LUCIEN’S POV

I told myself I’d walk away, far from Vera and Caelen. Let her have her moment, her crown, her future.

But I didn’t leave.

I stood just out of sight, behind the marble arch near the east wing gardens, where the torches burned low and the shadows gave me cover. I saw them as they spoke.

Then I watched him lean in. Watched her bury her face in his shoulder.

And I heard him.

“Lucien still loves you, Vera.”

And instead of rage… I went still.

“Lord Lucien,” a voice called behind me, pulling me out of the fog. I turned sharply.

It was one of the royal guards, eyes downcast. “His Majesty requests your presence in the throne chamber.”

I hesitated for a beat, casting one last look toward the pair disappearing through the west corridor, before nodding stiffly. “Lead the way.”

The walk felt longer than it was. Every step was a weight, every hallway echoing with something I couldn’t name. By the time we reached the throne room, I’d replayed every moment with Vera a thousand times in my head.

The guard pushed the heavy doors open, and there he was—King Aldric, seated on his obsidian-carved throne, eyes sharp and unmoving.

“Your Majesty,” I said, bowing.

“Come forward,” he said.

I did, slow and steady, until I stood at the base of the steps leading up to his seat.

“Do you know why I called you here?” he asked.

“No, Your Majesty.”

The King studied me. “What do you want from Vera?”

I blinked. “Pardon?”

He didn’t blink. “You’ve hovered like a ghost these past few weeks. Watching from the shadows. Stirring tension. So I ask again, what is it that you want from my daughter?”

I took a breath. “I want her forgiveness. I want to make amends for everything I didn’t say… for everything I failed to be when she was my mate.”

The King didn’t flinch. “You failed her publicly. You allowed your bloodline to drag her name through the dirt. She nearly died severing a bond you treated like a convenience.”

I swallowed hard. “I know.”

“Do you?” His voice was ice. “Do you know that breaking a blood bond can kill a vampire? That she spent weeks in agony, her very essence tearing itself apart?”

“I know.”

“So why now?”

“Because I see her clearly now. Not as a political alliance. Not as my coven’s trophy. But as who she truly is.”

The King’s eyes narrowed. “She is more than you deserve.”

“I know that too.”

A long silence followed. The tension in the room was thick, the air almost hard to breathe.

Then, he said, “You do realize that Vera cannot ascend the throne without a mate.”

I nodded slowly. “Yes.”

“And you came here to offer yourself.”

“I came to tell the truth. If she wants nothing to do with me, I’ll accept that. But if there’s a chance that I can stand beside her and protect what she’s becoming, then yes… I’d give everything to do it right this time.”

The King was quiet.

Then he spoke again, softer. “I heard you had taken a second mate.”

I didn’t flinch. “Yes, Your Majesty. But… we are no longer together.”

He tilted his head. “Why?”

“She left.”

He raised an eyebrow.

I explained, “She saw what I didn’t. That I never truly let go of Vera. She said it the night we returned from the conclave, that I didn’t look at her the way a man should look at his mate, and she was right.”

“Celene was always perceptive.”

“Yes, she was. And she deserved better than a man still bound to someone else’s memory.”

The King was silent again, fingers drumming slowly on the arm of the throne.

Then, without looking at me, he muttered, “I put you to a test.”

I frowned. “What test?”

“When I allowed you to return to court. When I let you speak for Vera during the assassination attempt. I wanted to see if you’d choose her safety over your own pride.”

“And?”

“You risked everything to save her life.”

I met his gaze. “Because it was the right thing to do.”

“Or because you love her.”

“Both.”

Before he could respond, the chamber doors creaked open.

I turned, and froze.

Vera stepped in, her eyes finding mine instantly. She looked… conflicted, exhausted, yet regal and raw all at once.

The King’s voice boomed. “Vera.”

She approached slowly, unsure, glancing between her father and me.

“You must give Lucien another chance.”

Her mouth opened slightly. “What?”

“You need to be bonded within the next two days to ascend,” the King said. “There are no exceptions. The Council will not recognize your claim without it.”

“What?!” she exclaimed, her voice sharp with disbelief. “You can’t be serious.”

The King stood. “I am.”

Vera looked at me, then at her father. “And you… you want me to go back to the man who abandoned me? Who stood by while I was torn apart by his family?”

I opened my mouth, but nothing came out.

Her eyes burned into mine, betrayal surfacing like an old wound reopening.

“This is a joke,” she muttered, backing away.

“No,” the King said, voice firm. “This is politics.”

“Politics?” Vera’s voice cracked. “You’re asking me to bond with the man who destroyed me for politics?”

“I’m asking you to consider what’s best for the kingdom.”

“What about what’s best for me?” she demanded, power flickering beneath her skin.

“You are the kingdom, Vera. Your personal desires cannot come before your duty.”

“My duty?” She laughed bitterly. “My duty is to mate with my ex-husband because ancient laws demand it?”

“Your duty is to rule,” the King said. “Everything else is secondary.”

“Even my happiness?”

“Even your happiness.”

The silence that followed was deafening. I could see the war playing out across Vera’s face, duty against desire, responsibility against self-preservation.

Finally, she looked at me. “What do you have to say about this?”

I swallowed hard. “I want to earn your forgiveness. I want to prove I’m worthy of your trust. But not like this. Not because you’re forced into it.”

“Then how?”

“However you’ll let me. For however long it takes.”

She stared at me for a long moment. “And if I say no? If I refuse to bond with you?”

“Then I’ll accept it. And I’ll help you find someone else who deserves you.”

“Someone else?” The King’s voice was sharp. “There is no one else, Vera. The bloodline requirements, the political necessities, Lucien is the only viable option.”