Then he pulled me against his body before his lips crashed into mine.
Warm. Rough. Familiar.
But wrong.
I gasped, hands rising to push him away, my biscuit dropping from my fingers and hitting the floor with a softthud.
And that was when I saw him.
Zander.
Standing at the doorway. Silent. Still.
The firelight cast shadows across his face, and for a heartbeat, I couldn’t read him. Whether it was fury or heartbreak or both.
Remy’s lips still brushed mine, unaware of the shadow standing behind him.
And the silence that followed was louder than any scream.
Zander didn’t speak.
He didn’t have to.
His eyes darkened, pitch-black, the kind of fury that came from somewhere deeper than rage, from loyalty, from betrayal, from a possessive storm he didn’t even try to control.
He stepped forward once. Then his fist connected with Remy’s jaw.
The sound echoed through the dining hall like a crack of thunder.
Remy stumbled back, crashing into the sideboard hard enough to knock the basket of biscuits to the floor. He spat blood and surged forward with a growl, catching Zander around the middle as they slammed into a nearby table. Plates shattered, chairs tipped, fists flew.
Zander landed another punch to Remy’s ribs, but Remy wasn’t soft—he twisted, slamming his elbow into Zander’s side with brutal precision. They hit the floor, locked in a tangle of fury and fists.
Then the doors burst open.
Tae and Ferrula were the first in, with Jax right behind them, grabbing at limbs and shouting over the chaos. Naia and Riven weren’t far behind, blades drawn but lowered—just in case.
“Enough!” Ferrula barked, shoving between them as Jax pinned Remy back by the shoulder.
Zander broke free first, chest heaving, black still clouding his eyes, but he didn’t move toward Remy again. Not yet.
“IknowZander has every right to be pissed,” I said loudly, stepping into the center as the tension crackled like lightning across a dry field. “Hell,I’mpissed. But we need Remy for the mission to the Blood Isle.”
Everyone froze for a breath, like that single sentence had slapped the room silent.
Riven’s eyes cut to me. “What the hell happened?”
“Remy decided to kiss me,” I said, my voice flat. “And his attention wasnotsolicited.”
I glanced at Zander, then added with a bite, “And our favored prince seems to have forgotten that I can take care ofmyself.”
Jax turned to Remy, his jaw tight, and voice lethal. “Don’t touch Ashe again unless sheasksyou to, Saulter. Or you and I will have aprivate meeting.”
Ferrula nodded in grim agreement, her glare cold enough to blister skin.
Remy shook his head, wiping his mouth with the back of his wrist. “I thought I had an invite.”
“Doesn’t sound that way to me,” Cordelle said quietly from the corner, his voice soft but cutting like broken glass.
