Elara POV:
I wake tangled in sheets that smell like him.
Warm, clean, faintly wild.
For a moment I don’t move at all, just breathe, letting awareness return slowly. Caelan’s solid weight beside me, his arm slung loosely around my waist, the steady rise and fall of his chest at my back. Morning light spills through the window in pale bands, catching on bare skin and rumpled linen.
Then I feel it. It’s not subtle or apologetic. It’s very much awake as a small smile pulls at my mouth.
Caelan doesn’t shift, but he isn’t asleep. Not really. His body is far too alert, far too aware. The second I stretch, his arm tightens fractionally, instinct answering before thought.
I roll carefully in his hold until I’m facing him.
He’s already watching me. Those dark eyes are heavy with sleep and som
