The Dragon Prince of Alaska (Royal Dragons of Alaska Book 1) by Elva Birch

Author:Elva Birch [Birch, Elva]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-02-12T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Five

Carina felt like everything was just a little surreal, like if she hadn’t been wearing heavy hiking boots, she might have just floated away into space. Here she was, the honored guest of the royal family of Alaska, eating dinner with them while they planned her uncertain future.

“Can I see Shadow? Just to say goodnight?” she asked Toren as the last of the brothers shook her hand and gave her a formal welcome.

“Toren, if I could have a moment…” Fask said at the same time.

“I can show you the kennels, Carina,” Tray volunteered.

Carina was loath to leave Toren’s side, but she reminded herself that if they wanted to throw her to the proverbial wolves, they probably wouldn’t string her along like this. She would be safe with Tray.

Toren kissed her goodbye, both of them embarrassed by the scrutiny of the others, and seemed as unwilling to let her go as she was to go.

Magic, Carina reminded herself.

Then she was walking with Tray down the stairs and out the back. Tray, she recognized, was the ham of the family. She knew his type because she’d been his type, always looking for the joke.

“We only have one team left,” Tray told her. “Dad used to race, but none of the rest of us took it up, and he let them age out and become housepets. A lot of people have adopted retired royal dogs.”

“Dog racing?” Carina for a moment pictured greyhound racing and was confused.

“Dogsled racing,” Tray explained. “We have enough to pull a sled, but I prefer to take out just one or two at a time and go skijoring. You can go almost as fast, but it’s a lot freer. Just you, your dogs, and your skis.”

The dog yard didn’t look like much, just some boxes and loose straw over packed ground, scattered with gnawed rawhide and water dishes, but the tied up dogs were certainly happy and healthy looking. They all bounded to their feet when Tray and Carina appeared, barking and twisting around in delighted greeting.

“Mukluk, Anya, Jeebers, Angie, Thomas the Engine—he’s our wheel dog.” Tray introduced her to a dozen dogs, smaller than she had expected, all of whom wanted to lick her and lunge at the end of their runs and put their paws on her legs. “Dusty, Tanana, Sheba, Tricksy—she’s slipped her collar more times than it should be possible. Dana, Shayla, and Phoebe. She’s expecting a litter of puppies in a few weeks!”

Shadow was sulking on a lead near the back, but he rose to his feet at their approach and whined hopefully.

Carina sank down beside him in a pile of sweet, fresh straw, and buried her face in his ruff. Life had been so much simpler when it was just the two of them at her campsite. For the whole twenty minutes before Toren burst into her life and made it more complicated than ever.

Her chest ached.

She wanted to go back to being a nobody who knew nothing. Then she thought about missing meeting Toren, and the moment of loss was so sharp and deep that she was staggered.

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