Page 39 of Shifting Hearts 1
“They’ll say I broke the code,” I continue. “That I let prophecy take root, that I let you become what they tried to erase.”
Her breath catches. “They’ll try to kill me.”
I nod. “Or worse. They’ll try to bind you. Use you. Twist the bond into something they can control.”
She straightens, chin lifting. “Let them try.”
I almost smile. Almost.
But the fire in the walls is already shifting. The wards are alert. The house knows what’s coming.
“They’ll send emissaries first,” I say. “Then enforcers. Then the High Circle.”
Raven steps closer, her hand finding mine. “And you?”
I look at her, the woman fate carved for me from moonlight and ruin.
“If loving you is the end of the world, then I’ll light the match myself.”
She doesn’t hesitate.
One heartbeat, maybe two, and then she’s on me. Her fingers fist my collar, yanking me down, and her mouth crashes into mine like she’s sealing the bond with fire, fury, and everything the Brotherhood will try to erase.
It’s not a kiss. It’s a reckoning.
Her power surges through me, wild and electric, and the house groans around us like it feels the shift. Wards flicker. Shadows recoil. The air thickens with something ancient, something watching.
She pulls back just enough to breathe against my lips, voice trembling with rage and devotion.
“Then light it, Kieran. Burn it all.”
And I will.
Because this, her, us, the bond, isn’t just forbidden. It’s prophecy, and I’d rather become the monster they fear than live one more second without her.
Her words are a spark.
“Then light it, Kieran. Burn it all.”
And I do.
Not with fire. Not yet. But with the way I pull her back into me, hands gripping her waist like I’m afraid she’ll vanish if I let go. Her mouth finds mine again, fiercer this time, like she’s pouring every ounce of defiance, desire, and prophecy into the kiss.
The bond thrums between us, alive and demanding. Her power coils around mine, not clashing—merging.
I press her back against the wall, the stone warm beneath her skin, pulsing faintly with old magic. Her fingers slide under my shirt, nails grazing, claiming. I groan into her mouth, and it’s not just want, it’s need. Ancient. Elemental.
She’s not just Raven anymore. She’s mine. Fated. Forbidden. And I’m hers, in every way that matters.
The house doesn’t stop us. Itwelcomesus.
EIGHT
Raven
Igrab his shirt and toss it away then crush my mouth to his, pouring everything I’ve been holding back into the kiss. Fear, fury, longing, disbelief. It’s messy, desperate, and perfect. His arms wrap around me like he’s afraid I’ll evaporate, and for the first time in my life, I feel wanted. Not tolerated. Not hidden.Claimed.
The bond pulses between us, alive and electric, and I swear the room shifts around us. The walls hum. The air thickens. Magic coils through my veins like wildfire.
