Page 79 of The Cursed Wolf King

I rounded the corner to her bungalow and paused outside the door. The rain picked up as thunder rolled closer, and the overhang offered little protection. My senses flared, catching her scent. I raised my hand to knock but hesitated, listening instead.

Through the quiet patter of raindrops, I heard a faint, stifled sound. Not a sob exactly, but a soft, choked breath. The emotion of it interrupted my intentions. I’d come to tell her I had to leave, to investigate the meeting we’d been excluded from, but talk of travel paled in comparison to my mate’s need for comfort. My soul was called to be there for her, leaving practical matters for later.

I knocked softly and waited. No answer.

“Eve?” I called, low enough not to carry beyond the bungalow. Still nothing.

I tried the handle, and it gave way easily under my hand. I opened the door. The interior was dim, shadows stretching long across the space. It smelled damp and like wood, and the faint heat of a fire long since extinguished still floated in the air.

My wolf saw her before I did, flashing up through me with the need to encircle her, warm her, protect her from her own feelings.

Lying on the couch, her knees tucked tightly against her chest, she wrapped her arms around herself. Her head rested on the armrest, turned enough that I could see the wet tracks on her cheeks, glinting faintly in the soft light.

The sight of her knocked the breath out of me. My wolfdemanded I move closer, comfort her, do anything to wipe that pain from her face. I stayed where I was for a moment, caught between instinct and restraint to offer her space.

“Eve,” I said softly, stepping inside and shutting the door behind me. My voice broke the stillness like the first crack of thunder in a storm. I moved closer. “Hey,” I said, kneeling by the couch so I was at her level. “What’s going on?”

She turned her head to look at me. Her eyes were red, and the sight of them yet again twisted something deep inside me. I didn’t wait for her to answer. I reached out, brushing a damp strand of hair away from her face. The simple touch sent a spark racing up my arm, the bond between us thrumming.

“Eve,” I repeated, even quieter. “Talk to me.”

She shook her head, her lips pressing into a thin, trembling line. Her pain was palpable, a living, breathing thing in the air between us.

Whatever this was, whatever had brought her to this point, I knew one thing with absolute certainty.

I can’t leave her like this.

Outside, thunder rolled. Inside, the air was heavy, words unsaid, this growing bond between us filling the air.

I stayed kneeling in front of her, watching the way her chest rose and fell, her breaths uneven. She hadn’t spoken yet, but I could feel her emotions through the bond—chaotic and raw.

“I’m not leaving until you talk to me,” I said, my tone firm but quiet, meant only for her.

“I’m fine.” I wasn’t the least bit convinced. “You don’t have to?—”

“No,” I cut her off gently. “Don’t push me away.”

The words hung between us. Her lip quivered, and she turned her head, clutching the wool blanket around her like it was the only thing keeping her together.

I leaned closer, my instincts sharpening as I caught the faint hitch in her breath, the way her shoulders curled inward. My wolf stirred, an ache for her coursing through my veins. The storm outside felt muted compared to the one roaring inside me.

“I can feel it, Eve,” I said. “Let me in.”

Her walls finally cracked. A single tear slid down her cheek, and I couldn’t stop myself—I reached out, my hands cradling her face as if she were made of glass. Her skin was warm beneath my palms, soft as velvet, but her tension vibrated against my touch like a taut string ready to snap.

“It’s too much,” she said, looking over my shoulder and shaking her head at a distant thought. “What I’ve seen, it’s like it swallows me whole and there is no place for both me and the vision. To put words to it, to speak it aloud…” Her terror was palpable as she shook in my arms. “I wouldn’t be able to survive it.”

“Whatever this is, whatever you’re afraid of, I’m a part of it too.” My thumbs brushed away the wetness on her cheeks. “Eve, I know what you went through in Heraclid. Don’t you realize all you’ve overcome already? You survived the worst they could throw at you, and you did it alone. But you don’t have to anymore. That’s what I’m here for. I’m not going anywhere. Can’t you see that? What happened before, whatever you’re holding in, it can’t scare me away. I couldn’t leave you if I wanted to, and Eve, Idon’twant to.”

“But what if?—”

“There is no what if. Not with you. I am bonded to you, Eve.” I touched her forehead with mine. “Forever.”

Her breath faltered, and the air seemed to shimmer between us. The bond wasn’t a thread—it was a river, swift and unstoppable, coursing with an intensity that gripped my entire being. It burned and thrummed, alive with a power that felt as if the universe itself was stitching us together, weaving something unbreakable. Every sensation was sharpened, her heartbeat an echo that reverberated through me, the connection no longer a faint ember but a blazing inferno, undeniable and consuming.

I had to claim her.

“Forever,” Eve repeated. She leaned forward, her hesitation turning into a decision. I closed the gap, my lips meeting hers in a kiss that sent a shockwave through the very core of my body.

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