Kiss of the Dragon (3 page)

“I will make a wager with you, Draco.”

“A challenge, is it? And what would you lay a wager on?”

“I will wager that you find the perfect maiden and lose your
heart to her tender trap by the end of our stay at Castle Neige.”

It was Draco’s turn to bark with laughter. His huge body
shook with it. But he accepted his cousin’s proffered hand with a definite
gleam in his dark brown eyes.

“I must warn you, Charles, you waste your coin. As I said
before, love is nothing but a fantasy a mother tells her daughter to ease her
mind. And then she is forced by her father into a marriage with the suitor of
his choice. Yea, a foolish fantasy.” His cousin merely grinned back at him and
winked.

“We will see, Draco, we will see. But if the rumors of
Bianca de Neige’s beauty are even close to being true, I might find myself
fighting off every suitor who dares to show up at the gates of Castle de
Neige.”

Draco snorted with disgust. “Tell me, knight-turned-bard, of
the legendary Bianca de Neige. Remind me again of this goddess’s attributes.”

“You have heard the tales the same as I, Draco. She is said
to be magnificent! A true beauty, not only to look upon, but it is said that
she has a gentle nature and a voice so sweet that she is able to call down the
very birds of the air to eat seed from her delicate lily-white hands. Yea, it
does sound like a fairy tale, but we will soon find out if the ballads the
bards warble of the fair lady are true or not. And even if they are exaggerated
somewhat, there is always this to compensate for it.” Charles motioned toward
the impressive white castle that stood before them like a great snow sculpture.
“Her dowry will be sizable.”

“You are ready to confront your future bride, then,
Charles?”

“Yea, but first I must confront her father and secure his
permission for the match. That task could prove to be troublesome. It is
rumored that her admirers arrive by the dozens daily. She has even caught the
eye of a prince or two. I only pray she has not yet selected a likely suitor.”

* * * * *

“Father, you know how I detest the way I am paraded before
every prospective suitor like a brood mare. Please, give me more time. I know I
will find a man who will love me as you loved my mother.” Bianca watched
anxiously as her father paced over to the open window of her chambers and
stared at the new city of tents being set up just beyond his walls.

“A new wave of hopeful suitors has arrived, it seems.”

“I tire of them all. I wish they would all just pull up
stakes and leave.”

The soft words together with the pleading look in his
daughter’s beautiful eyes came close to breaking his heart. He wanted nothing
more than to give Bianca what she wanted, but the memory of his new wife’s
determination to marry his only child off held his tongue. There would be no
peace in his household if he did not proceed with this plan. He knew without a
doubt that if Bianca did not marry soon and leave his castle, his lady wife
would never give him peace. The woman was obsessed with her scheme to be rid of
his beautiful Bianca.

“Please, Father. You have to listen to me.”

“I am well aware of your wishes, my daughter. And I have
considered long and hard what would be best for you. You must realize that you
have had more freedom than most fathers would have granted a girl child in your
position. Your stepmother reminds me daily of my failings in reining you in and
molding you into the perfect lady.”

A small smile tilted his lips up at the corners as his mind
wandered over the memories of his little beauty growing up running wild through
the castle, her laughter and squeals of pleasure filling the halls. But now it
was time to let her go. A deep sadness filled him at the thought of her leaving
him when she finally married and moved away.

Richard Lemieux, the fourth Duke de Neige, was a man well
past his prime and anxious to have his only daughter wed and settled with a
good husband, one who would treasure her as highly as he did. “Do not worry,
Bianca. I would never give my most precious treasure to the wrong man. I
promise you.”

No. He would not give her to the first nobleman who rode
through his gates and requested her hand in marriage. The duke loved his
daughter above all things, even if he had neglected her of late. Something for
which he felt a great deal of guilt. But he planned to make up for his
remissness by finding her the perfect husband.

* * * * *

“I can see how the king was able to fight off the bloody
English with men such as you in his service. We are fortunate to have such
great knights defending our countryside from the enemy. Please, my lords,
please, join me as I break my fast this glorious morn.”

