Chapter 47: CHAPTER 47

Tessa's POV

I was still trembling in his arms, the warmth of his body seeping into mine, when his words finally sank in.

I will deal with them. They will face judgment. They will answer for what they did to you.

My mind reeled, struggling to process the enormity of what he was offering. For so long, I had been invisible. A footnote in my father's household, a burden to be tolerated, a sacrifice to be made. No one had ever fought for me. No one had ever protected me. No one had ever looked at me and seen someone worth defending.

But Dmitri did.

He looked at me like I mattered. Like I was precious. Like I was worth burning the world down for.

The tears came before I could stop them—hot and overwhelming, streaming down my cheeks in a flood I couldn't contain. I tried to hold them back, tried to be strong, but it was useless. The dam had broken, and everything I had been holding in for years came rushing out.

"Tessa?" Dmitri's voice was sharp with concern. He pulled back slightly, his hands cupping my face, his red eyes searching mine with an intensity that made my heart ache. "What's wrong? Did I say something? Did I upset you?"

I shook my head frantically, trying to speak through the sobs that wracked my body. "No—no, you didn't—I'm sorry—I just—"

"Breathe," he said gently, his thumb brushing away my tears. "Just breathe, Tessa. Tell me what's wrong."

I took a shuddering breath, trying to compose myself. "I just—I never thought—" I stopped, swallowing hard against the lump in my throat. "No one has ever treated me with kindness before. Not like this. Not ever."

Dmitri's expression softened, and I saw something flicker in his eyes—pain, maybe, or understanding. "Tessa—"

"I'm sorry," I said quickly, wiping at my tears with trembling hands. "I'm sorry, I know I'm being ridiculous. It's just—you're the King. You're powerful and terrifying and you could have killed me a hundred times over. And instead—" My voice broke, and fresh tears spilled down my cheeks. "Instead, you're here. Holding me. Telling me I matter. Promising to protect me."

I laughed, the sound wet and broken and utterly ungraceful. "I spent my whole life being told I was worthless. That I was a burden. That I was lucky to even be allowed to exist. And then I came here, to the one place I thought would surely be my death—and you—" I looked at him, truly looked at him, and the depth of my gratitude threatened to overwhelm me. "You treat me better than anyone ever has. You treat me like I'm precious. Like I'm someone worth protecting."

Dmitri's jaw tightened, and I saw a flash of anger in his eyes—not directed at me, but at the people who had hurt me. The people who had made me believe I was nothing.

"Tessa," he said, and his voice was rough with emotion. "You are precious. You are worth protecting. And anyone who made you feel otherwise was a fool."

I shook my head, more tears falling. "I don't know how to thank you. I don't know how to—I don't deserve this. I don't deserve your kindness. I don't deserve—"

"Stop." His voice was firm but gentle. He cupped my face in his hands, tilting my chin up so I had no choice but to meet his eyes. "You deserve everything, Tessa. Everything I can give you and more. Do you understand that?"

I couldn't speak. I could only nod, tears still streaming down my face.

He pulled me into his arms again, holding me tightly against his chest. I could feel his heartbeat beneath my cheek, steady and strong, and the rhythm of it was somehow soothing.

"I promise you," he murmured against my hair, "I will spend the rest of my life showing you exactly how much you deserve. Every day. In every way I can. You will never doubt your worth again. Not while I'm breathing."

The words settled over me like a warm blanket, and I felt something shift inside me. Something that had been broken for so long, slowly beginning to heal.

"Thank you," I whispered. "Thank you, Dmitri. I swear—I swear I will do my best to have your best interests at heart. I will serve you wholeheartedly. I will be worthy of your trust. I will—"

"Tessa." He pulled back, looking down at me with an expression that was almost fond. "You don't need to earn my protection. You don't need to prove yourself worthy. You already are."

I opened my mouth to argue, to insist that I would work harder, be better, do more—but before I could speak, he stiffened.

His entire body went rigid, his muscles tensing beneath my hands. His head snapped toward the window, his eyes narrowing, his nostrils flaring slightly as if he was scenting the air.

"Dmitri?" I asked, my voice small and uncertain. "What's wrong?"

He didn't answer. His gaze was fixed on the window, his expression shifting into something I had never seen before—sharp, predatory, utterly focused.

"The trees," he said, his voice low and dangerous. "There's something in the trees."

My heart lurched. "What? What do you mean?"

Before I could process what was happening, Dmitri moved.

He was faster than anything I had ever seen—a blur of motion that I couldn't track with my eyes. One moment he was sitting across from me, and the next he was beside me, his arms wrapping around me and pulling me against his chest.

I felt myself being lifted, shifted away from the window, cradled against him like I weighed nothing at all. His body was a shield between me and whatever was out there, solid and unyielding and utterly protective.

And then I heard it.

A grunt of pain. Low and guttural, torn from Dmitri's throat.

My blood went cold.

"Dmitri!" I tried to pull back, to see what had happened, but his arms tightened around me, holding me in place.

"Stay still," he growled, and there was something in his voice that I had never heard before. Something wild. Something dangerous. "Stay close to me. Don't move."