Lucien's POV
The room was cloaked in velvet shadows, lit only by the soft flickering of the hearth’s fire. Elena lay beside me, her breath slow and steady, her body curled slightly toward mine as if drawn by gravity. Her presence, once foreign and unwanted, had become something I couldn’t bear to lose. And that terrified me more than any enemy ever had.
I watched the way the flames danced over her features—how they played across her soft skin, turning her golden hair into liquid fire. My hand hovered above her cheek, not daring to touch. Not yet. She had fallen asleep, her guard down, the tension in her shoulders finally unwound. But I couldn’t sleep. Not with my mind roaring like a storm and my heart thudding like a war drum.
What was this tether between us? Mate bond, yes. But it was
