Rowen points to my camera. “You want to go see it?”
I blink. “Like… go outside?”
He grins. “Yeah. You know, fresh air. Sunlight. Cold air in the lungs.” He makes a face. “I usually hate winter, but like I said, it’s not bad today. Come with me?”
My first instinct is to tell him no. I haven’t been outside since… I don’t even remember. Not here. Not even back at the club. Have I even breathed fresh air since I lived on the park bench? I’m so used to the walls and shadows closing in that I forget how big the world is.
He must see the hesitation on my face because he says softly, “You’re not stuck in here, Toby. You’re not our prisoner. You know that, right? We’d never treat you that way.”
The word lands heavier than he means it to.Prisoner.
Something loosens in my chest.
No, of course I’m not. The pack has never made me feel that way. Not once. Even when they’d locked me in the room that first day, it was only for my own good. They haven’t since. They haven’t drugged me or held me down again.
“Y-yeah,” I say. “Okay.”
Rowen is up in a heartbeat, running across the hall to his room to rummage through his closet. He tosses me a thick red jacket with a fleece hood, a black beanie, and a matching pair of snow gloves.
“These should fit,” he says, tossing me some boots too.
Before putting them on, I slide an extra layer of sweatpants on, just to be sure.
When we head downstairs, Forest looks up from the table. “Where are you two going?”
“Outside,” Rowen says. “Tobias needs some sunshine.”
“It’s not safe,” Forest argues. “He—”
“We’ll stay close,” Rowen cuts in.
Something in his expression must convince Forest I need this, because he nods once. “Fine, but stay in sight.”
“We’re not leaving the yard,” Rowen promises. “Ivy, Red? Want to join us?”
They immediately get up.
Tobias asks quietly, “Who was that with you earlier?”
“Taren and Neal. Taren is the lighter wolf.”
Then, without a shred of hesitation, Rowen shucks his pants and shirt. I stare at his perfect rear end a little too long, and my cheeks flame red. His shift is over before my mind can fully react. One second, I’m staring at Rowen’s naked butt—the next, his fur ripples into view and he’s gone, replaced by an adorable wolf with a fluffy black-tipped tail.
How the hell does it happen so fast?
He paws a button on the wall, which opens the door, then bolts outside. His siblings rush past me on all fours.
The cold hits me as soon as I’m outside, as sharp and clean as it had appeared through the window. The air itself smells like it’s brand new. I breathe it in deeply, the chill burning my lungs in the best way.
For a second, everything inside me goes quiet.
Rowen was right. I needed this.
Stepping into the sun, I close my eyes and lift my face, breathing in for a long moment.Incredible.
A furry beast bumps my hip, and Rowen’s tongue lolls as he looks up at me.
I reach out, then pause. “Can I… pet you?”
