Page 54 of Donovan
I hadn’t expected to find this much peace. Not after everything.
It had been nearly a month since we’d fought off the rabid vampires, since we’d settled into the little cabin just on the outskirts of the sparrow shifter village.
Somehow, I’d convinced Declan to stay longer, to let the dust settle before we made any decisions about where to go next. And to my surprise, he agreed.
I wanted to learn more about the shifters, about their way of life. We visited the village often, helping with small tasks, patrolling for them.
And Declan, he stayed.
He watched me with that careful, unreadable gaze as I laughed with the shifters, as I trained some of them to fight, as I fit into something that felt like home.
He didn’t say much, but I could tell. He saw it.
More than that, our bond had deepened in a way I never thought possible. He no longer resisted when I offered him my blood.
He drank from me daily, and though he was still careful, still controlled, I could feel the shift in him. He wasn’t fighting himself anymore.
That night, I wanted to show him something. I convinced him to go on a nighttime hike with me, just the two of us, beneath the stars.
He grumbled about it, of course, but he still followed, rolling his eyes as I led him along a narrow path winding up the mountain.
By the time we reached the clearing, I was out of breath, grinning as I turned to him. “Worth it?”
Declan exhaled, his gaze sweeping over the view, the valley below, the dark stretch of trees, the moon hanging bright above us. “I guess.”
I laughed, shaking my head as I lowered my pack to the ground. “You’re impossible.”
He huffed, but then, to my surprise, he pulled out a rolled-up mat and spread it out on the grass. I froze, watching him smooth it down, then raise a brow at me.
“Well?” he said. “You dragged me up here for a picnic, didn’t you?”
Something warm settled in my chest. He never did things like this, never made small gestures, never tried to meet me halfway. It meant something.
I sat down beside him, unpacking the sandwiches I’d made earlier, while he stretched out on his side, propped up on his elbow, watching me. I knew that look.
“You want some?” I asked, holding out a sandwich.
His mouth curled at the corner. “Not my type of meal.”
I rolled my eyes. “You’re so dramatic.”
He didn’t deny it.
The night air was cool, but Declan radiated warmth beside me. The past few weeks had settled something between us and had built something unshakable in its place. I didn’t want to lose that.
When I was finished eating, I turned to him, lowering my voice. “You can have your kind of meal now.”
His eyes darkened, but he didn’t argue. He reached for me, guiding me onto my back, and the world tilted as his weight settled half over me.
Declan didn’t hesitate anymore. Didn’t fight the need that burned in him.
His lips brushed over my pulse, slow, teasing. I shivered, tilting my head to give him better access.
“Donovan,” he murmured.
It wasn’t a warning. It was reverence. His fangs scraped over my skin. I gasped and then everything shattered. A rustling in the trees. A snap of a branch. Declan moved.
One second, he was beside me. The next, he was crouched low, his body positioned between me and the source of the sound. I shot up, heart hammering, and then I saw Kit.
