The sign welcoming us into New York state felt heavier than it should have. We had driven through the afternoon with the windows cracked, letting in cool northern air that smelled of pine and distant rain. My hand stayed laced with Darius’s on the center console, but my stomach twisted tighter with every mile marker. This was it. His territory. His pack. The place where I would stop being just his mate in private and become something public, something real.
Darius seemed to sense my rising nerves. He squeezed my hand, thumb stroking slow circles over my knuckles the way he always did when words weren’t enough. “We’re almost at the border of our lands,” he said quietly. “Dom should meet us soon. He’s the only one who knows we’re coming today.”
I nodded, trying to smile. “Good. I think I
