Page 96 of Gold Sector

Then there are those who looked upon her with open disgust, spitting in her direction and telling me never to shift in their presence again. They called my creaturedirty.

My heart will shatter into a thousand pieces if Oros does that.

I… I may never recover.

What if?—

“Taliana,” he says, his palm resembling a brand against my nape. “Please show me your wolf.”

It’s not a command. Just a soft request.

One that makes me shiver again.

Because I don’t want to deny my intended mate.

I just hope he doesn’t?—

“She needs to know that I adore her, too,” Oros tells me. “And there’s only one way to prove it to her.”

My brow furrows. “You adore my wolf?”

“I adoreyou,” he tells me. “All of you. Every part of you.” He kisses my cheek, then presses his lips to my ear. “Especiallyyour wolf.”

My animal practically dances inside me like she understood that.

Or maybe she just feels my resolve melting.

Her excitement causes my heart to race, the overabundance of energy making me realize just how badly she wants me to let her out. I always keep her locked away, mostly for our survival.

But here… here she doesn’t have to hide.Idon’t have to hide.

I’m not an abomination. Or a mutt. Or a dirty shifter.

I’m a hybrid. An Omega of mixed origin.

And this male wants me to be his mate.

I need to let him prove to me what that means. I need to see his acceptance. His open appraisal. Hisapproval.

Why am I hiding?I wonder, taking a step back from him.Why am I denying my Alpha what he wants?

No.

That isn’t even the question I should be asking.

Why am I denying my wolf?is the better query.

I don’t want to deny her anymore. Suppress her. Ignore her. Keep her caged away.

I… I want to let her fly in her own way. To pound across the earth. To beunleashed.

So I do something I’ve never been allowed to do before. Something I didn’t even realize I needed or wanted.

I take a few more steps back, my toes skimming the edge of the ocean.

Then I close my eyes.

And finally let my wolf…free.