Read Valentine (The Dragon Kings Book 3) for Free Online Page B

a deep breath and moved farther into the house as Sid shut the door behind him. Sid took his coat and hung it on a rack by the door that held several wool coats and had boots scattered around underneath it.
    “Do you ever get used to it?” Val asked.
    “What?” Obsidian replied, staring him straight in the eyes. It was difficult not be intimidated.
    “Being king?” Val looked past Sid to the massive stairway that took up most of the foyer.
    Sid shook his head. “Not yet. But I wasn’t expecting to be a king either.”
    “But I thought all kings were trained.” Val scratched at his chin. He was not expecting Sid to be like this. He wasn’t sure what he expected, but not someone who openly admitted they didn’t know what they were doing.
    “Oh, I was. But I never thought it’d actually happen to me. But let’s talk about that later. I’ll let you get settled in for the night. We’ll start training tomorrow. Did you have a nice flight?”
    “I did, thank you.” He should tell Obsidian about Hazel and the man who tried to kill him, but he was still a little unsure of his place.
    They walked into a kitchen where a pretty blonde girl stood by the counter. She looked at him with bright green eyes that were eerily similar to Hazel’s.
    “Meet my queen,” Obsidian said with a grin. He pulled her close and kissed her neck. She wiggled out of his grip and stuck her hand out. “Hi! I’m Aspen.”
    “Nice to meet you, I’m Val.”
    She seemed eager to meet him. He instantly liked her.
    “Are you tired? We had a room made up for you.” Aspen bounced around on her feet. Was she just as nervous at meeting him as he was of her? He’d never met a queen before. Or a king for that matter.
    Val shrugged. “Not really. Hungry though.”
    Obsidian laughed and pointed to the stove. “None of us cook well. Skye did when she was here, but we haven’t seen her since the testing. There’s some fruit in the fridge. Help yourself. I’m going to put your bag in your room. I’ll be back in a second.”
    Aspen opened the fridge, and Val stared at all the food. Bright green and red fruits. A carton with a white liquid. Some containers with who knows what inside of them. The airplane was easy; he just ate what was given to him. Before that Theo made all of his choices. From the clothes he wore to the movies he watched. There was hardly any time for him to get used to being human. Theo told him it would be easier if he just did as he was told.
    Before he turned black, Val had never expected to even be in the presence of royalty, let alone be one of them, so he listened to Theo.
    Then at the airport he let Hazel make decisions for him. His heart squeezed at the thought of her. That sparkle in her eye and the way she cocked her head when he took her by surprise. He wanted to have her here with him. He didn’t think it was possible to feel so strongly for someone in such a short amount of time.
    “What’s good?” he finally asked Aspen.
    “Still getting used to being a human, huh?” She pulled out a few pieces of fruit. “The apples and bananas are decent. Make sure you peel the banana though.” She pulled the bright yellow skin off the fruit.
    “Thank you.”
    They sat at the table. “How was your flight?”
    He smiled. “Interesting.”
    “This must be weird for you, huh? Are you coping okay?” She leaned back in her chair as he took a bite of the banana. The texture was strange, but the flavor was sweet.
    Val was surprised by her concern. “It is a little strange, but so far I’ve found it to be nice.”
    Obsidian came back with a tiny dragon in tow.
    “Why didn’t you wake me up?” The little dragon landed on the table with a crash and glared at Aspen. “I wanted to meet the new king.” She was a rainbow of colors, from her green head to her yellow wings. Her body was a swirl of pink and purple. He’d never seen such a dragon. Then again, before a week ago, he’d only seen his own kind.
    Sid shrugged.