Page 158 of King Luna

Noah’s anxious panting settles with mine. To my surprise, he purrs, licking my mark with slow, steady strokes. Nothing about it feels sexual, even though it buzzes warmth throughout my belly—he’s thanking me. Not only for allowing him to mark me after Steven’s brutality, but for surviving the brush with death that Steven attempted to force upon me. I can feel it in the weepy gratitude beneath each of Noah’s purring whines, no human words capable of describing the bliss in our bond at the thought of us now remaining entwined, forever.

When I’m finally ready to stand, Noah’s coat brushes against mine the whole way back to the Community Center lodge. Neither of us mindlink a word.

Instead of following Viktor’s pack to their confinement den—where they keep their most violent prisoners—Noah’s wolf nudges me down the hall to our room. I’m too weary to question him, padding after Noah in my wolf form, even when he shifts back.

Ducking into the door, my wolf can barely squeeze inside our suite after Noah’s human form. Noah doesn’t persuade me to shift back, easing the door shut behind my wolf before burying his face into my coat.

I whine, hugging him tighter to me with my chin.

Noah lifts his head, and my heart drops; tears streak his cheeks. Cupping my big snout in his hands, it’s the first time I’ve felt so big compared to him—and yet, I feel smaller than I ever have.

Sweeping his palm up my snout, Noah eases my eyes shut as he kisses my wet nose. “Sweet, sweet girl. You’re safe now, gorgeous Luna. I have you here, and no one else is with us. You don’t have to shift back yet, but when you do, I’ll be right here to hold you, okay?”

His gentle hands spur deeper whines from me. It’s not until then that I finally allow myself to shudder hard, shaking out the trauma of what we just witnessed. But the second Noah’s features warp in guilt, I shift back as fast as I can, collapsing into his arms. He buckles to the floor with me, pulling me into his lap.

Doubling over me, Noah presses me tight to his chest, cradling my head over his shoulder as I cry. We sob together, sweat and dirt sticking our bare bodies together as we grapple each other as closely as we can.

Nuzzling his cheek, I can’t lose the primal edge to my pounding heart. Luckily, Noah seems to understand what I’m seeking, turning his head to crash against my lips. We sniffle through harsh, tearful breaths as we kiss, our desperate fingers unable to let go of each other’s backs.

After a few minutes of kissing and cuddling, Noah’s slowing breath soothes me back into equilibrium. He guides me into the shower, rinsing every last bit of grime from my hair. When his soapy hands swipe over Little Wolf, Noah pauses. Staring down at my small belly, his features warp into heavy tears.

“Oh, mylove.” Lifting his chin, I press my lips into his once more.

Our foreheads rub as we hold our pup together, breathing out the fear of what tonight could’ve looked like, if we missed just one swipe of a claw coming at us to take our lives.

Noah carries me to bed with soaking wet hair, unable to let go of me more than a second or two. “I love you. Please be okay.”

“I love you too, Noah. I’m okay, but only because you’re still here. I could barely stop you from being shot. I almost lost you.”

“You didn’t, Luna. I’m right here.”

He curls around me, burrowing me into the nest of blankets I created at the start of the Summit—what feels like a month ago. I’ve never clung to Noah so hard.

But after a few minutes of Noah’s steady, comforting rubs on my back, I sink deep into the mattress. Before I can recognize the sadness refilling my chest, it spills over, flooding my pillow with tears. Noah huddles closer with gentle kisses, but nothing can remedy how deeply my heart hurts.

“They wanted to kill us. They probably did kill some of us, didn’t they?” I whisper.

“I...” Noah swallows hard. “I don’t know. It’s possible.”

My forehead warps. “Which means so many wolves are hurting tonight, just like we did when we lost our dads.”

“I know. It’s monstrous. And, fuck, Aliya, I think—” Noah’s horror in our bond deepens enough to steal his breath.

“What? What is it?”

“The way they came in with guns, and how Mason morphed into a carbon copy of his dad, over time. I can’t help but think—” Gazing into my eyes, Noah shakes his head, disgust creasing his features. “I’m wondering if you really were right about Jack.”

My heart lurches into my throat. “Or did Mason do it to make his dad proud? Especially knowing his distant girlfriend would also lose her support system from it, allowing him to dominate the gap?”

The soft gasp on Noah’s lips guts me; I watch him struggle through the terrible possibilities, none of them softening the gut punch in our bond.

“Fuck, Aliya. Fuck.” Noah groans, shaking his head. “I guess we can ask him, now that we have him, but—” Noah swallows too thickly to finish his sentence, likely as nauseated as I am.

But he doesn’t need to say anything more. Holding each other in the silence, I feel it too; this might finally be our answer.

The truth feels surprisingly quiet. Noah’s shoulders settle, even with the rising sadness in our heated breaths.

“I’m so sorry,” I whisper.

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