NARRATORThe girl had subtly placed this sphere in her hand—not the one she had actually touched.What exactly was Elliot playing at? If this was his doing.Kath’s eyes caught the moment Brenda entered the hall. She was wearing different clothes.The Duchess didn’t even want to imagine why she had changed. There was no point denying it—she was drowning in useless, bitter jealousy.Amid laughter and jokes, Brenda was called to pick in the draw.A rather defeated thought was forming in Katherine’s mind. She had grown a little tired of pretending for today.She stood up subtly, slipping through the crowd, taking advantage of the dimmed lights and the shadows that sheltered her.The pairs began to be announced.Each time a man called out his number, a soft light illuminated him, and then it was his exchange partner’s turn.Brenda smelled that woman’s disgusting scent—the Duchess.She was approaching her position.She braced herself for a scene. Maybe she was coming to confront her about t

ELLIOT"I'M NOT LETTING GO OF ANYONE! GO FIND ANOTHER DAMN PARTNER!" I roared at the idiot beside me, who was already eyeing my female.He was about to gamble away a full set of teeth if he even thought about trying something."Ouch!" I groaned, caught off guard by the sudden sting in my foot.Katherine had stomped down hard on it with the sharp heel of her boot, using my moment of distraction to shove me and slip from my arms."Ka—damn it… Rossella!" I nearly let her real name slip. I didn’t want her finding out the truth like this.She disappeared into the cluster of women. I was about to chase after her like a madman when someone grabbed my arm.I turned, ready to land my fist in whoever’s face had the audacity to stop me, rage rising to a feral level—until I saw it was an elderly woman."Easy there, young man, calm yourself," she said, dragging me toward a table and forcing me to sit despite my resistance.What was I supposed to do? Shove her? Of course not.Still, my eyes kept da

ELLIOT"Hey, wait, bitch! I saw him first!"The shouting faded behind me, swallowed by the chaos of the fights and the violins fueling the brawls.I ran through the shadows of tents and small stalls, filthy, covered in mud. But for some reason, watching that brown hair flow ahead of me, inhaling that delicious lavender scent, a smile crept onto my lips.I was happy.*****KATHERINEI stood in the hallway, keeping watch.We had slipped inside a stable in silence, with only a few horses dozing in their stalls.Elliot told me that places like these always had rustic showers for the workers to clean up. And there he was, inside what looked like a small wooden booth, covered only by a flimsy curtain.I turned my back, keeping my eyes on the long, dimly lit passage leading to the stable entrance. I knew he was naked. The shameless man had practically stripped in front of me.I could hear the water cascading down his body. I imagined him standing under the stream pouring from the crude pipe

BRENDAI was furious and wounded by Elliot’s public rejection. I thought he was truly leaving me for a new lover.That story about wanting to be with his wife—I didn’t buy it. And yet, here he was, using her as an excuse once again in front of everyone.I watched him walk away in a hurry, and soon enough, I had that idiot Thesio trailing behind me. What an insufferable, overbearing man!He brought me boxes of gifts—the shine of the jewels did dazzle me for a second.Thesio wasn’t an ugly man; he had aged well. A widower with no children, willing to give me the title of Duchess that so many women longed for.But seeing his face, already nearing forty-five, and knowing that this simple elemental would soon be an old man while I remained in my prime as a supernatural being, was more than enough to dissuade me and clear my mind.Not to mention, I didn’t trust him enough to reveal myself as a she-wolf.He had me nearly cornered against the library’s divan, groping me all over while whisper

KATHERINEWe ran first to where Elliot had left part of his clothes—he needed to change.“Damn mosquitoes,” he muttered, scratching all over, his skin glistening with sweat and the water dripping from his hair.But now he was also covered in scratches from the branches and bug bites.He bent down to put on his pants, giving me an unfiltered view of his rock-hard ass, completely unbothered.I couldn’t help myself—this whole crazy situation had made me lose a screw.I stepped closer and, before I could even think about what I was doing, I gave his ass a firm slap, even daring to grope it a little.Then I froze, yanking my hand back awkwardly. I mean, how much familiarity did I think I had with Elliot to act like that?!“There was—there was a mosquito. I just wanted to help,” I stammered, avoiding his questioning gaze as he turned around, his pants still halfway down his thighs as he yanked them up.“Uh-huh, a mosquito, sure,” he said, his amused tone unmistakable.I looked away, claspin