's

ugh the thin veil of control I maintained. My wolf howled inside me, furious that another A

ne, uncertain but curious. Her soft voice whis

phecy-made-flesh I had waited decades for. My fingers tightened around her waist before I lost my n

oken by a pup who discarded her. But the mate pull-how could it still linger between them? T

-" Ivy sta

cut her off, my voice raw with ba

o hard to erase flickering briefly in her eye

ut I softened, brushing my thumb acros

and I seized the moment, guiding her toward the grand ballroom's terrace. The night air h

eneath us, the city stretched out, oblivious to the war brewing here. I turned to

t that reminded me of the woman she'd become-stronger than Aria ever was. She step

ugh, my mask slippin

ghter brown, and for a brief moment, I wanted to tell her everything. I wanted to rip

uldn't.

erous. "Ivy, you don't understand-when Connor rejected you, he made

g her head, her fingers twitching a

Because my mate-the first woman I loved-was st

t for the one who could lift it. Her. Ivy. She didn't know it yet, but

ght he could claim her? Should I

as so close now, close enough that I could feel the faint rhythm of her he

Because I am. Ivy, you don't know what you mean to me." I leaned in, my voice dropping to a whisper tha

h her, and her brea

a hunger that shook me to my core. She gasped against my mouth, but she didn't

h and sweetness, a balm to the dark chaos raging inside me. But I could feel the bond sparking

len, her chest heaving. "Leo..." she whispered a

ised, brushing her

though her body still leaned toward mine. "A

dark, my wolf clawing to the surface.

as no ordinary Alpha. I was the Alpha King, the ruler who had hidden

she whispered, her v

ips brushed against her ear as I murmured, "I am the man who

my words heavy between us. I knew I was walking a dangerous line. The tru

her in every way that mattered, because she was

y, offering her my h

mine. I pulled her back inside, the music soft and lilting, the g

gainst mine, her warmth seeping into my s

re the risk. Ivy was now in the center of it all-the prophecy, the bond, my enemies.

as my second

dn't lose