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Orion's fingers splayed across her stomach, pulling her impossibly closer. "Your power is here. Your purpose is here." His voice dropped lower. "I am here."

Seraphina closed her eyes, torn between worlds. Her body had never felt so alive and so connected to another person. Every cell seemed attuned to his presence as if they'd always been meant to find each other.

"I don't know the first thing about being a Luna," she admitted.

"You know more than you think." His lips brushed against her shoulder, sending shivers down her back. "You controlled your visions today. Imagine what you could accomplish with proper training and practice."

The memory of that breakthrough—of calling forth a vision rather than being waylaid by it—gave her pause.

She turned in his arms to face him, meeting those intense eyes that seemed to see straight through her. "And if I stay? What happens then?"

Orion's hand cupped her face. "Then we build something extraordinary together. My pack becomes your pack. My strength becomes your strength." His eyes burned with intensity. "And I spend every single day showing you that this decision was the right one."

Seraphina's heart fluttered at his words. Yet before she could respond, Orion's expression shifted. A shadow crossed his face, and the corners of his mouth tightened almost imperceptibly.

"There's something I need to tell you." His thumb traced her cheekbone. "I was hesitant at first, but now that our bond is stronger?—"

"What is it?" Seraphina asked, tension suddenly coiling in her belly.

"There's a man on the island—an aide to a U.S. senator named York. He's been here since early this morning, wanting to speak with you," Orion confessed, looking away from her gaze. "Senator Iverson has been trying to contact you since yesterday on behalf of a friend in Miami. When you didn't respond, he sent York here today."

Seraphina froze, the warmth of their intimate moment evaporating instantly. She pushed herself up, clutching the sheet to her chest. "You've had someone here looking for me, and you didn't tell me?"

"I was protecting you," Orion said, his voice taking on that commanding tone she was beginning to recognize as his default when challenged.

"Protecting me?" Heat rose to her cheeks, but not from desire this time. "Or keeping me in the dark so I'd stay with you?"

She scrambled from the bed, wrapping the sheet around herself as she searched for her clothes. Each piece she found and put back on felt like armor against his betrayal.

"You don't understand what's at stake," Orion said, rising from the bed in all his naked glory, seemingly unconcerned with his state of undress. His powerful muscles rippled as he moved toward her. "This senator—there's something not right about him. My instincts tell me?—"

"Your instincts?" Seraphina laughed, the sound brittle even to her own ears. "What about my right to know? To choose?Not more than five minutes ago, I was considering giving up my entire life to stay here with you, and all that time, you were hiding this from me."

"Seraphina—"

"No." She held up a hand, her fingers trembling. "I can't believe I was about to blindly trust you. What else aren't you telling me? What other choices have you made on my behalf?"

Orion's eyes flashed dangerously, a rumble emanating from deep in his chest. "I am protecting what's mine."

"I am not yours!" The words exploded from her. "I am my own person. Even if we are... whatever we are, destined mates or whatever. I still get to make my own choices."

His nostrils flared, and his body tensed like the predator he was. For a moment, Seraphina's heart raced with something between fear and excitement—the wild pull of their connection at war with her sense of betrayal.

"Take me to York," she demanded, gathering her dignity despite her rumpled appearance and tangled hair. "Now."

"Seraphina—"

"Immediately, Orion." She lifted her chin, refusing to back down. "Or I'll find him myself and tell him exactly how I've been kept in the dark since arriving on this island."

Orion's jaw worked as he stared her down, the battle between the alpha king and the man who desired her trust playing out across his features. Finally, he gave a curt nod.

"As you wish." His voice was ice, the tenderness from earlier locked away as he reached for his clothes on the floor.

Seraphina's sandals soon whispered against the plush corridor carpet as Orion escorted her toward the conference room. His imposing presence beside her made her hyperaware of every breath and every step.

Orion's expression had hardened into something regal and distant. Gone was the passionate lover who'd held her nakedbody so tenderly just an hour ago, replaced by this commanding king in tailored black slacks and a crisp white dress shirt that strained slightly across his broad shoulders. The transformation was both fascinating and infuriating.

"I'll wait here," Orion announced as they reached an ornate wooden door. His voice was clipped and controlled. "Remember who you are, Seraphina."