I get ready for the day and walk to the door, humming under my breath.
I swing it open, only to have a giant idiot king come crashing in.
Literally.
Half of his massive body tumbles through the doorway, slamming flat on the floor at my feet. The back of his head smacks the stone. Hard. His eyes snap open like he’s been sucker-punched by the goddess herself.
I blink. He blinks. We just... blink at each other.
“What the hell are you doing?” I demand, staring down at him like he’s lost what little of his brain he had left.
He’s on his feet in an instant, rubbing the embarrassment off his face. His hair’s a mess. Eyes a little wild. He shakes his head a few times.
“Hello?” I snap, stepping forward. “I said I wanted my room far from yours. You remember that part of my terms, right? The ‘away from you’ part? Sleeping in front of my door was definitely not what I meant!”
He doesn’t answer.
His keeps his hands pressed over his face and then I hear him whisper.
“I forgot you.”
I freeze.
“What?”
He looks up. And gods — his expression is wrecked. Haunted. Something about it twists painfully inside my chest before I can stop it.
“I forgot you,” he says again, voice strained. “Last night... I woke up from something. A dream. A nightmare. I don’t know. I felt the bond pulling at me and I didn’t know why. I didn’t even remember who you were.”
My breath catches. He keeps going.
“Just like before,” he says quietly. “I didn’t remember you were my mate. Not until I followed the pull of the bond and arrived in front of your door.”
He presses a hand to his throat. “So I stayed. I didn’t want to forget you again.”
“I think the magic’s getting worse,” he adds. “If I spend too much time away from you, it becomes stronger.”
“That’s... disturbing,” I whisper.
Inside my head, Neris growls.“Let Draxis out. Let him chew at that leash until it snaps.”
“You’re right,” I murmur to her.
I lift my chin and look at Draven.
“We need to try and bring Draxis out. This morning. Now.”
His brows lift slightly. I press forward.
“We’re not wasting time. We bring Draxis out today and every day until it gets easier. Until that leash breaks. My wolf thinks he’s the answer. I do, too.”
He studies me for a moment. Then nods once, slowly.
“I think you might be right.”
I scowl at Draven’s stupidly handsome face.
He just smiles at me.
