"This was the pack I had heard only stories about in my younger years. The pack of wild wolves blessed by the Gods, that embraced their savagery, that were born to hunt and install fear into the hearts of all those weaker than them."
***
The Colora...
"There is a beautiful thing inside you that is thousands of years old.
Too old to be captured in poems. Too old to be loved by everyone, but loved so very deeply by a chosen few."
Nikita Gill
I was alone in Thane's bed when I awoke. The clock on his bedside showed that I'd been asleep for only a few hours - and in that time it seemed the rain-clouds had finally cleared. The last of the days sunlight streamed in though Thanes bedroom window and cast a glowing warmth across my skin.
I felt content; safe. It felt as if Thane were still beside me, the warmth of his touch against my skin, as if it were his hand that laid across my cheek and not the gentle touch of a fading evening sun. Perhaps that was due to his scent. The room was rich with it; in the air, in his sheets, on me. I couldn't escape it and I didn't for a second want to.
But I couldn't stay in his bedroom all evening by myself. I needed to eat, for one, and I wanted to stretch my legs. Despite the fight, I hadn't trained with Thane in so long, and my body itched to exert some energy now that I had rested long enough. My left arm felt better, only a slight ache remained as evidence of Russo's brutality.
There was a note next to Thane's alarm clock, and I recognised his familiar scrawl.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
My cheeks heated at the sight of the declaration and a grin stretched across my cheeks. I was not unaware that I was yet to declare my own love for Thane so explicitly, at least not in those exact words. I would have to rectify that.
Slipping out from the sheets, I realised I didn't have any clean clothes with me in Thane's bedroom. My discarded t-shirt and shorts had been ruined. I certainly wasn't about to go downstairs to my own bedroom completely naked. I was comfortable in my own skin, but not that comfortable.
I'm sure Thane wouldn't mind if I borrowed a t-shirt, I thought to myself, already peaking in one of his draws for something to wear. I found a black t-shirt that was just long enough to reach my ass, and a pair of his underwear - after all I didn't want to flash anyone on my way down the stairs.
The house was quiet as I ventured down towards my bedroom. I could hear a few wolves in their rooms sleeping - perhaps resting after a long patrol - but no one was up and about on the second floor. It didn't take me long to change my clothes, opting to keep Thane's t-shirt on with a pair of sweatpants - mainly because it smelt like him.
I found Riley and Daniel both in the kitchen when I finally made it downstairs. Nero too, as he stood over by the stove cooking alongside another enforcer. Riley was sat at the dining table, hunched over in his chair as he cradled a mug between his small hands. I was unable to read his expression as he stared down at the table in silence. Beside him Daniel only watched Riley with his brows drawn together tightly.
