For a heartbeat, she just stared at me like I’d set the room on fire with my bare hands. Her lips parted, still tasting of mine, her breath unsteady, her eyes—fierce, wild, confused.

Then came the sass.

“Oh, brilliant. Just brilliant,” she hissed, shoving me square in the chest. “Alpha Gregor, ladies and gentlemen. Guard dog of the century, kissing his ‘future princess’ like he’s auditioning for some trashy palace drama.”

The shove didn’t move me an inch. I stood there, ...