Page 71 of Power Shift

“Is this also something I’ll have to get used to?” she whispers.

Her hair blows in the breeze, and I welcome the burst of her scent that follows, wrapping around us.

“What do you mean, Petal?”

“Being this close to you and feeling like . . . like I should and could stay here forever?”

My heart pounds. “You stay right here forever and I’ll die a happy man.”

“We’re still strangers.”

“Fuck, Briar, we’re the furthest things from strangers. I might not know every corner of your mind just yet, but our souls have known each other for decades.”

Her face flushes as she shivers, chest arching to meet mine. “Aren’t you supposed to be the grumpy one?”

“It’s who I am.”

“You don’t seem very grumpy to me.”

“You’re the exception,” I declare.

“It will be easy to fall for you. For all of you.”

It’s impossible not to smirk at that, even if it is small. “That’s the plan.”

The burn in her eyes dulls enough to spook me. It’s the only sign I find that something’s wrong.

“I’m sorry it won’t be easy.”

“This isn’t on you. None of it is,” I declare, bringing my other hand to hold her cheek. My skin sizzles where we touch, a blast of heat shooting up my arm. “Pack is for life. And if you choose to be a part of ours, we’ll show you every day why we deserve you.”

“I’ve always dreamed of having a pack of my own.”

“Did you grow up in one?” I ask, unable to take the opportunity to learn more about her.

She nods, pressing her cheek into my hold. “I did. My mom and dads are all scent matches.”

“So, you know a lot about pack dynamics.”

“It’s all I know, really. Which is one of the reasons why I’ve wanted a pack of my own for pretty much as long as I can remember.”

Curling a piece of her hair around my pinky, I hum. “You and Jasper have a lot in common.”

“I don’t with you?”

“I’ve only got my ma, dad, and younger sister.”

She frowns, her bottom lip jutting out slightly further than her top in a way that I’ve become completely enamoured with.

“That still sounds like a pack to me.”

I inhale deeply, dropping my head to bring our foreheads together. She grazes her fingers across my chest, eyes sliding to focus on my mouth.

“Yeah, Petal. You’re right. They’re all I’ve ever needed outside of the guys inside.”

“What are they like?” she asks, speaking softly enough for her words to blow away on the breeze, here and gone in a blink.

“Can I kiss you?” I ask instead.

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