For a few moments, there was nothing.
No thoughts.
No fear.
Just heat.
Kael's body pressed to hers, breath ragged against her shoulder. Their hearts pounded in sync, like they were sharing the same pulse.
Vireya tried to move, but her limbs felt too heavy. Boneless. Saturated.
She'd never felt anything like it.
And then the bond flared.
Not the quiet, coiled thing it had been before.
This was a detonation.
A wave of heat and power poured from the place where their bodies were joined, racing up her spine, across her chest, into her blood.
Kael cursed, low and harsh, as the power slammed into him too.
He buried his face in her neck, trying to contain it, but it was already too late.
The bond unspooled and it was wild, feral, ancient...like it had been waiting a hundred lifetimes to snap into place.
Light erupted from her skin.
Pale gold streaked with deep red, bright enough to make Kael flinch back, shielding his eyes with one trembling hand.
Vireya's body arched off the bed, a scream torn from her throat.
Mine, the magic hissed.
Ours.
In the halls of the castle, torches flickered and blew out.
Guards staggered as the power washed over them.
Farther—past the gates, past the cliffs—the surge rolled like a wave across the kingdom.
In the village, wolves jerked awake, ears pinned, throats bared in unison.
At the farthest outposts, old sentries turned their faces to the wind as the power rippled through the dark.
They felt it.
Every single one.
The kingdom had a king.
And now—finally—it had a queen.
But it wasn't complete.
As suddenly as it had flared, the bond snapped back, like a door slamming shut.
Vireya collapsed onto the sheets, chest heaving.
Her skin still glowed faintly.
Kael's hand pressed to her stomach, as if trying to hold her steady. His voice was hoarse when he finally spoke.
"It's not done," he rasped.
"No," she whispered, voice raw. "I haven't, I haven't claimed you."
Their eyes locked.
The truth sat heavy between them:
Until she claimed him back, until her wolf rose to meet his, this bond was only half-born.
***********************************
Elsewhere in the castle, Iska staggered to her feet, gripping the edge of her table. Almost spilling her drink that was definitely not tea.
A grin split her face.
"Holy shit," she whispered.
The council would feel that.
Everyone would feel that.
And it was going to bring chaos to their door by dawn.
********************************************************
Back in the bed, silence settled over them again.
Kael hadn't moved.
Neither had she.
Heat still pulsed in her veins, but now it felt fragile. Like a promise she couldn't quite keep.
Her cheeks burned. "I can't believe I just"
"That you just what?" Kael's voice was low. Rough. But his mouth curved in a tired smirk.
She covered her face with both hands. "Shut up."
"I didn't say anything."
"You're thinking it."
A knock rattled the chamber door.
Vireya froze.
"Noooooo Goddess NO! Not now." she groaned
Iska's voice floated in, far too cheerful.
"Hey lovebirds! I hope you're decent, because that little fireworks display just set the entire fucking council on alert!"
Vireya made a noise somewhere between a groan and a whimper again.
Kael pinched the bridge of his nose, looking like he might murder someone.
"I swear to the gods," he muttered.
Iska kept talking through the door, utterly unbothered.
"Also, your mate bond just announced itself to half the kingdom, so... congrats? We should probably chat about that before the high lords come banging on your door. I'll just—"
Vireya threw a pillow at the door with a strangled, "GO AWAY!"
Iska cackled.
"I'll give you a few minutes."
The footsteps retreated.
Silence.
Vireya buried her face in the blankets, mortified beyond words.
Kael's hand brushed over her hip soft, but possessive.
When he finally spoke, his voice was low, reverent, and just a little smug.
"You're mine," he said quietly.
"Shut the fuck up" she said muffled through the pillow.
Then Kael's hand smacked her ass and Vireya yelped.
"Don't speak to your king with that dirty mouth mate or I may just have to put something in it to hush you up"
By the time Vireya dragged herself to the edge of the bed, her body felt like molten steel, heavy, burning, and stretched thin in all the best and worst ways.
Kael had already disappeared into the shower, silent but not distant. She could still feel him in the room, even when he wasn't physically in it.
And gods help her, she liked it.
She forced her legs to move, ignoring the way they still trembled, and made her way to the table where a full spread of food had been delivered.
Bread. Fruit. Roasted meat. Cheeses. Tea.
And her stomach? Loud.
She dropped into the chair like her bones were liquid and immediately started shoving food into her mouth like she'd been starved for weeks.
Kael reentered a few minutes later, shirtless, of course, because the gods clearly hated her—and grabbed the mug of tea like it had offended him.
They didn't talk.
Not yet.
They just ate.
Let the silence work. Let it wrap around them like a sheet that hadn't cooled.
Vireya finally broke it, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. "I'm still sore."
Kael raised a brow. "Good."
She scowled. "Cocky bastard."
"I am the king."
She chucked a grape at him.
Iska arrived back just as Kael pulled on his shirt. She didn't knock.
"Wow," she said, strolling in like she hadn't just heard them collapse the bond into a magical explosion moments earlier. "Y'all look alive. Shocked, but alive."
Vireya muttered, "Barely."
Iska plopped down into a chair and pulled a scroll from her belt. "So. We've got problems."
Kael didn't even blink. "Of course we do."
"The bond flare you two just unleashed?" Iska waved a hand toward the window. "It rolled through the ley lines like wildfire. The wards on the palace cracked. The highborn wolves felt it from their estates. Every unmated wolf in the kingdom probably got a hard-on and a migraine."
Vireya choked on her tea.
Kael didn't laugh, but he definitely didn't not smirk.
Iska continued, annoyingly serious now. "You set off a magical beacon. And not just any bond flare. This was bloodline deep. Two royal-level ancestries colliding and locking. You've essentially announced: THE THRONE IS WHOLE AGAIN."
"But it's not," Vireya said quietly. "I haven't... I mean, I haven't claimed him back."
"Exactly," Iska snapped, pointing at her like she won a game. "Which means this isn't just rare. It's unstable. And unstable royal bonds?" She whistled. "Make people real nervous."
Vireya's chest tightened. "They'll come for me."
"They'll come for him," Iska corrected, nodding at Kael. "And by extension... you. They'll want to know if this is legitimate. If it's political. If he's gone mad."
"I have gone mad," Kael muttered.
Iska ignored him. "And the worst part? The bond woke up part of your power, Vireya. The seal cracked. That energy you released? It wasn't just the bond it was your wolf and everyone can feel she is a force to be reckoned with"
"But she well we, didn't shift," Vireya whispered.
"No. But she's stirring. And the council won't like what they feel coming."
They all sat in silence for a long minute.
Vireya finally leaned back, rubbing her temples. "So what, you're saying we can't even enjoy finally getting laid without the entire kingdom lighting torches?"
Iska snorted. "Not unless you like your afterglow with a side of political riots."
Kael's eyes stayed fixed on the window, his voice low.
"They'll come."
"Not tonight," Iska said, pushing back from the table. "But by dusk tomorrow? They'll be at the gates. You lit a magical beacon straight into their egos. They won't ignore it."
Vireya's stomach twisted. Not with fear. Just... inevitability.
Kael didn't look at her, but she felt the bond pulse between them. Either him or Drekken was trying to assure her things would be okay.
"I'll handle them," he said.
Vireya didn't answer. She didn't know what to say. Just a little more than a week ago she was being traded for payment on an overdue bet as a sex slave. Now she was mated to the KING of werewolves and facing the high council because of this power inside her?