Chapter 1
CHAPTER ONE
I never believed in faeries.
Not the glowing-wing, flower-crown creatures people on the internet obsessed over. Not the mysterious immortal beings hidden in forests or wandering around disguised as humans. To me, faeries belonged in fantasy books stacked on bookstore shelves beside dragons and vampires.
Completely fictional.
Unfortunately, my best friend disagreed.
“Betty, I’m telling you, if I ever meet a fae male, I’m leaving this world willingly.”
I looked up from my laptop with a deadpan expression. “You need help.”
“No, I need a six-foot-five immortal man with emotional issues.”
I snorted despite myself.
The university café buzzed around us with conversations, the smell of coffee thick in the air as students rushed in and out trying to survive midterms. Outside the large glass windows, snow drifted lazily from the gray Michigan sky, covering the campus in white.
Winter had arrived earlier than expected this year.
“Seriously,” Chloe continued dramatically, shoving her phone in my face, “look at this artwork. Tell me he’s not gorgeous.”
I glanced at the screen.
A dark-haired man with silver eyes stared back at me from the digital painting, shadows curling around his shoulders like smoke.
I raised an eyebrow. “He looks like he murders people for fun.”
“That’s the appeal.”
“You are deeply concerning.”
Chloe gasped loudly. “You just don’t understand the beauty of morally gray men.”
“I understand therapy bills.”
She rolled her eyes while I returned my attention to my assignment. Physics wasn’t exactly forgiving, and if I failed this semester after surviving three years at the University of Michigan, my mother would probably disown me dramatically over the phone.
Not really.
But almost.
“You know,” Chloe said after a moment, stirring her coffee, “there’s this old legend about fae soulmates.”
“Oh no.”
“Yes.” She ignored me. “Apparently dark fae rulers are bound to one person chosen by fate itself. If they never find their soulmate, their realm starts dying.”
I typed another sentence into my document. “Mhm.”
“And when they finally meet their soulmate—”
“Please tell me this ends with therapy and communication.”
“—their souls recognize each other instantly.”
I sighed.
“Chloe.”
“What?”
“You need a hobby.”
“This is my hobby.”
I shook my head with a laugh, though a strange chill crawled unexpectedly down my spine.
Cold.
Sharp.
Like icy fingers brushing against the back of my neck.
My fingers paused over the keyboard.
For a moment, the café suddenly felt… quieter.
Too quiet.
The laughter faded.
The conversations blurred into muffled noise.
A strange feeling settled heavily in my chest.
I frowned slightly and looked around.
Everything appeared normal.
Students sat in groups studying. Someone argued loudly near the counter because their drink order was wrong. A barista called out names impatiently.
Normal.
Completely normal.
So why did it suddenly feel like someone was watching me?
I slowly turned toward the window beside our table.
And my breath caught.
A man stood across the street.
Tall.
Dressed entirely in black.
Snow fell around him in thick waves, yet none of it touched him. It was as though the storm itself avoided him.
Even from this distance, I could feel him staring directly at me.
My stomach tightened.
Silver eyes.
Not gray.
Silver.
Something about him felt deeply wrong.
No—
Not wrong.
Inhuman.
The air in my lungs vanished.
His gaze held mine with terrifying intensity, and suddenly that strange cold feeling spread through my entire body.
The café lights flickered violently.
Several students looked up in confusion.
“What the hell?” someone muttered.
But I couldn’t look away from him.
The man across the street tilted his head slightly, almost as if he were studying me.
Like he’d finally found something he’d been searching for.
Fear curled sharply in my stomach.
Then Chloe spoke.
“Betty?”
I blinked.
The man was gone.
Just like that.
My heartbeat pounded violently against my ribs as I stared at the empty sidewalk.
Gone.
“What happened to you?” Chloe asked slowly. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
I swallowed hard and forced a nervous laugh.
“Nothing,” I lied.
But deep down, I knew something had changed the moment those silver eyes met mine.
And somehow…
I had the horrible feeling that my life would never be normal again.
