Anna’s hands shook so badly she had to grab her dress just to steady them.

A few weeks ago, she was totally curious about Drax. she wanted to see the man that kissed princess orchid, the man that was locked up for years, the man that none of the other husbands talked about.

Yet as she made her way down to the secluded tower he was locked in, she found that her curiosity had morphed into fear.

Anna knew deep in her soul that if anyone would be suspicious about her not being the real Princess, it would be Drax.

He kissed the real Princess. Probably even did more to her, as he was the one that handled her heats.

Standing outside the massive steel gates, Anna inhaled, readying herself to face the beast.

Drax was a dangerous type of snake beastman. From the original memories, his poison was the most potent in this world. And in the four empires, very few doctors carried a cure.

So if he bites me I am dead.

"Okay. That does not scare me at all." Anna laughed to herself. But even her attempts at humor fell flat.

Her heart hammered against her ribs like a bird fruits to be let free.

Here goes...

She took out the unlocking stone from her pocket, then pricked her finger and smeared the stone with blood. Once she held it to the lock, it hissed open, the gate sliding open.

Whispering a silent prayer to the heavens, she stashed the stone back into her pocket and walked in.

She barely taken two steps before he appeared.

One moment he was not there, then he was there. Anna gasped, stepping back, her back slamming into the steel gates.

She’d seen Drax through the original memories. Somewhere deep in her mind, she knew what his lips tasted like.

But nothing prepared her for seeing the man himself in person.

He was tall. Impossibly so. His body slender and toned, even though he was dressed in flowing traditional robes. His long hair flowed all the way down to his waist, billowing softly even though there was no wind. His eyes scanned Anna, unreadable, yet intimidating.

How did Princess Orchid snag this man?!

He had a fluid, dangerous elegance to him. To Anna, he looked like a prince. A dark romance prince that whisked the princess away to his dark kingdom, locked her up in a tower, and showered her with endless affection.

"My love," his voice was a low, sensual purr that vibrated through Anna’s bones. "What a pleasant surprise."

Anna swallowed, her throat suddenly dry. "Drax. I...I have a question. I need to talk to you."

He tilted his head to the side, something dark flashing in his eyes. The way his silky, pin straight hair fell over his shoulders made Anna suck in a sharp breath and resist the urge to touch it.

"My chaos, if this is about that, then I’m sorry. I’m still not giving it to you." Drax replied with a slow smirk.

Anna blinked. "What do you—"

Then she remembered. Princess Orchid tried to obtain something from Drax, something that Anna couldn’t fully tell. Just like the memories of her heat, the memories of this strange object were all shrouded in thick fog.

"It’s not about that. It’s something else."

He didn’t answer immediately. His gaze drifted all over her face in a slow and lazy sweet; before he nodded. "Come in."

Every instinct Anna possessed screamed at her to run.

Run and never look back.

She felt like a lamb heading to the slaughter, and there was nothing she could do about it.

But, she forced herself to move forward. One foot in front of the other till she followed Drax inside the enclosure.

Once inside, she was stunned to see how beautiful the place was. It looked like a normal living room, with tasteful furniture, marble floors, and everything neat and sparkly. The one thing that stood out were the pictures.

A lot of them.

All of Princess Orchids face.

Some of them photographs. The others sketches. And some paintings.

He built a shrine for this woman? My goodness! Talk about devoted!

Drax gestured to a sofa with a graceful sweep of his hand. "Sit. I will make some tea. Your favorite?"

"Yes..." Anna replied breathlessly.

She sat stiffly on the edge of the sofa, doing her best not to poke around. Within minutes, he returned with a steaming cup of tea which he placed delicately in her hands. Then he joined her on the sofa, sitting a few distance away from her.

Anna took a sip of the tea to find it brewed to perfection. But Drax’s intense eyes on her made her unable to enjoy the tea. Being under his direct gaze felt like the sun shining down on her hard. He looked at her like a predator tracking his prey.

