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Her head snapped toward me, her brows tightening, her expression falling fast. “From what?”

Barking a laugh, I raised my hands in surrender. “Endearingly, I swear. It's what I've been calling you in my head for ages. And, hey. You’ve earned it after all those ‘bastard king’ digs.”

Her irritation cracked, just enough for a smirk to curl her mouth. “And here I thought we were having a moment. Last time I’ll ever open up to a bastard like you.”

My laughter died low in my chest, the sound tapering until my shoulders eased again. “We were having one. A solid one, actually.” But the smile slid away as quickly as it came. “Where is Valentina? You said you were here to see her.”

Arianna rolled her eyes, unbothered by the shift in my tone. “Her father came for her. They left about an hour before you arrived. I told you she was due back in court. The Remembrance of Velarune is coming, and Lord Draco wanted her back at the estate. The King and Queen will be requesting her when Rosalie and Bloom return.”

The words sank into me like ice. Valentina would be gone. Even for a stretch of time, the thought was unbearable. She was mine. She wasn’t theirs to shuffle across the board like a pawn. And yet… they had. My chest constricted. I’d told her she couldn’t follow me into danger, but another long absence? That thought was worse than fire to my skin.

Flaring my nose, my fist clenched hard enough that the arm of the chair splintered beneath my grip. I fought to rein in the frustration straining at the edges of my voice. “What is this event?”

Arianna only shrugged. “It has nothing to do with me. I don’t know much. I’ve only ever been to one. The kingdom only tolerates me so much.”

Of course Arianna wouldn’t know much about vampire politics, but hell, I thought she might. She always seemed so damn knowledgeable. Still, if I was being honest, my real walking library was somewhere out there in a carriage, gods knew where. Half of me wanted to bolt, to sprint all the way to Draco's estate on foot. An hour at most, if I pushed.

They were right about the horses. They were slow, useless when speed was needed. Beautiful beasts, yes, but not bred for nights like this. The blizzard was tearing through the forest, white howling against black, and still the thought of Valentina out there made me spring to my feet.

Arianna’s eyes snapped open, her head tilting up. “What are you doing?”

“What if Valentina’s in danger?” My voice cracked with urgency. “It’s nearly pitch-black out there, fires still raging. I can’t just sit here.” I didn’t make it past the threshold. A loud neigh split the storm outside Arianna’s home, so sharp it reverberated in my bones.

I froze. My chest seized. And then I smelled it.

Perfume. Familiar. Sweet, sharp, unmistakable. It curled into me, lighting every nerve on fire until I thought my skin might split from the inside out. I didn’t hesitate. I didn’t think. My body knew before my mind could form the word. Home.

Valentina.

The world funneled into one truth: she was here. And I had to run through those doors to taste her, because Gods, I wanted every single part of her. My Naemira’s mark tingled along its edges, sparking alive at just the thought of touching her again. I didn’t walk. I tore the door open so hard it nearly unhinged, stumbling into the humid morning air. The blizzard raged, a black-and-white maelstrom clawing at the dome’s barrier, but all I saw was the carriage.

An old black one halted at the cottage steps.

Draco sat in the driver’s seat, his usual elegance undone. Soot streaked across his pale face, hair plastered to his temples in ash and sweat, wild in every other direction. He looked like ruin carved into flesh. I gave him only the briefest nod before my attention locked onto the carriage door.

And then, her.

Valentina’s gloved hand appeared first, pale against the black wood. I seized it midair before her feet could even touch the snow. My gaze collided with hers, and the world narrowed to that single connection.

She was flawless. Not a single curl out of place in her pale hair, arranged into an elegant updo with loose tendrils softening her face. A gown of pale sapphire silk clung to her, corset tight, every curve sculpted by the fabric. She looked less like flesh and more like a vision. Like the dome itself had conjured her from starlight and shadow. The sight alone stirred me, but deeper than that, I felt it.

The mental thread that had been blocked for too long, trembling, almost cracking open under the force of us being this close again. I pushed at it, willed it, desperate for it to snap back into place, but it held. Not yet.

At first, she was startled, but when her eyes locked with mine, her whole face bloomed. A smile, wide and radiant, burst across her lips. “Alexander,” she breathed, my name catching on her tongue like a prayer.

The storm inside me stilled. I grinned, warmth flooding my chest as I held her hand tighter. “I’ve come for my other half.” She didn’t wait. She threw herself into my arms, and I caught her, spinning her into the air like I’d been waiting my whole life to do it. My lips traced a frantic path across her skin, her cheek, her forehead, back again, kissing her like I was starving. She was the only thing that could keep me alive. My chest finally exhaled, a breath I didn’t even know I’d been holding since she left.

I couldn’t let her go. Not now, not ever.

My mouth found hers, and to hell with whoever was watching. Her lips parted against mine, her fingers threading deep into my hair as she slid back to her feet. Still, I refused to release her. I was terrified that if I loosened my grip, the storm would steal her from me again. Our breaths tangled, hot and urgent, in the cold air between us. My teeth grazed her bottom lip, and then my tongue teased past it, asking silently, desperately. She welcomed me without hesitation, and I took my time. I savored her, mapping every corner, every taste I’d missed like I’d been starving.

When I finally pulled back, it was too soon. My breathing was ragged, forehead pressed to hers, noses brushing. My hands cradled her face like she was the only tether keeping me grounded. “Don’t ever let me tell you no again,” I whispered, voice trembling with devotion, command, and fear all at once.

Valentina bit her swollen lip, a teasing twinkle sparking in her eye. “I did try to stop you,” she murmured, brushing her lips over the tip of my nose. “But next time, it’ll be a demand not to be reckoned with. And that’s a promise.”

A laugh escaped me, soft and raw. I’d missed her so badly these last two weeks that it had felt unbearable. “I don’t doubt it. I count on it.” I slipped an arm around her waist, guiding her against my side. “You didn’t make it back to the estate?”

We walked slowly toward Arianna’s cottage, every step a deliberate stall to stretch our time alone. She leaned into me, her voice low. “We tried. But the snow, the rain, the ash, it blinded even the horses. Father thought it wiser to turn back.”