Lorien POV

Electric anticipation thrummed through me as we were escorted back toward the border. My pulse danced beneath my skin, the excitement almost too much to contain. Auren carried both of our bags in one hand, his other hand linked with mine, warm and steady.

We still had decisions to make heavy, future-shaping ones but after everything we’d just survived together, we felt closer. More tethered. I couldn’t stop the smile tugging at my lips as we stepped out of the trees and into ...