LYCAN KING CASSIAN
~
The sky was a bleak shade of gray, heavy with the promise of rain, but my bride didn't seem to care.
She strolled leisurely through the castle gardens, the hem of her dress barely brushing the dewy grass, her hair catching what little light the overcast sky allowed. But it wasn't the sight of her alone that twisted something deep inside my chest—it was the presence of the stray walking beside her.
My jaw clenched as I watched them from my study window.
He was a wiry thing, lean and sharp-eyed, with a casual stance that reeked of misplaced familiarity. His presence irritated me enough, but what infuriated me most was the way she smiled at him.
Not the hesitant, polite smiles she wore in my presence.
Not the defiant, tight-lipped smirks when she tried to challenge me.
No.
This was different.
Genuine. Unrestrained.
It was the kind of smile that made my grip tighten on the windowsill, my claws threatening to pierce the wood.
