Page 173 of Dominion

“Hey beautiful,” Mark croons, stroking my face and belly, rubbing my ears. “You’re so gorgeous. I can’t wait to run and hunt with you.”

I will myself to shift back, and it happens with ease. As if I’d never lost my wolf, never lost the ability to shift at will. To heal. To be who I truly am.

“Oh Fates.” I sit up and cover my face with my hands, happy tears running down my cheeks.

Mark’s smile fades, and he crawls on the bed with me, prying my hands from my face. “Fuck, baby. Had you lost your wolf? Is that why you couldn’t heal?”

I nod through the tears. “It’s been four years.”

He kisses them away and pulls me into his arms. “Never again, angel. You’ll never lose her again. She was always with you.”

“You brought her back out,” I say.

“Wedid,” he says. “I can’t believe I found you. I feel so blessed.”

I want to feel blessed too, but there’s still a shadow looming over me. Over us. And that’s the part I hate. I care far too much about Mark to let him risk his life for us.

4

Mark

I may have promised not to mark my sweet mate, but that didn’t stop me from fucking her twice more by morning.

She curls into me, nuzzling my neck. “What made you enter law enforcement?” she asks. “And which came first, being enforcer, or working for the DEA?”

I burrow my fingers in her hair and massage the back of her head. “DEA came first then enforcer. The council loved the idea of having me in human law enforcement as a means of helping to hide shifter activities when they go outside human law.”

“And how did you end up with the DEA?” she asks.

“I grew up near here, in a western suburb of Denver that bordered the foothills, so we could run and hunt. Our high school was mixed—human and shifter—and my best friend was a human.”

Colleen lifts her lovely face, her blue-green eyes trained on mine. She braces, like she already knows what I’m going to say.

“We were just screwing around, partying. Of course, drugs had no effect on me, but I figured my job was to keep them safe. Be designated driver. The guy who kept a clear head. My friends didn’t know I was a shifter. Our recreational use had sort of escalated from pot to sampling a little cocaine. I guess it had been laced with something else. It burned my nose, and I felt sick for a few minutes. But my buddy…”

Colleen holds her breath.

I nod my confirmation. “He died. And that’s when I vowed to take down drug traffickers.” I shrug. “I guess I blamed them for what happened.”

She lays her cheek against my bare chest. “What was his name?”

“Travis.”

“I’m sorry for your loss.”

I massage her scalp some more. “It was a long time ago.”

“You’re noble—working for the greater good.” She trails a fingertip through the hair on my chest.

“Your greater good is all I care about now,” I tell her.

“You take care of the people you love—even humans. Is that why you call yourself, Daddy?”

I shrug. “I guess. I’m alpha, so I like to be in charge, but in a way that’s caretaking and kind. I want to spoil you.”

“That sounds wonderful.” Her smile is sad, which sends my wolf into a panic.

“I can call into work today,” I tell her. I don’t want to leave her and the kids alone. Unprotected. And the truth is, I’m half-afraid she’ll be gone by the time I get back.