But enough for him to feel it.
He didn’t move.
Didn’t push.
Didn’t pull.
But every muscle in his body went tight, like he was holding back a thousand impulses.
“Lie down,” he said quietly, stepping back only when I did. “Get under the blankets. I’ll be right here.”
I nodded and slipped onto the bed. The sheets were still warm from earlier. I pulled the blanket up, watching as he crossed the room to the window.
He checked the locks.
Then the sensors.
Then he clicked the safety off his weapon and set it within reach on the nightstand.
When he finally sat on the edge of the bed beside me, the room felt smaller.
Warmer.
Charged.
He didn’t lie down.
Not yet.
He kept watch.
I reached toward him before I could second-guess myself, my fingers brushing his. He froze—not from rejection, but something else entirely.
Slowly… very slowly… he turned his hand and took mine.
Warm.
Steady.
Unshakeable.
A moment stretched between us, full of everything we weren’t saying.
And then—
A soft buzz.
Wolf stiffened and snatched up his comm.
Saint’s voice came through, low and uneasy:
“Wolf… we have something.”
Wolf’s grip tightened around my hand. “What is it?”
Saint paused—never a good sign.
“There was a second symbol,” he said. “Outside. Carved into the wooden fence near the alley.”
