Ethan POV

Laf's words echo in the hall—"I'm very pleased, Ethan. You're an Alpha who honors his promises"—and I see Grace's back stiffen before she disappears through the doorway. She heard. Of course she heard.

And now she knows. Knows that my refusal to support her wasn't just political hesitation. She knows about the promise I made, the debt I've been trapped by since I begged Laf to help rescue her from Damien. She knows I chose honoring that promise over ...