ARIA POV
Riding Drake was nothing like riding Ellis. It wasn’t even a comparison I could wrap my head around. And it wasn’t just the bloody, matted state of his white fur or the tingles erupting in my hands and arms as I gripped him. It was the way he ran. Like an unhinged beast.
There was no rhythm meant to keep me steady, no polite buffer between his fury and my fear. There was only the raw coil and snap of muscle under my thighs. He didn't slow down for me; he ran like he expected me to be strong enough to keep up with him. Like he had the same terrifying faith in me that I had in him.
It was violent grace, something built to run until its lungs literally tore apart. I was hyper-aware that I was balanced on the spine of a wolf who could snap my bones without trying, and yet, I could
