Caden’s POV
I hit the punching bag for what feels like the thousandth time. It’s busted—leaking sand and covered in my blood. My knuckles sting as tears fall from my eyes.
I caused her so much pain—for nothing. I was a dickhead. I nearly lost her because I refused to listen when she told me, over and over again, that she was ready.
I was so obsessed with protecting her innocence that I didn’t realize I was breaking her. Her heart stopped beating. And when it did—so did mine. Why couldn’t I see her then the way I see her now that the bond is in place? She wasn’t a girl. She isn’t a girl. She’s a woman.
The bond doesn’t snap into place and magically turn you into an adult. It’s more like a conclusion to your childhood—a graduation into something deeper. It’s the moment every wolf waits f
