The moment the crowd dispersed, the stone doors slammed shut behind me, leaving nothing but shadows and the sound of my own heartbeat.
He didn't speak, not at first. He simply watched me, his dark eyes scanning me as if he could see through my skin into my very soul.
"You thought this would be simple," he finally said, his voice low, almost amused. "That you could be sacrificed, and it would end?"
I swallowed hard. My legs shook, but I forced myself to stand tall.
"I… I thought my life meant nothing to you."
His lips twitched into a faint, cruel smile.
"Your life?" he echoed, stepping closer until the heat of his presence wrapped around me like a vice. "Ayla… you are mine. Every breath, every heartbeat. And I… I will not let you go."
My stomach twisted. Obsession. Desire. Fear. They all tangled together, suffocating me.
He reached for my wrist. My pulse jumped at his touch—light, yet impossible to ignore.
"You feel it too, don't you?" he whispered. "The pull… the fire between us. Don't fight it. You can't."
I wanted to pull away. I should have. Every part of me screamed danger. But my body… betrayed me, leaning toward him despite the terror twisting inside.
"You're dangerous," I breathed. "I… I shouldn't feel—"
"You will," he interrupted, his lips dangerously close to mine. "And when you do… you'll be mine completely."
Then he stepped back, leaving a burning emptiness in his wake.
"I'll take care of you," he said, almost casually, but there was steel under the velvet of his words. "Not because I want to… but because I must. No one else can have you."
Alone in the cold hall, I pressed my hand to my chest. My heart thudded like a war drum, every beat echoing his name I hadn't even dared speak yet.
And for the first time, I understood something terrifying: I wasn't safe… not from him.
And I didn't want to be.
• What secret does the king see in Ayla that makes him obsessed? • Will she resist or succumb to the pull he commands? • The first night in the palace is coming—and danger, desire, and betrayal await.