Page 24 of King of Moon and Claws

He walked behind her through the weaving pathways, her luminous blonde hair blending with the brilliance of honeysuckles, rose of Sharon, Blue Puya, and Parrot’s Beak. She appeared interested in them, stopping to sniff each. He watched her with quiet admiration, his body aching with longing.

“Hmm, this is gorgeous,” she muttered.

“Let’s keep going. I want to show you where I go for runs. It’s just along the edge of the gardens here."

Elora followed him, not saying a word. Though he could pick up the change in energy as an intuitive shifter, he struggled to grasp what was going through her mind.

When they got to the edge of the gardens, they slipped through another gate, one heavily disheveled and weather-worn.

“I tell my gardeners not to clean up back here,” he said, pulling back a long thicket of vines. “It’s the only way I can get some privacy on my runs."

Elora’s eyes lit up with interest. She ducked under him again as he held up the curtain of shrubbery, passing through the gate and emerging on the other side.

Bastian followed, tucking the grown-over weeds back into place. Elora stood with her arms folded, deliberating in front of a steady row of evergreens and red maples.

“Why are you showing me this, Bastian?” she asked.

The king went to her side. She did not gaze at him, and the alpha hated how much that tiny gesture wounded him.

As did the notion of being vulnerable and pouring his heart out to a witch who may or may not stay.

He let out a grunted sigh. That was when Elora finally looked up, her brows knitted in curiosity.

“I am more worried than I have ever been in my life, Elora,” he confessed to the solemn forest. “There was another attack last night. I was informed of it once you’d already gone to your bed chambers. That ignited a riot. There are victims on both sides."

“Dead?”

Bastian met her eyes. They were swelling with tears.

“Yes. And that signals to me that the war is closer than we initially thought. It may as well be here already.”

A silence strangled them both, standing and brooding along the edge of the place that was once sacred to the king and a few trusted members of his royal brigade. Bastian felt like now, it didn’t belong to him. It was Elora’s too.

“What are you saying?” she whispered.

He felt his expression soften. Elora was so damn beautiful, even when her face was contorted with worry. He turned away reluctantly, studying the underbrush.

“We have been living in peace for decades. Shifters have been free, vampires have been free, witches…” He swallowed, the reminder of Elora's excitement about Serife resurfacing, “…But it wasn't always that way. Vampires and shifters have a deep history of feuding. Both of our populations were dreadfully low as a result.”

The choking quiet returned. When Elora spoke, it was as if she were casting a spell. A spell laced with kindness and compassion.

“Is there anything else we can do to prevent this? What if we just spoke to Vasilis? Do you think he could see reason, to avoid slaughtering his people?"

Bastian guffawed, his face falling into his hands, not in mourning but in frustration. Elora’s arms fell from her sides and she approached him, laying her palm against his back.

It felt like embers burning through his cloak.

“Someone like Vasilis desires power. Beings like that don't want to hear reason. They don’t care if every family member is taken to the gallows. If it means that they can control everything at their will, they will make the sacrifice."

“You’re right,” Elora said, her voice low and soft. “When I was with him, it was like he was possessed. Really no talking to someone like that.”

It was time to take that final leap into the unknown. His heart savagely beat through his chest like a moth ready to emerge from its confining cocoon.

The Wolf King turned to Elora and took her hands in his. She was staring up at him, stricken with concern.

“There's something else that is plaguing me as well,” he began, mouth dry as the desert. “I saw how you looked at Serife. To me, it appeared like you had found one of your own after all these years of loneliness. Like you had found a home."

Elora stepped back, her jaw sliding side to side with consideration. His wolf picked up the zesty fragrance of perspiration as her mouth hung agape.