The storm broke.
It wasn’t like thunder, not like lightning—it was both and neither, a shattering of everything she thought she could hold back. Light ripped from her palms in wild arcs, exploding upward and outward, shaking the earth. The fissure blazed white, the beast shrieking as molten fire clashed against her storm.
Kael’s roar answered it, primal, guttural, but he didn’t pull away. His arms wrapped tighter around her waist as if anchoring her against her own power. The heat singed his skin, but he held fast.
Darius was different. He leaned into it. His grin was feral, silver eyes wide with hunger. Where Kael resisted the storm, Darius welcomed it, stepping closer, pressing her free hand against his chest as if daring her to burn him.
“More,” he whispered, his voice nearly lost i
