Chapter 26
ROWAN
Well, that was fun. Not. But at least it’s done now. Another council member who won’t be running off to whisper that I’m some kind of existential threat to the supernatural world. At least, I hope not.
Bram Stone is hard to read, but I’m certain of one thing—Malrik’s dark energy isn’t influencing the alpha any longer. That alone feels like a win worth counting. Still, my nerves haven’t settled, and there’s one conversation I can’t keep putting off.
Which is why Liz leads Bram inside while Elias starts muttering about logistics and how to dispose of Calder’s body without starting a war with Riverstone.
Honestly? That’s the least of my worries right now.
I drift through the house beside Cade, my limbs heavy in that post-adrenaline haze where everything feels both too loud and too distant.
We stop inside the library near the meeting room—close enough that we can intervene if Bram turns out to be a disaster, but far enough for a little privacy for the two of us.
The door barely clicks shut before Cade has me in his arms.
His face buries into my neck, breath warm, familiar, and possessive. “I don’t like that you were touching him.”
I huff softly. “And I think it’s weird that you’re marking me by breathing on me, but here we are.”
My tone is light, teasing, but it still makes him pull back just enough to look at me.
“You figured that out, huh?”
I grin, even as heat creeps up my neck. “I might not know everything yet, but Wolf’s been doing a pretty good job filling in the blanks.” My cheeks warm further before I can stop it. “Well, except the biting part. That was Liz’s area of expertise earlier.”
His fingers tighten at my waist, grounding. “You know you can talk to me about anything, too, right?”
“I do.” Gods, why does this suddenly feel harder than facing down an alpha? “But some things are just easier to say out loud to another woman first.”
He frowns, clearly not following, but nods anyway. “So, what did Liz share with you?”
I laugh quietly. “Girl talk isn’t something you get access to.” I glance up at him. “But you can rest assured—and maybe feel a little less rage-y—I’d like to talk about when we might want to do the bonding bite.”
I barely finish the sentence before his heartbeat stutters, then thunders. He’s flush against me in an instant. “Now would be fine.”
I press my palm to his chest, feeling how fast his heart is racing. “I think we have a few pressing matters to handle in the other room first.”
“Fuck Bram,” he growls. “If my mate wants to be bitten, then—”
“Well, I’m not sure want is the right word,” I cut in gently.
Honesty matters, even if it makes me squirm.
“I’m still a little terrified it’s going to hurt.
” I exhale. “But Liz made me realize something earlier. I already know I don’t foresee life without you.
Not since the moment I returned and felt the pull to you.
It was like the world had been off center every moment before, and then you entered the cave… Everything clicked into place.”
His hands slide up my ribs, slow and reverent, until they frame my face. His thumbs brush my cheeks like he’s grounding me now.
“That’s all I need to know, Rowan,” he says softly. “But also, not enough to take this further.”
I blink.
“If you’re afraid,” he continues, voice steady, searching, “or if you feel like this is just the next step you’re supposed to take, then we wait.
” His gaze holds mine, unflinching. “This isn’t something we rush.
It’s not a box to check or a duty to fulfill.
This is our bond. We’re not on anyone’s timeline other than our own. We are all we can control.”
Something in my chest twists, a recognition that opens a box of thoughts I didn’t realize I was hiding.
“I’m not going anywhere,” he adds quietly.
“I don’t want you choosing this because it feels inevitable.
When we mark each other, when our bond is finally complete, it’s not going to be a scheduled thing.
It’s going to happen because we both know right in that moment that nothing else can or will stop us. ”
I hate how right he is, and hate how I’ve almost ruined this because I understand what he’s seeing in me. What I didn’t even realize I was doing.
Going through the motions.
Trying to be brave. Trying to be ready. Trying to be everything this bond expects me to be.
When what he wants…what he’s been waiting patiently for…is me choosing him without obligation.
Gods, how could I have screwed this up so badly?
You could have maybe waited until tonight, when you were alone, in bed, maybe, Wolf drones. That might have helped.
