Chapter 121

Darius's POVIt had been nearly three weeks since Lily came back, but every day was too long. The connection thrummed under my skin, a disconcerting reminder of her in the palace. I sensed bits of her feelings through our bond —isolation while in training, supposed sadness at the Academy, sometimes deep enough for my chest to hurt.But she stayed away from me, watching from the shadows the way I’d said she could.The distance was agony. Every alpha instinct in me was yelling at me to get to her, use the bond bringer her closer. But I had given my word, and I’d die before I’d break it.So I took my energy and became the alpha female I should have been from the start.“If you could keep the papers in order,” Marcus said, talking about files in my study, “the new council as structured is working famously. “We are receiving perspectives we have not paid attention to in years because of having people in the representation of all ranks.”I nodded, approving a suggestion for the refurbishin

Last Updated : 2025-11-01

Chapter 122

Lily's POVThere was something between me and Darius changed by the conversation in the library. Not in any dramatic way — I didn’t suddenly forgive him or give him another chance. But my wall of protection had a few crevasses in it, through which the possibility that maybe, someday things could be different began to seep.In the coming days, I kept wanting him around. Not on purpose, at first—I’d tell myself I was just going to the library at my regular time, or looking into pack business that turned out to be him. But slowly, I had to face the truth.I wanted to talk to him.Our talks began tentatively — we were both so careful, I remember, not to say something that would shatter the fragile truce we’d brokered. We discussed pack business, the changes he was making, the difficulties and demands of leadership.But eventually, inevitably, we started discussing other things. Recollections from our childhood - the time when he was just Darius and I was just Lily, before ranks and duties

Last Updated : 2025-11-02

Chapter 123

Darius's POVLily’s words lingered between us, weighted with an absolute sense of finality. “I want to talk about the bond. About breaking it."My ‘wolf howled in my body with a sound of pure pain. Every instinct demanded that he say no, fight it out, use the bond to make her see how very wrong this was.But I’d vowed to honor her decisions, even when they killed me.Naturally," I lied, trying to sound even when I wasn’t. "What do you want to know?"She leaned back in the chair opposite my desk. “I’m gonna need to know if you really meant that. For helping me break the bond, if that’s what I choose. Or was that more of a virtue-signal honor to which you were just all talk but no action?”The question stung. "I meant it. If you want it broken, I’ll help break it. No matter what it costs."“If it means giving up your life?” she asked quietly.I stared at her. "What?"“Breaking a forced mating isn’t just easy,” lily replied. "I've been researching it. The rituals are risky, potentially l

Last Updated : 2025-11-03

Chapter 124

Lily's POVI couldn't sleep. The next full moon, tomorrow night, and if I decided to go through with it, Darius and I would do the spell that had the potential to break our connection once and for all.Should have been a simple call. He had violated me, forced a connection I absolutely did not want. And of course it should want broken.But I had spent the evening in his study, and our conversation had knocked something loose. The way he’d claimed that to live without my forgiveness was already a death. How utterly convinced he’d been when he vowed to help me sever the bond, even if it meant killing him.This was evidence that I had been waiting to see. And he'd passed.I felt myself walking downstairs to his study with no deliberate direction. I knocked softly, half hoping that he would be asleep.But the door opened immediately. "Lily," he said, surprised. "Is everything alright?""I couldn't sleep," I admitted. "Can we talk?""Of course. Come in."We sat down by the fire again, in t

Last Updated : 2025-11-04

Chapter 125

DariusI woke up to sunlight in the study, and Lily was still sleeping on my shoulder. Her hair spilled across my chest, and she seemed so peaceful. I stayed frozen for a moment, afraid to move and prove the previous night to just be a dream. She had chosen me. Not as an obligation due to our connection, not because she had no other choice, but for her, this was a real decision. A real chance. Lily stirred awake; her blue eyes opened slowly. Confusion flashed over her face for a moment; then, memory hit her. “Good morning,” I greeted her quietly. “Morning,” she replied, sitting up. “I should go. People will talk if they find me here.” “Let them,” I shrugged. “Or, sorry, if you would prefer.” She looked at me, and her face softened into a slight smile. “You’ll do this all the time now, aren’t you?” “Yes,” I promised. “Until you believe that I mean it.” “That might take a while,” she warned. “I have a lot of time,” I told her. “All the time in the world.” She stood up and stretc

Last Updated : 2025-11-06

Chapter 126

Lily’s POVThe kiss changed something between us. Not dramatically – we didn’t suddenly leap into a complete relationship – but it shifted the basis we’d been carefully building. Maybe I gave myself permission to fall in love with Darius again, maybe that made everything else seems possible. The only thing different now was that it was still up to me. Not fate, not the bond, but my own choice to let him meet the person He truly was – someone who had hurt me, but someone who was genuinely trying to be better. A wave of gratefulness washed over me and for the first time, I noticed how different the bond felt when I wasn’t still fighting it. I had blanket-scrambled my knowledge of it for the last few weeks, tried to pretend that it’s a cage I needed to get out of. Now I just let myself my feelings pour – it didn’t feel like a chain anymore. It felt like a bridge. A piece of invisible, intangible connection that united two whole, full people experiences fully without losing themselves in

Last Updated : 2025-11-07