city

h a deep, unfamiliar soreness, but beneath it, a strange current of warmth

been, a marble statue in the morning gray. It was as if th

st his, a tingling sensation, like a thousand tiny sparks, danced across my skin.

my breath

hispered, my

espo

e contact. The feeling vanished. I pressed m

my lips. It had to be a side effect of the ritual, of

Thorne, who entered carrying a tray wit

ain on the white sheets that confirmed the consummation of

al. "The Matriarch has requested

humiliating night. A record for Eleonora's eyes, proof that I

small nod. There was no point pretendi

h quiet efficiency, stripping the sheets and care

r his morning examination. I stayed, my stomach t

his breathing, listening to his heart. As he worked, his pro

to Eleonora, who had just swept into t

breathed, his voice filled wi

his side. "What is

aw exclaimed. "His Inner Wolf is still dormant, but it's...

e, they were filled not with calculation, but wit

ck with emotion. "The bond. The Goddess ha

nothing, hoped for little. To think that

e, "it's settled. It shows a state of deep cont

d Donn, hearing of it, looked as if they'd been forced to

ne, I found myself alone with Ansel again. I sat in a cha

t his peac

strange in the quiet room. "But... thank you. You've given me a shie

s face, hoping for a sig

e duvet

slightly that I

where his hand lay hidden beneath the thick coverlet. For

hing went s

daring to breathe, waiting for it

dlelight. A tremor in the fabric. Another d

s face, the promise I had made no longer