Music Recommendation: Labyrinth by Taylor Swift.

.....

The hall was alive again with music.

Music swelled, echoing off the gilded walls and crystal chandeliers. Candles flickered around the place. Laughter rippled through the crowd, layered over the soft scraping of shoes across polished marble floors.

People made it in pairs to the dance floor.

Adele felt none of it.

Her father left her side some minutes ago, to get acquainted with a young man he had said would make a fine mate for her if the Moon goddess permits.

Just incase things goes south with the plan. Meanwhile, he had asked her to dance with a particular young man.

Painfully, her gaze had already found Torak while in the man’s grip. He was inescapable. Her hands were shaking from holding back from him.

Even across the room, his presence pulled at her like a thread tied to her chest. She caught a glimpse of his eyes over the shoulders of the man she danced with, sharp and unmistakable.

His green flames as eyes flickered in the gold-toned light. In that moment, the crowd, the music, the swirl of gowns and coats, they ceased to exist.

Her heartbeat stuttered.

Her eyes immediately searched the hall for her father. He was nowhere nearby. Not close enough to interfere, and not close enough to ruin this small, reckless freedom she allowed herself.

A soft exhale escaped her lips. She breathed. She could breathe.

Torak held her gaze, and then, turned on beat reluctantly. The woman in his arms moved with him to follow the beat.

Adele saw the hesitation in the turn. She noticed the small fraction of a second he lingered in her direction before he fully committed to the turn. That flicker of hesitation towards her. that choice to even allow his gaze to brush over her was everything to Adele.

Adele swallowed. A shiver ran down her spine. She allowed the man she danced with to spin her. Her smile was polite, and thin, but her mind, and her eyes remained locked on Torak.

"Did you hear me?" the man asked, concern knitting his brows as he broke her train of concentration.

Blinking, Adele cleared her throat. "I’m sorry, what did you say?" she asked, rubbing her hand on the back of his neck.

The man chuckled, light but unsure. "I was asking if you’d attend the mate ball in the next few months. I must say... I’ve never seen you at one before."

Adele’s lips curved slightly into a thin smile. "I doubt that would ever happen. I..."

Surprisingly, a sudden voice cut through their conversation, low and deliberate.

"A dance with Milady." it wasn’t a question.

Both turned at once.

Torak stood there. With strong co widened and authority authority.

No words were needed to make her heart stutter. Adele turned to the lady Torak was dancing with, only to see her standing there, looking dejected.

"No—" Adele started, but was cut off immediately by the man she danced with.

"Torak MacKenzie," he said with calm admiration "What a pleasure it is to stand before you."

Torak inclined his head, subtle, and commanding. Then, his eyes found hers and everything else faded.

"A dance with Milady?" he repeated, his tone soft now, almost coaxing.

The man, deflated, and didn’t argue. "Very well," he said, bowing and stepping back.

Torak extended his hand. Adele hesitated for only a second before she placed hers in his, small, and deliberate.

She felt heat bloom immediately through her, as though the tips of her fingers were electric, and he was the fuse.

He guided her to the center of the hall. Step by step, in rhythm with the music. Her pulse caught against his, and her every nerve was awake.

"Are you still leaving with your father?" he asked quietly after a short while, positioning his hand against her waist.

Adele kept her chin up with smooth composure. "Yes." She let her reply short.

Torak gripped her waist, pressing her closer. Adele’s breath caught in her throat. She stepped forward slightly, intentionally stepping on his foot really hard and quick.

He winced. Adele seized the opportunity, pulling away with grace that disguised the trembling heat rising through her. She wouldn’t let anyone see.

"Don’t try that again," she warned softly. Her voice barely rose above the music. Her eyes darted around; no one seemed to notice, but every inch of her body knew they were not alone in the crowd.

Torak nodded with immediate obedience.

The dance continued step after step. Spin after spin, his eyes never left hers. Their hands brushed against each other repeatedly and intentionallly.

Their weight shifted, and a couple of intimate collisions masked as the rhythm of the ball dance happened between them. Every glance, every secret indecent touch and every tilt of the head, was a conversation neither dared to voice aloud.

"What was he saying to you?" Torak murmured, referring to the man she previously danced with. His lips were close enough that she felt the heat of him against her ear.

Adele tilted her head back slightly, meeting his gaze. The green of his eyes held something dangerous and soft all at once. "I... have other matters. I wasn’t listening." she said, thinly veiled.

Torak’s hand tightened slightly around her waist, subtle but firm. "Other matters can wait," he whispered, almost pleading. "For tonight, let it just be us."

Her breath hitched. The words, the tone, and the undeniable pull, they uncoiled everything she had worked so hard to suppress.

They moved across the hall in perfect synchrony, ignoring the music, and ignoring the crowd. At the moment, it was them.

"I could stay like this forever," Torak said softly, his voice low, and vibrating against her. "With you, just you with no titles, no rules, and no ridiculous walls."

Adele swallowed hard. Her fingers brushed over his shoulder, a ghost of a touch that left sparks in its wake. "You know that can’t happen," she said quietly, almost a whisper.

He leaned in closer, just enough that the space between them was a thin, dangerous thread. "Be my mate, Adele."

The words cut through her like fire. His hand spun her gently on the beat. She returned to him, her dark eyes searching his, flame meeting flame.

"I can’t." Her voice trembled despite her effort to steady it. Her heart thumped wildly in protest.

"You can," he countered, tilting his head. "You want to. You just don’t believe you can."

Her throat tightened. "My father would—"

"I don’t care," he interrupted softly, pressing a hand to her neck, feeling her pulse. "Tell me why. Tell me the real reason why you keep saying that. Not the Luna story, not the politics. The truth."

Adele’s chest rose and fell rapidly. She shook her head, refusing. "That’s all I have to tell you."

He let the words hang between them, then drew her closer again, almost impossibly close for the dance. His forehead brushed hers. "Then I’ll wait," he whispered. "But not forever. Don’t make me regret this, Adele. Don’t make me wait for something I know already belongs to me."

Her lips parted.

Heat, longing, and frustration all collided inside her chest. The world around them, the chandeliers, the whispers, and the glances of others, it all disappeared.

Their eyes locked together with each step, spin, and slide. Their hearts raced in desire, and the secret moments they shared in a crowded room.

The music slowed down, signalling its near stop.

Torak’s hand lingered against her waist. His thumb brushed her side. Adele’s own hand hovered near his chest, itching to rest there, and to forever feel his heartbeat against her palm.

The final note faded, leaving them suspended, and connected in a way no one else could reach.

Her breath was heavy. Her skin was alive, and still, she resisted. The world would not allow them. Her father would kill him if he knew. Power, influence, and duty weren’t things she could ignore.

Torak’s eyes searched hers, pleading, soft, and relentless. "Forget everything," he whispered. "Be my mate first, and then we figure out the rest."

Adele swallowed, her pulse hammering. She shook her head.

She couldn’t.

Just then, Alpha Blackfen stared away from his aquintance for a moment, scanning the hall of Adele. His nose traced her scent, then his eyes found her.