“You’ll take it all, princess,” he whispered against my skin. “Roll over,” he commanded gruffly.
I rolled onto my stomach. He was already pulling my hips up to meet him, moving back inside me, filling me. My groan of appreciation at being so full filled the room. My hands clenched the blanket as he drove into me, his rhythm punishing but perfect. His hand threaded into my hair, wrapping it around his fist, pulling my head back, while his other hand dug into my hip.
“You take me so fucking well, princess.”
“I need…”
His hips moved at a relentless pace, and I could feel my orgasm approaching—just one more. His fingers rubbed at my clit, and my body erupted in ecstasy. My head was on the mattress, fingers digging into the mattress as my mate thrust once again inside me, then yelled out his own climax.
Wolfe dropped his head between my shoulder blades. “Fuck.”
I giggled, feeling him pull away and leaving me empty. “No…” I mewled, needy and desperate.
“I know, mate, I’m not finished yet,” he promised as he rolled me over.
Sleep would come later.
Wolfe would let it. Eventually.
The Hollowstill felt off the next morning.
Not dangerous or hostile. Just…unsettled. Like the land itself hadn’t slept either.
When Wolfe and I stepped out of the house, the air wasthick with whispers. Pack gathered in tight groups across the clearing—whispering, pacing, snapping at each other over nothing. Fear coursed through them like a cold current.
They looked at me, and it wasn’t with panic. It was worse. It was doubt.
Killian spotted us and came over immediately, jaw tense. “They’re rattled,” he said without preamble. “More than rattled. They’re shaken to the core.”
Wolfe’s posture stayed relaxed. I could sense the pack’s eyes on us—searching, assessing, needing.
“They’re getting too used to an attack like this,” Killian continued. “They shouldn’t be. Some of the younger wolves couldn’t sleep. A few keep asking if we should go to Stonefang and give them what they want.”
Wolfe growled low in his throat. “We’re not running.”
“I know,” Killian said. “But they need to hear it from more than me.”
I felt Wolfe’s hand find mine automatically, but this time, it wasn’t him grounding me—it was me steadying him. He hated seeing his pack afraid. Hated it viscerally. Like it was a personal failure.
I stepped forward. There were at least forty wolves gathered now. Some still looked injured, as if they hadn’t the strength to heal themselves. Some were exhausted, and others stared at the burn marks that still scarred the land.
They were agitated—hands twitching, footsteps restless, breaths too shallow.
“Rowen,” Wolfe murmured, his voice low. “I’ve got this?—”
“So do I,” I cut in.
I walked into the center of the clearing, feeling everygaze sharpen. My stomach twisted, but the mate bond steadied me. “Look at me,” I said, not yelling, not commanding—just firm.
Silence washed over the pack.
“The Council attacked us because they’re scared,” I said plainly. “Not because we’re weak.” A few wolves flinched at the wordattacked.I pressed on. “They wanted to shake us. They wanted us to doubt ourselves. They wanted you to fear what’s coming. They struck at you when your alpha was not here, likecowards.” I lifted my chin, letting my wolf bleed into my eyes just enough for them to glow. “But you’re still standing.”
A few wolves shifted their weight, listening more closely.
“You defended your home,” I said. “You protected each other. And you watched the Hollow itself rise for us.” The ground pulsed faintly beneath my feet—as if agreeing. “We are not the ones who should be afraid right now.” I let the words hang, measured and confident. “They are.”
Killian murmured his approval. Diesel crossed his arms, smirking. Wolfe moved closer behind me, not overshadowing—just providing support.
