Page 24

Ivy

Perched on the edge of the rough-hewn chair beside Briggs's bed, I watched his chest rise and fall with shallow breaths.

The weight of exhaustion pressed on my eyelids, but I willed them open. I didn’t want to miss any sign of him rousing.

Or some terrible complication arising.

My gaze roamed his form, noting how the lines and angles of his face softened in slumber. He was still the intimidating Alpha, just somewhat diffused.

Even now, stripped of his usual vigor, he commanded the space around him. I leaned forward, my heart hitching as his brows twitched.

"Briggs?" I whispered.

He stirred for a moment before his eyes fluttered open. Pale blue irises, clouded and confused, struggled to focus.

The lines of pain eased from his face as he locked onto me. Colors swirled until recognition ignited within the blue and amber.

Breath stalled in my lungs. An exhale of relief quickly followed.

"Hey," he rasped.

The corners of my mouth lifted. “Hey.”

We held each other's gaze.

Undercurrents of our bond traveled back and forth between us.

My guard was down and putting it back up felt like it would take too much effort.

Leaving it down felt like it would cut my legs out from under me.

"Was it a dream?" he murmured.

My head tilted.

“Was what a dream?”

"You came for me?”

“Yes.”

“After I ordered you to stay in the cabin?” His voice was gaining strength.

“Briggs—”

“You put yourself in danger? Came running halfcocked into a fight against someone who has both directly and indirectly threatened you?”

My palms slapped my thighs like a petulant child. “You’re damn right I did! I followed my instincts, the bond—the one you told me is so important to trust—it told me to go to you. Screamed it, actually."

The thought of arriving even a second later sent a shiver down my spine.

“So I listened to my gut, snuck out, killed that asshole, and got you back here as fast as I could.”

Briggs's lips twitched into a smile, a shadow of his typical arrogance.

“You could at least say thank you, you ungrateful ass.”

His grin widened. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” I huffed.

“Now, dear Ivy, tell me where my Beta was when all of this was happening.”

"Don't kill him!" I blurted. "It was all me. I slipped away behind his back. I’m wily like that."

Briggs's low rumble of laughter filled the space between the rough timber walls. “Wily, huh?”

“Yes. Now promise you won’t kill him.”

"I have no interest in murdering my Beta," he promised. "But we'll talk, Colten and I, and come to an understanding. We’ll talk about doing a better job of keeping you safe. Seems you and I also need to have chat about the same thing."

"I assumed you would have something to say along those lines.”

Briggs nodded. He was uncharacteristically calm. Sure, he was healing, but I assumed he’d wake up angry as hell and rant for hours.

“Why aren’t you acting more … pissed off?”

One of his eyebrows lifted. “You’d prefer me to raise my voice again?”

“Not really, no.”

His hand reached out, slowly, and took hold of mine. The bond flared, the pull raw and undeniable.

Overwhelming.

"I'm not blind to what you did, Ivy. Taking down Phelps was no small feat."

His chest rose with a deep breath, the rise and fall more steady now. "I watched you, you know. Before you left the pack. And … after. I admire you. Your strength, your resilience. Your ability to help others as a healer. Your ability to put an Alpha in his place. I’m proud that you’re my fated mate, Ivy. Proud of everything you are.”

"Your pride …" I started, my throat tightening.

"Is well placed with you," he finished. "As is my heart."

The charged energy between us pulsed through the air. Butterflies fluttered in my stomach.

So much was rushing at me at once. Too much.

It was so hard to trust these feelings. Even knowing the truth of the past, I was still afraid.

Could I truly ever be all-in with him? After the chasm his rejection had carved between us?

“In case I wasn’t being clear, I love you. I’ll love you forever even if you don’t want me to.”

I studied our hands atop the white sheet, avoiding his face.

"This isn’t easy for me,” I whispered.

He didn’t ask what. Nor did he act like he expected me to say it back.

"I know it’s not, little mate.”

I could pull back, maintain the barrier my heart had erected to safeguard itself, but Rieka rose within me, her presence insistent.

Don’t fight it , she begged.

I swallowed hard. There was a dark stain on my soul that hadn’t completely lifted. Could I get past it?

His thumb brushed across my skin. The action was tender and loving. Exactly the kind of thing I’d wanted and needed from a mate.

The bond, once a whisper, roared like the ocean in my ears. The wave caught me off guard.

Rieka, numb it. It’s too much.

No , she growled. You need to feel .

His skin singed mine, every stroke igniting sparks that danced up my arm. His eyes, deep pools of resolve, never left mine.

“Why are you looking at me like that?" I asked, my words barely a whisper.

“It pleases me.”

“It does?”

"Immensely," he breathed out.

His thumb continued brushing against my wrist in a slow, deliberate caress—the promise of something more, something deeper.

The next day passed in a blur. Though Briggs was healing, he still offered continuous shows of affection. A look that lingered, a touch that spoke volumes, a smile that seemed reserved only for me.

The darkness of our past loomed, but in these moments of quiet intimacy, helped. The bond between us was a force, a presence that demanded recognition.

And though I fought against its tide, I found myself tempted to surrender with each subtle, meaningful gesture Briggs bestowed upon me.

On the following night, two nights longer than the Alpha thought necessary, I sat in the infirmary, watching Briggs's chest rise and fall. The soft whir of the ceiling fan lulled my thoughts.

My fingers traced circles on the back of his hand. The room basked in twilight, shadows playing across his features, giving him an ethereal glow.

His pattern of breathing altered a minute before the rest of him woke.

"Feeling better?" I asked.

"Getting there," Briggs replied, voice rough with sleep.

He sounded tired, but his coloring was back and his wounds were stitching back together perfectly.

“You’re staring again.” He did it every time he opened his eyes now.

The corners of his lips quirked in a faint smile. “I know. I’m just so happy you’re here.”

I was sure my face was red. But if he could say it, I could endure it.

He reached out, brushing a stray lock of hair from my face, the touch sending electricity through me. I didn't pull away. Instead, I leaned into it, savoring the warmth of his skin against mine.

"Thank you, Ivy," Briggs murmured, his hand lingering near my cheek.

"For what?"

"For staying here, with me. For fighting." His fingers grazed my jawline, sending shivers down my spine. There was an intensity to his gaze that hinted at the depth of his feelings.

"Someone had to save your ass. Might as well have been me," I offered, my attempt at lightness falling flat as the gravity of our situation pulled at me.

A chuckle rumbled from his chest, vibrating through the space that separated us. The sound was a balm to the raw edges of my nerves.

"Always so fierce," he commented.

Silence settled once more, but it was a comfortable one. I remained by his side, my demeanor softer than it had been since before our world turned upside down.

Briggs drifted back to sleep and watched over him, thinking about the past. The present.

Our future.

The truth was a bitter pill, but it went down smoother than I would have believed possible just a short time ago. I was more his now than I had ever been.

And he is yours , Rieka reminded me. As Onyx is mine .

It was a reminder that no matter how far I ran, I would never outrun him. Not in any way that mattered.

Still, something inside me held me back. I worried it always would.