Damon – POV
The council meeting had gone as expected.
Threats. Posturing. Blood.
One idiot had the nerve to challenge me — he was now decorating the wall with what was left of his spine.
The others got the message.
I was in control. And once I completed the final part of the prophecy… once Elena gave herself to me fully — body, soul, and bond — not even the gods would stand in my way.
So imagine my fucking delight when I returned to the grounds, prowling along the edge of the training field, and saw her.
Elena.
Smiling.
Laughing.
Sweat-slicked and radiant in the early dusk light, sparring with someone who wasn't me. Someone with too-pretty eyes and a jaw that deserved breaking.
The fucker touched her back.
She didn't slap him.
She didn't burn him alive with a glare.
No — she leaned in. Laughed at something he said.
What. The. Fuck.
