Semua Bab Save Me, Claim Me: Bab 171 - Bab 177

Tessa POVAfter naming Dorian my King I kissed him. Hard. Fierce. Like the world had almost taken him from me.Because it had tried. Because I had almost let it.Dorian’s arms wrapped around me instantly, grounding me in the heat of him, the strength of him. His mouth met mine without hesitation - hungry, desperate, alive. There was no time to think. Just breath. Just heart. Just the knowledge that we were both still here.When I pulled back, he rested his forehead against mine. “Don’t ever do that without me again.”“I didn’t have a choice.”“You always have a choice.”I gave a breathless laugh. “You’re lucky I’m too tired to argue.”His hands slid down to my waist. “You’re lucky I’m too relieved to throw you over my shoulder and drag you out of this cursed place.”“Tempting.”We stood there for a moment, letting the forest breathe with us. Letting the new silence settle. The world hadn’t gone still - not completely - but something had shifted. A pressure lifted. A lock undone.Vel

Tessa POVThe sky had begun to darken again when we crested the last ridge.Smoke curled faintly from the edge of campfires below. The sound of hammers, of weary voices, of wolves shifting beneath layered furs - it all felt distant. Like a memory we hadn’t yet earned.I winced in the saddle. The cut along my ribs throbbed in time with my heartbeat. Dorian hadn’t fared much better - there was a tear in the leather along his shoulder, still red and raw - but neither of us had the strength to say more than we needed to.Two warriors stepped forward at the edge of the outer camp. I didn’t recognize them by name - one had a jagged scar that split across his brow, the other wore Ashmoon colors with soot darkening his cheeks. They bowed low as we approached.“Your tent is ready,” the scarred one said. “The healers are standing by if needed.”Dorian passed him the reins of both our horses without a word, and I followed him through the narrow path that split the camp. Warriors parted. Some bow

Tessa POVThe stars were out when we finally made it back to the tent.I didn’t realize how exhausted I was until the flap fell closed behind us and the scent of leather, pine, and Dorian wrapped around me like the only blanket that mattered. We hadn’t spoken much since the final war tent meeting - too many plans to finalize, too many faces to reassure, too many pieces to move before the summit. The march would begin at dawn in two days. The world wouldn’t wait.But for tonight… it could burn for all I cared.Dorian set the wine flask on the small wooden table and pulled two chipped cups from a chest in the corner. I started unfastening the outer layer of my coat, my shoulders aching from the weight of battle, planning, expectation.He glanced over his shoulder. “Want me to help with that?”I nodded once, quietly.He crossed the space between us and began undoing the buckles with careful fingers, slower than necessary. Not because he couldn’t move faster - but because this was the onl