ALBERT POV
I deserved a damn medal.
Not a small one either. The biggest, shiniest medal anyone could forge — for “Outstanding Self-Control in a Life-Threateningly Horny Situation.”
Because my mate — the woman I’d loved my entire f*****g life — was in heat.
And she was naked.
Pressed against me.
Begging.
And I was staying still.
Petrified. Sweating. Trying not to breathe too damn hard.
I’d tried to be logical. Tried to help. I ran her a cold bath, thinking maybe the water would soothe her. But the moment I stepped away — one inch, just one inch — she whimpered like I’d stabbed her. Her body arched, trembling, desperate. The air around us shifted, humming with power and scent and need.
She couldn’t stand the distance.
Couldn’t stand being away from me.
And when I tried again, her
