Estelle’s POV

Pain shot through my entire body like fire racing through my veins. I rolled from side to side, unable to find any position that brought relief. My muscles ached, my head pounded, and every breath felt like swallowing glass.

Then suddenly, a cool hand touched my forehead.

The relief was instant and overwhelming. The burning sensation that had been consuming me from the inside began to fade. I found myself instinctively curling toward whoever was there, desperate for more of that soothing coolness.

The closer I got to this person, the better I felt. It was like they were some kind of living remedy, drawing out all the pain and discomfort that had been tormenting me.

Eventually, I found the strength to open my eyes.

The first thing that hit me was the scent of mint, clean and refreshing. I looked up to see Zayne watching me, his electric blue eyes filled with something that looked almost like tenderness.

For a second, I couldn’t tell whether this was a dream or if it was reality.

“You’re awake?” he asked softly.

His voice sounded real enough. I blinked a few times, trying to clear the fog from my mind. “How long was I out?”

“Not long. Just a couple of hours.”

He reached over to the nightstand and brought me a glass of water along with some pills. I swallowed them quickly without asking what they were. I trusted him.

“Pain medication,” he explained anyway. “The Blackmoon healer came to check on you earlier.”

“Oliver?” I asked, my voice raspy.

Zayne nodded in response.

Hearing that, I felt some of the tension leave my shoulders. Oliver was someone I could trust completely. He wouldn’t spread gossip or share my business with others. After all, he was the one who had first told me about my unactivated mark when other healers I had visited beforehand missed it entirely.

Thinking about the mark made me unconsciously touch the spot on my neck where it sat hidden beneath my collar.

“What’s wrong?” Zayne asked, noticing the gesture.

“Nothing,” I said quickly, pulling my hand away. “I just need to head back. There are some things I need to handle back in Blackmoon.”

I tried to swing my legs out of bed and stand up, but my knees were still weak. I stumbled forward, losing my balance completely.

Zayne moved fast, catching me before I could hit the floor. But our momentum sent us both tumbling. He twisted us around at the last second, his back slamming against the floor while I landed on top of him.

My hands pressed against his chest to steady myself. The impact had caused my shirt to shift, and I realized with growing horror that my mark was now partially visible. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

I looked down and saw Zayne staring directly at it.

Panic shot through me. I quickly adjusted my clothes, trying to hide the mark as much as possible. My heart was racing as I caught him still staring at me.

Hopefully, he didn’t catch a clear glimpse of it. I wasn’t sure how he might react if he found out about the mark.

Thankfully, he said nothing about it. But the moment his eyes met mine again, I felt my mark begin to tingle.

The sensation was similar to what I felt earlier in the morning. It started as a warm flutter but quickly grew into something more intense. Desire began building in my chest, spreading outward like ripples in a pond.

I tried desperately to push down the feeling, but being this close to Zayne was making it impossible. His scent surrounded me, that clean mint smell that somehow made me want to lean even closer.

We stared at each other for a long moment. The air between us felt charged, like the moment before lightning strikes. His hands had moved to my waist to steady me, and everywhere his fingers touched felt like it was on fire.

My heart raced in my chest. Every nerve in my body screamed at this close contact. But I couldn’t seem to make myself move away from him.

Finally, I managed to break eye contact, looking away as heat flooded my cheeks. I was blushing like a teenager with her first crush, and I hated how obvious it probably was.

“Let me help you up,” Zayne said, his voice rougher than usual.

He helped me to my feet carefully, his fingers lingering on my waist longer than necessary. The touch sent butterflies racing through my stomach, making me feel like I was seventeen again. I had to school my expression and get it together.

As he steadied me, I noticed that his collar had gotten messed up during our fall. It was askew, revealing more of his neck than usual. My eyes couldn’t help but trail down his slender neck, stopping at his Adam’s apple as my mouth went dry.

Then, my line of sight went further down until I saw something that made all the blood drain from my face.

There, partially hidden beneath his collar, was a mate mark.

Zayne had a mate mark.