Thor

e would be a *second*, and a *third*, and then... gone. Cast out into the b

nge, static moment, the Alpha of this territory hel

ion. It was a bizarre, split craving. One part of me, the human part, wanted something soft and sweet, a memo

whisper-thin. Then, because the other need wa

pression, which had held that unreadable flicker of something other

ce vibrated through our joined hands, up my arm, and into my chest. He pulled hi

oor. "Broth," he commanded, his voice carrying an author

ke. He didn't look back as he left, the door closing behind him with a soft, final click. I w

with quiet efficiency, removing the IV line from my arm with a ge

gry with me?" I asked,

s... precise," she said, choosing her word carefully. "He does not appreci

on*. That's

table by my bed and left without a word, I stared. There was a bowl of steamin

ate mousse, a single, blood-red raspberry on top. And on a silver plate, several sl

asked for. A secret indulgence. A lie told to the rest of the pack. My hea

metallic taste of the venison. The broth warmed me from the inside out. For the first time since I'

ication, yes.

I tried to ignore it, shifting on the bed, but it grew steadily, relentlessly, until it was a hot, agonizing knot of pain.

oward the adjoining door I hadn't dared to open before. It led to a bathroom that was bigger than any room

old wall, a strangled sob tearing from my lungs. The pain was blinding, white-hot. I cou

e sound raw, ripped from

was there, a dark silhouette against the light of the corri

e strained, stopping at the thresho

floor. "It hurts. I can't..." I couldn't say the

e, a war playing out across his features. He looked

It was made of silver, heavy and ornate, chased with designs of wolves and moons, and it was fill

"The compress," he said, his voice a low, controlled rumble of pure discomfort. "T

he instructions he gave with his eyes still squeezed shut, I pressed it to my lower abdomen. The relief wasn't

he relief was so profound it left me dizzy, tears streami

st stood there, a guardian in the dark, guiding me

hand, at the sheer, overwhelming power he held in check for my sake. He wasn't just an Alp

a dawning, absolute certainty. A devotio

my Alpha

n, and for a split second, I saw a look of raw, hunted

ked out of the bathroom. He didn't say a word. He didn't look at me again. The d

marble floor, his scent linge