"Kael."
Kael looked up at the sound of Ramona's voice. She stood a few steps away, smiling brightly. There was once a time he would have given anything for her to smile at him like that. But now, it seemed irrelevant.
The truth remained that it didn't matter if she was his fated mate or not. He had given up on her and let the knot in his heart go. The only reason he was here this morning was his brothers.
He gave her a small nod to acknowledge her and then looked toward Councilman Raymon, who was standing beside her.
"Councilman Raymon," he said.
The older man bowed slightly. "Your Highness. How are you today?"
Kael nodded once in reply. That was his way, brief and to the point. Everyone knew he was not one for long greetings.
Still, his quietness made the air around them a little tense, especially when Ramona kept looking at him as if waiting for him to say something more.
He stared at her. She stared back with a small smile on her face.
