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I ran. And ran. And ran. The more I ran, the more my thoughts settled down, until I had no thoughts at all. All I felt was sensation: the dirt, the wind, my breath, my heart. There was no past, no future, no expectations. Just each moment cascading by like a rushing river. I ran until my lungs burned and my muscles protested, until the sky was inky-black with night.
I reached another clearing where a small creek cascaded down a rough rock face. The water was clear and cold, gurgling, and I hurried forward to drink from the stream. As I started to feel refreshed, I flicked my ears. The forest was alive around me, with sounds of small creatures in the underbrush, owls in the branches overhead, the wind rustling the leaves, and the stream rushing over the rock.
The king stepped out of the tree line, panting. He padded closer to me, slowly this time, and lowered his head to drink from the stream as well. His presence comforted me. I didn’t have to pay careful attention to the forest around me, not with the king nearby. Instead, I could focus on the simple pleasure of being in this shape—and how pleasurable it was. This was the most time I’d spent in my wolf form in years. Maybe ever. At least since I was able to control my shifts. And it felt good, indulgent, like dancing all night. I knew it was a bad choice, and knew I’d regret it, but it was so intoxicating in the moment I couldn’t bear to stop it.
Then the king lifted his head. He nudged his nose against my flank, then guided me closer to the rock face where the water spilled over. In the side of the cliff was a small opening. He nudged me again and I padded into the cave. It was barely a cave—more like a burrow. It smelled of cool dirt and fresh water, and the security of being enclosed immediately made me sleepy.
I flopped onto my belly in the cave, and the king padded in after me. With the two of us in the cave, we nearly took up all the space on the ground—and that only made me feel more secure.
He lay down next to me, then nosed at my neck, and at the fur behind my ear. His exhale washed over me, and having his scent so close soothed me, made my pulse slow down as exhaustion washed over. He pressed close, his warm bulk surrounding mine. Distantly, I knew this wasn’t appropriate, but the protest was faint, like a mosquito buzzing. Easy to wave away and ignore. Especially when I was so tired. And the king smelled so good. And he was so warm. And the den was so safe. I huffed an exhale and nuzzled closer.
Sleep, his voice rumbled. I’ll protect us.
Sleep fell over me like a heavy blanket, comfortable and warm.
When I woke up, enough time had passed that the early morning light was beginning to filter into the opening of the cave. I hummed, blinking slowly into wakefulness. My whole body was deliciously sore, like the day after a particularly good sparring session, and my usually circling thoughts were finally quieted. I nuzzled closer to the warm body beneath me. The broad, muscular chest, steady beating heart, smooth, warm skin. He wrapped one arm around my waist, pulling me closer languidly in his half-sleep, so our bodies were pressed flush together.
Wait.
Oh, no. No, no, no.
I leaped to my feet so fast I nearly cracked my skull on the cave ceiling.
My feet.
My human feet!
I’d been sprawled all over the king like he was a mattress! It was one thing when we were wolves—oh, Gods above, we’d run together as wolves—but to be flopped all over him in the middle of the woods? In our human forms? Nude?!
I clapped my hands over my mouth and muffled my horrified little shriek.
The king exhaled slowly, then slowly opened his eyes. Lazily, he propped himself up on one elbow.
I didn’t know if I wanted to shield my body, or my own eyes. He was gorgeous, that much was undeniable: broad, functional muscle, tan skin dotted with scars, his bare feet crossed at the ankles. Completely unselfconscious. Even with his manhood just—out there! Visible! Big! And I certainly wasn’t looking at it, and certainly wasn’t thinking about how it’d pressed against my thigh when he’d pulled me flush to his body.
Oh, Gods, help me.
“Good morning,” the king rumbled, his low voice rough with sleep. The sound made something hot curl in my gut. “Seems like you’re not quite used to waking up like this.”
“Like what?” I asked. I wanted to leave this cave, but crawling over his body to get to the entrance seemed like the worst thing I could do right now.
“Oh, you know,” the king said. An amused smile curled his lips—that cursed flirty, curious, smirky look that I was so familiar with. “Next to a naked man.”
“Of course not!” I snapped. “This is—and we—I mean—I’m a lady!”
“That’s a cute way of saying you’re a virgin,” the king said.
My eyes widened. “How in the gods’ names did you know that?” I asked. How much information did the Nightfall court have? First all those questions about my mother and my lineage and now—
“I didn’t,” the king said with an infuriating smirk. “But thank you for confirming my suspicions.” He stood up and stretched out his shoulders, as best as he could in the confined space.
My face burned with embarrassment. I rushed by him and stormed out of the cave, into the freezing morning air. The forest was still and beautiful, with the birds beginning to sing their morning songs and the sky turning pink and gold in the early dawn. I wrapped my arms around my body and shivered. How far had we run yesterday? It couldn’t have been too far—maybe we’d gone in circles. If I strained my ears, I could hear voices.
The king strode out of the cave bare as the day he was born. He didn’t seem bothered by the cold at all, save for the faint rising of goosebumps down his arms and his breath exhaled in a cloud of steam. I swallowed. If I ran in this form, there’s no way I’d outrun him. I didn’t even want to. I didn’t know what I wanted.
Before I could decide, though, the king took my hand, unwrapping my arms from around myself. He tugged me close to his body, flush again, and I couldn’t help but sigh with relief at the warmth of his touch. It was so cold, I couldn’t bring myself to push him away.
“I didn’t mean to embarrass you,” he said. “It’s just something else that intrigues me about you.” He smoothed one hand up and down my back, bringing warmth back to my bare skin. His voice rumbled so deep in his chest, it was like his growl was vibrating into my own body. “I like that no other man has touched you. I admit I’m a jealous creature. The thought of another man’s hands on you drives my wolf wild.”
