<h4>Chapter 144: Alpha’s Safe ce</h4>


    <strong>Evaline:</strong>


    Draven held my hand as we made our way along a narrow trail that was wrapped around the base of the cliff. The trees were denser here, their shadows ovepping beneath the faint moonlight.


    My curiosity was bubbling over, but I stayed quiet, letting him lead me.


    Then, without warning, he stopped before what was looking like a wall of vines and thick greenery. I blinked. There was no path, no opening - justyers of tangled ivy and hanging moss. But he pushed a few aside like he knew exactly where to look, and that’s when I saw it.


    A narrow wooden door, nearly invisible unless you were standing right in front of it.


    "You brought me to a secretir?" I whispered with a grin, half teasing, half breathless in awe.


    He chuckled and nced at me. "Something like that."


    The door creaked softly as he unlocked it and pushed it open, pulling me inside. Warmth greeted me first - not from heat, but from the space itself. It was small but charming.


    The entrance opened into a short hallway with smooth stone walls and soft lighting from wall sconces. At the end of it was a cozy living room, neatly connected to apact but beautiful kitchen. A bedroom and a bathroom were branched off to the side.


    The floors were wooden, polished and clean, and the air was carrying the faint scent of wildflowers and something earthier... something like Draven himself.


    But what truly surprised me were the fairy lights. They were strung around the edges of the ceiling, softly glowing with a warm amber hue, wrapping the ce in a dreamlikefort. It felt magical, like something out of a storybook.


    I turned to him, my eyes wide. "You... have fairy lights?"


    He looked sheepish, scratching the back of his neck. "Oscar made fun of me for weeks. Said they were ’unnecessary.’ But I liked how they looked, so I kept them."


    <fnfdcf> Read full story at find?novel</fnfdcf>


    I couldn’t stop smiling. "They are perfect."


    He showed me around, walking me through each room. The ce was tidy, minimal but lived-in, like it was holding memories waiting to be made. By the time we returned to the living room, I was wrapped infort, and something deeper I couldn’t quite name.


    He handed me a ss of water and tugged a nket over my legs as I settled down on the big couch. "It’s getting chilly," he murmured, settling beside me.


    I nodded. Autumn was in its final days, and winter was beginning to nip at the edges of night.


    "This ce is yours?" I asked.


    "Had to beg River for weeks," he said with augh. "He thought I didn’t need it. But I wanted a ce that was mine. A ce where I could just... be. And no one’s stepped in here since it was built. Until now."


    I looked at him in surprise. "Why me?"


    He turned his body slightly, facing me. The warmth in his eyes had changed, it was deeper, heavier, almost stormy. "Because you are not just anyone, Evaline."


    I inhaled sharply. And he noticed it.


    He leaned forward slowly, his voice dropping as he continued, "I have been thinking about this for a while now. About us. About the bond. And I just... I’m ready, Eva. To share everything. This ce, my life... my soul."


    I stared at him, stunned, unable to speak.


    "I want this," he whispered. "You. Us. Completely."


    His hand came up, brushing a stray strand of hair from my cheek, and then he leaned in.


    His lips touched mine softly at first, like a question. And I answered by moving closer, wrapping my fingers in the fabric of his shirt and pulling him to me. The kiss deepened slowly, like a tide pulling us under.


    His hands cupped my face as he kissed me - slow, patient, consuming.


    I gasped softly when he tilted his head and kissed me again, this time with more intensity. My hands found their way around his neck as his fingers slid to my waist, drawing me closer.


    In that moment, the world beyond the cliff and trees vanished. There was only the heat of his mouth, the press of his body, the sound of our breathing bing more urgent.


    We melted into each other and our kisses grew longer, and touches more desperate. I shifted, straddling hisp while the nket slipped to the floor unnoticed.


    His hands started roaming my back, my hips, my thighs. Each touch was setting fire to my skin. His lips trailed to my jaw, to the hollow beneath my ear, and I couldn’t stop the soft sigh that escaped me.


    This was Draven - strong, quiet, loyal - and right now, he’s mine.


    When he finally pulled away, he rested his forehead against mine while both of us struggled to catch our breaths.


    "I have never wanted anything more," he whispered. "I’m ready to ept our bond, Evaline. To make it official. Verbal or not, soul to soul. I’m ready."


    His words were like lightning, beautiful and terrifying all at once. And they made me froze.


    The intensity in his expression shifted into concern as he noticed the immediate shift in me. His arms remained around me, but his voice cracked slightly as he asked, "Do you not want it? Or... are you not ready yet?"


    The vulnerability in his eyes pierced straight through me. "It’s okay if you are not," he added quickly, as if trying to shield himself from the pain already beginning to bloom in his chest.


    "No! Draven, no." I cupped his face in my hands. "I do want it. I want you. More than anything."


    Relief flooded his features, but I saw the question still lingering in his eyes.


    "It’s just..." I took a shaky breath. "There are things about me - truths I haven’t told anyone yet. Things that might change how you see me. And if we seal the bond before you know them, before you truly know me, I’ll always wonder if you would have made a different choice."


    He frowned slightly. "What kind of truths?"


    "I can’t tell you yet," I whispered. "Not tonight. But I promise I will. Just... give me couple of days. Let me tell you everything before we take that final step. And if after that you still want to seal our bond... then I’ll be more than happy to agree."


    He was quiet for a long moment. And I waited, with heart in my throat, feeling extremely terrified that I had just ruined something so perfect.


    But then he nodded, and the gentleness in his expression returned.


    "One week," he said softly. "But no more hiding. I want the real you, Eva. All of it. Even the parts you think I won’t be able to love."


    I swallowed the lump in my throat and nodded. "Deal."


    He pressed onest kiss to my lips. This one was soft, almost reverent. Then he pulled me into his chest and wrapped his arms around me like he had no intention of letting go.


    And I just hoped that when he would finally learn my secrets, he would still hold me like this, like I was his entire life now.