If Nova had thought taking a run through the woods alone in wolf form was liberating, it was only because she had forgotten what it felt like to have a companion.

After she and Cannon had shirked their humanly responsibilities for the rest of the afternoon, they finally accepted it was time to get back to reality once dusk set in. The sunlight squeezing between the high tree branches had steadily grown weaker and had developed a deep orange glow as it prepared to disappear below the horizon.

Tired but content with the surreal afternoon they had shared, Nova and Cannon returned to where they’d abandoned their clothes and began dressing in silence.

Unable to resist, Nova snuck a sideways glance at Cannon as he dressed. His smooth, taut skin covered impressive muscles and she found herself imagining what it would be like to feel his bare skin pressed against her. She had already gathered that he had a well-toned physique during their dance the previous night. Yet, feeling his back and biceps through his clothing didn’t do justice for what he looked like outside of his clothing…

Nova would have had to be blind to not notice that Cannon was pretty damned good-looking. However, it hadn’t occurred to her how incredibly sexy he was as well. She’d never had reason to look at him in that way before, but now, it was like a whole new side of him had suddenly been revealed to her. And even though she felt slightly conflicted about it, she couldn’t deny being drawn in and fascinated.

She continued to study him in her periphery, wondering how she had possibly managed to mistake him as a mere human. There was so much more to him than that, and it suddenly seemed implausible to have not noticed straight from the start.

Once again, she was forced to think about the abrupt change that had occurred in his behavior towards her. Could it have been because he’d sensed something familiar about her as a shifter? How had he caught on while she hadn’t?

So lost in her thoughts, it took Nova a moment to realize Cannon had finished dressing and was now looking at her. Her face flushed over the fact that he had likely caught her staring at him naked. And then she realized that she was still only halfway dressed.

She hurriedly pulled her shirt over her head, all the while resisting the sudden urge to smile. She had glimpsed the look in Cannon’s eye right at the last second. It was a look she knew well, plenty of men gave it to her on the regular. It was apparent that Cannon had been enjoying the view quite a bit.

What if this was meant to be?

The thought was fleeting in Nova’s mind, but there nonetheless, flickering in and out of focus, just as it had been from the moment Cannon shifted in front of her. Whenever she actually acknowledged it for longer than a couple of seconds, it scared her. She knew herself well enough to know that she had always possessed a wandering eye, which made the thought of settling down more than a little nerve-wrecking. That’s why her ex, Dax, hadn’t been the sole problem; Nova had certainly played her role in their relationship issues as well.

Nevertheless, there was something about the way Cannon had made her feel over the past two days that couldn’t be ignored…

Something that told her that maybe things never worked out well with other guys because they weren’t the right ones…

They weren’t him.

Don’t be ridiculous. It’s too early for those kind of thoughts, a voice said in Nova’s head.

Cannon smiled at her, and she felt her heart patter like a young schoolgirl with a crush. He really was handsome in ways she had never noticed before. And sometimes, there was a sneaky look lurking under his expression that made her worry he could sense the direction of her thoughts.

Fully dressed, she finally worked up the nerve to meet his gaze directly. “Tell me,” she said, “did you already know?”

“Already know what?”

“Already know that I was a shifter.”

Cannon reached for her hand and she accepted the gesture. Her heart pounded again. It had been so long since she’d experienced such a thing.

Cannon’s brow lowered. “I’m honestly not sure,” he said. “I mean, even a blind man could see how beautiful you are, but I’m not sure that’s what drew me in to you. It wasn’t until last night that I noticed, really. Maybe there was something I sensed subconsciously.” He shrugged his shoulders. “How about you? Did you know I was a shifter? Have you just been stringing me along all this time?”

“No, not at all. I’m still in shock, to be honest. I was so angry about being trapped here in Crescent Valley, that I somehow missed a shifter right under my nose. I’m still trying to figure out how that was even possible. It was driving me crazy to not be around my own kind—to have to hide what I am. But now…I’m stunned, but pleasantly surprised.”

Cannon laughed and gave her hand a squeeze as they strolled out of the woods and across the field. “Same here, I suppose.” He paused for an instant. “So—that means, obviously, your brother is a shifter too, right?”

Nova nodded. “Yeah. My whole family—we’re all wolves.” She sighed as they reached her patio. “Just for a moment, I was able to forget them and all the drama. I suppose I need to figure out where my brother is now though. With what he’s planning, I can’t afford to wait any longer. Time is just ticking toward disaster.”

“Hopefully he hasn’t taken off then. He was pretty pissed off about something this morning. When he stormed off, I don’t know where he went.”

Nova abruptly stopped walking. She slid her hand out of Cannon’s. “Wait—you saw Julius this morning?”

“Yeah. He was in my office, arguing with someone on the phone. A girlfriend maybe? Does the name Maxine ring any bells? Hey—what’s wrong?” Cannon asked, alarmed by the sudden change in Nova’s demeanor. The blood had practically drained from her face.

“Maxine?” she said.

Cannon nodded slowly. “Yeah, I think that’s the name he said. I’m pretty sure, actually. Why? Who is she?”

But words failed Nova. Anger had seized her voice, preventing it from rising up her throat. She shook her head while the rest of her body trembled in silent fury.

Julius was in contact with Maxine? And on top of that, their father was in danger.

Julius was a traitor. Her own brother, her twin! If their mother could see him now…

Nova thought she was going to be sick to her stomach. Cannon repeatedly called her name, but she still couldn’t bring herself to respond. She couldn’t be bothered with Cannon at a time like this. Her brief moment of happiness with him was over, and there was no longer any time for her to consider what could have developed between them. Maybe in more stable times, their relationship would have stood a chance. But as for now, she had dire family matters to tend to.

Without another word, Nova bolted away from Cannon, her only thoughts being on finding her dear twin brother and wringing his fucking neck.