And when she finally breathed steadily again—when I knew she would live—I walked away.
Because I knew then what I know now.
She could never stand beside me.
The Rowan line does not bind itself to weakness. My family’s women have always been fierce—warriors, seers, leaders. My mother, my sisters, my aunts: all legends in their own right. And me? I was raised to believe strength demands strength.
But Selene is not strong.
She’s a healer who fumbles with her gift, a wolf who trembles when others bare their teeth. And though the mate bond fires up my blood, it doesn’t change what I see when I look at her.
Someone I shouldn’t want.
Someone I can’t stop wanting.
I press my fist against the tree trunk, the bark biting into my skin. Across the lawn, her laughter drifts to me again, bright
