The Dragon King's Heart

"Your Highness, his Majesty King Dante of Dracona has arrived," the guard announced Dante's arrival after opening the door of the Drawing Room. 

Crown Princess Laina quickly stood up and turned to greet Dante with a warm smile. 

She curtsied and said, "King Dante, I, Crown Princess Laina of Kinshearth warmly welcome you to the royal castle. To what do I owe this meeting?"

Dante entered the room first and Marius closed the door behind him. Only Laina and Dante were in the Drawing Room. He walked up to her and bowed. 

"Shall we spare the formalities, Crown Princess Laina?" He asked as he kissed her gently on the hand, "It's good to see you again."

Laina blushed. She quickly looked away to conceal her blushing cheeks. She quickly regained her composure. 

"It is good to see you too, King Dante."

Before Laina could say anything else, Dante came up close to her. 

"I have a gift for you," he said with a grin, "Well two gifts to be exact."

He presented her his first gift, a single blood rose with a black ribbon tied around it. Laina gasped in surprise by the gift. Something about the rose felt familiar to her, but she could not figure out what it was. 

"Dante… what are you trying to do?" She asked as she tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear and took the blood rose from him. 

The gentle sweet scent of the rose brought a smile to her face. She noticed that he even tied a black ribbon around the stalk. He remembered her favorite color. 

"I thought about what we spoke about the other day," Dante explained, "And I will respect your decision. But…"

Laina looked into his eyes, "But what?"

Dante held Laina's hands in his, "But I hope you can give me the chance to court you."

"Court me?" Laina echoed his words. 

"Yes," he continued to explain, "Give me the chance to swoon you or bring you out on a nice date. Let's get to know one another better."

"But Dante…"

"I will not force you. If you want some time to think about it, I will give you the space you need. All I ask is for a chance to court you."

Seeing him so genuine with his request melted Laina's heart. At that moment, she could barely think straight. She did not want to let go of his hands. How many other men are there out there that would be as kind and understanding as Dante?

"Give me some time, Dante. I will consider your offer."

As she finished her sentence, Dante kissed her gently on the cheek. 

"That's good enough for me," he grinned. 

Realizing what had happened, Laina raised her hand to touch her cheek where he had kissed. She then used her free hand to punch him on the side of his arm. 

"Hey! Who gave you the permission to kiss me?!" She pouted angrily. 

Dante chuckled, "I apologize for the unsolicited kiss, Crown Princess Laina. Would you like to kiss me instead as compensation?"

His shameless flirting tactics knew no bounds. With the first part of his plan completed, it was time for him to show Laina his second gift. But there was a bit of an issue. 

The colossal forest deer was too big to fit in the Drawing Room. They needed some open space. So, they headed over to the Royal Courtyard instead. 

"So what's this gift you want to show me?" Laina asked, intrigued by what it might be. 

"Take a guess," Dante encouraged. 

"A statue perhaps?"

He paused for a moment in thought before replying, "Sort of."

When they finally arrived at the Royal Courtyard, Dante brought out his gift. The moment it materialized before them, everyones' jaw dropped. None of them had ever seen such a huge creature before. 

Upon learning from Dante that it was a colossal forest deer, Laina was impressed. She was even more in awe to find out that he had single-handedly hunted it. 

"This is amazing! There are such huge creatures roaming free in the forests of Dracona? Fascinating?" Laina squealed with excitement. 

"You have to bring me along on your hunts next time I visit, King Dante," she added. 

To see the smile upon her face was all he ever wanted. 

"That can definitely be arranged, Crown Princess Laina," he replied with a smile. 

Now that they were out in public, both of them kept up their formalities. But it would not stop Dante from flirting with Laina. 

"Thank you so much for your kind gifts, King Dante. I truly appreciate it," Laina expressed her gratitude. 

"You're most welcome, Crown Princess Laina. I would also like to extend an invitation to you, your Highness."

"An invitation?"

"Yes, to visit Dracona one of these days. I have a newly built mansion in the Frost Mountains and I would love to have you as my guest there," Dante explained with a smirk. 

Laina smiled. She knew what he was doing. Offering an invitation in front of everyone worked in Dante's favor. If she rejected him outright, she would be making a scene. But she never intended on rejecting the offer, to begin with. 

Snow-capped mountains and a warm fireplace in a mansion sounded incredibly enticing from the get-go. Plus, what was the worst that could happen?

"Thank you for your kind offer, King Dante. My duties as Crown Princess grows heavier with each passing day. I will consider your invitation," she replied with her head held high. 

Dante chuckled, "Very well, your Highness, I look forward to hearing from you."

"I believe it is time for me to take my leave. Thank you for hosting me today, your Highness." He continued to declare. 

Just before he was about to turn and take his leave, Dante leaned in and whispered into Laina's ear, "Don't miss me too much, princess."

In a matter of seconds, Laina's entire face was burning red. She could not exclaim his name out loud or give him a piece of her mind. All Laina could do was stand there in silence as she watched him walk away. 

-I'll get back at you for this, Dante. Just you wait.- she said to herself with a smirk on her face.