Morning arrived with rays of light creeping through my curtains. I rose early, my body still aching but my mind clearer than it had been last night. As I dressed in simple clothes – dark jeans and a soft sweater among the things Ragnar had got for me– I made my decision.
I would accept Ragnar's offer along with a few terms that would guarantee my safety.
A knock at my door came just as I finished braiding my hair. I steeled myself, expecting Lilja, but found Matthias instead, his expression unusually solemn.
"Alpha has requested your presence in his study," he said, his tone formal but lacking the disdain I'd grown accustomed to.
I nodded, following him through the halls of the castle.
Matthias stopped before an imposing wooden door of the room Ragnar and I had spoken in the day I'd
