And what about Lucy? Hell, I didn’t even know where they stood! Had I just let myself become the other woman? Every muscle in my body clenched at the thought. What did he want from me now? What could he possibly have been thinking?!
Even if this was just a fuck, this wasn’t my usual pattern. No clean break. No names forgotten as I left. No spending the night next to him. No neat compartment to shove it in. With him, there were threads, questions, and a thrum in my chest that wouldn’t go quiet.
I dragged my hands over my face and bit back a groan.That's it! No more Hellfire booze. Ever.I was forever off the sauce because, apparently, it turned me into someone reckless enough to chuck every boundary I’d built straight out the damn window.
He stirred again, and I went still, every muscle tense, every sound putting me on edge. Peeking over my shoulder, my focus softened as I watched him sleep. Hair a tousled mess, breath even and slow, lips curved faintly, something peaceful and content. It was the picture of a man who’d fed every appetiteto complete satisfaction. Against my better judgment, a smile tugged my lips.
Even through the chaos in my head, one truth pulsed beneath it… Zeth knew how to fuck. Not just well, devastatingly well. Addictingly well. Dangerously well. I hadn’t felt this wrung-out, this satisfied, in longer than I wanted to admit, if ever.
Who knew he had it in him?
His face scrunched, nose twitching as loose strands of hair brushed his face. The urge to sweep it back rose before I could stop it. What harm could it do? Just a touch. Just to keep him asleep. I needed him to stay asleep while I processed everything. Plus, he’d worked so hard last night; he deserved the rest.
I slid my fingers into his hair, combing it back in gentle strokes. Silken strands slipped over my skin until something sharp kissed my fingertip. I hissed and drew my hand back, but his soft, sleepy moan caught me. “Nova. Oh… Nova.”
I froze. Heat flushed up my throat as I realized he was still asleep. Was he… dreaming about me? Even after last night's extensive activities? What a little sex beast he was. Maybe it was the demon genes?
Something poked out through his hair. My heart gave a heavy kick, and I leaned closer, pulse hammering in my ears. He moved again, burrowing his face into my pillow and taking a nice big sniff before settling down. The thing rose another half-inch, smooth and wickedly pointed.
No. It can’t be.
I blinked, but the vision didn’t fade. Two deep metallic black stubs, one on each side of his head, poked through his locks. Smooth, tapered to a needlepoint sharp enough to break skin.
Horns. Demon horns.
My whole brain went offline. There were no thoughts—only the desperate need to go.
Trying to be as careful and slow as possible, I slipped from the bed like it was rigged with explosives, heart pounding, every nerve ending screaming for distance. Those were fucking horns… horns that grew when he said my name and smelled my scent!
Snagging a sports bra and leggings from the floor, I practically ran from my room and down the stairs. I quickly scrawled a note for form’s sake and left it on the fridge before I bolted for the back patio.
Dropping the clothes onto the table for when I came back, I took off into the forest naked, knowing that I wasn't going to spend a lot of time in human form. I needed to run. I didn't know where or why, but the act itself would make me calmer.
The moment my bare feet hit the earth, I took off, going zero to sixty in mere seconds. The mountain air cut at my skin, each lungful sharp enough to hurt.Fucking horns.
Demon horns only emerged for their mates.
Did he know? How long had he hidden this from me? Did he know when I confessed to him six years ago? Did he know when he came back? Was it me, my power, my position, that made him hold back? Did he want me and my body, but not the bond?
The questions tangled tighter and tighter until they became a noose. I couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think.
Tears prickled at the corners of my eyes, threatening to spill over. My whole world had been thrown into chaos, but a Rossey didn't cry. No. We pushed through with our strength, got mad, and made the world bend to our will… but I had no idea what that will was.
That familiar heat flared up at my wrist, confusing me even more, but I refused to look at it. To acknowledge it. No. I was going to let all of this fade into the back of my mind. I was going to let her take over and save me from embarrassing myself any further.
My bones cracked and reshaped mid-stride, fur bursting over my skin as my wolf took me, slamming the human voice into silence. Four paws hit the ground, claws digging into soil, and the world became pure and clean. Pine and damp earth filled my lungs, the rush of wind in my ears, the pulse of the forest around me.
No Zeth. No horns. No questions. Just the wild, the run, and the single primal beat in my veins.
I didn’t know how long I’d been running, how far I’d gone. I just let my wolf take the reins and do with us what she wanted, letting the peace of not being in control settle my troubled soul.
The furalong my spine prickled.
A presence pressed in at my back, not close enough to hear, not careless enough to snap a twig. Just weight. Attention. It moved when I moved, slipping through brush and hollows with stealth.
I let my stride settle, then veered off the trail without warning. Leaves crunched under my paws as I cut downhill, angling toward the creek. There was nowhere to hide in open water, nowhere to watch without being seen.
If they wanted to keep me in their sights, they’d have to step into the light.
