The descent in the elevator was the quietest, most agonizing sixty seconds of my life. My skin felt too tight for my own frame. Beside me, Tess was a pillar of scary confidence and defiance. She stared straight ahead at the elevator’s brushed metal doors, her shoulders back, and chin lifted. She was completely unphased by my own distress.
The scent of her - spiced pomegranate, cedar, and the expensive tang of new wool - was hitting me in waves. My wolf was pacing the perimeter of my mind. His hackles were raised, not in aggression, but in a possessive sort of awe. I had told her to pick something red to mark our victory, and if I were being honest, there was a part of me that had been hoping for some kind of cocktail dress. Seeing her like this though…she looked like a queen on the battl
