Ronan's POV
"I want to talk to him," Seraphina insisted, her voice trembling with desperation. "Please, I need to speak with my husband."
My jaw clenched so hard I could hear my teeth grinding. The wooden cookie box I'd carved with my own hands sat forgotten by the window, my heart's offering rejected for a phantom mate. I exchanged glances with my brothers, seeing my own torment reflected in their eyes.
"Seraphina," Kaelen started, his voice tight with restraint. "We've explained that Valerius Stone isn't—"
"Please!" she cried, tears welling in those sea-blue eyes. "The full moon is in three days. I'm scared. This is my first heat, and I need to know he'll be here for me."
Her words were daggers, each one twisting deeper into my chest. The thought of her experiencing her heat with anyone but us—her true mates—made my wolf thrash violently against my control.
Orion growled low in his throat. "This has gone far enough."
