The words slip into my foggy mind and echo there.
Not letting me go.
I want to ask what he means, but the drugs pull at me again, heavier now, dragging me down into warmth and darkness.
As my eyes finally drift shut, one last thought flickers through my mind.
I’ve never been rescued or claimed.
Then sleep takes me.
FIVE
Abe
I don’t sleep.
Not really.
I lie on the couch beside hers, one arm stretched along the back, close enough that my fingers brush her shoulder whenever she shifts.Close enough that my wolf can feel her breathing—slow and steady now, no longer ragged with fear.
He settles inside me for the first time since I found her.Curled.Watchful.Content in a way that makes my chest ache.
We finally have our mate,he murmurs, low and reverent.
We need to keep her safe and help her recover.
We need to mark and claim her, my wolf corrects.
Soon,I promise him.Hopefully.
The house is quiet, dawn still hours away.Christian checked on her twice already, adjusted the IV, murmured approval at her vitals, and tried to reassure me that she was all right.He tried to convince me to go lie down in the spare room, but I didn’t move.I won’t leave her side again.
She stirs sometime near morning, a soft sound leaving her throat as her brow furrows.Her lashes flutter, then lift slowly, confusion clouding her blue eyes as she takes in the room.
She looks… different.She’s not scared anymore.She’s still tired, groggy, and pale, but she’s more alert this morning, more present.
My wolf lifts his head instantly, alert and hopeful.
I sit up, keeping my movements slow and nonthreatening so I don’t spook her.
“Hey,” I say quietly.
Her gaze finds mine and sticks there, studying me like she’s trying to place where she’s seen me before.
“You’re awake,” I add.
She swallows.“My head feels… heavy.”
“That’s normal,” I tell her.“The drugs are still wearing off.”
She shifts, pushing herself up on one elbow.“Where am I?”
“Night Grove Falls,” I say.“You’re safe.”
She nods slowly, absorbing that.Then her eyes widen.“Fern.”
The way she says her name—sharp, panicked—sends my wolf bristling.