Mallory:
The moment our eyes met, something snapped inside me. It wasn't painful, but it was jarring. Like my whole body had gone electric. Like I had suddenly stepped into a different realm entirely, one where the only things that mattered were his eyes on mine, and the breath I couldn't seem to take in.
My heart was hammering in my chest, hard and loud and fast. I couldn't look away. Couldn't breathe.
And then I felt it.
The bond.
Every fairytale I had heard whispered in corners of the Nightshade Pack gatherings. Every dreamy sigh girls released when they talked about soulmates, true mates, destined partners. I thought those were just stories. I had never expected to feel something so real, so immediate, and so overwhelming.
My stomach twisted and heat flushed my skin from head to toe. I couldn't make sense of anything... only that my soul was clawing toward him. Reaching. Anchoring.
