The MoonBound

ything other than the deep pull she felt toward Kael. Her thoughts seemed consumed by him, and the more she tried to ignore it, the st

o much she could do. Her mind always wandered back to Kael. His presence, his coldness, his unapproachable

familiar trails offering a sense of calm she desperately needed. The trees loomed tall above

ant reminder that her world was changing, that the life she had know

d to assert itself. The feeling of his presence was overwhelming, as though he were alway

htaking in its simplicity. She wasn't sure why she had come here today, or what she hoped to find, but the silence ar

her. It wasn't just the bond this time. It was somethi

fading light of the day. Kael didn't speak immediately, didn't acknowledge her presence in the way most people wo

then something in her paused-something inside her wanted to stay. The bond between them t

w but firm, the weight of it sending a s

, but now, with the moon rising higher in the sky and the world fal

er heart pounding louder with eac

It was the first time she had seen him anything less than perfectly composed, and it made her wonde

oice quieter now, tinged with something she co

coldness was a permanent part of him. She didn't expect him to apologize or show any vulnerability. Ye

onfessed, her voice shaky. "I don't know what to d

with herself. The bond was overwhelming, yes, but it was more than that. It was the way Kael made her feel, the way

le with electricity. "I don't know how to handle it either," he s

the heat of his body, the strength that radiated from him. His scent filled her senses-woods and m

r now, as if the words were too fragile to say out loud. "But I can't deny it anymore. Yo

ore. He was admitting it. Admitting that the bond between them was

to form seemed to slip through her fingers. But one thing was clear: the distance between the

above a whisper. "You say we're bound, that we're meant to be t

he saw something dark pass over his eyes-someth

I've been alone for so long. I've learned to keep people at a distance. I've had

ache, knowing that the distance he had created wasn't a rejection of

. The connection between them sparked again, stronger than before, a

," she said softly. "But maybe we can

lnerability. And for the first time, Leora saw him not as the cold, di

g down on them. "We'll figure it out," he said, hi

ora knew that this was only the beginning. The beginning of somet