I could still feel her warmth against my chest.
The way Amara had curled into me during the night wasn’t just instinct or comfort—it was trust. I hadn’t realized how much I craved that until her head settled on my shoulder and her heartbeat fell in rhythm with mine. No armor. No walls. Just the quiet assurance that—for a moment—she was safe, and I was enough.
But the world didn’t give us moments like that without consequence.
The knock on the door had been too measured to be casual. When I opened it, the guard’s expression told me what I already felt humming at the edge of my instincts: something had shifted.
“Alpha Marcus,” the warrior said quietly, “he was spotted near the Ashridge valley trail. Alone, but moving west.”
A flicker of warning sparked down my spine.
I nodded and dismi
