The shower is scalding hot, but I barely feel it. My mind is too busy racing through the mess we’ve created.
Last night changed everything.
I can no longer pretend I can protect her from a distance. My wolf won’t allow it. Even now, separated by a single wall and barely ten feet, he’s agitated. Pacing. Demanding I go back to her.
I lean my forehead against the tile and let the water pound against my shoulders.
What the hell am I supposed to do?
Tell her the truth. That we are fated mates. That the bond between us is real and unchangeable. Then, convince her to hide our relationship while I figure out how to deal with my father.
My jaw clenches. She’ll never agree to that. To sneaking around like criminals. Lying to everyone we know.
And then, there’s my father. It won’t matter that Violet and I share no blood. It won’t matter that our wolves recognize each other as mates. All that will matter to Alaric is that we’re family. Stepsiblings.What we did last night, what we are to each other…He’ll see it all as betrayal.
He’ll tear us apart. Force her to leave. Or worse—make Violet’s life so unbearable, she’ll want to leave on her own.
I slam my fist against the tile, welcoming the sharp pain that shoots up my arm.
There has to be another way. But I can’t see one.
I finish my shower and pull on a pair of sweatpants, leaving my top half bare. I look at my back in the mirror; the whip wounds are already healed, all those pink lines having faded to nothing. The perks of being a shifter.
The kitchen is quiet as I sip my coffee, staring out the window at the forest beyond the city limits. The pack will be waking soon. Life will go on as normal.
Except, nothing is normal anymore.
I take a long drink, letting the bitter heat ground me.
My wolf suddenly perks up, ears forward. Footsteps. Soft and hesitant.
I turn, and there she is.
Violet stands in the bedroom doorway wearing nothing but my shirt. It swallows her small frame, the hem hitting mid-thigh, the sleeves hanging past her fingertips. Her hair is a mess, her cheeks still flushed with sleep.
She has never looked more beautiful.
I set my coffee down and cross to her swiftly. My hands cup her face, tilting it up so she will meet my gaze.
“You should always wear my clothes,” I murmur.
She flushes, her eyes darting away. “Darius—”
I don’t let her finish. I lean down and give her a slow, sweet kiss, pouring everything I can’t say into the press of my lips against hers.
She melts into me with a soft sigh, her hands coming up to rest on my bare chest.
When I pull back, she’s looking at me with those wide, hazel eyes. Then, I notice something that makes me grin.
“You’re barefoot.”
She glances down as if just realizing it. “Oh. I—”
I don’t let her explain. I bend my knees and grab her under her arms, lifting her off the ground.
Her legs immediately hook around my waist, her arms circling my neck for balance.
I laugh low in my throat. “Who taught you to act like a little monkey?”
