Alec.

I can still feel her lips on mine minutes after we pulled apart. The soft tremor of them against mine, the way she leaned in like her heart couldn't fight it anymore. And then-the tears.

Not tears of rejection. Not tears of regret. But something far more dangerous. They were the kind of tears that say this matters. That this kiss wasn't casual or reckless, but a moment neither of us can take back.

Even now, my chest feels too tight. I've waited so damn long for this-waited while she pushed me away, while she doubted everything about us, while she carried scars I helped put there. The weight of my failures presses heavy, but still she let me in tonight. She kissed me back.

The image of her stays burned into my mind even after the kiss

Sadie standing in the middle of the training field, scepter glowing in her hands like it had always belonged there. Energy crackling around her fingertips, hair caught

in the wind, she commanded, fire swirling at her call. And then the moment she hurled a sphere of power that split a tree clean in half.

Fuck me, but I've never been more proud of her.

Not just for the kiss, but for everything. For the fire in her hands, the wind bending to her will, and the raw energy she controls like she was born to it. For summoning her scepter with a grace even the ancients would envy. For the courage it takes to stand here, in her pain and doubt, and still open her heart even a fraction to me.

I've commanded armies, I've conquered wars, but Sadie? Sadie humbles me and not just because she can kick my ass to oblivion.

These past few months, I've grown to love her. Some might argue that it's impossible to feel that way this soon, but I can't help it. I love her.

I'd accepted Lola as my mate, and I had been happy to have her by my side, but if I'm being honest, I never really quite felt for her what I feel for Sadie. I don't think I ever loved her.

I only saw her as a tool. As a means to help my pack and fulfill my responsibility. I cared for her in a way, but I never loved her. With Sadie things are different. I would honestly sacrifice the pack if that's what it took to stay by her side.

I hear her quiet sniffle, and it cuts through the haze. My hand lingers on her cheek, my thumb brushing her damp skin.

"Sadie..." My voice breaks more than I'd like. "Why are you crying?"

She shakes her head, lips trembling. "Because I don't know what's wrong with me. One minute I'm terrified of you, of what's happening between us and the next

I can't... I can't stop myself from wanting this."

Fuck! Her honesty slices me wide open. Seeing her cry feels like my heart is being torn to pieces. Her tears pierce my chest in ways that are painful.

I cup her face with both hands, forcing her to see me. “There is nothing wrong with you. Not one damn thing. I've hurt you, Sadie. You've carried so much on your own. Of course you're torn. But don't you dare think for one second that it makes you weak."

Her gaze flickers, as if she's searching for cracks in my words. "You say that now, but what if I can't ever be enough for you? What if Lola—"

I don't let her finish. "Sadie, look at

Ket

me. You're already more than enough. More than I deserve." My throat tightens as the truth pushes out. "Do you even realize what

you've given me? Aspen runs into my arms every night like I've been with her all along. You-"swallow hard. "You gave me a family before I even earned it. How could that ever not be enough?"

She could have chosen to poison Aspen against me. She could have chosen to keep her away from me, but she didn't. Sadie has been so good to me even without realizing it. Even when she hated me the most.

"You loved me when I didn't deserve

it and treated you like trash... and up until I locked you in that dungeon, you still loved me. You still cared You held on to hope for my sake... I've heard what you did for for me, even praying to the goddess on my behalf. I never appreciated it back then, but now I do. So how then can you think you're not enough? If anything, Sadie, I'm the one who isn't enough for you. I don't deserve you."

Her breath hitches. I can see the war in her. Hope and fear colliding.

"I'm scared, Alec," she whispers, so quietly I almost miss it.

I pull her against my chest, holding her like she might vanish if I let go. "So am I, admit, pressing my lipsz into her hair. "But fear doesn't mean we stop. It means we fight harder. And swear to you, I'll fight every day until you believe me. Until you know I'm not leaving, not hurting you again."

For a long time, she just clings to me. I feel her fingers fist in my shirt, her heartbeat racing against mine. Slowly, her walls ease. Not all the way, but enough for her to rest in my arms.

When she finally speaks again, her voice is fragile. "You really mean it, don't you? That you want me... not because of the bond, but because of me."

I see it in her eyes. She's afraid that I only want her because of the bond. And I

get her. I didn't want her before everything went to hell; how can she believe that I

want her for her? And not because of the power she holds or the bond?

I lean back just enough to meet her eyes, letting her see the rawness I can't hide anymore. "Sadie, the bond might have tied us together, but you are the reason I'm here. You. Not Nyx. Not destiny. Not obligation. Just you."

Her eyes shimmer, and for a heartbeat, I think she might kiss me again. But she doesn't. She just nods, and that tiny act feels bigger than any vow.

I don't push. For once, I let her set the pace.

Instead, I smile softly and brush my thumb over her knuckles. "You don't have to have all the answers right now. Just let me stand beside you. In training. With Aspen. With you. That's all I want."

Her shoulders drop, like she's been holding her breath for too long. "Okay," she whispers. And for the first time, she sounds like she believes it.

I hold her a little tighter, my chest burning with something that feels dangerously close to peace.

One kiss. One fragile step. But it feels like the start of everything.