My wolf didn’t bother responding to that particular lie.
I found a small ceramic urn in the cabinet by the window and carried it downstairs. Outside, the morning air hit my face, cool and sharp as I walked over to the edge of the clearing.
The gardens we maintained sat quiet in the early light. I nosed through the flowering section until I found what I wanted, a late-blooming silverbell, a cluster of mountain iris, and a purple thing I didn’t have a name for but that smelled sweet.
I gathered them carefully, placed them in the urn, and took the stairs two at a time back to the suite.
The urn looked ridiculous on the table. Too big. The flowers listed to one side because I had no idea how to arrange them properly. I adjusted them anyway, moving the purple ones to the back. Turning the silverbell so it caught the light.
My wolf watched with what I could only describe as amusement.
Her meal arrived, and I left before she could wake and find me primping flowers like a lovesick fool.
Even though I was absolutely acting like a lovesick fool.
I had work to do. Reports to review. Border disputes that wouldn’t resolve themselves. I couldn’t spend the morning lingering over breakfast with my wife just because I wanted to see her face when she noticed the flowers.
I made it halfway down the stairs before I admitted I was running.
Outside, I shifted and bolted into the forest that opened up around me, endless green and brown and the rich scent of earth and growing things.
This was freedom. Four legs instead of two. Instinct instead of politics. The weight of being alpha king falling away until all that remained was muscle and speed and the pure joy of movement.
My wolf stretched out, eating up the distance with long strides. We followed a game trail deeper into my territory, cutting through familiar sections and ranging out toward the boundaries I patrolled most often.
This kept me from thinking about Victoria’s hand on my chest and the way she’d looked at me on the balcony last night before I’d kissed her.
Well, and our kiss. That had been amazing. Everything I could’ve dreamed of.
I’d like to kiss her again, feel the softness of her mouth beneath mine and hear the small sound she’d made when I’d pulled her closer.
My wolf huffed.Still thinking about mate.
I pushed harder, letting the burn in my muscles drown out everything else.
At least an hour later, I circled back toward my home tree, slowing as the compound came into view through the undergrowth. My wolf settled, satisfied with the run but restless in a way I recognized.
Want to check on mate.
I shifted at the clearing’s edge and strode toward the tree. The practical thing would be to head straight to my office on the third floor, where I could start working through the stack of reports waiting for me.
Instead, I kept going up the stairs.
Kirk intercepted me on the fourth landing.
“Alpha.” His expression told me everything before he opened his mouth. “Bastian just arrived. Unannounced. Two of his enforcers came with him.”
Every muscle in my body went rigid.
The northern pack alpha, a male older than me by fifteen years and twice as calculating. The kind of wolf who made power moves look casual, who turned dominance displays into friendly visits. The one who was hedging on signing our treaty.
He’d arrived without an invitation or warning. Just showed up in my territory like he had every right to be here.
The message was clear. He didn’t consider himself subject to normal protocol. He didn’t think he needed permission to enter my territory.
The timing hit me next. Victoria had suggested a broken pack seal last night. We’d talked about it on the balcony, working through the implications.
And this morning, Bastian appeared.
