We rock infortable silence for a while, listening to the chorus of crickets and the asional distant howl of a wolf. Once


    again, my mind drifts back to the she-wolf we saw earlier.


    "Arthur?" I say, breaking the silence.


    "Hmm?"


    "Do you think... Do you think my wolf will ever emerge? Or is it possible that I''ll be one of those wolfless people?"


    It''s umon, but notpletely unheard of; there are people who possess werewolf genes but never have a wolf. No one''s


    really sure why it happens-some im that their wolf''s spirit abandoned them, that it''s some kind of omen or something to be


    ashamed of-but it does asionally happen.


    He nces at me. "Where''s thising from?"


    I shrug. "Just curious. I mean, if my wolf hasn''t shown itself so far..."


    Truthfully, it''s a fear I''ve been carrying silently since discovering my heritage. My parents are both powerful werewolves. Caleb


    can shift with ease, or at least so I''ve heard. Even Miles already shows signs of having a wolf, like when he was able to recognize


    Arthur as his father right away and having a proclivity for eating meat, despite being so young.


    But I''ve never even felt an inkling of a wolf inside of me. It''s why no one ever thought I was anything but human for so long.


    Arthur turns fully to look at me. "First of all," he says, "there''s no doubt you''re a werewolf. The DNA tests confirmed it, and I''ve


    seen your eyes glow."


    "That was one time, and you said it was just for a second. It could have been a trick of the light-"


    "I know what I saw, Iris," Arthur insists. He takes my chin between his thumb and forefinger and turns my head to make me look at him. His eyes are soft, but shimmering like the stars overhead. "It was beautiful."


    I duck my head, oddly embarrassed. "But what if glowing eyes is all I ever manage? What if I never shift?"


    "Then you never shift," he says simply. "It doesn''t change who you are, Iris. It doesn''t make you any less of a Willford, or any


    less of my mate."


    "But wouldn''t you be disappointed? To have a mate who can''t shift?"


    Arthur sighs softly. "Listen to me. I fell in love with you when I thought you were


    fully human, remember? When I beli d we could never share that part of my life. It didn''t matter then, and it doesn''t matter now."


    "But-"


    "I need you to know that even if your wolf never fully emerges, it won''t change how I see you or how I feel abo you. Not one


    bit."


    In this moment, under the vast canopy of stars with Arthur''s eyes fixed unwaveringly on me, I feel a surge of emotion so


    powerful it nearly takes my breath away. For the first time since we reconciled, I feel truly,pletely safe in us.


    Safe enough to finally say the words I''ve been holding back.


    "I love you, Arthur," I say softly. "I never stopped, not really. Even when I tried to hate you, I loved you."


    +40 Bonus


    Arthur goes perfectly still beside me. This is the first time I''ve said this since the breakup. He''s said it before, but... I didn''t have


    the strength or the confidence to say it back. I feared that if I did, if I said the words out loud, it would open me up to more


    heartbreak. That it would be too vulnerable.


    "Say it again," he whispers.


    "I love you," I repeat with a quiet giggle.


    A smile spreads across his face, so radiant it could outshine the stars above us. Without warning, he stands, pulling me to my feet


    with him.


    And then, he scoops me into his arms. The nket falls forgotten to the porch


    floor. He carries me across the porch, through the


    front door, and down the hallway toward our bedroom.


    "I love you too, Iris. And I''m going to show you just how much I do."


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