NIKOLAI
THE SOUND OF birds chirping was what woke me up. Soft. Unassuming. Completely out of place in my f*****g world.
A low groan rumbled from my throat as I shifted, only to realize something heavy was pressed against me—someone. Their head rested in the crook of my neck, the weight familiar and welcoming.
Claude.
I exhaled through my nose, my eyes locking onto his face. Even now, even in sleep, he looked like something I shouldn’t f*****g touch. Something sharp and fragile at the same time, something that could cut me open if I wasn’t careful.
Not that it mattered. I wasn’t careful. Never had been.
And no matter how many times I thought about it, no matter how I turned it over in my head, I still couldn’t wrap my mind around the fact that werewolves were real. That he was
