Roan
The morning light filtered weakly through the high arched windows, casting pale gold across the stretch of parchment spread across my desk. Ink bled into careful lines. Requests for trade negotiations. Reports of border patrol movements. The usual quiet demands of a kingdom that expected me to keep breathing even when everything inside me felt… off.
I had barely slept.
I could barely even remember leaving the garden, leaving her.
All I remembered was her—a blur of limbs and heat, skin against skin, breathless whispers tangled in the dark.
But I didn't know who she was, which should be good. I didnt need any more distractions and drama.
I spent the night on the garden floor with some strange woman while my mate and mistress were somewhere in the palace.
And that, that should have terrified me more than it did.
Instead, the memory gnawed at the edge of my mind like a hunger unsatisfied. I had awoken on the cold floor of one of the moon chambers near the old fountain, sore and dazed, with a discarded cloak half-covering me. No guards had seen me. No servants questioned it. And I had made it back to my chambers before sunrise with just enough time to scrub her scent off my skin.
But I could still smell her.
Still feel her.
It wasn't Nova. That much I knew.
And there was no way in all the kingdoms that it was my new mate, i had broken her. There was no way she would be coming close to me.
Which was perfect.
And it sure as hell was not a memory I could just bury, and something told me that i would be haunted by my mystery woman until i found out who she was.
A knock came, followed by the door creaking open before I could respond. I didn't look up.
Corvus entered first, silent as ever, tall and clean-cut in his clothes. His eyes, as sharp and unreadable as a drawn blade, swept the room before landing on me.
"Your Majesty," he said with a short bow.
Ewan tumbled in after him, all limbs and mischief, grinning like he had been waiting to cause trouble since breakfast. His red hair looked like he had run a hand through it three dozen times, most likely the work of one of his many admirers and his clothes were askew. As usual.
"Long live the newly mated king," Ewan sang, striding toward my desk. "How's the first morning of mated bliss, hmm? Did you survive the ceremonial devouring of innocence, or did Her Grace tie you to the bedpost and run for the hills?"
Corvus shot him a glare. "Ewan."
"Oh, don't scold me, Corvus. We are not in court," Ewan replied, flopping into one of the velvet chairs opposite my desk. "Besides, I'm just trying to get a smile out of him. Look at Roan—he's brooding harder than usual. That's not normal. Must have been a terrible wedding night."
"That is none of our business," Corvus said coolly.
Ewan turned to him with a mock pout. "You are such a prude."
I set my quill down.
"Are you two done?" I asked, my voice flat.
Ewan raised both hands in mock surrender. "Just checking in on my mated King and his feral heart."
"Ewan…" Corvus started.
But I wasn't listening to their squabbling.
Not really.
The report in front of me blurred again. I had reread the same paragraph five times. About livestock thefts on the Southern border. Irrelevant. My mind refused to stay tethered to anything other than her.
Because I could still feel her mouth on mine. The curve of her back beneath my hands. The way her breath had hitched when I had whispered—
Gods.
Who was she?
A servant?
A courtier?
One of the witches here for the ceremony?
The logical part of me warned: what good could come out finding out who she was?
My stomach twisted.
I need to let her go.
Still, I remembered her scent. Wild rain. Something clean and ungovernable.
No. Stop.
I rubbed my temple.
"Roan?"
Corvus's voice. Calm. Neutral.
I looked up.
He was watching me carefully, the way he always did when something felt… off.
"You look like hell."
Ewan snorted. "More like a man who's wrestled a goddess."
"Enough," I said, sharper than intended.
Both men stilled.
I breathed out slowly, grounding myself in the desk beneath my hands. The wood was cool. Real.
"Have either of you heard anything… strange happening?" I asked. "Last night. In the garden?"
Both of them glanced at each other then Corvus frowned. "No. Should I have?"
Ewan raised a brow. "Did you send someone off to their death, Roan?"
I ignored him. "So, no disturbances?"
"The guards reported nothing," Corvus said slowly. "Should I start asking more pointed questions?"
I shook my head. "Not yet."
Because I didn't even know what I'd be asking about.
"Oh, i made love to some strange woman and even though it feels like a dream i can still smell her scent and also when i woke up she was gone."
I almost chuckled aloud at how ridiculous it even sounded.
"What is that look?" Ewan queried and i stared blankly at him.
Ewan could be a prier and i was not in the mood to open up, definately not to him because he would make it a huge thing.
I watched as Ewan's eyes widened at my refusal to answer him. Unfortunately, my silence had done the opposite of what i wanted, he was definately more curious.
Before either of them could press further, the door to the office flew open with a loud bang.
All three of us stood at once.
A court messenger stumbled in, breathless, red-faced, barely managing a bow. "Apologies, Your Majesty," he said, "but—"
"Speak," I snapped.
"There has been… an incident," the boy said. "At the east wing. One of the chamber maids found blood on the marble floor in the—"
He hesitated.
"In what?" Corvus demanded, stepping forward.
"The Queen's chamber," the boy whispered.