The Dragon King's Heart

Laina's words surprised the Beckermont sisters. They stood there with their mouths agape. 

"Th… thank us? Whatever for?" One of them asked. 

Laina pretended to be surprised and confused by their question. 

"For your generosity of course! I assure you, the money you've spent on that gorgeous painting is going to benefit me, greatly," Laina explained with a coy grin. 

Before the Beckermont sisters could even get a firm grasp of the situation, Laina and her entourage walked away.

"What on earth was she talking about?!" One of the sisters exclaimed to the other. 

"The only painting we purchased today was…"

"The Yellow Villa painting!" All three of them exclaimed together. 

Upon hearing their realization, Laina turned back around and shouted over, "Thank you again! I really, truly appreciate it."

In the corner of the entrance, with a clear view of everything that had gone down, Dante smirked as he watched Laina walk away. At first, he was worried that Laina would not be able to handle herself. 

But after seeing her entire plan play out, he was happy to know that she is still the intelligent woman he loved. 

"Seems like your worry was for naught," Marius added as he watched Dante carefully. 

Dante turned to him as they walked away in a different direction, "She does not need me to protect her."

"Hah! Women loved being protected by their men! Even if they are tougher than steel, they appreciate a shoulder to rely on," Marius refuted. 

As the distance between them grew, Marius could not help but ask. 

"Don't you want to at least say hi to her?" He asked as he caught up with Dante's footsteps.

Upon remembering what Dante had come to Everfree to do, he asked again, "Didn't you want to invite her out on a date?" 

The Dragon King stopped in his footsteps and closed his eyes as he let out a sigh. He had been so engrossed in following and watching Laina that he completely forgot what he had come to do. 

But now that Laina was no longer at the auction house, he could no longer create the scenario he wanted. He had hoped they would bump into one another by 'coincidence'. Then, he would suggest they had dinner together. 

Dante turned back. He looked in the direction Laina and her entourage had walked off in. He was about to take a step forward when someone called out to him. 

"Dante? What… what are you doing here?" Laina asked as she looked at him in shock. 

For a moment, Dante assumed that what he heard and saw was just an illusion. 

-Keep it together, Dante! Now you're seeing illusions?- he chided himself. 

He blinked a couple of times to get his head in the right state of mind. But Laina came forward to him. They were inches apart and Dante could see her with great clarity. 

"Dante, are you alright?" Laina asked worriedly. 

Though both of them had walked off in opposite directions, they walked around the block and ended up seeing one another. When Laina first saw Dante, she also assumed her mind was playing tricks on her. 

But when Margaret confirmed that she saw him too, Laina knew it was real. Seeing Dante and Marius, Margaret was annoyed. She folded her arms as she glared at Marius. 

Instantly, he could feel shivers creeping down his spine. She looked ready to rip his spine out of his body. Marius gulped as he smiled nervously at her. Margaret turned her head to the side, refusing to meet him in the eyes. 

Dante, on the other hand, quickly regained his composure. 

"What a surprise to see you here, Princess Laina. Have you been well?" He queried.

Seeing him being so formal, Laina reciprocated, "Indeed it is. I've been well, King Dante, thank you for your concern."

What followed, was a long awkward moment of silence. 

Marius nudged Dante and cleared his throat, signaling him to ask Laina out. 

"Since we're already here, meeting one another… how about we go out for a cup of tea?" Dante asked.

"You mean like a date?" Laina blurted out. 

As soon as she realized what she had said, Laina's face turned beet red. She covered her mouth with her hand as she averted Dante's gaze. 

"I'm sorry I don't know what came over me. I just spoke what came to mind," realizing she had just made it worse, Laina wanted nothing more than to bury herself in a pit and never come out. 

"Ah what I meant to say is-"

"It is a date," Dante replied confidently with a genuine smile. 

"It is-" Laina could not believe it. 

But she could not hide the smile on her face either. Trying to ease the awkwardness and rising temperatures between them, Dante recommended they head over to a nearby cafe.

"There's a quaint little cafe not too far from here. They serve parfaits made of fresh fruits and ice-cold soft serve. Shall we head there?" 

Marius could see it on Margaret's face that she was about to object to it. Wanting to help his King, he walked up to Margaret as sweat trickled down his forehead. He knew she would kill him for what he was about to do. 

But for the sake of his King, he would have to sacrifice himself. 

"Lady Margaret, I heard you like flowers, is that right?" Marius asked. 

Caught off guard by his sudden question, she replied candidly, "Why yes…"

"Perfect," Marius replied with a grin, "There's a park nearby. Their flowers are in full bloom at the moment, let me accompany you to take a stroll there. Kol can tag along too."

He did not wait for Margaret to reply. He took her by the hand and went off. Kol did not move, he looked back at Laina, waiting for her orders. 

"Kol, go with them."

Kol nodded and went off following Margaret and Marius. When Laina came to realize what had just happened, all that was left was the King and the Crown Princess. Dante took hold of her hand and hooked it around he guided the way.