eyes, he recognized that mere words would never penetrate the fortress of her doubt.
With a trembling hand, he demanded she hand over the vial of poison immediately.
Megan surrendered the glass tube expecting him to summon the guards for her execution.
Instead he lifted the vial in a toast and brought the deadly rim to his own lips.
Megan screamed for him to stop but she was a fraction of a second too late.
Craig swallowed the concentrated dragon poison in one fatal gulp to prove his unwavering trust.
The glass vial shattered against the stone floor as his hand fell limply to his side.
He stared at her with a terrifying calmness as the black veins began to crawl up his neck.
Megan screamed for the guards with a voice shredded by pure terror.
The heavy doors burst open and the royal guards rushed inside with their swords drawn.
Craig commanded them to stand down and treat their future Empress with the respect she deserved.
Collapsing onto the cold marble floor, he spasmed as the deadly toxin ravaged his nervous system.
Megan fell to her knees and cradled his head in her lap while tears streamed down her face.
She begged him to hold on as the Head Healer Sarah burst into the chaotic bedchamber.
Sarah skidded to a halt and stared at the dying Emperor in absolute shock.
Megan confessed she had brought the poison into the palace to assassinate him.
The guards leveled their weapons at her but Craig ordered them back with his last breath.
He weakly reached up to touch her cheek and whispered, “You can save me, Megan.”
He claimed the true mating bond allowed partners to share their life force to heal fatal wounds.
Sarah confirmed the legend of King Greg who survived poisoned arrows thanks to his human mate.
Megan placed both of her trembling hands flat against the rapidly cooling skin of Craig’s chest.
Closing her eyes tightly, she focused on the golden thread of magic connecting their souls.
Pushing all of her desperate love down the magical tether, she absolutely refused to lose him.
A brilliant golden light erupted from beneath her palms and bathed the room in a blinding glow.
The black veins retreated from his skin as her vibrant life force flooded his dying body.
Craig gasped violently as his chest heaved and his golden eyes flew wide open.
He stared up at her in dazed wonder and smiled through his lingering exhaustion.
“I love you,” he whispered with an absolute certainty that banished all her remaining doubts.
Megan kissed him with a fierce mixture of profound relief and lingering fury at his sheer stupidity.
Three peaceful months passed since the night she lost the love of her life.
Megan lay tangled in the silk sheets next to her husband as the morning sun warmed the room.
Craig stroked her hair lazily while radiating pure contentment through their unbreakable bond.
Gathering her courage, she finally confessed the heavy secret she had carried since her arrival.
“I am infertile and can never provide the heir you desperately need,” she told him through her tears.
Craig cupped her face with a devastating gentleness and swore she was enough for him.
He promised their love was the only legacy he required to be happy.
Megan smiled through a sudden rush of happy tears and placed his large hand against her stomach.
She revealed the royal healers had just confirmed an impossible miracle that very morning.
Craig froze as the monumental realization finally struck his mind.
Letting out a joyous shout of unrestrained laughter, he filled the echoing palace walls with his relief.
Pulling her into a deep kiss, he marveled at the new life growing safely inside her.
THE END
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Disclaimer
This story is a work of fiction inspired by real events. Names, characters, and details have been altered. Any resemblance is coincidental. The author and publisher disclaim accuracy, liability, and responsibility for interpretations or reliance. If you would like to share your story, please send it to [email protected].
