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The Dragon’s bloodcurdling roars echoed across the sparkling winter tapestry of white and silver. Its massive obsidian wings flapped furiously and cut through the blaring wind and the blasting snowstorm.
He barreled down when he caught sight of a blur of silver-grey below, and elegant hands clutched the reins tightly with a melodic laugh. The small figure on the saddle leaned and clutched her thighs around the Dragon's neck. It had been a long time since her fur-lined hood slipped, baring her aristocratic, perfect features. The icy wind stirred long wisps of inky, wild hair around her face, creating a dramatic contrast with her alabaster skin and twinkling emerald-green eyes.
“So Adi, Cannibal!” she whispered huskily.
Spurred by the thrill of the chase, the most dangerous Wild Dragon known to men tucked his wings closer to his back and dived down at a neck-breaking speed. Her lips curved with a mischievous smile when she looked down. The huge Direwolf caught her gaze, allowing the creature’s dominance to play out. She held his winter-grey eyes unfazed by the wildness and danger he oozed. The Direwolf bared his teeth in anticipation. Her blood ran like wildfire in her veins. “Show me your worst, wolf!” she smirked and urged the Cannibal to stalk the prey.
The slashing wind seemed to heighten the Direwolf’s senses. He stepped up his pace, his vision stronger in the dark. He was gaining speed, and the Cannibal’s enraged howl split the skies. He tucked his wings to his sides and dropped down like a falling star. Princess Haelys Targaryen threw her head back and laughed as the frigid wind hit her face. Nothing made her feel more alive than the harsh, bone-chilling cold of Winterfell. Her eyes tracked the huge Direwolf who moved like lightning despite his size. Her fingers twitched, itching to sink into his stunning silver-grey pelt and feel its softness again. He slashed a line through the thick snow and took shelter in the frozen forest surrounding the castle. “Cunning wolf.” She felt an admiring smile tug at her lips. No wonder she had claimed him from the day their paths crossed. The Direwolf was hers, and that was that. He was the only one who could ignite whatever wildness lurked inside her—not that she was shy or feared offending people. By the Gods, from the moment she had stepped into the Red Keep, she had shown everyone who ruled them all. Tact was for people who weren’t witty enough to use sarcasm or bold enough to go after what they wanted. She had always known what she wanted. However, no matter how many battles she won and how many enemies she crushed, the Direwolf was her one and only treasure. Her beloved. The sole being she trusted with her all.
She clenched her hands on the reins, but the Cannibal was too far gone to listen. Instinctively, he knew he was not allowed to hurt the Direwolf. Never. But a Wild Dragon could never resist the ardour that came with the hunt.
Knowing that the Cannibal was past her attempts to subdue him, she rolled her eyes and reached out, patting his long, serpentine neck. “You did well, my friend. Now, let me down. I have a wild wolf to tame.”
When he bared his teeth and threw her a venomous side-glare, she winked and leapt.
The Direwolf’s paws crushed the snow as he came to an abrupt stop. His eyes met hers, and she glimpsed the feral possessiveness in that gaze, one many missed because he was so aloof, so untouchable.
Her body shuddered as it hit the soft fur. He leaned his head back and licked her hand, then looked at her with smug eyes. Her body flared with sensation at the heat of him so close, but she wasn’t about to surrender and lose the ground she’d gained. She sat demurely, her arms going around his thick neck. “Move, wolf.” She put every ounce of her legendary stubbornness into the command, staring into those ethereal, stormy eyes. His tail raised in a gesture of dominance, and he made a growling sound of indignation, his canines flashing. But he did as asked.
He sprang forward, taking her deeper into the forest. She sank her fingers in the soft fur, anchoring the beast with her familiar touch. He came to a halt when they reached a frozen meadow. She jumped swiftly and dusted the tiny snowflakes from her thick cloak. The Direwolf nipped at her jaw, growling low in his throat. She pushed him away playfully. “I thought you’d take me home, wolf. Are you planning to freeze me to death? I am a Dragon; I am not made for extreme temperatures,” she huffed and crossed her arms over her chest in indignation.
The Direwolf rose to his towering height and in a kaleidoscope of colours, he shifted. In a blink, a man with a suffocating aura stood in the Direwolf’s place. He was unfairly handsome, in a cold, austere way. His features were perfect, with straight black brows shadowing the most extraordinary pair of eyes she had ever seen. They were winter-grey, so bright and mysterious that it seemed as if the energy of lightning had been trapped inside the black-rimmed irises. He possessed a quality that unnerved people and made grown men sink to their knees, a tremendous volatility burning beneath his remote surface. And he wore his authority comfortably, a man who could make decisions and live with them no matter what the outcome. A man who commanded the North. And her heart.
He arched an eyebrow. “Are you done playing, princess?”
She reached up to push one hand through the thick silk of his hair. It was cool, soft, stunning. A wolf’s pelt given human form.
“Never.”
He took her in his arms. “Have you missed me, then?” He dipped his head, allowing her to run her slender fingers through the strands. A deep sound of pleasure accompanied her first stroke. She put her arms around his neck and held on tightly. She wanted to remain like that forever.
“Maybe, Lord Stark,” she shrugged.
A knowing smile curved his lips. “I wonder if I should ask how many poor souls you’ve terrorised. I hope you haven’t set the court on fire yet. Daemon wouldn’t like that, would he now?” His head tilted as he studied her, his gaze caressing. “My incorrigible, evil villainess.”
“Are you complaining, Cregan Stark?” She smiled sweetly. Too sweetly.
He looked at her as if he could read her every thought and emotion. “Never,” he murmured, relenting, “I trust you are tired. Maybe we should retire early. Though if we retire together, I doubt that either of us would get much rest. It’s been a moon, beloved.”
“You have The North to run, and I have to make sure Father doesn’t make all my hard work go to waste,” she said unsteadily. Her heart crashed repeatedly against the wall of his chest, pounding the breath from her lungs. Damn him. Did he have to be so irresistible?
He grinned at the annoyance in her voice. “Gods, you’re tenacious. No, I wouldn’t dare cross you. I fear the consequences if I do.”
She jutted her chin proudly. “Therefore, I suppose it would be for the best if we adhered to our usual arrangement: you rule the North, and I rule you and the rest of Westeros.”
“As my queen wishes.” He reached for her, his hand sliding around the back of her neck. Haelys was too startled to move or breathe, her entire body stiffening as his head lowered to hers. “Tell me, Haelys, were you bad? Do I need to punish you?”
She opened her mouth, but he was faster. The kiss was hot and deep and possessive, his hand closing gently around her throat to hold her in place as his tongue played with hers. When he let her breathe, it was only for the barest instant before he was taking her again. Her hands clenched on his shoulders, muscles and tendons flexing under her touch. He was feeding her rising passion as if he were layering kindling on a blaze. Devastated by his touch, she swayed in his arms, and her hands fluttered to the sides of his face, stroking the bristles of his cheeks and jaw. “Cregan…”
He responded with a smirk against her swollen lips. “It is time we go home. After I help you take a bath and feed you, I want to hear about your latest exploits, beloved.”
She pressed her head to his shoulder and closed her eyes. He slid his arms around her back and legs, bringing her against his broad chest.
“You know how bad I am, husband,” she murmured against his jaw. “People think I go out of my way to alienate them. Trust me, it is not out of my way at all. It is not my fault that they’re too easy to crush.”
His hand settled at the small of her back. Although his grasp was light, she knew that it would be impossible for her to break free. Not that she wanted to.
His lips brushed over her forehead as he spoke. ‘’Of course, I do, beloved. You were the one who taught innocent me the lost art of villainism.”