Elis
I heard her heels before I saw her. Zeena stormed through the corridor like a tempest in silk, her presence unmistakable. The guards outside my chamber tried to halt her but she bulldozed right past them with that signature arrogance of hers.
She pushed open the doors, uninvited, just as I stepped out from the balcony. The cool air had barely cleared my head before her scent flooded the room, it was too sweet, and too deliberate.
"Elis," she purred, eyes gleaming as she took me in, wet hair, loosely tied robe and all. "I came to visit my future husband."
I didn't move. Didn't blink. "I haven't agreed to that."
She came closer, her fingers ghosting over the fabric at my chest. Her touch made my skin crawl, not because of what she was, but because of what she wasn't.
"You don't have a choice," she said, almost too softly.
My grip closed around her wrist before I even realized I'd moved. "You're overstepping."
Her smile faltered. "Am I? Or have you forgotten this marriage is what keeps our kingdoms from war?"
Her words hit their mark, and she knew it. I saw the triumph flicker in her eyes…saw her enjoying the way I paused, calculating the mess. I didn't fear war. But I was king. My decisions rippled far beyond my own desires.
"You've been with her, haven't you?" she asked, venom sweet on her tongue. "That healer. That nobody."
My wolf stirred, Tika bristling beneath my skin. I held him down with effort. "She is none of your concern."
Zeena ripped her wrist free. "You keep humiliating me, Elis. Do that again, and I'll return home and my father will take it as a declaration."
There it was. Not love. Not devotion. Just politics and pressure. I exhaled, jaw tight. "Fine. I will step up the engagement plans."
Victory lit her face like fire to dry grass. "That's all I needed to hear," she said, voice honeyed with satisfaction. She turned and walked out as if she owned the night. But I stood there in silence, staring after her, knowing this game had just grown more dangerous, and that soon, I would have to choose between the crown... and the bond.
***
lily's pov
"He said it himself." Sarah's voice was low, cautious, as she closed the door behind her. "In front of the council. The spy said he agreed to proceed with the engagement." I didn't speak. I couldn't.
Sarah walked closer, her face creased with worry. "He looked tense and conflicted. But he still said the words, Lily. He told them the plans would be stepped up."
A hollow chill spread through my chest. I gripped the edge of the window frame to steady myself. He said it. Elis actually said it.
"I'm sorry," Sarah whispered. "The spy didn't catch everything, but Zeena was there too. She walked out looking... victorious."
Of course she did. My stomach knotted as I sank onto the edge of the bed, arms wrapping around my knees. The silk of my nightgown felt too thin, too fragile against the weight in my heart.
Elis loved me. I knew it in the way he touched me, the way he breathed me in like I was his anchor in a world pulling him apart. Our bond... it was real. It thrummed through my veins every time he looked at me. But he was a king. And kings had obligations. He needed Zeena for the alliance, for peace between the borders. Unless something drastic happened, he couldn't risk breaking the pact. Not without consequences that might cost lives. I let out a slow, shaking breath.
Days passed. I stopped going to the gardens. Stopped showing up at his breakfast. I couldn't face him, not with Zeena draped across every rumor, every whispered word in the hallways.
Even when Sarah returned again, eyes pleading, voice soft…"He asked for you today. He said he needs to see you."
I shook my head. "I can't.
"Lily, he's worried…"
"Sarah, please." I closed my eyes. "Not now." Because deep down, I feared the truth. If Zeena pressed harder…If the council insisted…If duty drowned out love…Would I always be the one waiting in the shadows? My heart clenched at the thought, but I held the silence, even as tears stung the corners of my eyes. Because love, no matter how deep, was never enough for a crown. Not in this world. Not for a king like Elis.