I navigated the bustling streets toward Kingsley Company headquarters. It had been nearly a week since the accident, cracked ribs mended, bruises faded to shadows, my S-tier alpha physiology shrugging off what would cripple a lesser shifter. Naomi's care had been the real accelerant: her gentle touches, the way she'd fuss over every meal, her body yielding to mine in stolen moments that blurred the line between healing and passion.
Gods, leaving her this morning had been torture, the bond pulling at me like a tether, her green eyes worried as she kissed me goodbye. "Come back safe," she'd whispered, her vanilla scent lingering on my skin. But pack and business waited; weakness invited predators like Darius.
I pulled into the underground garage, the enforcers at the gate nodding res
