SLOANE
The first thing I noticed when I opened my eyes was how different everything felt. My body was warm and heavy in the best possible way, like I'd finally put down something I'd been carrying for years without realizing how much it weighed. The sheets beneath me were soft and smelled like cedar and leather, and there was a dull but pleasant ache in my muscles that made me want to curl up and never move again.
I was marked. The realization settled into my chest like sunlight, quiet and permanent. I belonged to something now, to someone, and for the first time in a very long time that didn't terrify me. It felt like coming home.
I stretched slowly and rolled over in the massive bed, blinking at the pale morning light filtering through the heavy curtains. I was alone in the room but t
