로그인Then I whispered, “She woke because of truth.”Nicholas’s POVTruth.The word cut deeper than any blade.Watching Esther’s wolf awaken, seeing that glow ripple through her, was like watching dawn break inside my own ribs. Norman howled in joy, circling like a storm.Mate. Whole again.I wanted to re
Esther’s POVThe moon hung low over the palace courtyard, pale and thin as if it too had been hollowed out by truth.I hadn’t slept in days. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Carl’s face in that hospital bed, the IV line glowing red with Nicholas’s blood, a thread connecting them that could never b
I couldn’t stay. Not then. Not with the room spinning around the truth.I turned on my heel and left.Outside, the evening had turned cold. The palace gardens stretched wide and silent, shadows long across the stone. I made it halfway to the fountain before the first surge of fury hit, hot and wild
Nicholas’s POVIt was supposed to be an ordinary morning.A quiet one, even the kind where the palace felt less like a fortress and more like a home. The smell of breakfast bread drifting through the halls, the faint laughter of children somewhere near the east courtyard.Then came the scream.High.
I turned the page without a word.Inside, the fragile hope I’d been nurturing began to splinter.Nicholas found me near noon.He stormed in, half out of his formal jacket, eyes dark and wild. “Who leaked this?”“You’re asking me?” I said.“I’m asking everyone.” His voice was a snarl. “They’re saying
Esther’s POVThe palace had never been this bright.Golden banners fluttered across the courtyard, musicians tuned lutes and violins, and trays of sugared fruit glimmered beneath the sunlight. All of it, the music, the laughter, the illusion, was for Sofia.My daughter. My little girl who had someho
Esther’s POVMy body had never been more exhausted. I already had so little time to sleep with all the chores I had to do every day, but now my body needed it more than ever. I was so tired, too tired, and no matter what I did, it never went away. My bones felt like they’d been replaced with lead, m
Nothing.Kevin didn’t hold his silence. His voice cut sharp across the corridor.“You know, for a king, you’re awfully good at punching down. Is bullying a defenseless woman what makes you feel the most powerful?”Nicholas’s head snapped toward him, and his eyes flickered with a dark shadow. His fin
Esther’s POV“Hand it over.”Nicholas’s voice cut through the air, calm and unrelenting, laced with power I that made it hard to defy, even if I wanted to. And I did want to.I wanted to keep the truth hidden.I tightened my fingers around the test results, the ones that confirmed I was pregnant. My
My lips trembled, and I gripped the edge of the bed to steel myself. I hadn’t planned for children. I didn’t even know if I wanted them, but now, I have them. I had two tiny flickers of life inside me, growing where I never expected light.I already knew, I couldn’t lose them. I’d protect them for a







