lia

olf's stamina turning the freezing lake into a warm bath. Br

erstood wher

r mind? That is a restricted imperial zone! If you cross that

That boundary was an imperial wall; even his father, the ruling Pa

den buoys and floated, starin

sweet and clear over the lake. "Weren't you

her skirts and panting, and I watched the

n that pavilion, our entire pack dies for treason! We must

g Kandace, desperate to

peating crossbow at his belt, his fear of

he last scattered pieces of

-to-be, ruined in front of the entire court, demoted to some lowly concubine he could discard at will. Then he would openly wed Kandace - o

"Did you truly believe that ruining my reputation to

His fingers slipped on the crossbow m

e - a rare mineral the royal court itself c

ense are you spewi

take the master keys to my father's vaults last month, for 'safekeeping'? Why did you whisper

Tate family peeled away in fro

rieked. "Shoot her before

bolt at my forehead, his face twisting ugly. "Final warning, Aurelia! Swim

affec

ter like a battle horn. "Bridger Tate! The moment you stood on that ba

ingers slowly across my own throat - the oldest rejection ge

a voice that shook the lake, "hereby reject Bridger Tate and sever every

e air with the weig

a half-formed bond was still a thread - and I

ng his chest, his face bone-white. When an Alpha heir is formally reje

broken engagement - then realized I was still

," Bridger rasped, trembling w

urple face - then I kicked forward and crossed

ompletely unhinged. "Dead

ed against the silk drape

lhouette on a carved darkwood chair slowly

ressed flat, dead calm - as a suffocating