KARINA
I woke up very slowly, completely surrounded by the heavy, overwhelming scent of dark pine and fresh rain that was deeply soaked into the thick blankets of Kole’s massive bed.
My entire body physically ached with deep, throbbing bruises from the brutal training session on the gym mats, and my raw wrists were still incredibly sore from fighting off those filthy rogue men in the dark basement. I carefully pulled the warm blanket all the way up to my chin, staring blindly at the plain stone ceiling while the terrifying trauma of that near-assault violently warred with something much darker and far more complicated inside my chest.
What the hell was wrong with me? Why couldn't I get that constant thought out of my head?
Because instead of feeling completely broken and terrified by
