Page 51 of Fated (The Bonded Legacy #1)

Her gaze softened as she turned to Kai. The late afternoon light caught his eyes, turning them from emerald to jade. “Hey, fancy a run?”

Kai’s chuckles faded into surprise, brow lifting. He recovered in an instant, a sweet, almost shy smile spreading across his face. “Yeah,” he said softly. “A run sounds nice.”

Without another word, they began walking toward the tree line together, leaving the others behind.

Their bond hummed between them, quiet but steady, like a song finding its rhythm again.

Elara’s contentment vibrated through Lena’s bones, shared muscles finding balance on steady ground.

For the first time since meeting Kai, Lena felt a flicker of hope blossom in her chest. Whatever lay ahead, maybe they could face it together—one step, one run at a time.

They walked in silence, the unspoken words between them making the moment feel both electric and fragile. Sunlight filtered through the canopy, casting dappled shadows across their path. Even their footsteps seemed muted, as though the forest itself was holding its breath.

As they reached the edge of the forest, Kai stopped, turning to face her. The fading light caught the sharp angles of his face, softening them somehow.

“So...clothes off, right?” His lips quirked upward, but there was a flicker of nervousness in his tone that made Lena’s skin tingle.

Lena nodded, heat flooding her cheeks. “Right.”

She turned, giving him a semblance of privacy.

Her fingers trembled as she unzipped her hoodie and hung it on a low branch.

The fabric caught on the rough bark, a tangible anchor in this surreal moment.

As she removed the rest of her clothes, her pulse quickened, and she felt the cool afternoon air prickle against her bare skin.

When she turned back, Kai was already standing nude, clothes folded with careful precision at the base of a nearby tree.

Lena’s breath hitched as her gaze dropped, starting at the muscled contours of his calves, the powerful lines of his thighs, and the undeniable presence hanging between his legs.

She caught herself watching him stiffen under her gaze—his body responding to her attention with primal honesty.

Her eyes flicked up, cheeks burning, but it was too late. Kai’s emerald eyes caught hers, dark with desire, and the air between them thickened. His lips quirked into a slow, knowing smile that made her stomach flip, and she realized with a jolt that he’d caught her staring.

“You’re going to make me blush, Lena.” His voice dropped to a husky whisper, the teasing words sending a shiver down her spine that had nothing to do with the cool breeze.

She opened her mouth to retort, but the words died on her tongue as his gaze swept over her, slow and adoring. It wasn’t just appreciation—it was awe, a quiet intensity that made something flutter low in her belly. The bond hummed stronger between them, electric and alive.

He shook his head and smirked. The sight sent heat straight to her core as Elara stretched within her, eager and anticipating.

“Ready to meet Orion?” His voice was soft, almost wistful, filled with vulnerability that made her swoon.

Lena nodded emphatically, heartbeat thundering in her ears. Her wolf’s excitement buzzed beneath her skin like static electricity.

She watched, transfixed, as Kai closed his eyes.

First, his breathing slowed.

Then, his muscles tensed, rippling beneath his skin.

The space around him danced with magic, reality bending as his form began to change.

She had seen countless wolves shift before, but this—the air shimmering around his form, muscles reshaping beneath skin, human scent dissolving into wild musk—left her breathless as if witnessing the first moonrise of creation.

Kai’s wolf landed on his front paws with a soft thud, transformation seamless and commanding.

Orion towered before her, muscle and sinew assembled into living shadow, his presence commanding the very air around them to stand still.

Her breath caught as the sheer size of him sank in.

He exuded strength, his massive frame radiating a quiet power that left her both awed and comforted.

His thick coat gleamed like polished obsidian, streaks of silver glinting along broad shoulders and haunches.

Long, muscular legs ended in large, silent paws that defied his impressive bulk.

It was his eyes that truly stole her breath—emerald-green, vibrant and piercing, like sunlight filtering through the densest canopy of leaves.

They were Kai’s eyes, but on Orion, they were even more luminous, as if charged with Selene’s power.

Ancient wisdom and wild instinct merged in that gaze, making her pulse quicken.

“Orion…” she whispered, stepping toward him. She hesitated only briefly before reaching out to touch him, her fingers threading through the thick, soft fur along his head. The texture was like silk and steel combined, a perfect reflection of his nature.

Orion exhaled a long sigh that rippled through his massive frame, muscled shoulders dropping as he leaned into her touch, the tension in his body melting away like snow in spring.

His eyes fluttered closed for a moment, but when they opened again, their gazes locked with an intensity that made her breath catch.

Lena smiled softly. “You’re beautiful,” she murmured, meaning every syllable.

The wolf preened under her praise, tail swishing behind him in a display that was both regal and endearing. She rubbed behind his ears, eliciting a pleased rumble from deep in his chest that she could feel through her fingertips.

“There’s someone who can’t wait to meet you.” She stepped back as Elara’s presence surged forward, eager and insistent.

Lena let the familiar warmth of the shift wash over her, human form melting into the amber-coated wolf.

Bones reshaped with barely a whisper of discomfort, skin yielding to fur in a cascade that felt more like slipping into water than the usual burn of change—her wolf’s eagerness erasing the boundary between forms. She shook herself to full height, her sleek, glowing coat catching the faint light that filtered through the trees.

Orion’s ears perked as Elara padded forward, amber fur glistening like firelight against his darker frame.

The two wolves locked eyes, gazes searching, tentative, yet drawn to each other like lodestones finding true north.

They inched toward one another, the forest quiet except for soft paw-steps and steady heartbeats.

Orion broke the distance first, nuzzling Elara’s neck. His large frame lowered in submission—a gesture that spoke volumes from such a powerful wolf. Elara purred, golden eyes shining as she licked the underside of his muzzle. Orion nipped at her ear playfully, massive tail wagging.

A sweet pain radiated through Lena as she witnessed the affection in Orion’s nuzzle and Elara’s delighted purrs. The tender interaction between the wolves was immediate, instinctual, and beautiful. It felt like watching a prophecy unfold, a promise of what could be.

As Orion nuzzled Elara again, Lena felt a pang of longing.

This perfect harmony between their wolves only highlighted what remained unresolved between their human selves.

Until the claiming rite, their wolves would remain partly unreachable to each other—connected yet separate—just like her and Kai circling one another from opposite ends of their bond.

Elara yipped, as if sensing her melancholy and determined to chase it away.

She stepped back and lowered her body in a playful crouch, muscles coiled with anticipation.

Her tail wagged as she spun around and darted into the forest, movements light and teasing.

She glanced back, letting out a sharp bark that clearly translated to “Catch me if you can.”

Orion’s emerald eyes lit with amusement and determination. He sprang after her. Powerful legs propelled him through the trees with ease.

The chase was on.

Elara darted ahead. Weaving. Dodging. Like liquid fire between ancient trunks.

Orion followed. Powerful. Determined. His deeper frame moving with surprising grace as he closed the distance.

Lena felt Elara’s heart race with exhilaration, her wolf’s joy infectious as they played their game of chase.

The wind rushed through their fur.

Pine needles.

Damp earth.

The wild freedom that belonged only to wolves.

She glanced back. Orion’s eyes gleamed as he surged forward, closing the gap.

Together, they disappeared deeper into the trees, steps falling into a rhythm that felt like the first notes of a melody neither of them had dared to hope for.

And for the first time since feeling the mate bond snap into place, Lena didn’t fear what morning would bring.

Whatever walls still stood between them, tonight had proven one truth: beneath the hurt and hesitation, something real was growing—something even stronger than destiny’s pull.

The night stretched ahead, and Lena surrendered to it, one pawprint at a time.