When he arrived at the council hall, the council elders were eagerly awaiting his presence. Carson respectfully approached the king, bowing down slowly and offering a warm, genuine smile filled with assurance. He empathetically understood the phase the king was currently going through.

Curiously, Blade asked, "What is it? Why the smile?"

Blade stared at his second-in-command, Carson, with a longing for the smiles that only his mate had the privilege of bestowing upon him. He ...