I sighed and gestured toward him. "I'll take him." In an undertone, I added, "Don't let me down, Zmey.

I felt like someone had ripped my heart out and tossed it across the other side of the room. There was a burning, agonizing pain in my chest, and I had no idea how it could ever be filled. It was one thing to accept that I couldn't have Dimitri. It was something entirely different to realize someone else could.

Surely I must be a princess in an enchanted sleep. Any day now, this dream-no, nightmare would end, and I’d get my prince and happy ending.

Oh, and I’m also happy to watch our darling little love child dragon while you’re in St. Louis.

Even if I’d been wide awake, I knew Dimitri would’ve taken my suitcase anyway. That’s how he was, a lost remnant of chivalry in the modern world, ever-ready to help others.

You and I aren't friends either.

It’s Adrian Ivashkov logic. Don’t try to understand it. Just roll with it.