The days passed in silence, but nothing within Rynaria had truly quieted. Kael’s presence haunted her—not just his words or the memory of his kiss, but the way he had made her feel seen. And now, more than ever, she knew that whatever existed between them was more than just an attraction. It was a force pulling at her very core, unraveling the threads of her past and her duty alike.

  Briarwood remained peaceful on the surface, its people going about their lives with simple routine. But Rynaria felt the undercurrents shifting. She saw it in the way Kael’s pack members lingered longer near the edges of town. In the cautious glances the townsfolk exchanged. And most of all, in the way Kael seemed to be everywhere—and yet never close enough to speak again.

  Until he was.

  She found him waiting near the woods again, standing with his back to the fading sun. The light caught in his hair, gold against shadow, and her breath caught in her throat before she even stepped into view.

  “You’re late,” he said without turning, though there was no heat in his voice.

  “I wasn’t coming,” she replied quietly, stepping into the clearing.

  “And yet here you are.”

  He turned then, and their eyes met. She hated that her heart responded before her mind could intervene. Hated how easy it was for him to see through her walls.

  “This can’t keep happening,” she said. “You—us—it’s not safe.”

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  “For whom?” Kael asked, voice low. “You? Me? Or the world watching and waiting for a reason to fall apart?”

  Her jaw clenched. “Don’t twist this. You know the risks. You said it yourself.”

  “I also said I’d wait. But waiting doesn’t mean I stop caring.”

  She didn’t respond immediately. The weight of their conversation pressed down like the storm building in the clouds above. She wanted to scream. To cry. To tell him she hated him for making her feel something she couldn’t afford to feel. But instead, she whispered, “I’m tired, Kael. Tired of pretending I don’t feel this too.”

  The words hung between them, raw and fragile.

  Kael stepped closer. “Then don’t pretend.”

  She looked up at him, her voice a whisper. “We can’t just be who we want to be. I can’t.”

  “Then tell me what you need,” he said. “Tell me what you want me to do.”

  Rynaria hesitated, the war raging inside her more violent than anything she had ever known. She wanted to choose him. Every part of her body screamed for it. But her people, her duty—her fear—still held her in place.

  Before she could speak, the sound of snapping branches made them both freeze.

  Kael moved first, placing himself in front of her in an instant, his eyes scanning the darkening trees. “We’re not alone.”

  Rynaria reached for the magic that pulsed in her blood, her fingers crackling with energy. A low growl echoed through the woods, and two figures emerged from the shadows—werewolves. Not like Kael. These ones were leaner, meaner, their expressions twisted with suspicion and hunger.

  “Well, well,” one of them said, eyes gleaming. “The prince consorting with the enemy.”

  Rynaria’s stomach turned cold.

  Kael stood his ground. “Back off.”

  But the second wolf stepped forward, sniffing the air. “She smells like old magic. The kind that shouldn’t be here.”

  Kael’s voice was a low growl. “She’s under my protection.”

  The first wolf laughed, sharp and ugly. “We’ll see what your father says about that.”

  Rynaria braced herself, her hand glowing with power. “They’ll try to expose us.”

  “They won’t get the chance,” Kael muttered.

  The confrontation ended before it began. A single, warning blast of Rynaria’s magic scattered the intruders. They fled into the woods with snarls and curses, but the damage had been done. Their secret was no longer safe.

  Kael didn’t speak as they turned back toward town. The silence between them was no longer tense—it was something worse. Something inevitable.

  “They’ll tell the others,” she said.

  “I know.”

  “You should walk away now. Before it gets worse.”

  Kael stopped walking and faced her, his voice steady. “I told you already, Rynaria. I’m not going anywhere.”

  She wished he would.

  Because now, the world would come for them both.