Ben rubbed the back of his neck as he leaned against the stone fountain in the courtyard and watched the sun go down behind the house across from them. “Oh, fuck! How are you going to do this? She’ll be destroyed.”
When Haldir returned later, he walked into the parlor wearing his tuxedo. Thorin looked him over and chuckled to himself. “It’s always entertaining to see a thousand-year-old Viking savage like yourself all cleaned up and looking dapper. You just might be confused with a proper gentleman if you’re not careful.”
As Imara slammed the door shut behind her, Thorin sighed as he rolled his eyes then pushed himself up out of his chair and came to the foyer. “Unless you’re planning on paying for that glass out of your own pocket, young lady, I suggest you treat the door a little kinder.”
Imara sat on the edge of the garden pool with her feet in the water. Her lips were swollenand chapped from the unending stream of tears. She inhaled deeply and smiled as the warm wind blew through her hair and eased the ache in her heart for just a second.
“Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub.” Ben’s eyes snapped open as the faint ticking filled his wolf’s ears. He pushed himself up to his elbows and looked around the room as the early morning light filtered through the shutters. Not seeing anything out of place, he closed his eyes and laid back down on his pillow beside Imara. “Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub.” The quick, faint ticking came again but this time lingered in his ears.
“I want someone with her at all times.” Thorin briefed the guard the Order sent as he finished his coffee in the kitchen. “I don’t want her to feel smothered, just keep her company. If you notice anything unusual call the Order immediately.”
The dreaded King Daniel of the Darke stood in front of the stained-glass window in the castle library with his hands clasped behind his back as Imara started to appear from the mist. Unlike every other witch he’d ever encountered, Imara’s mist glowed white and gold like a cloud on a sunny day. There were no white lighters left in the Realm, or at least they kept their existence hidden away. Daniel’s deep dark eyes weren’t used to her shine and he needed a few moments to adjust to
“Imara! Slow down. Baby, please wait for me!” Ben called out as he ran down the narrow dirt path she was walking along. No matter how hard he tried to reach her, she was always a few steps ahead. Once he got past the tall gates, Ben followed her scent down a cobblestone road to a harbor. Imara sat on an old wooden dock with her feet dangling in the water watching the ships sail off into the fiery sunset beyond the horizon.
As Ben stood by the window, he looked out over the lake at an old man with a floppy hat fishing off the shore on the other side. Hearing Imara walk into the room, he said, “This place is like paradise, I wish we could just stay here forever.”A familiar electricity radiated through his back as Imara put her hand on him. He lifted his arm and slid it around her, drawing her close beside him. “I know it’s just beautiful, isn’t it?” a