““Stop it. He’s just human. Just a man. But that was the thing. Elder wasn’t just a man. He was more than human. He’d transcended into fantasy. He was the beast locked in a castle. He was the hero battling inner demons. He was more than just mortal because he’d already done so much more than any other roguish storybook prince would do. He’d rescued me. He’d awakened me. He’d kissed me awake like Sleeping Beauty and removed the poisoned apple from my soul like Snow White. He was my happily ever after. I””
