“I need to start on the final festival dessert immediately.” She slipped from beneath the silk sheets, her movements urgent with creative fire. “This has to be perfect, Kovrak. It’s not just dessert—it’s a symbol. Our offering to the people. Fire and sweetness braided together, remember?”
Her eyes blazed with the same intensity he’d witnessed in the palace kitchens, and he understood completely.
“Then create something worthy of us,” he said, rising to meet her across the room. His hands found her waist, drawing her close enough to breathe in the scent of lilac and determination that clung to her skin. “I would never stand between you and your craft.”
The kiss he pressed to her lips carried gratitude as much as possession—reverence for the woman who had chosen him freely. The mate bond thrummed warmly between them as she pulled away and reached for her bathrobe.
“I’ll dress quickly in my suite and head straight to the kitchen,” she said, tying the belt with efficient movements. “Don’t hold lunch for me if I lose track of time.”
“Faith,” he started to argue. When she turned, her eyebrows raised in question, he allowed his expression to soften. “You are truly incredible.”
The smile that bloomed across her face was radiant enough to power the twin suns. Then she was gone, her presence trailing like captured sunlight in her wake, and he stood motionless in the sudden quiet, marveling that this brilliant, determined woman belonged to him now.
Mine. My future queen. Forever.
Kovrak moved toward the massive marble bathroom. The shower beckoned—a necessity before facing the council, beforeannouncing to his pride that their future queen was marked today. Cold water would focus him and cool the fire that still burned beneath his skin whenever he thought of the way she’d taken control, and the perfect moment when his mark had sealed their bond.
He turned on the shower and stepped under the cascade, hissing as the frigid water struck his heated flesh. The shock was welcome—grounding him, forcing his mind to function beyond the haze of satisfaction and disbelief.
She actually chose me.
The thought circled endlessly as he scrubbed soap across his body, washing away the scent of sex and completion. Even under the punishing cold, happiness pressed against his ribs until it felt almost unbearable. His tiger didn’t know how to process joy this profound—twenty years of failure and political maneuvering had prepared them for conflict, not contentment.
As he washed his hair, his thoughts shifted to the upcoming proposal. Two days remained before tradition demanded he propose formally, before he could officially claim her as his queen. The act would solidify what the mark had begun, would announce to his pride that their future was secure.
But how to ask? The question nagged at him as he rinsed shampoo from his hair. He could do it publicly—before the entire pride during the final feast, claiming her in a display of unity that would silence any remaining doubts about her worthiness. The political advantage was undeniable.
Yet something in him rebelled at the idea. Faith deserved romance, not spectacle. She deserved a moment that honored the woman she was, not just the crown she would wear.
The gardens called to him—the ancient clearing where they’d first made love under twin moons, where night-blooming flowers released their intoxicating perfume into darkness. Private. Sacred. A place where he could kneel before her withoutan audience, where his proposal could be about them rather than the kingdom watching.
He shut off the water and reached for a towel, his mind already mapping possibilities. Whatever form it took, the moment would be worthy of her—worthy of the courage it had taken to choose him, to bind her dreams to his and trust him with her heart.
Two days to plan. Two days to craft a proposal that would make her eyes shine the way they had this morning when they’d completed their bond.
Kovrak dried himself with efficient movements and strode toward his wardrobe, anticipation thrumming through his veins. The council could wait a few more minutes. He needed to dress properly for the announcement that would change their entire kingdom.
The royal blue fabric of his formal shirt felt like armor as Kovrak adjusted the silver-threaded cuffs, his reflection in the polished mirror showing a man transformed by more than fine clothing. The mate bond hummed beneath his skin—steady, warm, and undeniably real. Faith was his. The knowledge still felt too precious to trust completely, too perfect after twenty years of disappointment.
He fastened the last button and smoothed the gray trousers that bore the subtle threading of their royal colors. Today would mark the beginning of their official future, the moment when private joy became public triumph. The council needed to hear the news directly from him, needed to understand that their kingdom’s stability was finally within reach.
The corridors of the palace’s lower level echoed with his purposeful footsteps as he sought out Thalen and Merral. He found them in the strategy room, bent over maps and supply reports, their conversation dying the moment he appeared in the doorway.
“I need you both to accompany me to the council hall,” Kovrak announced without preamble. “There’s news to share.”
Thalen straightened immediately, his commander’s instincts reading the gravity in Kovrak’s tone. “What kind of news?”
“The kind that changes kingdoms.” Kovrak’s mouth curved into something that wasn’t quite a smile but carried unmistakable satisfaction. “Faith has accepted my mate mark. The bond is complete.”
The silence that followed lasted exactly three heartbeats before Merral’s weathered face broke into the first genuine smile Kovrak had seen from his uncle in years.
“By the twin suns,” the older man breathed, rising from his chair with more energy than his age should have allowed. “Twenty years of waiting, and she chose you freely?”
“This morning,” Kovrak confirmed, the pride in his voice impossible to suppress. “I’ll be proposing formally in two days, but the political foundation is already set. The council needs to know immediately.”
Thalen clapped him on the shoulder with enough force to stagger a lesser man. “About damned time. The kingdom’s been holding its breath so long I was starting to worry we’d all suffocate.”
Their genuine delight warmed something deep in Kovrak’s chest. These men had stood by him through every failed festival and every whispered doubt about his ability to secure their future. Their joy felt like vindication and relief braided together.