LOGIN~HOLLY~The cabin looks like something torn straight from a Christmas fairytale.Snow piles thick on the slanted roof, glowing faintly under the porch light. Pine garlands frame the windows, dusted white, and smoke curls lazily from the chimney as if the place itself is breathing warmth into the storm. Yellow light spills through the glass, soft and inviting, promising safety.Damien shifts back before my eyes again, the wolf dissolving into man in a rush of heat and motion. He’s human when he reaches for the door, barefoot in the snow, naked except for the torn jeans hanging low on his hips, and somehow the cold still doesn’t touch him.The door opens.Warmth crashes into me like a wave.I stagger, my knees buckling as the heat kisses my frozen skin. Damien catches me instantly, one arm wrapping around my waist, the other bracing my back.“Easy,” he murmurs, pulling me inside.The door shuts behind us with a heavy thud, sealing out the storm, and the wor
~HOLLY~The door handle barely moves before Damien’s hand drops from it.His head lifts slowly. Too slowly.His entire body goes rigid, every muscle locking like stone beneath skin. The storm is quiet now….wrongly quiet, and I can feel it in my bones that whatever howled back at him is close. Very close.“Holly,” he says without looking at me, voice tight with warning, “stay in the car. No matter what you hear.”My heart slams.“Damien, what is out there?” I whisper.He doesn’t answer.The trees to our left suddenly explode with movement.Snow showers into the air as something massive crashes through the undergrowth.I see claws first. Then glowing eyes.Then a body so large it doesn’t look real—thick fur matted with ice, shoulders humped unnaturally high, mouth stretched open to reveal rows of vicious teeth. It looks like something dragged straight from a nightmare.A mountain creature.It roars.The sound is so loud it rattles the car and vibrates in my ches
~DAMIEN~Before 4:00am this morning, I left the house. I drop a note saying I won't be home for two days on the table in the sitting room for Gabriel and Ella.I grab my jacket, my keys, and walk straight out of the house like staying one more second will change my mind.The cold outside should bite when I step out, but it doesn't.Nothing feels cold enough these days.The engine of my SUV growls to life as I pull out of the driveway. I drive off. Out of town. Out of everything.The cabin in the mountains has always been my escape. Silence. Snow. Distance. I tell myself I only need two days. Just two days of empty air and quiet to get Holly out of my head before Christmas. Two days to kill whatever this thing is that keeps tightening around my chest when I think of her.The forest swallows the road as I climb higher. Pine trees blur past. The sky hangs low and heavy with snow. The higher I go, the worse the cold becomes, the air sharp enough to slice throu
~HOLLY~The next morning comes with a strange, uneasy calm. The kind that feels dishonest.I start to sweep my house, brush my teeth, bath and do some petty petty chores as I wait for my rented SUV.By the time the SUV pulls up in front of my building, I’m already dressed in layers—sweater, coat, scarf, gloves—my suitcase waiting by the door like it’s been planning this escape longer than I have.The driver greets me a good morning, hands over the SUV key, wishes me a Merry Christmas and hoping I have fun, then turns to leave.I load my suitcase into the rented SUV myself with shaky hands, my breath fogging in front of me as cold air bites through my gloves. The city is still quiet, barely awake, and for a second I almost turn back.Almost.But the image of Damien’s cold eyes flashes in my mind, and I shut the trunk harder than necessary.I need this. I enter the car and ignite it, and soon, I am driving off to my destination.The mountain cabin.Three hours a
~HOLLY~Gabriel knocks once before barging into my room…..his usual.He stops when he sees my backpack zippered and ready.“Whoa—what are you doing?” he asks, eyebrows shooting up. “Why are you packing?”“I’m leaving,” I whisper, avoiding his eyes.His whole face drops. “Leaving? Now? Holly, it’s three days before Christmas,” he tells me.“I know.”“Then why the hell are you suddenly leaving?” he demands, stepping closer.I fidget with the strap of my bag, my stomach twisting.“I… just need to be home. My ceiling is fixed now, so… I can go back.”He frowns. “But why now? Spend Christmas with us. You literally have no one to spend it with over there. Just stay. Please.”My throat tightens.I wish I could tell him.Tell him his father kissed me. Touched me. Froze me out. Broke me.But I can’t.“I just want to go,” I say softly. “That’s all.”Gabriel searches my face, confused, frustrated, worried.“There is something you're hiding from me, Holly —And no, this isn'
~DAMIEN~Dinner is torture. It is a battlefield disguised as a table set for four.And even though Ella chats softly about the Christmas decorations she wants to put up while Gabriel jokes about something he saw on TV…..even though the warm lights glow and the food smells good, I am still very uncomfortable.Because of her. Holly!She sits across the table, small and quiet, too quiet, her eyes lifting to me only once….and I look away so fast it’s almost violent.I keep my face blank, jaw stiff, every muscle locked in place.My fork scrapes the plate in slow, measured movements.She barely eats. Barely moves. Barely breathes.And every second of her silence feels like another punch to my ribs. I can feel her silence like a weight pressing on my lungs.Gabriel stares at her with growing concern. Ella keeps glancing between the two of us, her brows pinched.I keep my expression cold. Blank. Controlled.If I look at her too long, everything inside me will spill