MasukBella's POV Hearing Ethan say I would be divorcing Andrew finally was one of the best things I had ever heard. The words had settled into my chest like something warm and permanent. Like a door finally opening after months of being locked. I had been carrying the weight of that marriage for so long, carrying the weight of Andrew's hands and Andrew's threats and Andrew's cold dismissive eyes, and now it was going to end. Ethan had said it like it was a fact. Like it was already done. Like there was no version of reality where I stayed married to that man. But being claimed by the Lycan King himself topped that. I could still feel him inside me. The memory of it was burned into my skin. The stretch and the fullness and the way he had filled me completely. I could still feel his hands on my hips, the specific way his fingers had pressed into my skin, guiding me, holding me. I could still hear the sound he had made when I sank down onto him, that low rough growl that had vibrated thro
Ethan's POV The morning light came through the windows soft and pale, slanting across the floor in long golden rectangles. The rain had stopped sometime in the night. I did not know when. I had been too focused on her. She was still in my arms. Her hand was pressed flat against my chest, her fingers curled slightly into the fabric of my shirt I had worn in the middle of the night. Her hair was spread across the pillow and my shoulder, dark and tangled. Her face was turned toward me, her lips slightly parted, her breathing slow and even. I had not slept. I had spent the night watching her, feeling her through the bond, letting the reality of her presence sink into my bones. I could feel her heartbeat. Slow and steady. I could feel her breathing, the specific way her chest rose and fell against mine. I could feel her warmth, the softness of her skin, the weight of her body pressed against me. And I could still feel the ghost of her riding me. The memory of it was burned into my sk
Bella's POVHis mouth was on mine and I could not get close enough.I pushed against him, pressing my body into his, and I felt the specific way he winced when my shoulder brushed his wound. I pulled back immediately, my hands going to his chest, holding him still. I could feel the heat of his skin through the thin fabric of his shirt, the specific way his heart was pounding under my palm, fast and uneven."Lie down," I said.He looked at me. His eyes were dark, the amber almost black, and I could see the effort it was taking him to stay upright. The black veins on his shoulder were pulsing, visible even in the dim light of the room. His jaw was tight, his breathing shallow."Arabell—""Lie down."I pushed gently against his chest and he let me guide him back toward the bed. I watched him lower himself onto the mattress, watched the specific way his jaw tightened when the movement pulled at his shoulder. His hand came up to grip the sheets, the tendons in his forearm standing out with
Bella's POV The door clicked shut behind the healer. The latch catching. The wood settled into the frame. Her footsteps retreated down the corridor, growing fainter with each step until there was nothing left but the rain against the windows and the sound of my own breathing. Ethan's breathing was slower. I could hear the effort it was taking him to stand upright, the way each breath scraped against his ribs. The sound of it was wrong. Too careful like he was measuring every inhale, every exhale, trying to keep himself upright through sheer will. I stood with my back to him. My eyes fixed on the door. The silence stretched between us, heavy and full. I could feel him behind me. The weight of his presence. The heat of his fevered skin. The specific quality of his attention, even now, even like this. Then I turned. He was still gripping the edge of the table. His knuckles were white. His jaw was tight. The black veins on his shoulder pulsed against his pale skin. I took a breath.
Bella’s POV. "You knew." The words came out flat. I could hear them in my own ears. They did not sound like my voice. He didn't answer. "Answer me." Nothing. "Every time I came here." My voice was shaking now, the words were coming out unsteady. "Every conversation. Every blood session. Every time you looked at me like..." I stopped. The words caught in my throat. I could feel the heat behind my eyes and I blinked it back. "...you knew." "Yes." One word. That was all he said. I felt something twist in my chest. Something sharp and painful that I could not name. I had been so sure I was imagining things. So sure I was reading too much into every glance, every touch, every moment he held my gaze a second too long. I had told myself I was being ridiculous. I had told myself he was the King. I had told myself he didn't see me that way. And all that time, he had known. "You kissed me." I said it like I was trying to make him remember. In case he had already forgo
Bella's POV I did not remember deciding to leave. One moment I was on my knees in my room with my palm burning and my chest aching and his name on my lips. The next moment I was running through the rain with my bare feet hitting the cold ground and my heart pounding so hard I could feel it in my throat. I did not remember putting on shoes. I did not remember grabbing a coat. I did not remember anything except the pull, that invisible rope tied around my ribs that had been tugging at me since the moment the mark on my palm turned red and hot and I felt something terrible happening somewhere I could not see. The rain was falling harder now, thick drops that soaked through my dress and plastered my hair to my face and neck. I felt the water running down my cheeks, down my throat, soaking into the collar of my dress. The ground was cold and wet under my bare feet and I felt every stone, every sharp edge, every patch of mud that squelched between my toes. I crossed the palace grounds
The relief that moved through me when it became clear the King wasn't going to do anything about the stumbling incident was significant enough that I had to actively stop it from showing on my face.I smoothed my dress, lifted my chin, and walked back to the dining table with Andrew like nothing ha
I sat in the carriage and watched through the window as the two of them finally pulled themselves away from the door. Andrew's hand on her back, she was leaning into him, both of them completely unbothered by the fact that I existed.I rolled my eyes so hard it nearly hurt. What was I thinking, cha
“Julie!” I called out.She appeared in the doorway within seconds, which told me she'd been hovering just outside it this whole time.“Did you hear all of that?” I asked. Her expression answered for her.“Right.” I pushed the blanket off and swung my legs over the side of the bed. “Then you know we
I was having the best dream. I don't even remember what it was about but I remember the feeling, warm, easy, like nothing in the world needed anything from me. I stretched into it, pulling the blanket higher, chasing the last soft edges of it…“You're awake.”My eyes flew open.There was a man sitt







