Dravina POV

We walked in silence, our footsteps the only sound echoing softly along the corridor. It wasn’t uncomfortable, just charged thick with unsaid thoughts. Only when we’d put enough distance between ourselves and the dining room did Alpha Malrik finally speak.

“You know I saved a seat for you, Dravina,” he said, his tone composed, yet laced with something unreadable beneath its surface.

I didn’t know what to say to that. So I said nothing. I kept my gaze forward, hoping the ...