The chamber cleared until it was just Serena, Dex, Hale, Elara, King Tiberon, and Gav.
Dex closed the distance, not caring anymore. He hadn't touched Serena since they left her crowning ceremony, and his chest ached with the absence of her.
He pulled her into his arms boldly, then picked her up, causing her to squeal high-pitched in shock. He threw her over his shoulder.
"Dex!" she protested.
"Relax," Dex replied easily. "I missed you, and this worked faster than talking."
Serena let out a breathless laugh, half muffled against his back.
Dex had been doing that so much lately that Hale, Elara, and Gav were unbothered.
King Tiberon, on the other hand, had never seen Dex do that with anyone. He'd never seen his son so playful or happier. She drew out a side of him that existed before the weight of crown and command had settled fully on his shoulders.
That, Tiberon thought, is what a mate should do.
They slipped back into the chamber they had passed through earlier. From there, the passage split into narrow tunnels and hidden doors tucked behind tapestries throughout the castle.
It seemed everyone took separate routes, scattering to avoid detection.
One by one, they emerged through a concealed portrait door into the royal wing.
Dex finally put Serena down long enough for her to fit through the opening, then immediately scooped her back up, carrying her toward their rooms like this was non-negotiable.
Gav glanced over his shoulder and snorted. "I see we're respecting secret exits and ignoring personal space equally."
"Not mutually exclusive," Dex shot back without slowing.
Finally, they reached their quarters. Dex had been dying for her all day. His hand was on the door handle when Hyran's mindlink cut through the moment like a blade.
Hyran:Serena, the barrier you put on the Aureus Catenes chest is still very much in place. Please undo it. After that, I require you in my study.
She'd forgotten the barrier was still up. Her eyes flared gold as she focused, drawing the energy back in on itself, slow and controlled.
Dex didn't comment. He opened the door and carried her into their quarters, kicking it shut behind him.
Hyran:It's halfway. Flickering. Try re-forming it, then release it cleanly.
Serena exhaled and tried again.
As she did, Dex shifted his grip, smoothly flipping her from his shoulder into his arms, cradling her against his chest like it was the only place she belonged.
"Why does Hyran want you in his study?" he asked, jaw ticking. He made no effort to hide the irritation threading his voice.
Hyran's private study was a space Dex himself only entered under specific circumstances. She was not going anywhere alone with another male in a setting like that.
The way Hyran said it so casually made his blood boil. He didn't like it.
Irrational? Maybe.
He didn't care.
Neither did his wolf.
"I'd imagine to test filtering Red Death," she answered, studying his face, trying to understand what was wrong.
Hyran's voice cut in before Dex could respond.
Hyran:It just went down. Slow when you're not in visual range. You'll need to work on that.
Serena huffed, folding her arms.
Serena:Didn't you tell me it takes years to master?
Hyran:You have twenty-four hours. I'll see you in a few minutes.
Serena wanted to change out of her formal dress and into a training suit.
But instead of putting her down, Dex tossed her onto the bed.
She screamed and then laughed, surprised.
"Dex! I'm not a ball," she exclaimed.
"No, but you are my favorite toy," he replied, jumping and landing on top of her.
"Then you should probably stop throwing me around unless you want your toy to start biting," she warned, giggling.
"That's hot," he murmured, lips finding hers. "You're mine."
"Yours," Serena confirmed, grinning. Their kiss deepened.
He couldn't get enough of her.
Both times they had sex she fell unconscious, so he held off this morning. He'd been dying for her.
"You don't know what you're doing to me," he breathed between kisses.
He wanted her dress off. He "tried" to untie, unclasp, and unzip while kissing her, but it was complicated. His attempt lasted two seconds before he decided tearing it was the only solution.
"Dex!" She shot up like he'd committed a crime. "Wait—"
In a blur of alpha speed, he hooked his arm around her waist and pulled her back down. This time on top of him.
His lips found her mark, and he began to suck it. He wanted her out of this dress.
As soon as his hands went to tear it again, she jolted away.
"Wait! No, I love it. Don't—"
Too late.
Dex ripped the golden dress.
The sound of tearing silk cut through the room like a scream.
The dress he gifted her.
The dress that, unknown to him, she had choked up when she put it on while getting ready with Elara.
The dress that reminded her of another time in her life. A life before everything burned. Before her pack was slaughtered and she was left with nothing but survival.
It reminded her of the gowns her mother used to wear. Serena would sneak into her chambers just to touch the silk and imagine being old enough to wear something so beautiful.
She never got the chance.
Twelve years old, and her world ended. Everything she was supposed to become, everything she was supposed to have, gone in a single night.
For years after, she wore whatever she could find. Whatever kept her warm. Beauty became a foreign concept, something that belonged to a girl who died the same night her family did.
And then Dex gave her this.
Gold silk that moved like water. Diamonds that caught the light the way her mother's gowns used to. Something so exquisite, so impossibly beautiful, that she had stood in front of the mirror and cried.
Because for one perfect moment, she felt like that girl again. The girl who used to dream about growing up and wearing gowns like this.
Also this dress was stunning. And it looked good on her. She knew it did.
Sue her.
She loved it. She wanted to keep it forever. Wanted to preserve it somewhere safe, take it out on hard days just to remember that once, she got to feel like royalty again. Like the princess she was always supposed to be.
And Dex ripped it in half.
Her throat closed.
She swallowed once. Twice. Forced the emotion down with everything she had.
It's just a dress. It's just a dress. It's just a dress. She kept repeating it in her mind.
But it wasn't. It wasn't just a dress. It meant so much more than that.
And now it was ruined.
She was so distraught that his mouth on her mark didn't register. The sparks, the heat, the pull of him through their matebond, none of it could cut through the hollow ache spreading through her chest.
Dex, who had been so focused on getting her out of the dress, didn't notice at first.
He froze just when Hyran mindlinked.
Hyran:Serena. Now.
Serena:I'm on my way.
Serena wasn't sure if Dex was included on that.
"I need to see Hyran," she stated, voice steady. Too steady. The kind of steady that came from burying something deep.
She got off of him, not meeting his eyes. This would be something she'd talk to Elara about. Elara would talk sense into her. Elara would tell her she was being ridiculous, that Dex could buy her a hundred dresses, that it didn't matter.
But it did matter. It mattered in ways she couldn't explain without unraveling completely.
"It shouldn't be long," she added, trying to soften her tone. Trying to sound normal.
Dex's cock throbbed in protest. He was beyond ready to be inside her and the urge to mate was overwhelming.
His eyes flashed molten gold. He shut them, swallowing his wolf down.
When he opened them again, Serena was already in her training suit, moving at alpha speed. Her hair was still done, crown still on. She looked beautiful.
But something was wrong.
He could feel it through the matebond. A dull ache that didn't belong to him. A sadness she was actively suppressing.
"I'm coming with you," he announced after a second of taking her in.
"Don't worry about it," she answered too quickly. "I know you have a lot on your plate."
She kissed him on the cheek.
Not the lips.
The cheek.
And then she left in a blur.
Dex sat there for a second, chest tight.
Did she just politely tell him no? Or was that her trying to be considerate?
Why did that interaction feel strange? Why was she upset? Had he done something?
He didn't like it.
He got off the bed, and made his way into the corridor, speeding through the halls to try to catch her.
He was halfway to Hyran's study when it dawned on him: she probably took a tunnel.
A tunnel she shouldn't know about. But somehow did, and he had never asked.
And she was gone.
So his choices were to either show up in Hyran's study after that interaction or wait for her.
He ran his hand through his hair.