Nevertheless, Marcus was aware of the necessity of those patches. Rogues, wild omegas, and feral shifters especially were known to attack even members of their own packs and families, let alone strangers attempting to subdue them. Hell, the bear shifter himself had made ample use of those during his less…lawful occupations, but it was another thing to be on the receiving end of the subterfuge. “I’m also sorry about Darryl,” Carlson nudged his apparent protégé who had gone extremely pale, which was impressive considering his already bloodless complexion. “He’s new on the beat and still needs to learn the ropes. Moved here from way up north, I think, and he hasn’t met that many shifters.” With some effort, Marcus forced his teeth back into a blunter and more human shape. “It’s not me you should

Red filled her cheeks, and – for lack of something to do to tear her gaze away from that piercing, impossibly green stare – Vivienne snatched up her glass and quickly downed the whole thing in several gulps. Marcus’s eyes widened and the pupils shrank in surprise. He lifted his hands to steady her. “Wait, don’t drink so fast–” The warning came too late. A drop of water slipped down the wrong pipe, and Vivienne quickly found herself bent over, hacking coughs shaking her entire body as her throat burned with the effort. In a heartbeat, the glass slipped from her grasp, mesmerizing water droplets glistening in the sunlight from the window as they flew through the air like a wave cresting over the ocean, but no nearly as welcome. A second later, the receptacle sent water splashing over them both before clattering to the ground where it thankfully did not break from such a short height. “I’m sorry!” Lord, she was losing it. “Let me clean that up–!” “No, it’s fine,

Marcus couldn't help but watch her leave, his eyes lingering on the graceful sway of her brightly coloured dress as she made her way up the stairs, limping ever so slightly. Vivienne's allure was undeniable, a magnetic pull that had grown stronger with each passing hour. He sighed inwardly, torn between the desires of his heart and the boundaries that their unfortunate circumstance had imposed upon them. His enhanced senses caught every subtle detail—the soft padding of her footsteps over the carpeted floor, the almost imperceptible creak of her bedroom door as it opened. Marcus listened until those sounds faded into the distance, signalling her grateful retreat into the sanctuary of her room. Finally tearing his gaze away, the shifter refocused on his job. Protecting Vivienne was his priority, his duty, and he couldn't afford to let his own personal feelings cloud his judgment when her wellbeing was on the line. A sneer curled across his lips as his eyes landed on his mobil

Neither of them spoke to the other for the rest of the day, with Vivienne remaining upstairs in her bedroom where he could hear her running over lines in privacy. From the sounds of it, the part she was auditioning for sounded like the stereotypical jealously evil ex from a soap opera, the one who jumped in the middle of the relationship between the main leads in order to drop some shocking information about the man or woman or reveal that she’s pregnant, etc. While Marcus diligently patrolled the perimeter of the house and kept a vigilant eye on the security cameras, a series of intricate thoughts tugged at him. Amidst his duties, he couldn't help but keep one ear attuned to the sounds emanating from within the house. Through the walls of the mansion, Vivienne's monologuing voice carried through the air, bringing with it the full weight of her character's emotions, resonating with an intensity that was impossible to ignore. In spite of his thoroughness, he couldn’t

The morning continued to drift by on light wings, with Vivienne diligently engrossed in her books and notes. The sunlight streamed through the parlour room window, casting a warm glow on her work. She was so focused on her textbooks and notepad that she hardly noticed the passage of time as the clock ticked down to the afternoon hours. It was only when Marcus returned from cleaning up the kitchen and settled down on the floor opposite her that she became distracted.Vivienne looked up, a faint blush dusting her cheeks as she met his interested gaze. Marcus was leaning over, his eyes scanning the array of numbers and atomic structures covering the page of the thick book. From that side of the table, the contents must have been upside down and he was tilting his head as if trying to read them. The sight was so painfully adorable coming from such a large, grizzled man that Vivienne almost wept with bliss."Oh, hey," she greeted, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her e