Grace of a Wolf by Lenaleia

Chapter 185: Grace: Middle of the Night

When the storm wakes me at two thirty-seven in the morning, it’s a relief.

For whatever reason, my dreams were infested with zombies. There’s only so much running away from the undead a girl can handle dreaming about—which is zilch, by the way—and I’m way above my quota with one night alone.

Drenched in sweat, I slip out of bed. Sara and Bun don’t even twitch on their two-thirds of the mattress, cordoned off with a pile of rolled up blankets and body pillows Caine acquired from the store.

He’s insistent on reducing even the possibility of accidental touches, even though I can’t feel anything when I touch Bun. It’s only Caine who seems to pull my energy out.

Lyre hadn’t given much explanation when I explained it to her, not that we had much time to talk about it in between... everything else. Just said Bun needed the stabilization, and I should know my limits. But, of course, the Lycan King doesn’t agree, saying if I knew my limits I wouldn’t have fallen unconscious.

Reaching out, I brush my fingers against Bun’s ankle, focusing on the brief contact. But there’s nothing. No sudden rush of magic, no feeling of anything draining from me.

Perhaps it only happens when she’s out of control. Lyre said it was stabilization, so such a scenario would make the most sense.

Which begs the question: what’s wrong with Caine, for him to require it at all times?

I scrub at my face and sigh, heading silently into the bathroom, where I can at least stretch my legs a little, since getting back to sleep feels a little impossible right now.

The phone’s built-in flashlight comes in handy as I stealthily close both bathroom doors before finally flicking on the overhead lights, blinking a little in the sudden brightness.

It’s quiet.

Outside, the sound of an occasional car makes it through the walls. But where we are, in the back of the parking lot, there isn’t much going on, leaving things surprisingly quiet.

and inhale the slightly musty air. The storm thuds against the roof with incessant, heavy rain,

everything in this

I squeeze the now-wet cloth over my skin, rivulets sliding

away the remnants of those endless zombie dreams and

RV feels like a pressure cooker tonight. With the unseasonable heat passing and cooler fall temperatures finally making its way to the area, the rain’s forced us to shut every window. Without a cross-breeze or the air conditioner running, we rely on fans to circulate the stagnant, humid air, made worse by the

too much. The thought of cool air makes me close my eyes in longing, but I dismiss it immediately. It’s more likely to wake up the others, and we all need rest after such a

how we’ll

be back in Blue Mountain territory, where Rafe’s taken over as Alpha. Even the thought of seeing his face makes my stomach roil with nausea, and

think about Rafe and Ellie and how awkward

bathroom door

tiny streams of water

in the

they drop, tracing the curves of my exposed body. His pupils dilate instantly, black eclipsing

I shiver.

seems to pause with us, only to give up

can’t quite pin down what he smells like. It’s just uniquely him and right now, it’s overpowering in the bathroom as he

hammers against my wrist, my throat, between my thighs, until I’m

burns a path across my skin,

and his gaze roves over my body without shame, taking in my nudity without a single

clear my throat and try again. "I thought everyone

it was one of

my nudity with my own voice. Classic.