Rejected Bride: Married To The Dragon King

Author: Catlaina Sloggett

Chapter 1

Word Count: 731 | Released on: Today at 21:03

n Jord

the silk of my white gown whisperin

ng, hundreds of pairs of eyes pressing int

fires had been

rd Harper Car

ean pain was an anchor in the rising tide of hu

ent went through

e, sharp and foolish, p

ath through the assembled n

dy Hettie Conway. Her smile was sickeningly sw

ing silks, the whispers-vanished. All I could hear was the f

of what was supposed tobe my sacred moment. They were wa

mix of pity and pride. "Cousin," she purred, her voic

e was a dagger, twiste

uld hear. She tilted her head, showing off the necklace she wore. The starlight pendant. The

uture to me just last week. His face held no gu

voice cold and dismiss

othal is

sudden silence. I was now official

delicious, hidden delight of the crowd. A scan

raight. I would not

"Lord Carney," I said, my voice steady. "I

t, there is noth

ered. She had expec

think you are?" he sneered, his voice laced with venom. "You're a d

. There was not

, on the life that had j

ng for an escape. My gaze snagged on a figure standing alone in

a stark cut of darkness agai

e clearly, but I could see his eyes.

It held no pity, no mockery. It was a deep, searing regard that see

my heart steadied. It was like finding a solid pie

e only other person in the room, the

lling to let me have the last word. "A dragonless nobody

ltered for

eing the whispers, the st

ollowed me, a brand of he

Chapter End

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Rejected Bride: Married To The Dragon King

Catlaina Sloggett Fantasy

“I knelt on the cold stone of the Dragon God Altar, waiting to marry Lord Harper Carney. It was my only chance to escape the gilded cage of my family. But when Harper finally arrived, he wasn't alone. His arm was wrapped tightly around my cousin, Hettie. Right in front of the entire court, he coldly announced that our marriage was a mistake. Hettie leaned into his embrace, wearing a triumphant smile while playing the innocent victim. The assembled nobles openly jeered at me. They mocked my greatest failing-that I was a worthless "Dragonless" born without the inner fire. My own father was furious, not at them, but at me. He demanded I go to Hettie's estate and beg for her forgiveness. When I refused, he threatened to cut off all my funds and revoke my only job at the Royal Scribes' Office. I was publicly abandoned, stripped of my dignity, and left with absolutely nothing. I didn't cry, and I didn't scream. Why should I be the one to apologize when they were the ones who betrayed me? For years, I had endured their abuse, treated like a pawn to be sacrificed at will. But looking at their smug faces, my despair turned into cold resolve. I took off my betrothal coronet and dropped it at Harper's feet, publicly nullifying the contract myself. I thought I would have to face the ruin alone, until a mysterious, powerful man with burning golden eyes stepped out of the shadows. "Marry me," he said. "I will be your shield, and we will crush them together."”