ERIK
I don’t know how long I lay there in the darkness, holding Marienne in my arms.
Even though I was exhausted, every muscle in my body wrung out and sated, my mind buzzed. In sleep, Marienne burrowed into my chest, and my heart melted. I brushed her long, dark hair off her bare shoulder and smiled to myself as I tucked her closer against me.
I couldn’t make sense of what had just happened.
My shifter was a powerful one; my royal bloodline made sure of that. I had always been stronger than the other men in my village, and my dragon could fly great distances without tiring.
Sure, I had a reputation for losing my temper. But uncontrollable shifting, and then claiming my half-brother’s wife? That was on a different level. In truth, the lack of control scared me.
There seemed to be one
