84: Emma

I smoothed the bright blue fabric of my dress over my hips, the sensation of silk against my fingertips almost overwhelming in its intensity. Every thread, every minute texture registered like individual notes in a symphony of touch. I caught Theo watching me from across the room, his eyes warm with devotion that still made my heart stumble in its rhythm. The world had changed overnight—or rather, I had changed. The marking had transformed me in ways I was only beginning to understand, my senses heightened to an almost painful degree, my body humming with unfamiliar power.

"You look beautiful," Theo said, adjusting the navy tie that matched my dress with uncanny precision. His voice vibrated through me like a physical caress. "How are you feeling?"

"Like someone turned all my senses up to eleven," I admitted, slipping my feet into black flats. "I can hear the staff talking three floors down. I can smell what everyone had for dinner last night. It's... intense."

He crossed the room and took my hands, his touch both grounding and electrifying. "It will settle. Your mind will learn to filter."

"If you say so." I let my forehead rest against his chest for a moment, breathing in his scent—pine and midnight and something uniquely Theo that now carried notes of my own scent woven through it. The evidence of our bond marked not just our bodies but the very air around us.

We left our suite hand in hand, the corridor stretching before us in startling clarity. I could see dust motes floating in the morning light, count the individual fibers in the carpet. Theo's thumb traced circles on my palm as we walked, a silent reassurance.

I reached out with my mind, seeking the familiar presence of my brother. The connection came effortlessly now, like opening a door I'd always known was there.

‘Elijah?’ I projected the thought, feeling it travel along invisible threads that linked our minds.

His response came immediately, tinged with surprise. ‘Emma? Is everything alright?’

‘Everything's fine. You and Elena are having breakfast with Theo, Chris and me in the private dining room. The small one on the second floor.’

A pause, then suspicion coloured his thoughts. ‘What's going on?’

‘Just be there, big brother.’ I injected the mental equivalent of an eye roll into the words.

‘We're on our way,’ he replied, his curiosity palpable even through our mental link.

I withdrew from the connection, blinking as my awareness fully returned to the physical world around me. Theo was watching me with an amused expression.

"He's suspicious," I said.

"Of course he is." He squeezed my hand. "How does the telepathy feel now?"

"Clearer. Stronger. Like there's nothing in the way anymore." I marveled at the difference. "Before, it was like trying to hear through water. Now it's... immediate."

We descended the grand staircase, and I noticed the guards stationed at the landing straighten as we approached. Their postures had been respectful yesterday, but this morning, they bowed deeply, their eyes lowered with new deference that made my skin prickle with discomfort.

"Your Majesties," one murmured, his voice carrying an unmistakable note of awe.

Theo's chuckle rumbled beside me as we continued past. "Your aura is even stronger, little wolf," he whispered, his breath warm against my ear. "Your alpha aura is stronger, and you're undeniably my Queen now too."

I hummed under my breath, watching as another staff member practically flattened herself against the wall to let us pass. "It feels a little weird, I'll be honest."

He paused in the middle of the corridor, turning to face me. His eyes—those impossible eyes with their gold depths—searched mine before he leaned forward and pressed a kiss to my forehead. "You've got this," he said, his voice a low promise. "I'm with you every step of the way."

My throat tightened with sudden emotion. "I know," I whispered. "That's the only reason I'm not freaking out completely."

We reached the private dining room first, the double doors opening before us as if by magic—though I knew it was just the ever-vigilant staff anticipating our arrival. The room beyond was intimate but elegant, decorated in white and gold that caught the morning light streaming through tall windows. A single table dominated the center, set for six people.

Theo pulled out my chair with old-world courtesy before taking his seat beside me. Our thighs touched beneath the table, another point of contact I found myself craving as my body adjusted to this new reality.

"What exactly did you tell Elijah?" Theo asked, his eyes crinkling with amusement.

"Just to be here." I traced the edge of the pristine tablecloth, marveling at how I could feel each individual thread. "I thought it would be better for them to just... smell it on us. Rather than try to explain."

"Wise woman." His fingers found mine under the table. "Have I mentioned how much I love you this morning?"

"Only about a dozen times." I smiled, the warmth in my chest pushing back against the strangeness of everything else. "I'm keeping count, so feel free to continue."

The door opened again, but it was staff rather than our family, bearing trays laden with food. I watched, slightly wide-eyed, as they set up a full breakfast buffet along the sideboard—pastries piled in tempting towers, platters of fresh fruit glistening with morning dew, meats and cheeses arranged in artistic patterns, and a platter of thinly sliced salmon that made my newly enhanced sense of smell practically sing with appreciation.

A young woman with her hair pulled back in a severe bun approached with reverent steps, a bottle of champagne nestled in a silver bucket of ice. "Your Majesties," she murmured, her voice barely above a whisper.

I glanced at Theo as she began to uncork the bottle. "Champagne at 9 AM, really?"

He just shrugged, the corner of his mouth lifting in that half-smile that never failed to make my heart skip. "We're celebrating, my Queen." He leaned over to kiss my forehead as I shook my head in fond exasperation.

The doors had barely closed behind her when they opened again, this time admitting Elijah, Elena, and Christian.

I watched their expressions cycle through confusion, realization, and then—in Elena's case—barely contained delight. My sister-in-law actually sniffed the air, her eyes widening as she processed what her nose was telling her.