Goddess, I was no longer strong enough to be rational.

I needed more. I needed all of him.

I tried to remind myself that I hated Alexander. But I wanted him so badly.

I couldn’t stand him. No, I couldn’t stand beingwithout him.

My thoughts jumbled into an incomprehensible mess, and I was surprised when I heard myself speak.

“Alexander, stop,” I gasped, breathless and burning with desire. “Please.”

Alexander paused and pulled away from me slightly. A groan of complaint slipped past my lips. I needed his fingers a bit lower.

Alexander’s eyes flickered rapidly between icy blue and bottomless black, his claws ripping into my bedding as he visibly fought for dominance with his wolf.

Alexander’s claws retracted and when he met my gaze, his eyes were a glacial blue.

Pulling away, Alexander left my bed and entered his room without uttering a single word.

I couldn’t move. Instead, I shivered on my bed, my clothes in tatters as my body fought off a wave of desire for Alexander.

This…this hadn’t been just the pull of the mate bond.

What on earth just happened?

I still didn’t have an explanation when I met up with Seraphina the next day, as per the plans we’d made at the coronation.

“How do you feel today?” I asked her, pushing all thoughts of her brother out of my mind.

Seraphina’s face held a bit more color than it had the day before, but her voice still wobbled slightly when she spoke.

“I…my father and I never saw eye to eye. We argued about the silliest things, too. Now, he can’t even speak, so we can’t ever sort things out between us.”

“I’m sorry,” I said, and hugged her tight. I knew it wasn’t enough, but I had to do something.

“I might not have known your dad for long, but I know he cared about you,” I said softly. “He might be sick, but he’s still here. Talk to him. Even if he can’t respond, I know he understands.”

Seraphina returned my hug, her grip almost as tight as mine before she pulled away, her cheeks a bright red.

“Thank you,” she said, a small smile playing across her lips. “And I’m sorry I just slobbered all over you. I’m not usually this emotional.”

Somehow, I doubted that. Maybe it was because I still remembered how she’d been moved to tears when I’d mentioned Alexander and me didn’t have the typical mate bond.

“It’s fine.” I shrugged. “Feel free to slobber on me anytime.”

Seraphina’s eyebrows climbed high.

“Careful, I might just take you up on?—”

Her voice cut off abruptly, and I turned to see who’d captured her attention.

The new arrival was almost as tall as Alexander, and if I were to guess, he was probably around my age, but his ears turned bright red when he caught sight of Seraphina.

“Sera,” he said softly.

Seraphina tucked her hair behind her ear, looking everywhere but at him.

“Hi, West.”