Elowen’s POV
The ascent to the Academy rooftop felt like a breathless climb into a secret world, the narrow stone stairs winding upwards, each step echoing the frantic beat of my heart. The cool night air, carrying the distant hum of the sprawling city below, whipped around us, a stark contrast to the sudden heat that flared between Ranon and me. The lingering echoes of our desperate kiss in the training court clung to us like a shared secret, a tangible vibration in the charged silence.
Ranon reached the rooftop first, his dark silhouette a stark, alluring figure against the inky canvas of the night sky, punctuated by the scattered diamonds of city lights. He leaned against the low, weathered stone wall, his posture exuding a contained energy, a coiled tension that mirrored my own. His golden gaze, intense and possessive, followed my every movement as I approached, a silent claiming that made my skin prickle with a heady mix of anticipation and a nervous, thrilling excitement.
“Why h
