He looked up at the sky. The moon was full, and the clouds kept drifting over the white glow. He knelt to the soft earth to arrange the rocks one more time. The circle was the right size. He knew that, but he needed something to keep his hands busy.

He had left three voicemails and sent texts. Sophia hadn’t responded to a single one. The later it got, the more he realized she wasn’t going to go through with the blood oath tonight.

If only he had had more time. He knocked two of the rocks together. He could have told her, but that wouldn’t have worked either. The hole in her heart was deep. The wall she had built around it was higher.

He stood back to make sure all the components for the ceremony were in place. There was nothing else to do but wait. He stared at the moon again, knowing the eclipse was less than an hour away.

His ears twitched when he heard the sound of snapping twigs. He turned, his breath caught in the back of his throat.

“Soph?”

She met his eyes. “Hi.”

“You made it. You’re really here.” He stepped outside the circle of rocks to greet her.

She nodded. “I just needed some time to think.”

His chest was about to burst with the emotion rushing in. She was here.

“I wish I could have given you more.” He glanced upward. “We don’t have much now. I’m sorry.”

She looked around the clearing in the woods. “Where are the elders?”

“It turns out they don’t have to be here for the ceremony. You were right about something—this is between you and me.” He took her hands in his palms. “This is our oath to each other, beyond our mating, beyond our commitment to the clan, it entwines our lives together on this earth.”

“Really? We don’t need witnesses?”

“Really.” He grinned. “I consulted with Howard. They would like to be present. But it doesn’t change the vow we make. It was only tradition.”

Her fingers laced through his as he led her to the center of the circle. “Just you and me?”

He nodded. “You and me.”

She exhaled, and he could see the relief in her eyes. “I need to tell you something before we get started.”

“Okay.”

“I don’t know anything about being the she-alpha.”

He chuckled, his chest shaking lightly. “That’s okay.”

“And I don’t know anything about raising cubs.”

He brushed her hair back. “That’s okay too. We’ll do it together.”

“And I want you to know I’m here because I want to be here, Liam.”

His eyes flashed to hers. He gulped in air as the words tumbled from her lips.

“I’m not here because I have to be. Or because of Janet or Caroline, or even Howard. I’m here because of you. Because of us.” She twisted his fingers tighter against hers. “I didn’t think I deserved to be happy again. That I deserved to feel joy in my life, but you changed that. You opened my heart again.” She tipped forward on her toes, her mouth tilted toward him. “I am your mate. For life.”

He didn’t care what the ritual said, or that the seconds were ticking away on the eclipse. Liam grabbed her in his arms as his mouth came crushing down on hers. His bear growled with heated fury as their tongues lashed against each other.

They gulped for air as their hands moved wildly over each other. He kissed at her lips, drowning himself in her.

At last, he broke free, smiling at her. “I think we need to get this started.” He motioned to the sky overhead.

She nodded. “I’m ready.”

He struck a match against his boot and lit the twigs circling the inside of the rocks. The small flames danced around their feet.

Liam pulled a leather bracelet from his pocket and began to wrap it around Sophia’s wrist and then his own. He looked into her eyes as he pulled tightly on the ends, pinching their skin together.

“We must kneel together,” he directed her.

Slowly, they lowered to the ground. Liam retracted a blade from his back pocket.

“You already bear my mark. I swear this is the only time I’ll hurt you, Soph.”

“It’s okay. I know it’s part of the ceremony.” She urged him on with her eyes.

Liam ran the blade over the flames of the fire next to them.

“The fire represents the heat of our love. The flame that will burn as long as we are on this earth.” He held it out while the blade cooled. “And the blood represents our two lives now joined as one.”

He dug the tip of the blade into his own palm first and drew a short cut before doing the same to Sophia. She winced as the knife sliced against her palm. Liam slid his palm over hers, joining their blood.

He looked at her, dropping the knife to the ground. “Now the vows.”

Sophia’s eyelashes lifted. The fire glowed warmly on her face. She smiled at Liam, speaking each word to his heart.

“I devote myself to you, Liam Grayson. My body, my heart, and my soul belong only to you as long as we are on this earth.” Her eyes began to mist. “And I pledge myself to your clan as your mate.”

Liam had watched twenty of these ceremonies. He had performed many as the clan’s alpha. He had seen bears and humans swear their lives to one another, but it never felt as intense as this moment with Sophia.

“I devote myself to you, Sophia Withers. My body, my heart, and my soul belong only to you as long as we are on this earth.” He spoke lower. “I will protect you as long as I live. As the alpha, I pledge my clan’s loyalty to you. They will protect you to the death.”

He looked at her, waggling his eyebrows. “We did it.”

“We did, didn’t we?”

With his free hand, he cupped the side of her face, drawing her lips to his. He kissed his mate.