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But it would be a few days before I shifted back.
My wolf refused to be parted from Cole. I joined him at dinner and in bed. There was no sneaking out before I woke the next two days. Instead, I joined him in court again and observed.
The evening of the third, Cole deviated from his normal routine. He changed from his regal work clothes and put on the normal outfit I was accustomed to seeing him in when we went training. Simple, lightweight black clothing.
I twisted my head from where I watched him perched on the bed in question.
Cole read my expressions perfectly, even as a wolf. He smirked. “We might as well have some fun.”
And then Cole teleported us away.
I’d come to learn portals were used for travel between realms, whereas powerful creatures could simply teleport themselves within the realm. That was how Cole keptpoofingpeople away at his convenience.
I blinked as I stood on unsteady legs.
The place… it was familiar. The sky was red—still in Hell, after all—but I had been here once before. With a navy sky.
The first time I’d ever seen Cole. Back when I’d thought they were just dreams. I wasn’t sure how I could recognize it after all those years when I hadn’t even recognized Cole. But this place…
This place washome.
I had no words to ask Cole. Surely he knew my questions?
“This is where we first met. Then… and a thousand years before.”
I jerked my head back. The human in me wanted to prod and process. He was finally offering information, real information. But my wolf… all she wanted was to see her male.
A mass of sleek black fur came into view. The scent of his fur was thick in the air. My wolf wanted to roll in the scent until it was enmeshed in our own.
Cole may have dressed as a king as a human, but as a wolf, he was a raw, powerful Alpha. Amber eyes met mine. Unflinching.
I met his gaze. There might be a hundred questions between us, but this? This moment felt right.
And then a blur of black bolted ahead.
He ran through the field and I took off after him immediately. It wasn’t the sprint of danger, but rather an invitation. The dirt slid between my claws as I bounded after him. My body relished in the release. Weeks of being cooped up in the palace were fine for pampering, but they did nothing to soothe the beast that lived inside my skin.
Did Cole feel the same need I did? He was always so in control, but it was impossible to hold every emotion tightly in your chest when your wolf took over, no matter how harmonized the two souls were.
I caught up with Cole a few beats later. We ran together. Our flanks brushed side by side as we crossed under the dark sky. I had no idea where we were headed, but I was grateful. Cole led us forward through a forest. For hours, we ran and hunted. We shared a pair of rabbits we caught. Cole nudged the scant meal my way first, an act that pleased my wolf to no small degree.
All the while, he watched me.
I never wanted the night to end. I’d never known such simple contentment.
Could this be my life? I wasn’t sure if it was the simple nature of my wolf’s thinking that led to the thought or simply my own weariness, but in that moment, I felt I would be utterly content if this was to be every night for the rest of my life.
The fact it couldn’t be was a simple reality I forced myself to ignore for the rest of the night. I ignored it while we ran, while we nuzzled, while Cole magicked us back to the palace into the bedroom.
I slid into bed, curled up tightly with my tail wrapped around my nose. Cole was next to me. He never said a word, not the entire evening back. Instead, my body pressed against him, savoring the contact. I was doused in Cole’s scent, and my wolf never wanted it to fade.
I didn’t want it to go either.
I fell asleep with the taste of him over me. The deepest, most peaceful sleep I’d ever had.
When I woke up, I was refreshed. I wanted to stretch my arms and run a dozen miles to start the day.
Except Cole had my body pinned in his embrace.
