The Woods Watch
1134 Words
The storm had swallowed the forest whole by the time Rowan led Holly through the winding path toward the cabin. Snow drifted in thick sheets, clinging to branches, muting every sound except the crunch of their boots and the faint hiss of wind weaving through the pines.
Holly tightened Rowan’s coat around herself. It was far too big and far too warm, and it smelled like pine, smoke, and something else, something rich and wild that made her heartbeat stutter.
She didn’t know why she trusted him.
But she did.
“Watch your step,” Rowan murmured, his hand steady at her back. “The trail narrows here.”
He moved like he belonged to the forest; silent, sure, every step confident. Holly followed, breath fogging, trying not to think about how her life had taken such a sharp turn in a single moment.
But Rowan’s presence made it both easier and harder to breathe.
After several minutes of trudging through the storm, he glanced back at her.
“What were you doing out here so late?” he asked. “This road isn’t safe even on clear nights.”
Holly hesitated. She’d known the question was coming, but still her stomach twisted.
“I was heading to my grandmother’s cabin,” she said lightly, hoping the surface explanation was enough.
Rowan’s gaze lingered on her, sharp and unreadable.
“And why now?”
There it was.
She looked away, watching the snow swirl around her boots.
“I needed a change of scenery. Time to… clear my head.”
Rowan didn’t press, but he didn’t accept that as the whole story either. She could feel the weight of his attention even without looking at him.
“Did something happen?” he asked, voice low, not prying but inviting.
She swallowed.
And suddenly she was back there, not in the snowy woods, but standing in the doorway of her apartment three weeks ago, holding a cardboard box full of her belongings.
Her boyfriend, no, her ex-fiancé, stood across from her, shame painted across his face like a bruise.
“I didn’t mean for it to happen, Hol,” Ethan had said, running a hand through his perfect blond hair. “It just… it just did.”
Holly remembered staring at him, unable to breathe.
“You cheated on me,” she’d whispered.
“It was one time.”
“One time too many.”
His expression crumpled, but she didn’t stay long enough to see tears or apologies or excuses. She’d grabbed her things, walked out, and never looked back.
Then, as if fate wanted to deliver a final blow, her boss laid her off the next day; budget cuts, downsizing, nothing personal.
Everything she’d built had collapsed in 48 hours.
“Holly?” Rowan’s voice pulled her back to the present gently.
She blinked hard, pushing the memory deep beneath her ribs.
“It’s… complicated.” Her voice trembled despite her best efforts. “Breakups usually are.”
Rowan’s jaw tightened.
“Someone hurt you.”
It wasn’t a question.
“I’ll survive,” she said softly. “People do.”
A low, almost silent growl shivered under Rowan’s breath, barely audible, but unmistakable. Holly looked up sharply, but he’d already masked it.
“If someone caused you pain,” he said carefully, “they didn’t deserve you.”
Heat slipped up her neck, unexpected and unwelcome.
“Thank you,” she whispered, embarrassed by how much the simple words meant.
Rowan cleared his throat, shifting slightly.
“You don’t owe me details. But… I’m glad you’re safe.”
She nodded, grateful he wasn’t pushing.
Still, she sensed something in him, something coiled tight, something intensely protective that made her chest ache for reasons she didn’t understand.
Ahead, the cabin appeared like a ghost in the snow, warm golden light spilling through the frosted windows. Rowan exhaled, relief softening his features.
“Almost there.”
The cabin was small but sturdy, smoke curling from the chimney, wreath on the door, lights glowing around the porch railing. It looked like something out of a Christmas card.
Rowan stepped up first, brushing snow off the steps with his boot.
“I use this place during patrols or storms. It’s safe, and warm.”
He opened the door, and heat rushed out to greet them.
Holly stepped inside hesitantly. The cabin smelled faintly of cedar and firewood. Two plush chairs sat near a stone fireplace crackling with flames, and a soft wool blanket was draped across a couch.
“Sit,” Rowan said gently. “Warm up. I’ll make tea.”
“You have tea?” Holly asked, surprised.
He smirked slightly. “I’m not a complete heathen.”
She laughed, really laughed, for the first time in weeks.
Rowan stood at the small kitchenette, preparing a kettle. The way he moved… precise, controlled, but there was a tension beneath the surface. Something he was holding back.
Holly watched him, fingertips warming near the fire.
“Do you… live out here?” she asked after a moment.
His hands paused over the mugs.
“No,” he said slowly. “My actual home is deeper in the forest. With my family.”
“Family?”
Rowan nodded, though his eyes remained on the kettle.
“It’s… a community. A lot of us live together. You could call it a pack.”
A strange word, a strange tone, a strange flicker in his silver eyes.
Holly tilted her head. “Like… a survivalist group?”
He almost choked on a laugh.
“Something like that,” he said.
The kettle whistled, ending the moment.
As he poured her a mug, Holly stared into the flames. Outside, the storm raged, wind howling against the glass like something alive.
She shivered despite the warmth.
Rowan stepped closer, offering the steaming drink.
“You’re shaking.”
“I think the adrenaline just wore off,” she said softly. “And the storm sounds… intense.”
Rowan’s gaze flicked toward the windows, posture stiffening.
“It’s not just the storm.”
Holly’s heart skipped.
“What do you mean?”
He stared into the wind-whipped darkness, eyes narrowing. A look crossed his face, protective, alert, almost… feral.
“Something’s out there,” he murmured. “Something watching.”
A chill slid down Holly’s spine.
“Wolves?” she whispered.
Rowan didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he stepped closer to her, placing himself between her and the nearest window.
His voice was low.
“Yes. Wolves… and other things.”
Holly swallowed hard.
But then, softly, Rowan turned toward her again, his expression gentler.
“You’re safe with me,” he said, voice like warm velvet despite the storm. “I won’t let anything hurt you.”
And somehow… inexplicably… she believed him.
- Writer
