The morning light filters through the curtains of the Alpha's suite. Heidi opens her eyes, and for a fleeting second, the weight of the crown feels absent. There is only the warmth of the man beside her and the rhythmic thrum of his heartbeat against her cheek.
"Peace," her wolf whispers. "It tastes like silver and honey. But don't get used to the silence, Little Alpha. The world is waiting for you to wake up."
Heidi sighs, shifting her weight. Every muscle in her body aches with a delicious, heavy soreness—a reminder of the night Darien had spent reclaiming her, marking her with his touch and his scent. She sits up, the silk sheets sliding down her skin, and looks at the man who is now her husband.
Darien is still asleep, his dark hair messy against the pillows, his face softened in a way the pack never gets to see. He looks younger like this. Less like a soldier, more like the boy he might have been if their world hadn't been built on a foundation of blood.
