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“Oh, ouch. She’s really good at it, too. Like a goddamn locker room bully.”

Laughing, Avery drags his lips up to Sascha’s throat. He kisses the hollow between his collarbones. “Don’t feel bad. Please. I’m just happy we survived this far. God, I’m tired, and this whole time, all I’ve wanted was to be close to you. It’s like I still feel your heart beating when there’s distance between us, and mine gets lonely if you’re too far away.” He pauses. “That sounds stupid, right? Forget I said that. The exhaustion’s making me sappy.”

“I love you so much,” Sascha whispers, throat tightening beneath Avery's lips. “And I need to tell you something really important.”

Avery nuzzles his jaw, seeming entirely unconcerned. “Okay. Shoot.”

Sascha kisses his brow, then the side of his nose. Then he draws back enough to cradle Avery’s cheeks, trying to keep his breath steady while their eyes meet. He feels Avery’s thoughts entwine with his, somehow. Like he’s sending Sascha comfort through the mate bond he doesn’t yet know is there.

“Something happened while we were in the hotel, uh, taking care of your heat.” Avery smirks, but doesn’t interrupt. “I don’t know how, and didn’t even realize it had happened until Petra figured it out.”

“This is about what she was saying on the boat.”

“Yeah. We, uh… I don’t know how, like I said.” Sascha scratches the back of his neck, still not sure why he’s so nervous. Mating is just awfully permanent for a touch-starved werecreature who hadn’t heard a friendly voice in almost a year. Love forming out of desperation is different. “The magic, I guess…ourmagic… decided we should… bond.”

Now Avery’s brows are furrowed, and Sascha wants to die a little bit. But then he says, “Did you not want that? Is it my fault?” and Sascha’s heart squeezes so fiercely he momentarily can’t breathe.

“No. The opposite.” Avery’s seaglass eyes shimmer, so Sascha returns to holding his face, drawing him close until their lips brush. “I don’t want you to feel trapped.”

“I’ve never felt safer, or freer, than I do with you,” Avery murmurs, breath a welcome tickle reminding Sascha he’s alive.

They both are.

“Good. Because it’s kinda permanent unless you want to spend a lot of time looking for someone who can untangle a lot of magic threads.”

Instead of responding, Avery kisses him, desperate and hungry. Tears spill over their lips, and Sascha keeps kissing him, not dropping his hands lower than Avery’s jaw, even though he wants to touch all of him. Avery makes the decision for him when he throws a leg over Sascha’s hip and attempts to squirm closer. Then he hisses.

“Easy, easy,” Sascha croons, stroking Avery’s hair. The bleached curls at the back of his neck have grown out, leaving dark roots. Sascha tugs them gently to keep Avery from chasing his mouth. “We don’t have to do anything. Shouldn’t, actually, while you’re in this condition.”

“Fuck my condition,” Avery says immediately. His mulish expression tells Sascha he’s willing to fight any insinuation that he can’t fuck after being mauled by several apex predators.

In the interest of keeping him pacified, Sascha laughs andkisses the corner of his mouth. “Fine, we can make out. Just be careful, okay? I’m not going anywhere.”

Avery mutters, “Better not be,” then swallows the next peal of Sascha’s laughter, chasing the rest of it with his tongue until it turns into a moan.

CHAPTER

TWENTY-TWO

Sascha

Sascha stands with his pack on the edge of Madison land, squeezing Avery’s hand so hard both their knuckles creak. In the distance, a car drives slowly down the road, heading toward them.

Along the two-hour walk to the Madison pack lands, they swung by Forgotten Lake one last time. Sheridan and Beryl fetched the remaining camping supplies from the cave while Sascha stood on the shore, tears streaming down his cheeks as he whispered useless apologies to his mom. She’d be disappointed in him. So, so disappointed, and also angry and confused by how readily Sascha would abandon his pack for a scrawny werecreature. She couldn’t have known how hard things were going to be for Sascha without her there to stand up for him.

They left the raft next to the rock where Sascha and Avery first made love. After sorting the supplies, the eight of them, shaky but united, walked to the meeting point.

Three figures exit the car. Sascha instantly recognizes Garrett and Jakob, but is surprised to identify Marty as the third person. He swallows hard, wondering what she thinksof the situation. With how much she reminds him of his mom, he expects the disapproval to sting extra deep.

When the twins stop, Marty keeps walking. Sascha looks to Avery, who nods, and they move forward to meet her together, hands still linked.

Marty stops to inspect where they're joined, then removes the large duffel bag from her shoulder and holds it out to him. “I packed whatever of your belongings seemed most important, including seasonal clothes and all of your legal and medical documents. If you have no way to transport the rest of your wardrobe, those and your larger possessions can be shipped when you have available space. Should that be necessary, Petra is welcome to reach out. Any questions?”

Sascha purses his lips, then shakes his head. He takes the duffel with a mumbled “Thanks.” He expects sharp words now, but all Marty does is glance past him at the other six members of their pack.

After a moment, Marty nods and holds out her hand. “Garrett, please.” Garrett picks up a suitcase Sascha hadn’t noticed him towing, and presents the handle to Marty.

Though he tries not to, Sascha meets both his cousins’ eyes. They had tried to get closer to him, even though resented them for how they were seen as more capable. There will be no resolving that now. Maybe they want to say something, but they don’t, not even ‘goodbye.’ Avery tugs Sascha’s hand, breaking his concentration from the guilt in the twins’ eyes. Sascha turns to leave with him, then is surprised when Avery doesn’t move.