Morning came slowly beneath a gray sky.
The storm clouds from the night before had not moved far, leaving the forest wrapped in a dull, cold light. Snow covered the ground in a thin blanket, softening every sound and turning the clearing around our camp pale and silent.
I had barely slept after the dream.
The image of Kael standing in the darkness lingered in my mind far longer than I wanted to admit.
Even knowing it wasn’t real didn’t make the feeling disappear.
The mate bond was quiet now, but not gone.
It never truly went away.
I stood near the edge of the clearing while the first patrol of the morning returned from the eastern ridge. Their paws crunched lightly through the snow as they approached.
Tarek shifted back into human form first, shaking snow from his dark hair.
“All
