Page 17 of Her Fated Alpha Prince (Royal Dragons of Blackwater Islands #1)
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KAEL
The night pressed close around him, thick with silence that felt less like peace and more like waiting. Kael stood just beyond the garden’s edge, the scent of jasmine mixing with something sharper, something burning low beneath the surface. His thoughts tangled — restless, searching.
Ariana. Her name tasted like a secret on his tongue, heavy with things left unsaid. He had watched her from shadows, felt the pull of her like a current he couldn’t resist. But tonight, it wasn’t enough to watch. He needed more. Clarity. Truth.
The garden shimmered under the moonlight, the flowers still glowing faintly from her touch. He stepped forward, the soft grass brushing against his boots, and the air seemed to hum — a vibration only he could feel.
His hand hovered over the petals of a crimson bloom, almost reluctant to touch. They bent toward him, as if recognizing his presence. A laugh — low, steady — slipped out before he could stop it.
“Like a wild thing,” he murmured, “already claiming this place.”
A voice from behind made him freeze. “They recognize you too.”
He turned. Ariana stood framed in the archway, eyes wide but steady. The moonlight caught the silver threads in her hair, the way her skin seemed almost translucent in the dark.
Kael’s breath hitched.
“You shouldn’t be out here,” she said, voice soft but firm. “Not now.”
“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.
Kael stood watching,the night air thick around him, heavy with the scent of jasmine and something wild—something that felt like a promise.
His eyes found Ariana’s figure beneath the moonlight, delicate yet fierce, the way the silver glow caught the curve of her cheek, the trembling of her lips as if she fought against the pull inside her.
She was a puzzle he longed to solve and a storm he didn’t want to survive without.
Without a word, he closed the distance, his steps quiet but certain.
The space between them shrank until the heat radiating from his body brushed her skin, igniting a fire that had nothing to do with the air or the night’s magic.
Kael’s breath hitched when Ariana’s eyes lifted to meet his, wide and raw, a breath held in time.
His hand lifted, fingers trembling slightly—not from fear, but from the weight of everything unsaid. He traced the line of her jaw, memorizing the softness beneath calloused fingertips, the slight catch in her breath when his touch brushed too close to the pulse at her throat.
“I’m here,” he murmured, voice rough, a low promise threading through the quiet.
Ariana’s lips parted, a fragile invitation, and Kael’s fingers slipped beneath the loose strands of hair falling over her forehead, tucking them back with a tenderness that surprised them both.
Her skin was warm under his palm, the faint tremble of nerves and something deeper—a desire that spoke louder than words.
His other hand found her waist, fingers curling as if he could anchor himself to her, afraid she might disappear if he let go. The world narrowed until nothing existed beyond the press of their bodies, the rapid beating of hearts echoing in the stillness.
Kael leaned in slowly, lips hovering, tasting the electricity that hummed between them. The first touch was feather-light, a question asked in the softest sigh. Ariana responded instantly, the hesitation breaking, her mouth parting to welcome him, a delicate flame sparking into something fierce.
Their kiss deepened, a melding of hunger and need, of unspoken fears and promises held tight beneath trembling hands.
Kael’s fingers tangled in her hair, pulling her closer until the space between them dissolved, replaced by the heat of skin against skin, the shiver that rolled down his spine when she pressed into him.
Ariana’s hands found the edges of his shirt, clutching as if to steady herself against the storm he was stirring inside her. She tasted like moonlight and wildflowers, fierce and fragile all at once.
The garden around them faded, the flowers’ glow dimming as if the night itself held its breath, watching this moment where two worlds collided—where danger and desire intertwined in a way neither could deny.
Kael’s lips traced the line of her neck, breathing in the scent of her skin, the rapid pulse beneath his mouth. “You’re more dangerous than you think,” he whispered, voice thick with need and something softer—something like awe.
Ariana shivered but didn’t pull away. Instead, she pressed closer, letting the warmth of him wrap around her like a shield. For the first time since all this began, she didn’t feel alone.
Kael’s hands slid beneath the hem of her shirt, fingertips brushing over skin that was electric to the touch.
Ariana’s breath hitched, her body arching instinctively into his touch, every nerve alive with fire.
The softness of her skin under his palms drove a hunger deeper than anything he’d felt before, something that wasn’t just want but need — desperate, raw, all-consuming.
He leaned in, lips trailing a slow, scorching path down her jawline to the hollow of her throat, where her pulse fluttered wildly beneath his mouth.
Ariana’s fingers tangled in his hair, tugging with fierce urgency as she pressed closer, the heat of their bodies melting every last barrier between them.
The cool night air kissed the places his hands hadn’t yet found, but it only made her skin burn hotter where they touched.
Kael’s lips met hers again — fierce, demanding, tender all at once.
The kiss deepened, tongues entwining in a slow, torturous dance that stole her breath and left her trembling.
Her hands roamed his back, pulling him flush against her, every curve, every muscle, every inch a perfect fit.
She could feel the rapid thrum of his heartbeat, matching the frantic rhythm of her own.
The world outside the garden ceased to exist — the flowers, the moonlight, even time itself, swallowed up by the storm raging between them.
Kael’s hands moved with reverence and hunger, tracing the delicate bones beneath her ribs, the swell of her breasts beneath his palms. He cupped her, fingers kneading, eliciting soft gasps that were more breath than sound.
Ariana arched into his touch, every nerve ending singing with pleasure and need.
His mouth left hers, trailing fiery kisses down her neck, over the soft curve of her shoulder.
Ariana’s fingers dug into the fabric of his shirt, pulling it over his head in a desperate, trembling motion.
When she finally looked up at him, her eyes were dark with desire, shimmering with vulnerability.
Kael caught her gaze, a low growl rumbling in his chest. He stepped back just enough to press her against the stone wall, their bodies flush, heat radiating between them like wildfire.
His hands roamed lower, fingertips grazing the edge of her waistband, teasing, testing the boundaries they both ached to cross.
“Tell me what you want,” he whispered, voice rough and low, the intensity in his eyes igniting a blaze inside her.
Ariana swallowed, her pulse pounding in her ears. “I want you. All of you.”
No hesitation. No doubt.
That confession tore through him, breaking down every last wall he’d built. He captured her mouth again, fierce and tender, hands exploring, claiming, worshipping every inch of her.
She trembled beneath him, gasping as his hands slid beneath her clothing, skin meeting skin, warm, soft, alive. Their bodies moved together in a rhythm older than words — urgent, desperate, aching with need and promise.
Kael kissed every inch of her, worshipping her like the rare and sacred thing she was, every touch a vow, every sigh a confession.
And as the night deepened, their shadows entwined, hearts pounding, breaths mingling, they lost themselves in each other — fierce, unbroken, utterly undone.