Chapter 30. On the Edge of Forever

The cold hush of the corridors followed Mira and Kaelen long after the echo of music faded behind them. The laughter and candlelight of the ballroom were nothing but ghosts now—trailing behind them like echoes in stone.

Kaelen’s hand remained wrapped around hers, firm but gentle, never once loosening his grip as he led her through the winding halls. He said nothing, and he didn’t have to. Mira’s pulse thundered in her ears, her breath catching every time his thumb brushed against the back of her knuckles.

The door to his chambers swung open on silent hinges. He stepped inside first, tugging her gently after him, and then paused only long enough to close it behind them with a soft click.

It was quiet in here. Still. Sacred.

Moonlight spilled across the room in pale beams, painting the dark floors and the edge of the wide bed in silver. The shadows around them deepened, touched not by cold but by reverence—by the weight of something neither of them could speak.