Wolfe shifted under the covers, a low sound in his throat—not pain, not discomfort. Just the sound of a man surfacing after too long beneath.
His eyes blinked open slowly, unfocused for a moment. He didn’t wake with a start. Just a slow return to himself, like a tide rolling back over wet sand.
I was already watching him. “Hey,” I said quietly.
His gaze found me. Bleary, soft around the edges. “You’re dressed.”
I nodded. “I didn’t want to waste the quiet.”
He stretched, a low, rough sound in his chest. “How long was I out?”
“Long enough for the pack to calm down. A little.”
He sat up slowly, the sheet falling to his waist. The sight of him there—bare-chested, hair mussed, strength dulled by sleep—sent a tug through the bond between us. Something tender. Something grounding.
“You watched over me.”
“Not all night,” I said with a shrug. “You would’ve done the same.”
He looked around, eyes landing on the bundle of records. “What’s that?”
I crossed the room, picked it up, and brought it to the bed, setting it down with a heavy sigh. “These are my father’s,” I said softly. “I’ve had them here since he passed. Last night, I went through the drawer. Their mostly old council records.”
Wolfe watched me, his eyes seeing more than I was saying. “You think there’s more than Corrin.”
“I know there is,” I said, sitting on the edge beside him. “He was too slick. Tooobvious. Too easy to tell you everything.” I blew out a tired breath. “That kind of structure doesn’t start with a man who needs to be caught to talk. It starts higher. Older. Smarter.”
He took the bundle from me and untied it, flipping through the top pages. The moment his eyes hit Galvin’s name, I felt him go still. “He retired before I returned, didn’t he?”
“Conveniently,” I said with a snort. “But not cleanly.” I flicked a few pages further than Wolfe had. “Here.” I pointed. “He and my father were managing rogue territory. Coordinating supply disruption. Border testing.”
“Testing what?”
I met his eyes. “Their response. Their patterns. Maybe even their alliances. I don’t think this is what Corrin was working on.” I flicked back to the map. “Ithinkthis was a contingency.”
Wolfe leaned forward, elbows braced on his thighs, hands clutching the pages. “This is much bigger.”
I nodded. “And older.”
He looked up at me. “You found this last night?” He frowned. “You should’ve woken me.”
“You needed the rest.” I held his stare when it looked like he wanted to argue. “You and Diesel are here, Wolfe, no one can get inorout.”
He reached over, his hand clasping mine. “For something like this, you needed me.”
That bond tightened in my chest. I reached over and cupped his cheek. “You’re here now.” I fought back the sting of tears, seeing how much he cared; it surprised me, even though it shouldn’t. “I don’t want you to carry this alone.”
His gaze softened. “I won’t.”
We sat there a moment, the morning light growing stronger. He hadn’t even pulled on a shirt yet, and already the wolf in him was shifting back into place—alert, commanding, dangerous.
But beside me, he was also just Wolfe.
I knew, in that moment, that we were already what the Hollow needed. We just hadn’t claimed it fully yet. But when my heat came, we would. There was no reluctance between us anymore.
He stood, finally. Pulled on a shirt. Stared down at the bundle in his hands. “I want to question Galvin today. Just me. No Will.”
I raised a brow. “Just Wolfe?” I teased.
