A repetitive drum banged, loud and persistent. There were no other sounds. Just the clanging inside Shadow’s skull. Reverberating. Annoying. Shut the fuck up.

Shadow rolled over, but his body weighed a ton. He slid open his eyes to a faint glow of light. White netting stretched overhead, and silhouettes twisted across the ceiling.

Zana’s bedroom.

“What am I doing here?”

Memories steamrolled through him. Klurt’s and Sivath’s deaths. The mating dance. Zana. Chasing Carver into the woods. Him implanting himself into a branch.

And, with that, came the heartbeat again, tapping like a ceremonial drum. Like his pulse knew something he didn’t.

He pushed himself up, but his elbows quivered and gave out. “Come on, damn it.”

Footsteps thumped from deeper in the house.

“Zana?” He craned his neck up.

She darted into the room, dressed in a flowing yellow dress that reminded him of the sun with the thinnest straps across her bronzed shoulders. Her amber hair draped over her shoulders, drawing attention to her huge smile. Was he dreaming?

“Shadow!” She tossed the netting aside and threw herself across his body, knocking the wind out of his lungs.

Her arms encircled his neck. “You’re alive.”

She nuzzled him just below his ear with soft kisses. Her warm lips grazed his mouth and tasted of peppermint. No time to react before she pressed her tongue forward. Her kiss was a promise of more to come, and damn if he wasn’t game.

He embraced her, his hands roaming across her back. His breathing quickened, and he moaned from the heat of her body crushing against his. Her intensity. Her passion.

When she pulled back, her eyes glistened. “I missed you these past three days. I didn’t think you’d wake up again.”

“Three days?” How could he have slept for so long?

Instead of answering, she kissed him again, fiery and demanding. Zana had done something to him in the best possible way. In those moments of inhaling her scent, adoring how perfect she fit against him, he knew where he belonged.

He cupped her face with one hand, wiping a tear with a thumb.

Tenderness filled her gaze before sparking into something else. She whacked his arm. “Never die on me again. I can’t go through losing you.”

“Think I would have remembered dying.”

“Carver poisoned you, and we fed you beans as an anti-toxin.”

“Beans?” Was she teasing him? Maybe they just needed to keep kissing. That made everything better.

She broke into laughter, the sound calming and reassuring. “I’ll explain later. Just know that you’ll be all right. And I’m here to make sure you heal.”

Yeah. Every inch of him ached, but what did that have to do with beans, and what about the mating dance? Last he remembered, Carver was hurt, and then his mind went blank. He stiffened.

“Did you see Carver?” he asked.

Zana propped herself up on the edge of the mattress, a hand softly sliding along his shoulder. She nodded. “Povian found you both in the forest.” There was hardness in her tone as if she’d practiced those words. The past week had been hell, and he didn’t need more shit coming his way.

The sun beat through the window, but still a chill engulfed him.

“Carver was a sadistic son of a bitch,” Zana said. “Our world is better without him.”

“He’s dead?” His throat thickened as the reality of her words crashed into him. He wracked his brain—he’d thrown punch after punch into Carver’s face. Revenge had driven him like a raging bull to make him pay for Klurt and Sivath. “Carver ran into a broken branch and impaled himself, thinking I was chasing him.”

Zana just stared at Shadow. “That dickhead butchered Klurt in cold blood. No remorse. He would have killed you and me if given the chance. You protected this community and me, just like the Guardians shield the kingdom. I bet they wouldn’t hesitate before taking down the enemy. They’d celebrate.”

“Carver murdered Sivath, too. I—”

“I know,” she blurted. “Povian and his guards visited Sivath’s house and found his body. Den and another goblin were digging a grave for him in the nearby woods, and both got busted. Dumbheads. Anyway, we’ve been holding off the funeral ceremony until you woke. It was too late for that, anyway, as he’d been dead for so long already.”

His head drowned in information overload. “All the fun stuff happens while I’m out of it.”

His attempt at humor came out flat. Instead, sorrow slammed into him. His friend and uncle were dead. Everyone had waited for Shadow to recover out of respect of his relationship with Sivath. But Shadow wasn’t ready to say farewell to another buddy.

Zana pulled him into her arms, showering him with kisses. “I’m so happy you’re back.”

When she broke her hold, he ran a thumb across her small chin, tracing her jaw line.

She stared at him, her mouth partly open. He pictured himself leaning in, tasting her, drowning in her passion. The vein in her neck pulsed beneath his fingers. It reminded him that life was short. Spending it alone was punishment in and of itself.

The realm had been a fairytale lifestyle. Sure, he’d been spoiled to high heaven, but the draes always kept their distance. He had friends, but they were army personnel, and no drae female stayed longer than a few weeks. Perhaps that was why he craved his own community. His own future with someone like Zana.

She lay next to him, face-to-face. Her smile was contagious.

“I can’t undo history,” he said. “But, together, we can change what’s coming to this town.”

She cocked an eyebrow. “You’re staying in Pryvale? What about becoming a Guardian?”

Shadow pulled her tighter so their bodies were plastered against each other. “I’m not going anywhere, and if you’ll have me, I’ll give you everything and much more. Besides, who said I can’t be a Guardian here for goblins? And someone else can play the ambassador. I have more important things to take care of at home.” Their foreheads touched. Her fruity smell flooded his senses.

She pulled back, her eyes wide. “Got to show you something.”

In a flurry, she rushed out of the room and returned in no time, holding something in her hand, a smile playing on her lips. Sitting on the bed, she unfurled her fingers.

Warmth flowed through Shadow, unable to stop himself from grinning. “The lunar flower? Where’d you get that?” The same flower said to give couples the goddess’s blessing.

She nodded, smiling so wide he couldn’t stop his lips curling upward. “Found it next to you when we found you poisoned in the woods. And you know what this means?” She cocked an eyebrow.

“You bet. Means, I’m never letting you out of my sight.”

She pressed in softly and kissed him. Warmth folded around him. He adored how she moaned against his mouth, and his world fell away. This was where home was.