Page 120 of Grim

I cupped his face. “The goddess says it will work this time. Our bond was solidified. I’ll pull strength from you, and I will make it.”

Grim grabbed my wrists, rubbing his beard up and down my hands. “But I worry you won’t.”

“We didn’t come this far to give up have we? You didn’t go rabid. I didn’t die. We found each other and completed something so precious.” I rubbed his cheek with my thumb. “I believe this will work, I believe I will shift and make it, but I’ll need your help. We will get through this, I know it.”

Grim closed his eyes and pressed his naked body against me. I rested my cheek on his chest. He swallowed heavily.

“She’s failed me; she’s failed so many others before, Journey. It’s hard to open myself up like that. For all of us. You have to understand–”

“You all have reservations, I know. And for a long time, I didn’t have anything to believe in, but this I believe. You, right here, with me, is a miracle. I’ve trusted you from the very beginning whether I knew it or not, now I’m asking you to trust me.”

Grim sighed heavily, his hands squeezing my wrists tighter. “Alright. I will trust you.”

With a silent thank you, I kissed his lips, and he let go of my hands. He walked backward, keeping his eyes on me.

I showed no fear, knowing that was exactly what he was looking for. I pulled my shoulders back and nodded, signaling I was ready to watch because I would not look away once he started.

First, his back hunched over, and his bones began cracking. The twisting of his body, his legs turning into the back hind legs of his wolf made me wince inwardly.

Show no fear, I told myself.

Then he grew, his naked body became larger. He no longer looked like one of those horror movie werewolves where they could stand on two legs and had opposable thumbs. The fur sprouted quickly, the thick, deep red fur covering his body entirely. With a resounding thump, his two front paws landed on the ground.

I wanted to ask if it was painful, if he could feel every break. Did he feel his skin ripping and stitching back together? Not a drop of blood was spilled during his transformation, but the intenseness of a human morphing into a larger being looked extremely painful.

Big black eyes stared back at me, his nose sniffing above him. He trotted toward me like he hadn’t seen me in ages. Leif lowered his snout and licked my cheek. I laughed, feeling the softness of his fur and the way he rubbed up against me.

“I keep forgetting how big you are. You’re like a horse,” I joked.

“I’m going to feel like one when you climb on my shoulders,” he snorted. “Maybe we should have brought a special saddle.”

I shook my head and walked around to his side. Using the scruff of his neck along with his wolfy bow, I straddled his body.

I felt Leif’s strength in his shoulders. They were bulky, massive and my legs had a hard time holding on. He was completely solid, muscle covered with glorious fur.

Leif trotted to the edge of the tree line so I could figure out my balance. I gripped his scruff, and my legs tightened around his torso.

“Hang on,” Leif said as he lifted his giant head and howled at the moon as it started its ascent.

Leif raced through the trees like he was a part of the forest. Deer, drinking from a half-frozen stream, stood in confusion as he raced by. They didn’t fear him while he galloped under the canopy of snow and ice. They stood watching until we were entirely out of sight.

Leif howled several more times, running up and down large hills and ravines with ease. It was easy to tell he was trying to show off. His eyes kept trailing back behind him to check on me.

I couldn’t hide my smile, my laughter coming out in screams of joy when he would jump over streams and large logs.

My hair wildly flew behind me, catching on branches and waving in the falling snow. But I didn’t care. I felt too alive to ask him to stop or slow down.

If this is what it was like to become like Grim, to become a wolf, to run wild and free into the wilderness, I’d take it any day. For the first time in all my life, I felt free.

I would never have thought that hiding under a bed from my nightmares would bring this angel into my life.

And now we could create a new life together, two broken souls finally mended.

Chapter Forty

Grim

She loved it; she loved every nip of cold air that brushed her face. Her squeals of fear turned to joy the more I hopped over the logs and boulders that stood in our way. We ran for a good hour. My wolf, Leif, enjoyed the smells of the outdoors, the dirt between his paws, and the smell of fresh meat that could easily be devoured.

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