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"Merrick, you're with me," I said, looping an arm with his. He let out a shudder of pleasure at my touch and I wanted to pull him closer.

"How are we getting to the cabin?" he asked as I pulled him in the opposite direction of the park.

"Walking. The fresh air helps me think. If that’s okay with you?" I asked.

"Yes, it's nice to see the town when I'm not running naked from the cops," he admitted.

"At least it wasn't your skin," I offered up, letting a hint of jealousy leak into the words. “I’m the only one allowed to see that side of you now.”

He gave me a heated look before it faded back to frustration.

"It wasn't the best feeling. I never knew when I'd shift back. Being in other people's skin was bad enough. Then the random naked ones were so much worse. It felt violating on so many levels… for both of us.”

"Yeah, I wouldn't want the whole town to see me in my birthday suit. Though, maybe they would like me more if they did," I teased.

"Does most of the town act mean to you?" he asked, genuinely confused. I couldn’t blame him. No one should really stand out in a town full of curses. But his curse found a way, and so did mine at times. That doesn’t go unnoticed.

"Some of the old timers are and any of the legal teams. It was rough when I moved here, especially losing my family. Curing my curse became an obsession and it didn’t always end well. Then I found Blake and that changed it all. I stopped caring about them and built my life with her. I have to get her back," I explained, trying to sound indifferent but the truth was it still hurt. No one liked to be an outsider. Especially not here.

I was in my head enough that I stumbled on a crack in the sidewalk. It would have had me falling on my face but Merrick caught me just an inch before I made contact. My eyes went wide as I studied the cement in front of me.

"There was a ladybug in our path," I joked as Merrick stood me back up. My cheeks burned with embarrassment.

"Is that why you almost fell? So you didn't crush it, witchling?" he asked as I wobbled a little on my feet. At least he found my clumsiness and humor endearing.

"Nope, just pointing it out. I tripped on that crack.” He snorted as I guided him into the treeline and away from dangerous sidewalks.

With my stress I could feel my magic burning a little brighter and was terrified it would end badly for Moonlit Grove.

We were quiet as we navigated through the forest. It was the edge of town, a barrier of sorts, and they didn’t exactly encourage us to travel out here. Which meant, no real paths.

As we walked I ran my hand over the branches and leaves to make sure my wolf could follow us easily since they didn’t know the way.

I spotted a few of my markers that guided the way. A stack of rocks in a small tower, the tree I carved an arrow into low enough you had to know it was there to see it, and the little creek.

We hopped across the creek using the flat stones, and finally we neared the cabin that I’d covered in vines. He looked confused when we stopped until I brushed them aside to reveal a wooden door.

The cabin was fairly small but I’d gutted nearly everything but the bathroom and a single bed. The rest of the tables and chairs held books and equipment. Even though I hadn’t been here in a few months it was still fairly clean. The vine barrier really helped with that.

“Wow,” he said as he took it in. I flicked my hand at the lanterns that hung overhead and they flared to life, filling the dark space with light.

“And you worried about a ladybug when there are probably a million spiders in here?” he teased. I snorted out a laugh as I picked up the experiment notes I’d used last time I was here, running my fingers over the lines.

“This was the chicken experiment,” I said as I jotted a note about the outcome. Including the fact they’d changed in size.

“Let’s not try that again. We’re trying not to draw attention to ourselves,” he said.

We both froze as a branch snapped outside. He pulled me close until I heard Rook’s voice.

“Why are we stopping here?” When no answer came I assumed Dorian was in wolf form. I couldn’t resist as I held a finger to my lips before tiptoeing to the door. We’d left it open, so all I had to do was burst out of the vines.

Dorian watched on, unamused. He likely heard me.

Rook, however, let out a scream and accidentally threw the mirror. My eyes widened in horror and I lunged after it. When it was clear I was going to miss, Dorian took over, snatching it by the handle in his fangs and stopping next to me.

“Good save,” I groaned out, the wind was knocked out of me as I collided with the forest floor. Rook picked me back up, placing me on my feet, and I took the mirror from Dorian.

He shifted back and my eyes dipped lower without thought before I forced myself to look away. Now was not the time to think about how big my alpha was.