ANMELDENFor a single heartbeat, the world held its breath. Then the courtyard exploded. Cheers erupted like thunder. Applause crashed upward in waves. Lanterns lifted high. Voices chanted Kaelani’s name. The sound rolled and swelled, echoing against the palace walls and into the night sky above. An ent
A few moments later, the corridor widened. Ahead stood a pair of towering double doors carved from pale stone and silverwood, their surfaces etched with ancient symbols that shimmered faintly beneath the evening light. Waiting before them stood Lyressa and the Seers. Lyressa’s gown gleamed like l
Kaelani stood before the tall gilded mirror as three Seelie attendants moved around her with quiet grace. One stood behind her, fingers deft as she drew the silk laces tight along the back of her gown, threading them through delicate loops until the dark violet fabric hugged her waist perfectly. Th
The violet blaze that danced through her fur flared slightly at the contact. It did not burn. It did not sear. Instead, the light folded into him. Threads of violet slipped seamlessly into the black of his coat, blending rather than clashing. The energy softened against him, wrapping around him
Then Kaelani suddenly pulled back and without explanation, she grabbed his hand and started leading him across the hillside toward a massive tree rooted near the edge of the slope. Kaelani glanced around once, then reached for the hem of her shirt. Julian’s brows shot up. “You know damn well I’d
Her voice softened. “It’s beautiful.” There was a brief pause. “And I would like to see it again,” she added carefully, meeting his eyes. “With you.” Julian grew quiet, the tension rolling off him in a steady wave, and Kaelani felt every ounce of it through the bond. After a moment, he asked qu
Julian’s hands balled into fists, every tendon tight as steel. His breath came sharp, jaw clenched against the pressure building beneath his skin. The wolf clawed at the edges of his control, demanding release. Demanding blood. Nobody threatened her. She was his. No—she was theirs. His body loc
The packhouse was quiet, bathed in that pale stillness that came just after sunrise. Julian parked in the drive, cutting the engine and sitting there for a moment, gripping the steering wheel like it might hold the answers to the chaos in his head. He exhaled, rubbed a hand over his face, and stepp
Kaelani stirred in her sleep, lashes fluttering as the haze of sleep thinned. Something warm and heavy pressed against her, and for a heartbeat she didn’t move—caught between waking and dreaming, unable to trust either. A familiar scent clung to the air—cedarwood and faint spice, the kind of scent
Julian woke with a sharp inhale, every muscle taut as his eyes adjusted to the dim light spilling through the blinds of his office. For a fleeting, fractured second, he could still feel her — the warmth of her body pressed against his, the scent of her hair, the fading echo of a song that didn’t bel







