His gaze drops for just a second, as though the truth tastes bitter every time he says it.
He scoffs, shaking his head. “And me? I’m neither. Just something spat from the void, before names had meaning. A cosmic fuck-up no one bothered to clean up.”
Ezra plants a soft kiss on my forehead, and all I want to do is melt into his arms again.
Can’t this wait until tomorrow? Or like, never?
Louie’s head snaps up while a threatening growl rumbles in her chest.
Ezra smiles against my forehead, his breath hot and sensuous as he whispers, “Be careful, hell-pup. We had a deal, remember?”
My gaze shifts to Louie. “A deal? What kind of deal?”
Louie bares her teeth, her voice twisting into a vicious snarl.
“This pretentious fucker came to me in the woods to ask for passage into our home because he plans to fu—”
The shift is instant. One minute, he’s flesh and heat, my body tucked against his. The next? Shadows curl around him, swallowing him whole.
When they dissipate, a massive black dog stands in his place.
Too long. Too lean. A nightmare wrapped in fur.
Everything about him is almost right. Almost. Like a god tried to remember what a dog looked like and got … close.
I should be terrified. But … I’m not.
The old stories echo in my head. Guardian of the dead. Keeper of the threshold.
I called him “Grim” before I ever knew the truth.
And now? I wonder if he’s always known me—not just the girl, but the atoms. The dust. The tiny eternal flicker that drifted through the stars before finding a body to call mine.
My ancient protector. My own Grim.
He found me in the dark. And dragged me back with teeth, claws, and blood.
Wait, are those tattoos peeking out from beneath the thin fur on the inside of his leg?
Is that a rabbit sitting in a field of clover?
The uncanny dog growls at Louie with a row of vicious-looking teeth. Drool drips on the floor, and blind rage emanates from his massive body.
Louie, ever my protector, jumps in front of me.
But Ezra won’t hurt me. I can stop this.
With slow, deliberate movements, I stand and carefully walk toward the massive black dog. Louie whines when I kneel in front of the bloodthirsty creature and gently place my hands on his beautiful, furry neck.
“Louie, I’m okay. Thank you for always protecting me. But this time, let me protect you. Ezra won’t hurt me.”
His eyes as a giant canine are the same steel grey as his human eyes. They’re fucking mesmerizing. The moment he turns his focus back to me, the storm swirling in them calms and his body relaxes.
“Ezra, my sweet Grim, will you change back and finish what you were telling me … please?”
The massive black dog huffs, shaking himself out as his shadows flick outward in mild irritation. Like Ezra is struggling to contain them even in this form.
I glide my hands across the smooth, glossy fur on his neck, stifling a giggle when his tail wags.
