DEMI
By the time Maverick left me alone to settle in, I was one sharp breath away from either panicking or biting someone. The guest room was beautiful in the way expensive traps were beautiful: polished wood, clean sheets, mountain air, and nowhere I could truly stop pretending. Watching wolves rip apart a vampire dummy had not improved my sense of welcome. Hearing my mate say he did not take chances with vampires had done worse things to my sanity.
I understood why he hated us. He had been a child when vampires came for his pack, too young to shift, too young to heal the scars they left behind. One of my parents’ men had marked his face before his wolf ever had the chance to protect him. Understanding did not make it easier to stand in the guest room of his home with my own fangs ac
