Isha POV
Something was wrong with me.
I had been telling myself that for days.
Ever since I returned to Crescent Moon, strange things had been happening.
My senses had become sharper.
Sometimes I could hear conversations from rooms away.
Sometimes I could feel the emotions of people standing near me.
But the strangest thing happened whenever Kabir touched me.
It was as if something sleeping deep inside me suddenly opened its eyes.
And tonight, I was going to find out just how powerful it could be.
I was walking through the palace courtyard when I saw Kabir.
He was standing beside the fountain, speaking to one of the warriors.
I tried to ignore him.
I really did.
But my eyes kept returning to him.
Then Kabir looked up.
Our eyes met.
My heart skipped.
I looked away quickly.
"Ridiculous," I whispered.
I turned to leave.
"Wait."
His voice stopped me.
I turned.
Kabir walked toward me.
"What?"
"You left your phone in the dining hall."
He held it out.
I reached for it.
Our fingers touched.
And everything changed.
A shock travelled through my entire body.
I gasped.
The phone nearly slipped from my hand.
Kabir caught my wrist.
The moment his skin touched mine, a powerful warmth exploded inside me.
Not pain.
Power.
It rushed through my veins like something that had been trapped for years and had finally found a way out.
The fountain water suddenly rose several inches.
The flowers around us moved despite the absence of wind.
I stared at my hands.
"What..."
Kabir immediately released me.
The strange energy disappeared.
The fountain returned to normal.
I looked at him.
"What was that?"
Kabir's face had gone pale.
"I don't know."
"You're lying."
"Isha—"
"When you touched me, something happened."
"I know."
"You felt it."
He didn't answer.
I stepped closer.
"Did you feel it too?"
His eyes met mine.
"Yes."
My heart began racing.
"Then what is happening to me?"
Kabir looked at me for a long moment.
"I don't know."
"You do."
His silence answered for him.
I shook my head.
"Every time I'm near you, I feel stronger."
His expression tightened.
"And that's exactly what worries me."
"Why?"
He looked toward the moon.
"Because I think whatever is inside you is beginning to wake up."
I stared at him.
"What's inside me?"
Kabir didn't answer.
Before I could question him again, a sudden wave of dizziness hit me.
I grabbed the edge of the fountain.
Kabir immediately reached for me.
"I'm fine."
"You aren't."
"I said I'm fine."
But even I could hear the weakness in my voice.
Kabir looked toward the sky.
The moon was almost completely full.
His expression changed.
He knew.
I could see it.
"Kabir?"
He stepped closer.
"Tonight, stay inside."
"Why?"
"Just trust me."
I wanted to argue.
But something inside me had already begun to feel strange.
Later That Night
I woke suddenly.
My entire body felt different.
Heavy.
Sensitive.
Weak.
I sat up and looked around my room.
The moonlight streamed through the curtains.
My heart was pounding.
"Pia?"
She was unusually restless.
Mate.
"What?"
We need him.
I frowned.
"No."
Isha...
"No."
I got out of bed.
My legs trembled.
I had never felt this vulnerable before.
Usually, I was strong.
Independent.
I had survived four years alone in New York.
I had faced difficult situations without needing anyone.
But tonight...
I couldn't explain it.
I felt as though something inside me was calling for Kabir.
Not my mind.
Something deeper.
Something instinctive.
The full moon seemed to intensify everything.
My emotions.
My senses.
My wolf.
My need for safety.
I pressed my palms against my temples.
"Control yourself."
We need our mate.
"I don't need him."
But my own body disagreed.
I could feel his presence somewhere in the palace.
It was as though an invisible thread connected us.
I tried to fight it.
I walked toward the door.
Then stopped.
No.
I couldn't go to him.
Not after everything.
I turned back toward the bed.
But the longer I stayed alone, the worse the feeling became.
My breathing became uneven.
My hands trembled.
I hated feeling this helpless.
I grabbed a shawl and hurried out of the palace.
I needed somewhere quiet.
Somewhere nobody would see me like this.
My cottage.
That was the only place I could think of.
I reached it and quickly locked the door behind me.
I leaned against it, breathing heavily.
"I can control this."
I closed my eyes.
"I can."
But deep inside, Pia whispered again.
He is coming.
My eyes opened.
"What?"
Kabir POV
I had known the moment the moon became full.
The change in Isha's scent had reached me from across the palace.
Her wolf was awakening.
And with the full moon came something else.
Her connection to me.
The first time it had happened, I had been terrified.
Now I knew exactly what it meant.
She needed her mate.
But I had promised myself I would never take advantage of her vulnerability.
I followed her when she left the palace.
I watched her disappear into her cottage.
Then I stood outside her door.
I could hear her heartbeat.
Fast.
Uneven.
I closed my eyes.
Ansh stirred inside me.
Go to her.
"I know."
She needs us.
"I know."
I placed my hand against the door.
"Isha."
Silence.
Then her voice came from inside.
"Go away."
My heart tightened.
"I won't come in."
Silence.
"I just want to know you're safe."
"I'm fine."
"You don't sound fine."
She didn't answer.
I remained outside.
"I'm not going to force you to open the door."
A long silence followed.
Then I heard her whisper,
"Kabir..."
"Yes?"
"I don't understand what's happening to me."
My chest tightened.
"Neither does everyone."
She was quiet.
Then—
"Can you feel it?"
I knew exactly what she meant.
"Yes."
"The same thing?"
"Something similar."
She exhaled shakily.
"Whenever you're near me, I feel stronger."
I rested my forehead against the door.
"I know."
"And tonight..."
Her voice broke.
"I feel like I can't control myself."
I closed my eyes.
This was exactly what I had feared.
"Isha, listen to me."
"What?"
"You're safe."
She didn't respond.
"You don't have to fight it alone."
The door slowly opened.
Isha stood there wrapped in a shawl.
She looked nothing like the confident woman I had seen at dinner.
Her eyes were filled with confusion.
And beneath the moonlight, I saw it.
A faint golden glow beneath her skin.
The half-moon mark.
My heart stopped.
It was getting stronger.
Isha looked at me.
"Why does being near you make this happen?"
I couldn't tell her.
Not yet.
So I stepped closer, carefully.
"You need to trust me."
Her eyes searched mine.
"That's difficult."
"I know."
"After everything you did?"
I looked down.
"I know."
She swallowed.
Then quietly asked,
"Will you stay?"
Those two words nearly destroyed me.
I nodded.
"Yes."
I remained beside her.
Not touching her.
Not taking advantage of the vulnerability the full moon had brought.
Just staying.
Because for four years, I had protected her by making her believe I didn't care.
Tonight, I realized something.
Perhaps protecting her didn't always mean keeping my distance.
Perhaps sometimes...
it meant simply being there when she needed me.
And as the moonlight filled the room, the golden mark beneath Isha's skin began to glow brighter.
Neither of us knew what would happen when it finally awakened completely.
But I knew one thing.
The secret I had carried for four years was becoming impossible to hide.