He shouldn't have come back.
Kael stood outside her chamber, unmoving.
The entire castle felt it-
His restraint.
His control.
And the way it was slowly breaking.
He could still taste her.
Not blood-
Something deeper.
Something that didn't belong in his world.
His jaw tightened.
This was wrong.
She was wrong.
And yet-
His hand moved before his mind could stop it.
The door opened.
Aarya turned instantly.
Her eyes met his-
And something shifted again.
That same pull.
That same dangerous awareness.
"You shouldn't be here," she said quietly.
He stepped inside anyway.
"And yet," his voice dropped,
"I am."
The door shut behind him.
No sound.
Just finality.
Aarya's back straightened.
"Stay away from me."
A command.
He almost smiled.
Almost.
"You still think you have a choice."
His steps were slow now.
Deliberate.
Each one closes the space between them.
"You don't," he murmured.
Aarya didn't move back this time.
Even as his presence wrapped around her again.Even as her heartbeat betrayed her.
"Then why haven't you killed me?" she asked.
Silence.
A dangerous one.
He stopped right in front of her.
Close enough to feel her breath.
Close enough to hear her pulse.
His eyes darkened.
"Because," he said slowly,
"you are no longer something I can destroy."
His hand lifted again.
This time-
He didn't hesitate.It wrapped around her throat.
Not choking.
Holding.
Claiming.
Aarya's breath hitched.
His thumb brushed lightly against her pulse.
Once.
Twice.
His control snapped.
In a single movement-
He pulled her closer.
Too close.
His lips hovered near her ear.His voice dropped into something darker.
Raw.
"Do you feel it?"
Aarya's fingers clenched at her sides.
"Feel what?"
His grip tightened slightly.
Enough to make her inhale sharply.
"This," he whispered.
His head lowered again-
His breath brushing against her skin.
"The way you ruin me."
And this time-
When his fangs grazed her throat-he didn't stop.