Page 38 of Howl About That

It was a promise, a vow, and a beginning.

FIFTEEN

POPPY

Poppy woke up to the scent of cedar and forest rain and the solid weight of an arm slung possessively over her waist. Morning light filtered through the tall windows of Keiro's bedroom at his family estate, catching on dust motes dancing in the air. Her cheek was still pressed against the hard plane of his chest, her ear tuned to the steady beat of his heart while his heat enveloped her, forming a cocoon of safety and strength that seeped into her bones. For a long, suspended moment, she simply existed.

I never want to leave this bed.

She wanted to seal the heavy oak door against the world, against Sander's scheming, against the elders' scrutiny, and against the ticking clock to prove their partnership worked. Because here, in this private space that smelled of him, she wasn't Alpha Mintz carrying a collapsing empire. She was just Poppy, warm and sated and cherished.

The reality of what waited outside that door—the raised eyebrows, the political friction of a lioness and a wolf, the inevitable questions—was a cold draft against the warmth he provided in this room. She hadn't told her pride he was her fatedmate. The confession had stuck in her throat, not out of shame, but from an older, more stubborn fear.

What if this doesn't last?

After last night, she didn't really believe it anymore. Lying here, with their hearts beating in a synchronized rhythm, she could feel them knitting together into a unit. He didn't diminish her strength; he amplified it. He saw the exhaustion she hid and called it resilience. He validated the woman beneath the title, and that recognition mattered more to her than any elder's approval ever could.

She wasn't running anymore. She was choosing. Choosing him, choosing the bond, choosing the exhilarating possibility of a life that wasn't about mere survival but about building something that thrived. The thought was a sunrise in her chest, spreading warmth through every vein, and a wave of fierce joy broke over her.

The arm around her waist tightened, and a low, sleep-roughened voice vibrated against her ear. "Someone's in a good mood this morning."

She tilted her head back to find him already awake, watching her with those deep brown eyes and a soft smile playing on his lips that carved a devastating dimple in his cheek.

"I guess there's no hiding anything from you now," she said, her own voice soft. She traced the line of his jaw with a fingertip. "I'm just… excited. To explore us. To spend time with you that doesn't involve spreadsheets or site surveys."

His smile widened, transforming his face from controlled Alpha to something approachable and breathtaking. "I'm excited too. Dangerously so." He brushed his lips against her temple. "But I do have to steal a few hours for the business today. Need to go to the site and take photos for the contractors before they mobilize."

A flicker of disappointment crossed her features, the wish for a lazy, tangled day in his sheets a palpable ache. But the practical Alpha in her understood. "Well, why don't I join you? If that's alright."

He nuzzled into the curve of her neck. "That's more than alright. I'd love your company. Plus, a second pair of eyes, especially yours, is always an asset."

The compliment, casual and sincere, warmed her further. "Alright then," she said, sitting up.

Her yellow sundress lay in a pool of fabric on the ornate rug beside the bed, a bright memory of the night before. She slipped from the sheets and picked it up along with her panties, the fabric whispering against her skin as she pulled the clothes on with practiced efficiency. But the simple act of dressing was laden with the ghost of his hands removing it.

The memory of his mouth on her and the feeling of him moving inside her washed over her with such visceral intensity that her knees almost buckled. She had to physically resist the urge to crawl back into the massive bed and demand a repeat performance.

A deep, knowing chuckle sounded behind her, and she automatically turned.

Keiro had risen from the bed, naked and unashamed, a study in masculine perfection. The morning light carved the dense muscle of his shoulders, the hard lines of his abdomen, and the faint scars that mapped a history of conflict. His arousal was evident, a blatant and thrilling testament that her desire was not one-sided.

He closed the distance between them in two predatory strides. He didn't touch her, but his gaze was a physical caress. "The feeling," he murmured, his voice a low rumble that resonated in her bones, "is clearly mutual. Maybe we'll have time later for some more… exploration."

He winked, a shockingly playful gesture from a man who commanded an entire pack of wolves and turned toward his walk-in closet. Poppy stood frozen, a blush heating her cheeks. There was no hiding from him. The mate bond was a live wire between them, humming with shared sensation. Every spike of her desire, every flutter of her happiness, every shadow of her fear—it all flowed to him now. But the realization didn't terrify her as it once would have. It felt like being truly seen, known, and cherished in her entirety.

This man, this formidable wolf Alpha, was becoming her safe place. Her home.

Soon, her lioness purred.Soon we will let him mark us.

But not yet. The human part of her, the part forged in eleven years of solitary leadership, needed more time. She needed to see how they fit together in the uncompromising light of day, outside the bedroom and beyond the partnership agreements. She needed to be sure that when she took that final, irrevocable step, it was for a future she could believe in with her whole soul, not just her yearning heart.

Forty minutes later, the tires of Keiro's Bentley crunched to a halt on the gravel track that bordered their land. Poppy stepped out of the car, the air rich with the scent of damp earth, pine, and the wild promise of the woodland before them.

This was the place. The parcel of land that had been a symbol of her failure, now a cornerstone of their shared future.

Keiro came around the car, his phone already in his hand, his gaze sweeping the terrain with the analytical focus of a strategist and the appreciative eye of the architect he'd once dreamed of being.

"This is where the main lodge will anchor everything," he said, his voice a low vibration that seemed to belong to the landscape.