(Vidalia's POV)
The castle halls felt different now.
It wasn't just the attack—it was the way Kyren reacted.
He had stormed off with Mark to investigate the symbol, leaving me alone with Geo. I had expected Kyren to be angry, maybe even accuse Geo outright—but the frustration in his eyes when he looked at me? That was new.
And I wasn't sure what to do with it.
Geo, however, seemed completely unbothered. He leaned against the stone railing of the balcony, watching me with that same infuriating smirk.
"You don't seem shaken," he mused.
I sighed. "Should I be?"
Geo tilted his head. "Most women in your position would be."
I gave him a look. "Most women in my position wouldn't have had a blade pressed to their throat before."
He chuckled. "A shame. You wear survival well."
I turned away from him, looking out at the darkened gardens. The lanterns flickered in the distance, and somewhere beyond the walls, the kingdom continued as if nothing had happened.
But something had happened.
I shivered slightly. Not from fear.
From the way Kyren had looked at me.
Not with his usual annoyance, nor his arrogance—but something else.
Possessiveness.
Like he had hated seeing me with Geo.
I didn't know whether that should thrill me or piss me off.
Geo exhaled. "You're thinking about him, aren't you?"
I blinked. "What?"
He smiled knowingly. "Your fiancé. The infamous Kyren Fernandez."
I scoffed. "Why would I be thinking about him?"
Geo pushed off the railing, stepping closer. "Because he was looking at you the same way I've seen men look at something they're afraid to lose."
I laughed, shaking my head. "You're mistaken."
Geo hummed. "Maybe." Then, softer—"Maybe not."
Before I could reply, a new voice cut through the night.
"That's close enough."
I turned sharply.
Kyren stood at the entrance of the balcony, arms crossed, his expression unreadable—but his presence suffocating.
Geo didn't even flinch. "You really should stop sneaking up on people, Your Grace."
Kyren ignored him, his gaze locked onto me.
I suddenly felt too aware of everything. The night air. The way my dress clung to my frame. The way Geo was still too damn close.
Kyren's jaw tightened. "I need to speak with my fiancée. Alone."
Geo let out a slow, amused breath. "Of course. We wouldn't want any misunderstandings, now would we?"
I expected him to say something else, but instead, he simply walked past Kyren, throwing me one last unreadable look before disappearing inside.
The silence that followed was heavy.
Kyren stepped closer.
Too close.
"You're playing a dangerous game," he murmured.
I lifted my chin. "What game?"
His eyes darkened. "With him."
I felt my pulse quicken. "Geo isn't the enemy."
Kyren leaned in slightly, his breath warm against my skin. "And what am I?"
I swallowed. "That depends."
His fingers brushed against my wrist. Not forceful. Not demanding. Just there.
I should have pulled away.
I didn't.
He exhaled through his nose, frustrated. "You make things… difficult."
I arched a brow. "Good."
For the first time, a ghost of a smile tugged at his lips.
"Careful, Vidalia," he murmured. "You might just make me enjoy this."
And just like that, he was gone.
Leaving me breathless and very, very conflicted.
I stood there long after Kyren had left, my pulse refusing to settle.
What just happened?
It wasn't like him. The possessiveness, the softness in his touch, the ghost of a smile.
It was dangerous. Unpredictable.
And worst of all—it made my heart race.
I pressed my fingers against my temples. No. This wasn't happening. I wasn't going to fall into this game.
I had spent years preparing myself for this marriage—resenting it, dreading it. I wasn't going to let a few moments of warmth from Kyren make me forget who he was.
A brute.
An arrogant, strategic warrior.
A man who didn't want this marriage any more than I did.
Then why had he looked at me like that?
Why did it feel like he had been just as affected as I was?
I turned back toward the balcony, staring out at the night.
Geo's words echoed in my head.
"Because he was looking at you the same way I've seen men look at something they're afraid to lose."
I shook my head. No. He doesn't care about me. He just hates the idea of another man being close to what's "his."
That's all this is. Control. Possession.
Right?
Then why did my heart feel uncertain?
Kyren's POV
I was losing my damn mind.
The moment I walked away from Vidalia, I felt it—a sharp, annoying pull in my chest.
The memory of her standing on that balcony with Geo burned into my skull.
Geo.
That bastard knew exactly what he was doing. He had been pushing my buttons since the second he arrived, and I had let him. I had reacted.
Worse than that—I had touched her.
I clenched my fists, exhaling sharply as I stalked through the corridors of the castle. What the hell was I doing?
I didn't care about her.
I didn't.
But when I saw her with him—when I saw that look in her eyes, the way she had let Geo get close without pushing him away—something inside me snapped.
And now, I couldn't stop thinking about it.
Her defiance.
Her sharp tongue.
The way her pulse had quickened when I touched her wrist.
I should have never gotten that close.
I should have walked away.
Instead, I had given her exactly what she needed—a reason to think she could win this game.
I gritted my teeth.
If she wanted to play, fine.
But I always win.
And this time?
She was going to lose.