I head for it, remembering this place. It’s one of the many places Liam and I used to store clothes growing up during our training.
The sun is making the lake shimmer, the forest quiet, the world seeming calm and at peace.
And my woman is safe.
That’s the most important thing.
CHAPTERTWENTY-THREE
Ruby
I lie in bed, my head on Ramsey’s chest, three days after the mayhem in the countryside. We’ve spent almost every moment together, except when I’m with Mom.
She’s starting to wake up earlier, wanting to go on walks in the park. And she’s also started doing these paint-by-number paintings, which she says relax her.
She seems to be getting better.
Other than that, I’ve been with Ramsey. We make love, have wild sex, and run through the forest together at night, with my hands buried in his silver fur.
He says I don’t need to be gentle when I cuddle him, but I can’t ignore the bandage over his torso. The morning sunlight filters in through the window, making the room shimmer, reminding me of moonlight, of the silver of my man’s hair.
“I had a funny thought.”
“You did?” he says, and I can hear the smile in his voice.
His fingers make patterns in my hair, tickling up and down my spine.
“What are the chances Pete would be a hunter?”
I don’t even think about including themaster. After we returned to the city, Liam went back out there to collect the body. Ramsey told me he’s lying in an unmarked grave. He’s been reported as missing. There are news stories about it, about the cult being in disarray.
I only hope the cult members take this chance to leave.
“Low,” Ramsey says. “I’ve thought about this too.”
My hand tightens against his side, my fingernails pricking his skin. My body is still sweetly sore from the sex when I sat atop him, our hands clasped as I rode him. My core aches for him even now, but I focus on his words, on the warm glow they provoke in my heart.
“What?” I whisper.
“Your scent, Ruby, it was like nothing I’d ever encountered. It still tries to overwhelm me, but with how cleverly you tamed the wolf, I’m able to keep him at bay.”
I giggle, looking up into his face. He’s got a small bandage on his ear from when the bullet clipped him in wolf form. He says there are limitations to their healing. He’ll always have a little nick there, a reminder of what he risked to save us.
Us, which is how I’m already thinking about myself. As though I’m already pregnant.
“It was like fate sent you,” Ramsey says. “All the way across the country, from coast to coast, and you happen to come tomycity. And your scent...I couldn’t control myself.”
“But the fact he was a hunter too,” I whisper, kissing his sweaty skin.
“I know,” he sighs, his heart beating faster. “I’ve never been much into destiny. But that’s how I feel, Ruby, like something sent you to me. I know we’re meant to be together. That part isn’t even up for debate. We belong together. If souls are real, then your name is seared into mine.”
His voice cracks. I lean forward again, looking into his eyes, at the emotion there. His eyes flicker a little, mixing with the sunlight.
“Are you trying to tell me something?” I whisper.
He rolls over, suddenly on top of me, his hands propped on either side of me. Our naked bodies brush against each other, my nipples tingling against his chest. He smiles, leaning down, kissing me softly.
“I love you,” he says.