The moment her lips parted beneath mine, I was undone.
The taste of her—sweet, wild, wholly Aria—was the single thread tethering me to sanity. The air between us had shifted, charged with that invisible pull that only mates could know. It wasn’t just desire—it was that searing, soul-deep recognition that demanded we give in. The mate-bond flared hot, pulsing in time with the pounding of my heart, until I could feel her breath shudder against me as though she, too, was burning alive from the inside out.
The room itself seemed to dissolve into shadow and flame. Only the faint light of the moon filtered through the balcony doors, painting her white hair in silver, making her look as though she’d stepped out of the Goddess’s hand herself. Her skin glowed faintly, every inch of her calling to