“We are honored to accept your generous hospitality, Your
Grace.” Charles bowed with respect as did Draco. “I look forward to meeting
your lovely daughter. We have heard of her beauty and gentle nature. I would
deem it an honor to be considered a suitor for Lady Bianca’s hand in marriage.”

“You are most acceptable, Sir Charles. I hope to introduce
my lovely daughter at the morning meal. I pray I can talk you into joining us.”

The Duke of Neige was overjoyed.

After he had sifted through the dozens of unsuitable beaux
who had come from leagues away desiring to court and wed his precious Bianca,
he had almost given up hope of finding a man good enough for her. But this morn
his fortune changed. It had in fact brought him two fine knights, baron-knights
at that. He knew without a doubt that one or the other would do splendidly for
a son-in-law.

Even though word had reached him that it was only Sir
Charles who had come looking to pay suit for his daughter, the duke could not
deny that either young warrior, Sir Charles or Sir Draco, would be acceptable
as a future son-in-law. They were strong, powerful warlords who had earned
their wealth with their wits and strength and would fight fiercely to hold it.
The reputations of the lords was far reaching as well, so that even the Duke of
Neige knew who they were. It was well known they were great favorites of the
king. And after so many weak-kneed, milk-faced boys out to marry their
fortunes, Richard Lemieux was more than pleased at his good fortune.

“Thank you for your hospitality, Your Grace. We accept
gladly.” A servant appeared at the older man’s side and whispered an urgent
message.

“Forgive me, my lords, it seems that I have urgent business
elsewhere at the moment. My servants will see to your needs. I have already
sent a message to my daughter. She will present herself as soon as possible.
She keeps early hours and will be down presently.” He motioned a servant to
bring them cider and then left Sir Charles and Sir Draco to partake of his
hospitality.

* * * * *

“Who are they, Jabulani?” Bianca tried not to sound as
anxious as she felt. She was well aware of the army camped just outside her
father’s gates. She had watched for several hours as they made their way across
the valley below Castle Neige. As usual she had not slept well the night before
because of the dark dream and had risen from her tumbled bed clothing to
distract herself with her favorite pastime, writing children’s tales.

The dark dreams had been plaguing her these last few weeks,
every night when she closed her eyes. The dreams were filled with sensuous
yearnings that made her body burn, but it was a dark, menacing face that
punctuated her dreams and left her longing for something that she did not
understand. It was as if her once peaceful nights had been taken over by some
dark demon and he would not let her go. Fortunately, she was in the habit of
rising early or she would never escape the troubling dreams that found her
tangled in her linen sheets, her skin covered in beads of perspiration. She
suspected the dreams were a foreboding of something yet to come and she had
become watchful of every new personage who entered her home.

Now she stood anxiously waiting for an answer from her
giant, menacing bodyguard, who had just arrived at her door with news of what
she knew was another suitor at the gate. His wide, brilliant grin made her
uneasy at what his answer would be.

“At least assure me that it is not another infuriating,
self-aggrandizing prince. I do not think I could make it through another
one-sided interview with that ilk.”

“No, Beauty. These two are knights, baron-knights, both of
them. I understand that only one has come seeking your hand in marriage.” His
grin widened at the disgusted expression on her lovely face. He knew by the
look in her eyes that she was about to rebel at the summons he had brought her.

“Tell my father that I am still abed.” Her command came
without hesitation. “Who dares to call at this hour of the morning? The sun has
only just awoken. They cannot expect a well-bred lady to be up and about at
this early hour.”

Jabulani laughed loudly, a good-humored sound that resonated
against the stone walls of the corridor. “You have been up for hours, Beauty. I
would bet a year’s wages on it. And your father knows it.”

Making a face, she agreed. “Of course, I have. But they need
not know that.”

“Your father has already informed them that you were up. He
expects you to do your duty and make an appearance below stairs.”

Bianca scarcely kept the obscene curse from escaping her
lips as she paced to the balcony window and back, her dark dreams momentarily
forgotten with this news. She had more important matters to attend.

