เข้าสู่ระบบJasper’s POV:The first thing I noticed when I woke was the warmth pressed against my side. The second was the steady rise and fall of Aria’s breathing against my chest, her cheek resting over my heart and one arm draped lazily across my stomach as though she had every intention of keeping me exactly where I was.I didn’t mind. In fact, I couldn’t imagine anywhere else I’d rather be. Sunlight filtered through the curtains of my bedroom, painting golden streaks across the sheets and catching in the silver strands of my hair. I should have been thinking about breakfast, classes, or the growing mess that was Aria Veyne’s existence at Ebonveil Academy. Instead, all I could think about was last night.About the way she’d looked at me when she realized I wanted her to bite me. About the way I’d asked her to do it, knowing full well that I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I’d spent days wondering what it would feel like to experience that part of her, and when it finally happened,
Aria’s POV:I could feel the exact moment his control snapped. It wasn't a sound or a sudden movement, but a shift in the air, a crackle of energy that shot through the mate bond so intensely it stole my breath. One second I was smiling up at him, smug in my discovery, and the next, his hand shot from my waist to the back of my neck, his fingers tangling in my hair.He didn't say a word as he pulled me to the edge of the bed, turning us both. I stumbled, my hands landing on his chest for balance, and then he was sitting, pulling me down with him. I landed sideways across his lap, but he corrected that instantly, his grip firm as he positioned me to straddle him. The hard muscle of his thighs pressed against mine, the thin fabric of our clothes doing nothing to disguise the fact that he was already hard and ready for me.Jasper’s other hand came up to cup my jaw, forcing my gaze to meet his. The playful teasing was gone, replaced by a raw desperate need. His piercing blue eyes were dar
Aria’s POV:I knew something had changed between Jasper and me. I just couldn’t figure out exactly what. It had been subtle at first. A pause here. A strange look there. The way his eyes lingered on me for a second longer than they used to before he seemed to remember himself and looked away.Jasper had always been shameless around me. He flirted when he was bored, teased me when I was annoyed, and seemed to consider invading my personal space one of his favorite hobbies. Lately, though, there was something different in his eyes. Something heavier. And I was beginning to notice.We were walking across the academy courtyard after lunch when a gust of wind suddenly swept between us. I instinctively lifted my hand, expecting to push it away with magic.Instead, the wind curled around my fingers. It twisted gently between them like it was alive before settling against my palm. I stared at it in shock. Jasper stopped beside me.“Did you do that?”“I don’t know.” The wind disappeared.Jaspe
Jasper’s POV:I knew something was wrong the moment Aria ran. It wasn’t just the look on her face. It was the bond thrumming through my veins. Her fear hit me first, followed by confusion and something deeper that I couldn’t quite identify. I stood there for a moment, watching the direction she’d disappeared in, trying to understand what had just happened.She had been beside me one second. Then she’d seen the blood and everything had changed. I needed to find her. I followed the faint pull of our bond through the halls until it led me toward Lucien’s dorm. I knocked once. No answer. I opened the door.“Lucien?”He appeared from the adjoining room, his expression immediately sharpening when he saw me.“Jasper.”“Where is she?” His expression changed slightly.“You don’t know?” My stomach dropped.“Know what?”Lucien stared at me for a moment before his eyes flicked toward the bedroom. I followed his gaze. Aria was curled up in the middle of his bed asleep. Her black hair was scattere
Aria’s POV:Something was wrong with me. Or maybe something was finally waking up. I wasn’t sure which scared me more. It had started with little things. Things I barely noticed at first.I could hear conversations from farther away than I should have been able to. I could smell things I’d never noticed before, the faint scent of rain through closed windows, the herbs growing near the courtyard, even the individual scents of people when they walked past me.Sometimes I knew someone was behind me before I heard their footsteps. Sometimes I moved before I realized I was moving. And then there were my powers.They were becoming stronger…Much stronger. The problem was that I didn’t know why. I discovered just how much they had changed during combat training.Jasper and I were standing at the beginning of the academy’s combat trial course. The course had been designed to test supernatural abilities under pressure. There were moving targets, enchanted barriers, magical traps, shifting platf
Lucien’s POVI had spent centuries mastering control. Control over my emotions. Control over my instincts. Control over my hunger. But apparently, none of that had prepared me for being a mate. Especially not Aria’s mate.I watched her sleeping beside me that morning, her black hair spread across the pillow, the silver streak catching the faint morning light.She looked peaceful. Beautiful. Completely unaware of the war happening inside my head. The bond between us pulsed quietly beneath my skin. I could feel her even when she wasn’t awake.I felt her calmness, her warmth, the faint happiness that lingered from the moment she’d woken beside me. Beneath it all of it was something I couldn’t ignore.Love.The realization should have comforted me.Instead, it made me want to hold her tighter. Because now that I had her, the thought of losing her was unbearable. I had spent so long convincing myself that distance was the right thing to do.That Jasper was her mate. That I needed to respec







