LOGINHe thought for a moment before he said, “I appreciate how smart you are. You’re studying to be a healer, and you’re good at it. I’ve seen the way you talk about your classes, the way you light up when you’re learning something new. It’s one of the things I’ve always admired about you.”I blinked. I
Ellie’s POVDinner was almost painfully quiet. We ate the roasted chicken and vegetables that the cooks had prepared, and Dominic made a few attempts at small talk, but mostly, it was only the sound of scraping cutlery and chewing and Vivian’s distant sobs that filled the air.After we finished eati
I passed my hand over my face and leaned back against the cushions as Amy went on to talk about each exercise. It all felt silly and useless, although I wouldn’t say that out loud. Not to her face, at least.But the truth was, I didn’t think any of this would work. Not when there was still a looming
Ellie’s POVI turned slowly to look at Dominic.“You hired a couples therapist?” I blurted out. “Since when?”“Since this morning, when it had been all night and you didn’t come home,” Dominic replied easily. “I figured it might be beneficial for us to talk to someone. A person who’s unbiased and tr
“You mentioned trauma before,” he said once they were gone. “And I’ve been thinking about that, too. I think whatever happened to you, whatever it is you won’t talk about, it’s affecting the way you see me. The way you see everything.”He wasn’t wrong. But he also wasn’t right, either. It was more c
Ellie’s POVI took the coffee from him, wrapping both hands around the warm cup, and followed him out of the library. The campus was already bustling as students went to their morning classes, many of them holding cups just like these ones.We walked in silence for a while, sipping our coffee. Domin
Dominic POV The word missing hits harder than any blow I’ve ever taken.It cuts through the noise of camp like a blade straight to the chest. The beer in my hand drops to the counter as I scan the edge of the tree.Ellie isn’t back yet? I how did I miss that?I blink, trying to time together. It ha
She was weak, tired, but had enough left to roll her eyes. “Why do you always ask me that like I planned it?”“I don’t.” I dismissed, standing. “It’s just—I’m taking you back, now. Just hold on to my fur and—”“No.”The word is flat. Immediate.I flashed a look her way. “No?”She braces her hands ag
Every breath he takes rocks me gently, steadily.I want to sleep, my body begging. But it’s…to quiet.And I can’t stand it.Because if I stay quiet any longer, I start thinking.About him.About me on him—My fingers curl lightly into his shirt.Nope. “Why did you come after me?” I ask, desperate f
Ellie POV I hear him above, twig snapping, legs breaking. Sounds like a storm with no rainWith a soft thud of dirt, the scrape of claws against stone, his massive shape drops back into the pit, a bundle of snapped logs and branches clenched in his jaws.He shakes, scattering leaves and soil every







