Nobela ni Nailanath

CHAPTER FOUR: THE GUARDIAN'S TRUTHRoland's POVI watched Eden's face go pale as she listened to her mother's frantic voice, and every protective instinct I had developed over twenty years of survival screamed at me to take the phone and handle this myself, but she needed to hear whatever Patricia was saying. The fear in Eden's eyes made my wolf rage against the surface, demanding I eliminate whatever threatened our mate, and that thought stopped me cold because I had not meant to think of her that way.She was supposed to be a contract wife, a means to an end, a way to gain legitimacy and access to the Ashford family, but somewhere between saving my life and unleashing power that lit up the hall like a supernova, Eden had become something far more dangerous to my carefully constructed plans. The mate bond had not snapped into place yet, but I felt it hovering there, waiting, and I knew with absolute certainty that this woman was mine in ways that terrified me."I will be there in thi

Eden's POVThe courthouse wedding happened so fast I barely had time to process what I was doing, standing beside Roland in a simple blue dress while a bored judge read the marriage vows and Nicholas, Roland's beta, and Mirabel served as our only witnesses. Mirabel had tried to talk me out of it, warning me that I was making a huge mistake, but I knew she was wrong because for the first time in my life, I was making my own choice.Roland wore a black suit that made him look devastatingly handsome, and when the judge pronounced us married, he took my hand and led me out to the sleek black car waiting at the curb. We drove in silence to the outskirts of Crescent City, passing through neighborhoods that grew progressively rougher until we reached dense forest, and through the trees, I caught glimpses of a massive Gothic mansion."Welcome to the Rogue Lands," Roland said as we pulled up to the entrance, and I saw people watching from windows and doorways with expressions ranging from curi

Eden's POVThree days passed in a haze of numbness and mechanical routine, going through the motions at the hospital while avoiding all calls from my family and former friends. I checked on my mysterious patient every shift, the man everyone called the Rogue King, though no one could tell me his real name, and each time I entered his room, I felt that strange pull again, stronger than before.He woke up on the fourth day while I was checking his bandages, and those golden eyes opened to stare directly at me with an awareness that made me freeze. "You saved my life," he said, his voice deep and rough from disuse, carrying an accent I could not place, and the simple statement sounded like both a question and an acknowledgment of debt."I am a doctor, it is what I do," I replied, trying to maintain professional distance even though my hands trembled slightly as I adjusted his IV, and I could feel his gaze tracking every movement I made. Up close like this, I could see that his eyes were

Eden's POVMy hands shook as I smoothed down the ivory silk of my wedding dress, staring at my reflection in the bridal suite mirror at Saint Michael's Cathedral, and I barely recognized the woman looking back at me. Five years, I had spent five years loving Matthew Kingsley with everything I had, believing he felt the same way, and today was supposed to be the day all our dreams came true."You look absolutely stunning," Mirabel said from behind me, adjusting my veil with gentle fingers, her warm brown eyes reflecting genuine happiness for me, or at least that was what I thought I saw. She had been my best friend since medical school, the one person I trusted completely in a world that often felt cold and confusing, and right now, her presence was the only thing keeping me calm.I tried to smile but my stomach twisted with anxiety, that strange feeling I had been experiencing for weeks now, like something important was slipping through my fingers but I could not identify what. Matthe