The Winter Ridge outpost looked like something out of a survival documentary. Rough-hewn log buildings huddled against the mountainside, their roofs heavy with snow. The wind cut through my jacket like it had a personal grudge, and my breath came out in white clouds that disappeared into the gray morning air.
I killed the engine and sat there for a moment, staring at the place that would be my home now. My sanctuary. My exile. Whatever you wanted to call it.
The pain in my chest had dulled to a constant ache, like a bruise that wouldn't heal. My wolf was quiet, barely a whisper in the back of my mind. We were both so tired.
A knock on my window made me jump.
A man stood there, older, with silver threading through his dark hair and laugh lines around his eyes. He gestured for me to roll down the window.
"Elodie Palmer?" His voice was rough but kind. "I'm Marcus Stone. Welcome to the ass-end of nowhere."
Despite everything, I almost smiled. "Thanks for taking me."
"We need good wolves up here." He stepped back as I opened the door. "It's not glamorous, but it's honest work. And nobody asks questions you don't want to answer."
I liked him immediately.
My legs were stiff from the long drive, and when I went to grab my trunk from the truck bed, my damaged wolf made the weight feel like twice what it should be. I gritted my teeth and pulled anyway.
"Let me help with that."
The voice came from behind me, low and rumbling, and something in my chest went still.
I turned.
He was tall, broad-shouldered, with dark hair that fell just past his collar and eyes the color of amber. But it wasn't his looks that made my breath catch. It was his scent.
Pine and cedar, rich and warm, with an undertone of something wild and ancient. It hit me like a wave, wrapping around me, and for the first time in ten years, my wolf lifted her head.
I flinched backward, my shoulders hitting the truck. Old instincts screaming that I'd done something wrong, that I'd be punished for—
"Hey." His hands came up, palms out, non-threatening. "I'm sorry. Didn't mean to startle you."
No reprimand. No Alpha tone. Just genuine concern in those amber eyes.
My wolf stirred again, curious now. Interested.
Safe, she whispered. He feels safe.
"I'm Valentino," he said, keeping his distance, letting me have space. "Valentino Hughes. I'm... well, Marcus calls me a consultant. Mostly I just help out where I'm needed."
His voice had no arrogance in it, no dominance. Just warmth, like his scent.
"Elodie," I managed.
"I know." A small smile touched his lips. "Marcus told me you were coming. Said you're a hell of a strategist."
I blinked. Marcus had said that? About me?
Valentino moved slowly, telegraphing his intentions, and reached for my trunk. His fingers brushed mine for just a second, and that scent intensified, making my damaged wolf practically purr.
What the hell was happening?
"Come on," Marcus called from the main building. "Let's get you settled before you freeze to death. Valentino, show her to the east cabin. It's got the best view."
Valentino hefted my trunk like it weighed nothing and started walking. I followed, my legs unsteady, my wolf more alert than she'd been in months.
The east cabin was small but clean, with a stone fireplace and windows overlooking a valley of snow-covered pines. Valentino set my trunk down gently and moved to start a fire without being asked.
"It's rough up here," he said, his back to me as he worked. "Cold. Isolated. But there's something about it that helps people heal."
He said it casually, like he wasn't talking about me specifically. Like he just understood.
The fire caught, and warmth began to spread through the room.
Valentino stood and turned to face me. "If you need anything, I'm in the cabin just north of here. And Marcus runs a pretty relaxed operation. No formal pack dynamics, no politics. Just wolves trying to do good work."
"Why are you here?" The question slipped out before I could stop it.
He was quiet for a moment, his amber eyes studying me with an intensity that should have felt invasive but somehow didn't.
"Same reason as you, probably," he said finally. "Looking for something real."
Then he smiled, and it transformed his whole face, making him look younger, lighter.
"Get some rest," he said, heading for the door. "Tomorrow, if you're up for it, I'll show you the territory. It's beautiful once you get past the frostbite risk."
He left, and I stood there in my new cabin, surrounded by the lingering scent of pine and cedar, feeling my wolf stretch and wake up for the first time in forever.
What the hell was happening?
