CLAUDE
IT STILL FELT weird, being able to walk around the house so freely. But now… now I knew where the dining room was. Hell, I could smell it—the rich, savory aroma filling the air, making my stomach clench.
But that wasn’t what had my chest squeezing.
No, it was him.
He had seen me—had looked at what I was—and instead of disgust, he had laughed. Had reached out, tapped my head, stroked my fur. And gods, it made my heart stuttered because it mattered.
I stepped into the dining room, and Nikolai was already there, dressed in a fitted white T-shirt and dark suit trousers. Simple, effortless, but somehow he still looked like he belonged on a throne. His eyes found mine as I moved closer, the corner of his lips tugging up like he was amused by something.
Then, his gaze dragged
