Page 44 of Her Fated Alpha Prince
“And yet here I am.” His gaze dipped to the curve of her jaw, the way her lips parted just slightly. “Why do you hide from me, Ariana? You don’t have to.”
Her eyes flickered — something like fear, or maybe hope — and she took a hesitant step closer. “Because I don’t know who I am yet. And I’m scared you’ll see the pieces I don’t want you to.”
He closed the distance between them with a few strides, reaching out until his fingers brushed the side of her face. Her skin was warm, soft beneath his fingertips. His palm cupped her cheek gently, like holding a fragile flame.
“I don’t care about the pieces,” he whispered. “I want the whole you.”
Her breath hitched, eyes fluttering closed for a moment. When she opened them again, they shone with something fierce and broken and beautiful all at once.
Kael’s heart twisted. He leaned in slowly, wanting to savor the moment — the way her pulse fluttered beneath his palm, the scent of wildflowers and something darker clinging to her.
Their lips met, tentative at first, a soft brush that sent a shock through him. Then deeper, fiercer — like they were trying to speak words the world wouldn’t understand.
Her hands found his chest, clutching, needing, grounding. Kael’s fingers tangled in her hair, pulling her closer until the garden around them faded into nothing but heat and breath and the silent promise between them.
When they finally broke apart, their foreheads resting together, Kael breathed, “You’re not alone.”
Ariana smiled then — small, fragile, but real. “Maybe not.”
The night waited with them, holding its breath.
The quiet stretched between them, thick with everything neither dared to say aloud. Kael’s hand lingered on her cheek, fingers tracing slow, soothing circles as if he could erase the uncertainty that clouded her eyes.
“I’ve been fighting this,” Ariana whispered, voice raw and low. “Fighting what I am, what I feel… and what I might become.”
Kael shook his head gently, his thumb brushing over the line of her jaw. “You don’t have to fight alone. Whatever you’re becoming, I’m with you.”
Her eyes searched for his vulnerability laid bare in the moonlight. For a heartbeat, the walls around her cracked, and Kael saw the fierce heart underneath — a spark that refused to be extinguished.
“Then don’t let me fall,” she breathed. “Not now. Not ever.”
He pressed a kiss to her temple, slow and steady, grounding them both in the fragile moment between fear and hope. “I won’t.”
The garden seemed to hold its breath, the flowers glowing softly as if blessing their union. The cool night air brushed against their skin, but heat bloomed between them, fierce and urgent.
Kael’s fingers trailed down her neck, over the curve of her shoulder, memorizing the delicate planes of her skin. Ariana shivered under his touch, lips parting slightly as if inviting him deeper.
They moved together like a dance older than time — hesitant steps melting into bold strides. His hands slipped beneath the hem of her tunic, the silk cool against his palms, the tremble beneath speaking volumes.
“I’ve waited,” he confessed, voice thick with something close to desperation. “Every moment without you was a shadow.”
Her breath caught, eyes shining with unshed tears. “Then don’t wait anymore.”
Their bodies pressed close, skin meeting skin, a spark igniting between them that neither could deny. The world beyond the garden blurred, lost to the heat of their connection.
Kael’s lips trailed down her neck, breath warm against her skin. Ariana’s fingers tangled in his hair, holding on as if afraid to let go. Every touch, every whisper was a promise — raw, real, unbreakable.
The night wrapped around them like a cloak, the stars above bearing silent witness to their union. In that moment,there was only them — two souls finding their way through darkness toward light.
When they finally parted, breathless and trembling, Ariana’s smile was a soft glow in the moonlight. “Thank you,” she whispered.
“For what?” Kael asked, heart pounding.
“For seeing me. All of me.”
He cupped her face once more, eyes steady and sure. “Always, Ariana. I’m here. No matter what.”
And with that, the night folded around them — a promise kept, a bond forged, and a beginning neither could have foreseen.