Suddenly she stopped and turned to the large servant. Her
eyes brightened with mischief.

“Please summon Lady Modesta for me, Jabulani, then return to
my father and stall for more time.”

The smile that had previously graced his face disappeared
and a look of disapproval settled there. “What are you thinking to do, Beauty?
What do you need with your cousin?”

“Do not worry! Everything will be fine, Jabulani. Trust me.”
By the scowl on his face Bianca knew her innocent look did not fool him at all.
She gave him a bright smile and nodded her head assuringly. “Trust me.”

With a curt nod, his face set in disapproval, Jabulani
turned and made his way down the stairs toward Lady Modesta’s chambers. Bianca
closed the door and hurried to her wardrobe, flinging the door open wide to
reveal the array of splendidly colored gowns, arranged in the colors of the
rainbow, deep red to royal purple. She needed something special for this
occasion. Something meant to impress upon the newly arrived nobleman just how
thrilled she was to have yet another suitor.

With only a slight hesitation, she picked two gowns that
caught her eye. She carried them to her large canopy bed and spread them out
over the deep blue velvet bed cover. She dropped her dressing gown to pool on
the floor at her feet and reached for one of the gowns. It would take her only
a few moments to ready herself for the encounter with one more in a long line
of suitors who had come to compete for her hand and therefore her fortune.

As she carried the gown she chose past the tall looking
glass that stood next to her dresser, Bianca caught a glimpse of her trim naked
body and she paused to take a good look at herself. She constantly heard tales
of her celebrated beauty and she had suffered through many evenings being
entertained by traveling bards who seemed to have an obsession with her
physical attributes.

Her suitors complimented her lavishly, and her father told her
time and again that she was the very image of her dear angelic mother. But as
she stood looking at herself with all of those empty compliments whirling
around in her head, she failed to see what they saw.

Bianca stared at her reflection in the tall gilded mirror
and saw a young woman whose face was pleasant enough, with two slanted violet
eyes, a small straight nose and a sweetly curved mouth. She smiled suddenly and
then ran her tongue over her small, white, evenly spaced teeth. Yea, admittedly
her teeth were white and straight, nothing exceptional.

She shrugged her shoulders and felt the softness of her long
hair against the skin of her back. If there was one thing she might be a little
vain about, it was her mane of glorious black-as-midnight hair. It hung in a
long, shining curtain down her back, nearly reaching her knees. Raising her
hands, she thrust them through the mass of hair, lifting it off her neck. As
she turned her back to the mirror, she let it fall back to whirl about her
backside and thighs. The movement of it against her bare skin caused such a
sensual feeling that she whirled around several times letting her hair wrap
around her like a dark silken cloak.

“You are so wanton, Bianca. Vanity is one of the seven
deadly sins and you know it.” She repeated her favorite lecture and then
laughed aloud.

She moved closer to the mirror and studied her face.
According to her father, her delicate features were a gift from her mother,
along with her creamy white, flawless skin. With a sigh, Bianca gathered her
hair and brought it over one shoulder and plaited it in to a long, thick braid,
which she then tied into a loose hoop at the nape of her neck. She studied
herself as she worked.

Of average height, Bianca possessed nicely rounded curves.
She turned and gazed critically at her profile, running her hands from her
waist up to cup her breasts as she stared at them critically. They were high
and firm; the nipples were dusky rose-colored and tilted up slightly. Her hands
moved down over her narrow rib cage and her slender waist and out over the
slight flare of her hips. She was not overly plump, but she was not scrawny
either. Her legs were long, her ankles well shaped and her feet small. All in
all, she saw nothing extraordinary in the mirror. She was built like any other
woman, no better and no worse.

“What do they see?” Bianca asked her reflection. “I am just
a woman, like any other. Why do men come from far and wide with only a rumor of
my beauty to guide them? It is a daft notion.” She sighed as she shook her head
at her image. Then she stuck out her tongue and grimaced at her reflection. “I
know that I must marry someday, but I want a husband who judges me on who I am
in my mind, in my heart, not what the bards say I am. Do you think I am daft
for wanting that?”