Novels by Karinatei

Annalise POVHer words.. they weren’t dismissive, they were understanding and real.I mean most people I know.. cough, cough Judy cough, cough. Would have ripped my eyes out if I said something like this.Instead the queen leaned forward, her eyes warm with a truth she didn’t voice out loud just a whisper for my ears only.“You are not wrong to fear him,” she said quietly. “Power like his… often shadows the man beneath it.”Her gaze softened even further.“But he is not as unfeeling and heartless as he pretends. And not nearly as unobservant as he’d like you to believe.”Something in my chest tightened as memories of his warm cuddle flashed in my head.The Queen reached across the table, placing a warm hand over mine.“You are safe here, Annalise. Truly..”‘Safe…’My throat tightened even though I could make no sound.And in that still, sunlit room… for the first time since entering this palace, something inside me loosened.The fear didn’t vanish.. No, it shifted.Into something else

Annalise POVHer words.. they weren’t dismissive, they were understanding and real.I mean most people I know.. cough, cough Judy cough, cough. Would have ripped my eyes out if I said something like this.Instead the queen leaned forward, her eyes warm with a truth she didn’t voice out loud just a whisper for my ears only.“You are not wrong to fear him,” she said quietly. “Power like his… often shadows the man beneath it.”Her gaze softened even further.“But he is not as unfeeling and heartless as he pretends. And not nearly as unobservant as he’d like you to believe.”Something in my chest tightened as memories of his warm cuddle flashed in my head.The Queen reached across the table, placing a warm hand over mine.“You are safe here, Annalise. Truly..”‘Safe…’My throat tightened even though I could make no sound.And in that still, sunlit room… for the first time since entering this palace, something inside me loosened.The fear didn’t vanish.. No, it shifted.Into something else

Annalise POVFor a long time, I just… stared at him.‘Is he high or something? Geez if he has any stupid questions he should go clear it out with his fellow man’I looked away and slowly walked towards the patio door.‘Prince Nathan was the one who lied yet I’m the one bearing the burden.. isshh men always have a way of staining a ladies white dress’I dropped the bucket on the floor.. Then I walked towards the bed without acknowledging him. I waited and braced myself for his voice to snap across the room like a whip or at least for him to scare me but..Shockingly..It never came.I crawled beneath the sheets, and pulled the covers up to my chin. The room hummed quietly with silence, alcohol and something like leftover anger. After several moments, curiosity burned too sharply within my chest and too painful to swallow so I lifted my head to see just how furious he must have looked.But to my surprise..He just sat there in the low golden lamplight, wine still clutched lazily in

Alaric’s POVFor a couple of minutes after she stormed out, the gazebo stayed painfully silent.. I didn’t move.I didn’t chase after her.I didn’t even bother to look towards the path she had taken.Instead, I lifted my wine glass and took a long, patient sip.‘Well done,’ Zorrack muttered, with the kind of judgment only an old friend could wield without fear of decapitation. ‘Brilliant even. What was that? Two questions and you made her cry. A new personal record.”I swirled my wine lazily and watched the red liquid stain the sides.“I didn’t make her cry,” I said flatly.Zorrack snorted. ‘Yes. The sky isn’t blue and you aren’t insufferable.,‘You over stepped your boundary and poked her like a wounded cub until she snapped.’My jaw tightened, yet as I spoke my voice stayed cold. “She refused to answer.”‘Because she was scared, you bumbling idiot.’“That’s funny...”‘You’re terrifying our little human!’I clicked my tongue and took another sip and stared at the horizon as though I w

Annalise POV‘What the fuck is this man playing at? What sorta trick question is this?’His question still lingered in the cool night air between us.“Are you scared of me?”I stared at him, unsure if he wanted honesty or comfort unsure which one would set him off less. ‘I mean if I say no he would get the wrong idea but if I say yes he might let me be’My fingers trembled around my goblet. Slowly and cautiously as I nodded my head.Alaric’s face remained unreadable for a moment. Then his lips twitched.. in a way that seemed too controlled to be kindness and too deliberate to be irritation.“Is that so?”His voice slid over me like smoke.I swallowed and lifted my goblet, sipping my wine as I nodded again.‘The bloody hell were you expecting me to say? No?.. so you’d make me bleed or make me disappear from the face of the lore.. oh please I might be mute but I’m not stupid’Unexpectedly, he laughed.The sound was deep, rich, and so startling I froze. ‘Did I just hear hahaha?’For

Alaric’s POVThe doors of the dining hall slammed behind us with a heavy thud that echoed down the corridor. The moment they closed, I felt something inside me snap quietly and dangerously.My grip around Annalise’s hand tightened.Too tight.She flinched and her steps faltered as she tried to match my pace. Her hand was small… too damn small in my grasp, and the anger simmering in my chest poured into my hold without mercy.‘Alaric.’Zorrack’s warning slipped through me like a low growl.‘If you break her hand, she might hate you more than she already does.’I froze and for a second, everything stopped.. the echo of footsteps, the torchlight flickering on stone walls, the tension boiling beneath my skin.Then, slowly, I released her.Her hand dropped away from mine, and she pulled it toward her chest, massaging her fingers gently, confusion etched across her face.I took a sharp breath and stepped away from her.Too fast.Too harsh.She blinked at the abrupt distance between us with