VINCENT
I shift back into human form at the edge of the forest, my wolf reluctantly retreating as my body reforms. I'm naked, as always after a shift, but I quickly grab the clothes I'd stashed in the hollow of an old oak tree before my run.
Pulling on my black running pants and gray t-shirt, I feel the familiar weight of being human again settle over me. The morning air is crisp against my skin as I stretch, working out the tension from the run. My wolf had needed the release after last night's restless sleep.
Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Kaia's face—the way she looked at me in that conference room when I defended her, the confusion mixed with something that might have been gratitude.
I start walking back toward the packhouse, following the worn trail through the pines. As I a