Wait. I’m a cat. Don’t cats hunt snakes?

Why am I afraid right now?

But when she turned and faced him, all her bravado vanished and she turned right back to the tea cup.

A strange warm feeling bloomed in her belly. Even though her heat had passed, she felt embers of it stir to life. Her body reacted to his proximity, and even though she tried to fight it, her thighs clenched together tightly in an attempt to help the sudden and aching friction between her legs.

His eyes moved down, narrowing as he took notice. "You’re off your suppressant." He stated smoothly. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Anna’s heart skipped a beat and she nearly choked on her tea. "Um yeah! I ran out of my most recent batch. And then there was an error with it and everything just went terribly wrong."

He let out a low hum, his expression calm and unreadable.

Oh my goodness I’m so scared. What do I do now? Just go straight ahead? Why do I feel like he’s judging me?

Anna sat down the tea cup and tuned to him. The silence was driving her crazy, and as much as Drax was very attractive, she didn’t want to hang around him any longer for fear she’d combust and go spiraling into another half heat.

"Drax, I need to know something. The previous times we..." she trailed off, her cheeks burning hot. "My heats, the past ones. I need to know what happened."

The question shattered the stillness in the air.

Drax leaned closer to her,, his chin propped on the back of his hand as he rested his elbow on his knee. Yet his movements were silent, like a serpent gliding across smooth grass.

"Have you forgotten so easily, my chaos?" He asked, reaching his free hand across and trailing his long, cool fingers across the line of her cheek.

Anna trembled, shivering under his touch. She stumbled for words, her mind spinning frantically for anything at all. She dug through the original memories for anything at all. Trying to find an "Orchid-like" thing to say.

But all the memories were too intimate. Too personal. Anna felt like an intruder even though the memories were in her own head.

"I...I hit my head," Anna blurted out, purely grasping at straws. "During the chaos with the stones and back in the palace. My memories are all jumbled up and foggy. That’s why I’m asking. Because you know better then anyone else."

His touch paused, and he slowly pulled his hand back. Without warning, he rose to his feet. "You need to resume your suppressants, immediately. Remember you vowed to never stop taking them."

"Why?" Anna pressed, her frustration bubbling over. "Why do I have to take them? What happens if I stop? Please, Drax. I need to remember."

His eyes narrowed.

Fuck! Has he noticed?!

He moved closer to her, invading her personal space totally. Up close, his mismatched eyes were absolutely stunning. Enchanting. She felt like she was being dragged into deep waters with no anchor. Her heart thumped wildly in her chest, and the heat in her body got even worse, spreading up her face and down her legs and everywhere!

She wanted to wrap her around around his neck, sink into his cool body and beg him to relieve the ache.

Anna had to clamp her teeth down hard on her lower lip with brutal force until she tasted blood to prevent her from saying something crazy, or worse; moaning out loud.

The sting of pain shot through her body, momentarily distracting her from the heat.

Drax’s gaze fell to her lips. A conflicted look appeared in his eyes, and without warning, he stepped back from her.

"You should leave." He said, his jaw tight, his voice detached and cold. "Get some rest, and don’t forget your suppressants."

Anna’s heart shattered.

A sudden wave washed over her. She realized that she had been rejected.

What?! How is that even possible? Why do I care?

She wasn’t Princess Orchid. She didn’t love this man.

She didn’t care if he walked away or not.

And yet, the inherited emotions in her chest churned and churned till Anna wasn’t sure which belonged to her and which belonged to Princess Orchid.

"Fine." She hissed, before leaving.

She locked the door and didn’t look back, storming all the way back to the palace.

Only then did she realize she didn’t get any answers. Worse, she only came out with more questions, and an ache burning between her legs.

It’s just the heat aftermath.

She knew she was lying. It wasn’t a heat aftermath at all, and if she’d stayed there any longer....

"Anna!" A sharp, shocked voice broke through the air.