Ethan’s POV

The moment I saw her in that dining hall, my world shifted.

I had listened to Kai talk about the “brunette from the bar” for a week. He had been obsessed, nonchalant, acting like a dog with a bone he couldn’t chew. I had mocked him for it. He would defend himself by saying she wasn’t his type. I told him he was losing his edge over a random stray.

Then I smelled her.

Floral and mint. It was a scent that reached into the deepest parts of my wolf and demanded total surrender. She stood there in a gown that was clearly too old for her, looking...