The dawn broke slow and gray over Kael’s fortress, its light spilling like diluted wine across the stone floors of his quarters. Ariana stirred beneath the heavy furs, her body still trembling with echoes of the night before. Every nerve was raw, every breath tangled with memory—chains, fire, the crushing weight of Kael’s dominance, and the way punishment had bled into passion until she no longer knew where one ended and the other began.
Her wolf purred in quiet contentment, but her mind refused such peace. She slipped from the bed, Kael’s steady breathing behind her like a storm that had finally quieted. His arm stretched across the sheets where she had been, fingers twitching as though even in sleep he sought her. For a moment she lingered, heart aching at the sight of him so vulnerable