Traitor.
“I’m sorry, Cade,” I say softly. “It’s not that I’m trying to just get it done. Not even close.” I take one of his hands and press it flat against my chest, right over my heart. “I feel you here. I feel the bond. I know this is where I’m meant to be, right by your side.”
His eyes darken, but he doesn’t interrupt.
“I feel the pull to be the leader your pack deserves,” I continue, words spilling out now that I’ve started.
“All of those things, I know they’re real.
I know they’re what I want. I just don’t know how I’m supposed to get there yet.
I thought this was it.” My throat tightens.
“I’m floundering. And maybe making things worse.
But I’m trying, Cade. I’m trying to be who I’m supposed to be. ”
He leans in, resting his forehead against mine, his breath warm and steady like an anchor. When he smiles, it’s soft and unhurried.
“Easy, mate,” he murmurs. “We have our whole lives to keep becoming who we’re meant to be.
There’s no clock ticking down on us.” His thumb brushes my cheek.
“I believe you when you say you’re ready.
That doesn’t mean the moment has to be now.
It’s enough that we’re talking about it.
We’re only going to get through this life together if we communicate with one another. ”
His gaze flickers with something wry. “I know I sounded more than eager earlier, but that was the beast talking.” His voice drops, gentle and sure. “You’ll only ever have the man.”
If my knees get any weaker, I might actually melt into the floor.
Still, I can’t resist.
“What if,” I say carefully, “I’d like the beast to visit…occasionally?”
His grin spreads slowly and dangerously. “I’m sure we can work something out.”
I laugh, relief bubbling up as I wrap my arms around him and hold on tight. The knot of nerves I’ve been breathing around for hours, maybe even days, finally loosens, unwinding into something warm and steady.
And he’s right. We’re closer now, just from one conversation. On the same page, emotionally, even if the bite doesn’t happen tonight—even if sex doesn’t happen right away—the fact that we’re still moving toward each other instead of around one another feels like more than enough.
When I look up at him again, he’s staring at me like his world spins on my existence alone.
I should say we need to check on Bram and Liz.
I should.
But the words never make it out.
Instead, I rise onto my toes, curl my fingers into his shirt, and pull him closer until our mouths meet. Slow and full of everything, we’re not rushing.
And this feels exactly right.
His mouth is warm and sure against mine, like he’s been waiting for this moment and refuses to waste it. The kiss starts gentle, deliberate, but it doesn’t stay that way for long. It never does with him.
I sigh into it, the sound slipping free before I can stop myself, and Cade responds instantly—his hands sliding down my back, pulling me closer until there’s no space left to question.
My body fits against his like it was made for this, like it knows him even when my head overthinks everything else.
His mouth tilts, deepening the kiss, and the low sound he makes against my lips sends a shiver straight through me. Need coils tight in my stomach, hot and sudden, and I curl my fingers into his shirt just to stay upright.
Gods, this man.
His tongue brushes mine, unhurried but insistent, and I moan softly before I can swallow it back.
The sound seems to undo him just as much as it does me.
His grip tightens, one hand sliding up to cradle the back of my neck, thumb pressing gently beneath my ear like he’s grounding both of us with just his touch.
My hands wander, tracing the hard lines of his chest beneath his shirt, the strength there unmistakable even through the fabric. Every inch of him feels solid. Real and mine.
He breaks the kiss long enough to rest his forehead against mine, breathing hard, our noses brushing. “Rowan,” he murmurs, my name rough like it’s pulled from somewhere deep within.
I barely register the sound before I’m tugging him back down, chasing his mouth again. This time there’s no hesitation. Just heat and want. The quiet desperation of two people who have been holding themselves apart longer than they should have.
His lips trail along my jaw, down my neck, and as I tilt my head back without thinking, a soft, needy sound slips free while his breath ghosts over my skin.
He pauses there, teeth grazing gently, not biting, but I know exactly what it is…
A promise of what’s to come, when it’s right, and I nearly lose myself with the anticipation.
