The portal journey back to Asgard should have occupied more of my attention.
Normally it did.
Traveling between realms through celestial corridors carved into the ley lines was exhausting even for someone of my bloodline.
The crossing burned.
Reality folded strangely inside those pathways. Time stretched. Magic compressed.
Most beings emerged from an Asgardian gate nauseated and half-conscious.
I barely noticed any of it.
Not when every thought inside my head circled endlessly back to her.
My Luna.
The memory of her still clung to my skin even during the crossing.
Vanilla.
Jasmine.
Warm female heat.
Mine.
The possessive instinct purred beneath my ribs constantly now, no longer bothering to hide itself behind logic or restraint.
And gods—Professor Kenna’s warning echoed through my head the entire journey.
Do not forget your reason.
Except she did not understand.
Or perhaps she understood too well.
Because Amrin was my reason now.
I had simply been too terrified to admit it aloud before.
Terrified because wanting someone this much felt dangerous for a male like me.
My emotions shaped celestial power.
Lunar magic amplified desire, instinct, obsession.
The stronger the emotional bond, the more volatile the magic became.
Which meant loving someone could literally become catastrophic if left uncontrolled.
And yet—the second I held Amrin in my arms, every argument against this shattered.
I could not regret her.
Would not.
The portal deposited me outside Erik’s estate at the edge of the northern Asgardian cliffs shortly before dawn.
