Page 112 of Shifting Hearts 1
The bond explodes between us, lightning down my spine, heat curling through every nerve ending. I cry out, and he shudders, forehead pressed to mine.
“I feel you,” he groans.
“I’m yours,” I whisper.
And I mean it. Even after everything he put me through, I am his.
We move like we’ve done this a hundred times. Like our bodies remember. His hand finds mine, fingers laced tight. The orgasm hits me hard, tearing through me with the force of a storm. I can feel his in the next breath, sharp and raw, his name on my lips, mine on his.
And then silence. Nothing except the sound of our heartbeats and the wind outside.
Hours later, I lie tangled with him in the sheets, his chest rising and falling beneath my cheek. He strokes my hair, his other arm locked around me like he’s afraid I’ll vanish.
“Tell me this wasn’t a mistake,” he murmurs.
I press a kiss to his skin. “It wasn’t.”
He sighs. “I should’ve known. The first time I looked at you, I knew.”
“Knew what?”
“That I was already lost.”
THIRTEEN
The Ashes We Keep
Lucien
Idon’t want to go.
Her scent still clings to my skin, and the heat of her breath still lingers on my neck. Everything in me screams to stay wrapped in that moment. That bed. That bond.
But I promised her I’d clean this up. And if I don’t, she’ll never be safe. The Alpha Council doesn’t wait for excuses or context. They want names. Bodies. Proof that the land is no longer under threat.
So, I leave her sleeping, wrapped in our bond like silk. And I run. I let my wolf take over and push as hard as I can until we get to where we need to be.
The Council meets in a clearing ringed with obsidian stones, neutral territory for old blood. The sky here is always gray, and the trees don’t move in the wind. Five Alphas sit on stone chairs, cloaked in black, gold and ruby pins marking their packs.
I stand before them like a wolf beneath the blade.
“Speak, Hunter,” growls Alpha Taron. His voice is gravel and ash.
“Nara Vexley. Witch-blooded. She is responsible for the deaths of two wolves and the possession of rogue territory through blood-claim rituals. She is also dead.”
“And the witch responsible for shielding her?” asks Alpha Mirella, her silver eyes sharp. “The one rumoured to have aided her escape from the first investigation?”
“I didn’t find one.” A blatant lie nut one I’ll carry if it keeps Emilia off their radar.
Unfortunately, I’m not the only wolf who’s been sniffing too close.
Alpha Grayson clears his throat. “Our intelligence suggests otherwise. A half-breed witch. A psychic is hiding in Crystal Falls. Rumours say she summoned a blood flare powerful enough to rupture a protection line.”
My heart slams against my ribs.
“She stopped Nara,” I say coldly. “She saved me. She’snota threat.”
“Magic like that always is,” Mirella snaps.