“Cade,” I breathe, my hands sliding into his hair, anchoring myself.
He stills. Not pulling away, not advancing, just holding me there, chest heaving, restraint vibrating through him like a live wire. When he looks at me again, his eyes are a dark gold, full of want and care in equal measure.
“I’m right here, and we have all the time we need,” he says quietly, though it sounds like he’s reminding himself as much as me. “We won’t rush this.”
I nod, even though every part of me wants more. Wants him.
He presses one last, lingering kiss to my mouth—slow, deep, and full of promise—before resting his brow against mine again, bringing us both back down from the edge.
And somehow, even with my pulse still racing and my skin humming where he’s touched me, I don’t feel disappointed.
I feel wanted, chosen, and cherished.
So much so that it’s easy to forget we have responsibilities outside of this room until a sharp scream rips through the walls from down the hall.
“Liz!”
Cade and I break apart instantly, adrenaline slamming through me hard enough to make my pulse stumble. Cade’s already moving, one arm coming around me as we bolt for the door.
If something happens to her because we were too distracted…
We race down the corridor toward the meeting room, boots pounding, my wolf clawing forward in my chest. Images flash through my mind—Bram turning, Malrik’s influence flaring back to life, blood on the floor—
Cade slams the door open and freezes.
Liz has Bram pinned flat on his back, one knee planted firmly over his chest, one hand twisted into his flannel at the collar. Bram’s arms are spread wide, palms up in surrender.
Both of them laughing.
Not polite chuckles or evil snickers. Full, breathless laughter.
“What the hell is going on?” Cade snarls, already halfway into the room.
Liz grins wickedly without releasing Bram. “Relax. I was just reminding the alpha here of a vampire’s strength after he said he could take one down in his sleep.”
Bram wheezes. “In my defense, I said probably.”
I blink. Once. Twice.
My wolf recoils in offended confusion.
Cade stops dead beside me, chest heaving. “You screamed.”
Liz shrugs. “A war cry seemed appropriate as I charged him.”
Bram tilts his head just enough to look at us upside down. “For the record, I encouraged her. And I regret nothing.”
I stare at them for a long second before the tension drains out of me all at once, leaving behind a laugh I can’t stop. “You’re both assholes.”
Liz finally releases him, standing and offering a hand like she didn’t just tackle a shifter twice her size. Bram takes it, still grinning as he’s hauled to his feet.
“So,” he says, brushing dirt—or maybe wounded pride—from his flannel, “can we get back to business? I’ve got a pack to get back to.”
Cade’s arm slides around my waist again, possessive but controlled now, his presence steady at my side. “Nothing would make me happier.”
I smirk, because I know he’s talking about Bram leaving, not the business part, but I manage—barely—not to point that out.
The four of us take our seats, the room settling into a tense quiet that feels like the inhale before a storm. Except no one has the chance to speak before the door opens again.
Elias steps in first, and Taren follows.
It takes me a second to really see her, because this isn’t the woman I left barely breathing in a bed.
She stands tall, shoulders squared, dark hair pulled back from her face—though thicker streaks of white now cut through it like lightning scars earned with age and survival.
Her purple eyes are clear, burning with intent instead of pain.
She carries a plate piled with barely cooked steak and two baked potatoes like she’s fueling up for war, not a council meeting. And she doesn’t waste time on pleasantries.
“I called the newly assigned alphas,” she says evenly. “And invited them here.” She meets Cade’s gaze without flinching. “I think it’s time we all sat together.”
Cade’s lip curls, a low snarl rumbling from his chest as he rises slightly from his chair. “And you decided that was your decision to make?” His eyes narrow dangerously. “To invite others into the place I’ve sworn to keep my mate safe?”
“Yes,” she replies simply, her expression unreadable as she holds his stare.
No apology. No hesitation.
Just certainty.
I glance between them, pulse ticking up, my wolf alert and curious beneath my ribs.
This is going to be interesting.