He led her through a set of glass doors and out onto a terrace overlooking the formal gardens. The night air was cool against her flushed skin, and the sudden quiet was almost shocking after the cacophony of the ballroom.
She drew a deep breath, feeling the tension of the evening begin to uncoil from her shoulders. The gardens stretched out before them in geometric precision—manicured hedges and carefully cultivated flower beds, all designed to showcase human mastery over nature. All around them, the lights of Port Cantor glittered like earthbound stars.
“That was…” She searched for the right word. “Intense.”
He released her wrist but didn’t step away. His golden eyes were dark in the moonlight, his expression unreadable.
“You announced me as your mate.”
“I did.”
“In front of everyone. In front of that—” He broke off, a muscle jumping in his jaw. “That male who wanted to claim you.”
“Aldric has wanted to claim me since we were children. Or more accurately, he wanted to claim my company and saw me as the most efficient means to that end.” She turned to face him fully. “I’ve never wanted him. I’ve never wanted anyone the way I want you.”
He was silent for a long moment, his gaze searching her face. She could see the conflict playing out behind his eyes—the fear of believing, the longing to accept, the old wounds that whispered he wasn’t worthy of being chosen.
“Ember.” His voice was rough. “That announcement… you can’t take it back. Everyone will know. Everyone will talk.”
“Let them talk.”
“They’ll say you’ve lost your mind. That you’ve been bewitched, or manipulated, or?—”
“Rykan.” She stepped closer, close enough to feel the heat radiating from his body. “Do you remember what you told me in the mountains? That you would follow me anywhere. That you would stand beside me no matter what came.”
“I remember.”
“Did you mean it?”
His hand came up to cup her face, his thumb tracing the line of her cheekbone. “You know I did.”
“Then let me mean it too.” She covered his hand with her own. “I’m not hiding you anymore. I’m not pretending you’re just my guard, or my security chief, or anything other than exactly what you are.” Her voice steadied, gaining strength. “You are my mate. My partner. My other half.”
The words hung between them, as real and solid as the stone beneath their feet.
“I could have let Aldric make his pretty speech. I could have demurred, bought time, and kept my options open. That’s what the old Ember would have done.” She shook her head slowly. “But I’m not that girl anymore. I don’t want options. I don’t want political advantages or strategic alliances.”
Her free hand pressed against his chest, feeling the steady beat of his heart beneath her palm.
“I want you.”
He growled low in his throat and pulled her against him with a possessiveness that made her blood sing.
“You’re sure.” It wasn’t quite a question anymore. “You’re absolutely sure.”
“I chose you on a mountain in the middle of nowhere, with nothing but survival to consider. I chose you in the warmth of your cabin, in the cold of our training, in every moment since I opened my eyes and saw your face.” Her voice dropped to a whisper. “I will choose you today and tomorrow, and every day after that. As long as you’ll have me.”
His forehead touched hers, his breath warm against her lips. “Always.”
She smiled. “Then stop asking if I’m sure.”
He kissed her—deep and fierce and thorough, the kind of kiss that staked a claim and acknowledged one in return. She melted into it, into him, letting the tension and politics and endless performance of the evening fade away until nothing existed except the two of them and the moonlit garden and the promise of forever.
When they finally broke apart, both breathing harder than the exertion strictly warranted, his expression had transformed. The uncertainty was gone, replaced by something luminous and determined.
“They’ll try to separate us,” he said quietly. “Those people in there. They’ll see our bond as a weakness to exploit, a lever to use against you.”
“I know.”
