Her eyes went wide. "Wait, seriously?" The grin that spread across her face was almost alarming. "Oh, this is going to befun."
"That's one word for it."
She laughed and looped her arm through mine like we'd known each other for years instead of minutes.
The room was exactly as I'd left it—her explosion of color on one side, my single bag on the other. Ivy flopped onto her bed while I continued unpacking, pulling clothes from my bag and hanging them in the closet with more focus than the task required.
"So," she said, watching me from her nest of quilts. "You going to tell me about cowboy hat guy, or do I have to guess?"
"There's nothing to tell."
"Liar." But she said it cheerfully, without malice. "Fine. Keep your secrets. I'll figure it out eventually."
She probably would. That was the annoying thing about people like Ivy—they paid attention.
I finished with the clothes. Started on the books. The motions were familiar. Grounding.
Everything else felt like standing on ice that was starting to crack.
"Hey." Ivy's voice was softer now. "You okay?"
"Just tired. Long trip."
She was quiet for a moment. “K, I’m going to read, holler if you need something."
"Thanks."
I heard her settle back against her pillows, heard the rustle of a snack bag opening, the soft crunch of her chewing. Normal sounds. Roommate sounds.
I walked to the window. Looked out.
No Denali. Just the next building over, its windows glowing warm in the fading light. The mountain was out there somewhere, hidden by Frosthaven's careful geography, but I couldn't see it.
I could still feel it, though. That pull in my chest, constant as a heartbeat.
And now there was something else. Someone else.
James.
I pressed my palm flat against the cold glass and made myself think clearly.
The mate bond didn't have to mean anything. It wasn't destiny. It was just biology. Chemistry. The universe's way of sayingthis person is compatible with youwithout asking if you actually wanted that information.
I didn't want it.
For seven years, my dreams had returned to the same pale wolf—same eyes, same broken rhythm in his stride, the same stretch of snow beneath a sky I could chart by heart.
I wanted Denali.I wanted the wolf in the snow, the one who'd been waiting for someone to find them.I wanted to prove that the longest-lost could still be found, that everyone who said it was impossible was wrong.
I didn't have room for complications. For distractions. For a boy in a cowboy hat who looked at me like I had all of the answers.
This changes nothing,I told myself.
Outside, the last light faded from the sky.
Behind me, Ivy hummed something off-key and kept eating her snacks, unbothered by my silence. She didn't push. Didn't pry. Just let me stand there, staring at nothing, working through whatever I needed to work through.
Maybe having a roommate wouldn't be so bad after all.
