Forged in the Flames by Karima Sa'ad Usman

Nikolas POV

Sitting in the tub with Aliana in my arms fell so right. It felt more right than anything I had done in my entire life. How could something that felt so right be so wrong?

There was an incredible feeling that came with Aliana. A feeling that I had never felt before. And though I fought it, I knew it would be inevitable. In the past, I had fought myself from embracing my feelings because I knew they would not last. I would have to fulfil my promises to my mother, and I could not place Aliana in that picture.

After the date night that we danced and drank, and she even threw up, I knew I loved her, and I knew my heart wouldn’t stop beating the way it did, but I also knew what we had was forbidden and against everything in our world.

After Grant and Ingham confronted me in my office, it made me rethink everything.

I knew the feeling I was developing for Aliana would not disappear, but I could not allow it to thrive, so I cut off and tried to deal with my emotions.

I tried to forget about that night and how she made me feel. I shut her off and stayed away. I told myself that it would go away if I did not see her, but it left nothing but emptiness in my heart, and I was a miserable man.

Within those months, I applied for kingship, and many people suggested it would move faster if I were mated to a Lycan from either the Snow King’s family or the Hill King’s family, but I felt it was wrong because I was the rightful heir to the forest throne. It was Gabriel’s fault, and knowing I still had a revenge to enact on the traitor made me pull away from Aliana.

My nights were long, and my days were long and cold.

It was hard, and I saw myself and my drive fade away.

Qusack noticed, and he would often urge me to damn the consequences and live in the moment, but I was worried about where my actions would leave Aliana and me when it was time to part ways because it would happen. No matter how much I loved her, I knew we would have to say goodbye someday. The complexity of the situation made me fall back, k*ill*ing me.

I often glanced at her door and imagined what she was doing there. When I entered my mother’s room, her scent lingered in the air, and I took it in.

It had been difficult, and Ingham and Grant made it worse by organising the ridiculous garden parties at night.

It used to be something I enjoyed, but I just couldn’t relax and participate anymore. I was in knots.

I would catch Aliana peeking from the window, but she did not think I would see her. I could see in the dark, and I would see her rage and disappointment before she moved away. I knew she was feeling what I was feeling. Both of us were suffering.

If only I wasn’t a Lycan, and if only her father had not betrayed my father, then this would have worked, but everything was against us, and there was nothing I could do to fix it. It wasn’t going to work.

closed, and I believed she had given up and moved on. It was okay because it was a hopeless situation, but I wondered what would have been. I wondered how

my office with her scent on him, and Qusack knew too. I wanted to confront him, but I believed his explanation would break my heart and make me lose

broken a rule, but I was ready to let it go, just like every

and

chair in

her senses and recognise me. If that ever happened, then everything I had suffered and endured, even refusing to love the woman I wanted,

Grant linked me to inform me of

had taken over, and

give what we had a chance. I had punished myself for too long. The fact that she understood that it would not last and knew what would happen in the

t*ouch another till the day I d*ie. I planned to suffer the same way she would I was mad at myself for

knew her defiance would pay off one day, and it did. Had she been easy, the b*astar*d would have

to my

unsure of my resolve until I saw her lying in

to do, and I would have enemies

afraid. But I planned to separate her from my vengeance and let my heart and wolf be happy for once. I

tub with this resolve, and my heart

sit in hot water for a bit to avoid getting sore. Some would argue cold water would have been better, but

one day. She m*oa*ned sweetly, and I smiled. She responded so well, I knew it could only come

she felt was genuine, and I wanted to cherish it for the rest of my

in mine and brought her

between us. We were giving this thing

then

addiction, so I was giving in and not punishing myself anymore. I spent the night learning about

wanted to be enough. I wanted

while we lay in bed, spent from all the

she said, and I repeated the

“Is she as stubborn as you are?”