“Reid?”
“Yeah.”
“Don’t leave me.”
“Never.”
Chapter 6
Scarlett
Night One
The fever comes in waves.
One moment, I’m shivering, teeth clacking like dice in a cup. The next, I’m molten. Skin too tight. Bones humming.
Reid doesn’t leave. He lies beside me on the wooden floor, not touching, but close enough that I can smell him—forest-warm and steady.
He hums. A low sound, more wolf than man. A tether to here. To now.
My magic claws at the fever, instinctively resisting the change. It curls and knots around my bones, holding me in place.
My body doesn't know which part of me to become.
I whisper his name. It’s the only word that doesn’t hurt to say.
Night Two
My mouth tastes of copper and earth.
Magic and marrow.
Reid holds my hand while I sweat through the sheets, never speaking unless I ask for his voice.
When I reach for him in the dark, his chest is bare and warm. The rhythm of his heart is a lullaby.
“Why is this taking so long?” I whisper.
He brushes damp hair from my temple. “Because you’re not just changing,” he murmurs. “You’re becoming.”
I cry without making a sound. His hand never lets go.
Night Three
The ache goes deeper now. It’s no longer just my body—it’s my soul being unstitched.
Reid paces the room, unable to stay still anymore. I feel him like a second moon orbiting mine.
When I scream, the cottage doesn’t echo. Itholdsthe sound. Cradles it.
My magic lashes out once, wild and brilliant, before folding back in like wings tucking to sleep.
Reid comes when I call him, without a word, without hesitation. I press my forehead to his chest and feel his heartbeat shudder under my skin.
Something inside me finally yields.
Not a break.
