Page 75

Damn, she had no choice but to go along with his hospitality.

Not that she minded.

His grip was warm and steady. It was firm yet gentle enough to ground her and make her want more.

He helped her to her feet, which brought her to his front.

She shivered despite the solid black of scorching heat at her back.

She made a move to pack up, and he shook his head. ‘I’ll take care of it later.’

Slinging her bag around his front in a cross-body hold, he led her along the quiet lake shore, slow and unhurried.

Her boots dangled from one hand, her comm tab carrier slung over the other.

She wrapped the shawl he gave her closer as the breeze picked up.

The lake rippled with silver light, fireflies drifting like dreams above the grass.

An owl hooted from the trees, and nature pulsed with calm, beauty, and an ancient, unspoken mystique.

She glanced up at the night sky dome arched overhead, endless and glittering. ‘This place is magical.’

Xander glanced at her, his expression soft. ‘Tis. Until werewolves come prowling from the undergrowth.’

She laughed, a nervous chuckle as they walked side by side through the quiet path toward the cabins, as night settled overhead.

Their pace was unhurried now, the adrenaline of the last few minutes fading, though the air between them still crackled, charged with tension and need.

Savvine peeked up at him, as yet another question burning in her chest rose to the surface.

‘Hey,’ she said, her voice softer now, brushed with a smile. ‘Can I ask you something a little personal?’

Alexandr angled his head down at her, one brow lifting in mild amusement. ‘Claro.’

She smirked. ‘Why is your first name, Alexandr-Alexandr, a double?’

His mouth twitched, then he chuckled, a timbred, rough sound that warmed the space between them. ‘Tis an old story.’

She inclined her ear, inviting, waiting.

‘My parents were both stubborn as hell,’ he rasped. ‘Each wanted me christened after their father. The problem was that both my grandfathers were named Alexandr. Neither side would back down.’

Savvine blinked. ‘So, they just repeated it?’

He gave a slight shrug, lips quirking. ‘Sí.They would not risk insulting either side. Not naming me after eachabuelomight have sparked a family feud.’

She laughed. ‘Forget the drama of our mafia-families-in-space. That’s the wildest ode to bloodline allegiance I’ve ever heard.’

‘Right?’ he smirked. ‘Try being a kid and hearing it shouted twice every time I got into trouble. Sounded like a damn echo chamber.’

She was still grinning as their steps slowed near a pair of dwellings.

The cabin Xander led her to was nestled at the quiet bend of the lake, tucked under a canopy of moon-dappled trees.

Its sleek frame, dark steel softened by native wood, gleamed in the twilight like something grown rather than built.

Lantern-like lights glowed from within, casting soft gold across the grass as they stepped inside.