LOGINAegis's POV I should have known it was too good to last, I thought as I shoved another chocolate-covered strawberry in my mouth.The kitchen lounge was quiet since the cooks had cleared out after lunch. I sat on a high-rise chair facing the gleaming countertops in the kitchen lounge with a bowl of strawberries in one hand and a small cup of melted chocolate in the other.I angrily stabbed another strawberry with a fork and dipped it into the chocolate.Of course he has a fiancée.Of course no one thought I should know.I bit into the strawberry and relished its sweet and sour taste. I should have known. Everything had been going too well. I chewed slowly and stared unseeing into the distance.God, my heart hurt. The look on his face and the familiarity made me want to throw up. And he didn’t even bother to introduce me. I dipped another strawberry.Maybe I should send her a thank-you basket. “Thank you for reminding me not to get comfortable.”The kitchen door opened while I continue
Aegis's POV “The rogue attack may have reduced, but we still need to find a lasting solution to them.”Come here, Aegis. A voice rumbled in my mind, cutting through the chaos of the room.The inner council chamber walls were lined with dark wood. A long table stood in the center. Eight chairs on each side. One at the head.Damian sat at the head, overlooking all of us.My eyes turned to his focused ones. He wasn’t looking at me, but his voice continued to press on my mind.No, I answered back.He tilted his head and turned to me. I averted my eyes with a small smile, looking through the room.Eleanor Ltavario sat straight, with her long black braids resting over her shoulder and silver eyes watching everything. Mikael Deventus sat beside her, tapping his glowing rings on the table.Alexander Duville leaned back in his chair with his slicked-back hair and cold eyes like he owned the air in the room. On the other side sat General Terel, quietly watching.Aegis… he growled in my mind ag
Aegis's POV “You're so beautiful,” Damian whispered, kissing down my neck.I was half on top of him—half under him—wrapped in his arms and buried in sheets that probably cost more than my entire morning light slipped through the tall palace windows. His chest rose and fell under my cheek. His hand moved slowly up and down my back like he had nowhere else to be.I shifted my leg and winced at the friction. He noticed, and a proud smile spread across his face.“Problem?” he asked smugly.I lifted my head and looked at him with a smirk.“You know exactly what the problem is.”He raised his hands innocently. “I have no idea what you mean.”I tried to swing my leg over him to get up, and my body reminded me of last night immediately. He laughed under his breath.“Help,” I begged, catching my lip between my teeth.“That sounds like a you issue,” he answered, resting back on the pillow.“You’re lucky I like you,” I muttered, pushing myself up on my back.In a swift motion, he pulled me back
Aegis's POV “You cannot expect us to simply accept this,” one of the elders argued, his voice cutting through the stunned room. “The kingdom requires certainty.”Another nodded. “You claim she is your mate. But there has been no formal confirmation from the divine. The last we've heard from the goddess confirmed that you're not supposed to have a mate. We cannot ask the nation to believe in something unproven.”My spine stiffened at the anger pressing against the mindlink. A loud growl permeated the room as a kingly aura pressed against everyone. All of their heads bowed immediately while my dragon purred away in my mind.He didn’t look at me, and he didn’t need to. The bond between us was humming like a drawn blade waiting for release.“You dare doubt my word?” Damian asked with dangerous calmness.“We question nothing but procedure, Your Majesty,” the eldest replied carefully. “If she is truly your fated mate, you must prove it.”The implication hung there.If.My heart pounded as
King Damian's POVThe past week had been nothing but perfect. The palace had been calm. The borders were steady. The packs were quiet. The rogue attacks had reduced drastically. We’d been able to gather some of them for interrogation, and I was happy.I was fucking ecstatic.Aegis, on the other hand, had been anything but steady. I knew she was happy too, but her moods had been all over the place.One moment she would snap at a servant for standing too close to me. The next, she would be sitting beside me in silence, her fingers twisted in the sleeve of my jacket, eyes shiny but refusing to spill.All because she was Fireborn.I had seen it before in old records—that they had strong emotions and fast shifts of heat under the skin that had nowhere to go, causing them to act out if they weren’t on the fire world.I wasn’t sure if even she knew this yet. But it was all good because through all of her swings, there was one thing that never changed.She was happy with me. It showed in smal
Aegis's POVI woke up and reached out for him without thinking. My hand touched warm sheets instead of skin.I opened my eyes, groggily looking around.The bed was empty, but it was still warm on his side. That told me he had just gotten up. I sat there for a moment, staring at the space where he had been, making sure last night was real.My body protested when I stood. Every step sent a dull ache through my legs and lower back. I paused, then smiled to myself.Worth it.I caught my reflection in the mirror as I crossed the room. My hair was a mess. My face was flushed. There was a faint mark at my neck that I did not bother hiding.“I have a mate,” I said out loud.The words sounded strange but exciting at the same time.I laughed softly at myself and opened the door.The hallway was quiet except for the calming movement of maids and guards. I stopped three passing maids one after the other.“Have you seen the King,” I asked.Each time, I noticed the same thing. Their eyes flicked to







