Page 46 of Dragon King’s Bullied Mate

Lyra’s fingers twisted instinctively into the front of his coat. The cold air disappeared. The entire world disappeared.

Everything except him vanished so completely that she almost forgot herself entirely until a small frightened whimper came from the hallway.

Reality slammed back into place.

Lyra broke away sharply, breathing hard, her face burning while Beckett stood halfway out of the hallway staring at them with wide uncertain eyes. Mikael looked equally affected despite the fact that his expression tried very hard to remain controlled.

The woman beside him snorted softly. “Well. That answered several questions.”

Lyra blinked rapidly. “I… we…”

“Might want to breathe,” the woman suggested.

Lyra scooped up Beckett and held him tight while he buried his face in her neck. Mikael rubbed his back and murmured that they were safe. The little boy finally released his grip and turned to look at the visitors.

Mikael finally stepped back slightly, though his attention never fully left Lyra’s face. “Lyra, this is my sister, Malaya.”

Malaya lifted a hand casually. “Hi. Sorry about the whole arresting-you-for-poison thing. Our court is apparently overflowing with idiots lately.”

Lyra stared at her uncertainly before Beckett squirmed to be put down. He walked over to Mikael and stared up at him.

Mikael’s expression softened instantly. “There you are,” he murmured. The sheer gentleness in his voice startled Lyra almost more than the kiss had.

Mikael crouched slowly to Beckett’s level, careful not to move too quickly while the little boy watched him warily.

“You’re safe,” Mikael said quietly. “No one is taking you anywhere.”

Beckett hesitated before finally throwing himself against Mikael hard enough that the king nearly lost balance. Mikael caught him easily.

Something painfully warm tightened in Lyra’s chest watching the king wrap both arms protectively around the frightened little boy while Beckett clung to him with complete trust.

But even while comforting Beckett, Mikael’s attention kept returning to her. Lyra realized with growing alarm that Beckett was no longer the only reason he had come.

Mikael eventually rose again, Beckett still tucked securely against his side, before his expression gradually turned more serious.

“I need to ask you some questions,” he said gently.

Lyra’s stomach tightened. She nodded slowly and moved back toward the couch while Malaya moved closer to the fireplace. The cottage suddenly felt far too small.

“Is your sister a princess?” Beckett’s question made Malaya grimace.

“Technically, I could be a princess,” Malaya answered, “but I left that life behind a long time ago. I do everything I can to avoid the royal life.”

“But you’re helping Mikael now?” Lyra was intrigued.

“He trusts me, and someone has to help him when he gets himself in a mess.”

Lyra already liked the woman, and the teasing only solidified it.

Mikael sat on the sofa that he had recovered on. “What do you remember from the day you found me?”

Lyra explained carefully, starting with finding him injured in the snow and dragging him toward the cottage with Beckett’s help, then the fever, the suspicion of poisoning, and the fact that he just wouldn’t wake up.

Mikael listened without interrupting, though she could feel something relentless beneath the calmness in his expression now, something that wasn’t suspicion toward her.

Malaya leaned against the kitchen counter with crossed arms. “That tracks with what we know so far.”

Lyra stared at the bottle still sitting on the coffee table. “I still don’t know how he was poisoned. Or when. Or how he ended up in the snow where I found him.”