The Lonely King (Book 1 of the Shadows, Roses and Ice Trilogy)

Chapter Twelve

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Amabelle's POV

"You're a strange girl, Amabelle," Vergil told me.

"And why is that?" I asked, sipping from the cup of lukewarm tea in my hand.

Vergil's elusive, seemingly psychedelic, grey-tinted blue eyes watched me intently. "You hide your true self under hostility."

I laughed coldly, setting my tea down on the table in front of me. His house suddenly felt like a cage, entrapping me in my insecurities. "This is my true self. If I seem agitated, it's because you're irritating me."

He chuckled, delighted with my reaction. "Even now, in my house, you fail to give me simple respect in admitting you are attracted to me."

Disgusted with his arrogance, I mockingly grinned. "Aren't you one cocky bastard."

He laughed. "That's what I like about you. There's fire in you, Amabelle, won't you let me tame it?"

My nose turned up in honest disapproval. "That's the problem with you, you seek to find a woman who does your bidding, sleeps in the same bed, but is never an equal. I need a mate who shares the same fire and instead asks me to be their partner."

Then, I got up and walked out of the house without looking back. My father waited for me outside, a concerned expression on his face. It made me smile a little, knowing my father had yet to worry about his little girl finding a suitor.

"How did it go?" My father questioned urgently.

I smirked. "Vergil's pride is wounded and I'm still in need of a mate, so I'd say it didn't go as Vergil wanted. However, I'm satisfied with the results."

My father's smile was wide and amusement drew his features in hysteria. "That's my girl."

His arm laced around my shoulders, a warmth filling my insides. The brightness of the sky consumed my vision as we walked forward.

...light changed to a strange blinding cloud.

All I could see was white.

And then...

I opened my eyes.

"Amabelle?" I heard Dante's voice, felt my side being caressed.

It had simply been a dream.

No.

Memory.

I blinked several times and moved my hands to touch my face but as soon as I did so I winced and shrieked at the stinging sensation. Everything suddenly felt heavy and my stomach turned violently.

"Hey, hey. I'm right here." Dante took my fragile hands, my bare hands.

F i r e.

Fire.

I need a mate who shares the same fire and instead asks me to be their partner...

My hands burned with his touch. A spark only one thing could explain. It was all too much to comprehend, his deepened, worn eyes just as startled as me. Unfortunately, to make things worse, a wave of throbbing unbelievable pain washed over my head, along with an incredible urge to vomit.

From the looks of it, I was once again in the medical wing. Dante was beside the bed I was lying in, his body tense in stress. Despite knowing where I was, my brain was having difficulty fully deciphering what was going on due to the room spinning.