For several minutes, we just lie there, catching our breath. I can feel his heartbeat gradually slowing against my back, his breath warm against my neck.
Eventually, he shifts, gently pulling out of me. I feel empty without him, despite the soreness. He turns me to face him, our legs tangling together naturally. His fingers trace idle patterns on my hip as he studies my face.
“I love you,” he says, the words clear and unambiguous in the quiet morning.
The declaration catches me off guard. Three simple words that I’ve never heard directed at me before. Not from my parents, who lost control of my fate the moment fae blood was confirmed in my veins. Not from any of my temporary allies or partners. Never from anyone.
I feel my eyes fill with tears, blurring my vision. Dane looks alarmed for a moment, his hand coming up to cup my cheek.
“Nova?” He sounds worried, uncertain.
“I’ve never heard that before,” I admit, my voice small and unfamiliar to my own ears. “No one’s ever said that to me.”
His expression shifts, something like pain crossing his features before he manages to control it. His thumb brushes away a tear that escapes.
“Then they were all fucking idiots,” he says firmly. “Because you’re the easiest person in the world to love.”
Another tear falls, and I don’t try to stop it. “I love you too,” I whisper, the words foreign but right on my tongue. “I didn’t think I could. Or should. But I do.”
He pulls me closer, pressing his forehead to mine. “We’re not supposed to make sense,” he says. “A half-fae spy and a pack Alpha. But we do.”
I nod, feeling something tight in my chest finally unravel. “We do.”
He kisses me then, soft and tender in a way our previous kisses rarely are. There’s no urgency, no desperation—just connection. When he pulls back, his eyes are warm, the gold flecks dancing like embers.
“I wouldn’t change a single choice that led us here,” he says. “Not one.”
And in this moment, with morning light filtering through the curtains and Dane’s arms around me, I realize I wouldn’t either.
Chapter 47
Dane
The sheets still hold Nova’s scent, warm and potent against my skin. I run my hand along the empty space beside me, feeling the lingering heat where her body pressed against mine through the night. She’s in the bathroom now. I hear water running, light footsteps, the quiet routine of someone who moves without wasting motion.
I pull on my pants, muscles aching pleasantly from last night—and this morning. My shirt lies crumpled on the floor, and I reach for it just as a knock sounds at the cabin’s front door. Three sharp taps. Ben’s knock.
“Yeah,” I call, voice still rough with sleep.
I hear the front door open, Ben’s boots on the wooden floor. I grab my shirt and head down the short hallway to meet him.He stands just inside the entrance, not venturing further into the cabin. His eyes take in my rumpled state, clocking Nova’s absence from the front room.
“Rafe and Ansel are packing up.” His voice is low, neutral. “Looks like they’re heading out. No announcement, no timeline shared. Just gathering their gear.”
I pause, shirt dangling from my hand. “Where?”
“Northern boundary. About ten minutes ago.”
I nod once. Ben doesn’t ask if he should stop them or gather the pack. He knows me well enough to read the decision in my silence.
The bathroom door opens, and Nova steps out, dressed in dark pants and one of my shirts, her hair damp at the edges. Her eyes shift between us, immediately reading the tension.
“What is it?” she asks.
“Rafe and Ansel,” I say. “They’re leaving.”
She doesn’t ask why or how I feel about it. She just nods, accepting the information without reacting. When I drop my shirt back on the floor, she doesn’t question that either.
I cross the room to her, pressing a quick kiss to her temple. “I need to handle something.”
