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"Grace," he corrected, his eyes intensifying to a brilliant silver-blue that stole her breath. "Though I'm beginning to suspect there's nothing detached about you, Dr. Collins."

The way he said her title—like a caress rather than a formality—made heat pool low in her stomach. Maya swallowed hard, suddenly very aware of how his scent wrapped around her, woodsy and wild and distinctly male.

"Your wolf," she said, desperate to regain her analytical footing. "When you shifted to protect me—it was beautiful."

Something primal flashed across his features, and he stepped closer, invading her space in a way that should have frightened her but instead set her nerve endings on fire.

"Be careful with compliments like that," he warned as he put his hands on her waist. "My kind takes them very seriously."

Maya's breath hitched as she tilted her head up to meet his gaze, her analytical mind temporarily short-circuiting under the intensity of those silver-blue eyes. The air between them crackled with an electricity she couldn't explain through any scientific principle she'd ever studied.

The moment shattered as the cabin door swung open, bringing a rush of cool night air and five bodies laden with firewood. Damon entered first, his eyes immediately taking in their proximity with a raised eyebrow that made Maya's cheeks flush.

"Interrupting something?" Malcolm asked with a knowing grin, brushing past them to deposit an armload of logs near the hearth.

Kieran stepped back, but Maya noticed how his hands lingered for a moment, as if reluctant to break contact. "Perfect timing as always, little brother."

While Damon, Jake, and Elias busied themselves with building a fire, Kieran moved toward the kitchenette, gesturing for Malcolm to follow. "Let's see what we can salvage for dinner."

Maya watched him go, still feeling the ghost of his presence against her body, when a light touch on her elbow made her turn. Lena stood beside her, her violet eyes gleaming with something that looked suspiciously like recognition.

"Come with me," the petite woman whispered, guiding Maya toward the bed at the far side of the cabin. "There's something I need to discuss with you."

Maya followed, her scientific curiosity piqued. "What is it?"

Lena's voice dropped lower as they sat on the edge of the mattress. "I sense something about you—something deeper than simple human awareness. It's like..." She paused, searching Maya's face. "Like recognition of a wolf shifter."

"I don't understand," Maya said, her brow furrowing.

"You might carry wolf blood." Lena's violet eyes never left Maya's face. "Dormant shifter genes."

Maya's mind raced, trying to fit this new information into her understanding of genetics. "That's not possible. I would have known if?—"

"Would you?" Lena challenged gently. "How many humans recognize the source of their inexplicable affinities?"

Before Maya could press further, Kieran's commanding voice carried across the cabin. "Dinner's ready."

The conversation dissolved as they joined the others around the small table.

Maya found herself seated beside Kieran, hyperaware of every brush of his arm against hers as they shared the cramped space.

The meal was simple—venison stew and crusty bread—but Maya devoured it, suddenly realizing how famished she was.

The conversation flowed with surprising ease, punctuated by Malcolm's witty barbs and even occasional dry comments from Damon that made everyone laugh.

Maya found herself smiling more than she had in years.

Her scientific mind cataloged the complex social dynamics at play while another part of her simply. .. enjoyed the company.

"We should head out," Damon announced after about an hour, rising from his seat. "The Alpha will notice our absence if we're gone much longer."

"And you're still officially in hiding," Malcolm added, clapping his brother on the shoulder. "No one can know you're here."

Maya watched as goodbyes were exchanged, noting how even the rebel sympathizers treated Kieran with deference despite their ideological differences. Lena lingered by the door, her gaze finding Maya's one last time, laden with unspoken meaning before she slipped out into the night.

Later that evening, Maya nestled against Kieran's chest on his bed.

The steady rhythm of his heartbeat beneath her ear created a counterpoint to her racing thoughts.

The last few day's events whirled through her mind like leaves caught in a storm—wolf shifters, attacks, revelations—yet somehow, lying here in his arms felt like the most natural thing in the world.

His body radiated heat that penetrated her borrowed t-shirt, warming places inside her that had been cold for years.

"Lena said something strange to me," Maya murmured, tracing an idle pattern on his chest. "Something about me possibly having dormant wolf shifter genes."

Kieran's body tensed beneath her. "What?"

"She said she sensed something about me." Maya lifted her head to study his face. "Some kind of recognition. Does that make any sense?"

He frowned, his silver-blue eyes searching her face with such intensity that heat bloomed across her skin. "It's not possible. You should have shifted during puberty if you carried the gene."

"That's what I thought." Maya sat up, drawing her knees to her chest. "But Kieran, there are things about me that I've never been able to explain scientifically."

His large hand slid up her back, coming to rest at the nape of her neck where his thumb traced small circles that sent electricity down her spine. "Tell me more."

"The full moon has always affected me." Maya closed her eyes, allowing buried memories to surface.

"I couldn't sleep during full moons as a child.

I'd sneak out of my bedroom window and just..

. run through the woods behind our house.

For hours. My parents worried I'd get lost, but I never did. I always knew exactly where I was."

Kieran sat up, his muscular arm wrapping around her waist with possessive ease. "What else?"

"Animals have always responded to me strangely.

" She turned toward him, her knee brushing against his thigh.

"Especially canines. Dogs, wolves—they don't fear me.

And when I was ten, I got into some trouble with bullies at school.

I was cornered, and I felt this... rage building inside me.

My vision actually changed. They ran away screaming that my eyes had turned yellow. "

Kieran's breath caught. His hand came up to cup her face, tilting it to catch the moonlight filtering through the cabin's patched-up window. "Your eyes. They have gold flecks in the green. I noticed when we first met."

"And my grandmother." Maya's voice dropped to a whisper. "The only thing she said about my parents after they died was that they never wanted me to go into the deep woods alone. Our kind doesn't belong there anymore , she said. I always thought she was being superstitious."

"Or cautious," Kieran added. "Maya, what if she knew? What if you do carry wolf blood?"

Her scientific mind raced through possibilities, cataloging genetic inheritance patterns, recessive traits, and dormant genes activated by environmental factors. "Is that even possible? For someone to carry shifter genes but not express them?"

Kieran's fingers tangled in her hair, pulling her closer until their foreheads touched. "There are legends of bloodlines that went dormant centuries ago. Shifters who chose to live as humans for generations until the wolf was forgotten."

"And what happens if that dormant gene wakes up?" Maya asked, her breath mingling with his.

His eyes flashed, burning brighter blue. "I'm not sure. But it would explain why you feel so right here. With me." His arm tightened around her waist. "Why your scent calls to me in ways I can't ignore. Why every protective instinct I possess roars to life when you're near."

"I need to know more. I need to understand what's happening inside of me, what's happening between us." Maya gestured between them, suddenly aware of how their bodies had gravitated closer together, fitting against each other with impossible perfection.

Kieran's smile turned predatory, his lips brushing her ear. "I already know what's happening between us. It's what happens when a wolf finds their fated mate."