ALFRED POV

My mind was still filled with the thought of her. I could still practically sniff her scent on me. It was an impossible thought, of course. The huge stone walled chamber, filled with the scent of polished wood, old parchment, and fifty of my most hardened warriors, should have erased any lingering trace of her. Yet, as I stood before the assembled members of the court, I kept remembering the past events.

Geo, on his own part, was purring. The beast was sprawled contentedly in my mind, as he growled in satisfaction through our bond. ‘Ours,’ he murmured for the hundredth time. ‘Marked. Safe.’

I forced my mind...