Page 124 of Haunted Crowns
He pulled back just enough to meet her eyes, his hands framing her face with reverence and desperation. “You’re here. That’s enough.”
But it was not enough. Not for the hours he had knelt beside her stillness. Not for the terror that had hollowed him.
“I thought I’d lost you,” he whispered, voice cracking.
She swallowed hard, hands frantically cupping his face as if afraid he might vanish. “You almost did. But you came for me. You saved me.”
Stephan’s eyes closed, his forehead pressing to hers as he exhaled, broken and whole in the same breath.
Beside them, Kareon began to stir. Slowly, he pushed upright, shaking, as the damp earth clung to his skin.
“You took your time, princess.” He tried to sound amused, but the weakness in his voice gave him away.
Stephan didn’t speak. His silence was a warning.
Eris turned, and there he was. Kareon. Alive.
Joy flared in her eyes, too sudden. Too full.
She smiled before she could stop herself. Of course he came back. He always did.
A slow smirk curled on his lips. She knew that look.
“In hindsight,” Kareon said, rolling his shoulders as though the pain belonged to someone else, “we could’ve skipped the swordplay and gone straight to the kiss. Would’ve saved us both some time.”
Stephan lunged, grabbing Kareon by the collar and slamming him back into the stone. The clearing snapped to life, fire spitting sparks.
“You kissed her?” he growled.
Kareon bared his teeth. “Go ahead, Dragov. Hit me. You’ve been waiting for it.”
He didn’t move. He wanted Stephan to see it—reallysee it. Eris was never his alone. Kareon hated how easy it had been for him, how he’d loved her in the light while Kareon was left to the shadows. So he stood still, willing the blow to land. He needed to bleed something real.
Tension rippled between them, sharp and coiled like lightning clenched in a fist.
Eris stepped in, placing both palms on Stephan’s chest and shoving him back. “Enough.”
Stephan breathed through clenched teeth. His hands didn’t drop yet. Kareon’s smile remained, but it no longer reached his eyes.
Eris met Stephan’s gaze. “Stephan, he didn’t kiss my body,” she said, voice steady. “He kissed my soul.”
As if that would help.
Stephan’s head snapped toward her, eyes blazing. “He doesn’t get to kiss any part of you.” A pause. Then, sharper: “Soul included.”
Kareon tilted his head. “That kiss saved her,” he said, savoring the words. “And she didn’t pull away.” He leaned in, voice lower.“So tell me—was it the kiss that bothered you, or the fact that she wanted it?”
Stephan surged forward again. Eris shoved him harder.
“I said enough!” Her voice cut through bark and flame. Even the Hollow went quiet.
Neither man moved. Stephan’s fists trembled. Kareon’s grin faded slowly.
Eris stood between them, firelight in her eyes, though there was still a fragility in her that stopped them both cold.
“I’m here,” she said. “We’re here. That’s what truly matters...Please.”
The clearing held its breath. Then Stephan stepped back. Kareon exhaled. Their shoulders eased as their anger faded.
