Sera couldn’t sleep, her burning eyes pulling her once more from slumber. She hated when it happened because it not only made her restless, but it meant that more of her already impaired vision was lost.

She dreaded the moment she would become completely blind. Her friends may have thought that it was some sort of unknown curse, a witch illness, but she knew the truth. For a little more than two years, she had stumbled upon her answers, and her future was bleak. She was still deciding if it was something she wanted for herself. Or not. Thoughts often swirled in her mind, weighing her options.

Pushing her duvet aside, she grabbed her thick glasses and moved to the window. As her head pounded like someone was ringing bells, she realized that there no way she could fall asleep again.

Adding force to her lenses through a spell she knew well, Sera perched them on her nose and blinked at the forest blanketed by moonlight through her window.

The Sanctuary was a beautiful place. A thick, protecting magic surrounding the domain, offering a soothing effect. It was like being home, even if it was the very first time you discovered it.

She should be tired, with the last week being the most magically draining of her life, but instead, her brain was alight with fireworks, trying to process everything, impatient to return to her beloved books, to learn even more. There was so much information to process, especially about weredragons. Since one of her best friends had become one, Sera had decided to dig even deeper into the world of shifters. She had met some of them before, but never on the scale such as those at the Sanctuary.

For a witch, who felt that learning was like a drug, they were fascinating creatures. The embodiment of nature and magic in perfect harmony. Nothing had to be twisted, it only flowed and lived.

Unsure what to do and knowing that the sun wouldn’t be up for a couple more hours, Sera dressed, not bothering about her hair, and grabbed her notepad before going downstairs. She figured the kitchen would be empty at this time, and she would make herself a cup of tea before scribbling notes. There were so many things she wanted to check, so many avenues to research. Focusing on a fascinating topic that would also help her friend, Valeria, was all she needed to forget about her own predicament.

The house was big, and a real maze of corridors, but Sera was pretty sure that by going downstairs, she would eventually find the place she was searching for. Around the corner, she remembered one of the carvings on the wall as being close to the kitchen, but when her bare feet caught on the carpet, she lost her balance. No sound came from her, but she saw herself falling in slow motion, and mentally rolled her eyes at her clumsiness. Why couldn’t she place one foot in front of the other without making a fool of herself? And as she expected, she tumbled to the floor, her notebook flying away and her glasses sliding goodness knew where.

Assessing her body, it seemed that everything was unharmed, apart from a scratch or two. At least there was a blessing in falling down so often, her body didn’t bruise easily anymore. The next point of order - finding her glasses.

On all fours, she tried to remember the sound they made when they fell so she could locate them, but her hand only felt the carpet or cool wooden floor, until she touched a foot. A foot?

Although she knew she was in a safe place, a guest within a Sanctuary, the accidental contact made her jump and fall back on her bottom. In addition to the surprising contact, not being able to see rendered her vulnerable. And the tall, dark shadow she saw towering above her didn’t do anything to calm her thudding heart until it spoke.

“Sera? Are you alright?” Ian. Realizing that Asher’s beta and right-hand man, or wolf, was the shadow calmed her nerves a bit. The dark-haired werewolf had been nothing but kind and friendly since she had met him for the first time at Impossibilities Inc., the store where she worked. There was no reason to fear him.

“Ian, good evening. Well, I assume it’s getting closer to dawn, so good morning.”

She couldn’t see him, but he must have smiled as she could hear it in his voice. “Can I help you with something?”

“Don’t move!” And she scrambled back on her knees, cautious of where she touched the floor.

“Okay, but if you tell me what you’re doing, or searching for, I could help you. Unless it’s some kind of witch spell?”

Sera sighed. “It’s dark, I doubt you would be able to find it.”

“Hmmm… I see well in darkness. Not as well as I do in the day, but for example, I can see your notebook on the floor to your left.”

Sera sat back on her ankles, wonder in her voice. “Really? More like thermal reading? Or perhaps like what the human soldiers are using?”

“I wouldn’t know. What are you searching for on the floor, Sera?”

She groaned, frustration starting to get hold of her. “My damn glasses. When I fell on my face, they flew away.”

Sera heard more than saw Ian shift, moving to her right. His shadowy figure bent and took something off the floor before coming back to her, crouching to her level.

“Got ‘em.”

Sera smiled, glancing up to where she assumed his face was. Ian ignored her outstretched hand and gently put the frame back on her face. And now he was the dark wolf, with clear caramel eyes that currently appeared black with only faint light filtering through the kitchen windows. He was dressed in a pair of jeans and Henley but no shoes. So close, she could actually see his face, beautiful, chiselled, with a little black stubble that made him appear fiercer. Did it feel like human stubble or fur?

When she extended her hand to touch him, not even realizing she had moved, his sudden intake of air stopped her.

“I’m sorry, Ian. That was rude of me.”

Unmoving, he arched an eyebrow, questioning. “Rude?”

“I was about to touch you without asking. I’m sorry. And I’ve put you in an awkward position.”

A smile tugged at his mouth, and her eyes were fascinated. She found shifters interesting as subjects, but Ian intrigued her on another level.

“I can’t think of any awkward position you could place me in, Sera.” Was he mocking her? It was hard to know with part of his face in darkness. Was he allowing her to touch him?

Curiosity and fascination won as she lifted her hand once more and ran her fingertips over his cheek. Soft. And when she cupped his jaw, he slightly nuzzled her palm, her eyes darting to his. His expression was implacable, but his gaze intense.

Sera didn’t know what to do, and was tempted to touch his hair too, but some sense returned to her.

“I just wondered if your beard and your hair felt like human hair or fur. I know it’s stupid, but…”

“It’s not stupid.” His voice was low but soft. “You’re a researcher, it’s okay to be curious.”

“A researcher?” Somehow, it flattered her to be called that.

Ian nodded. “From the start, it was evident. And it’s because of your knowledge and your brain that you could help stop a great disaster. You’re far from stupid. Ask me anything you want.”

Sera smiled, but couldn’t detach her gaze from his, entranced. That was when he moved, lifting his hand to replace a strand of knotted blonde hair behind her ear. His touch lingered, scrambling her brain cells.

“Ask me, Sera.”

She blinked and blurted out her question before she could censor herself. “I want to see you as a wolf.”

Ian seemed to hesitate, and she winced. “Of course, I know what a wolf is, and I’ve seen you as a wolf during the battle with Soren and the Enforcers here as you defended Sanctuary, but never up close. Does it hurt when you change? Can you think like a man or is it the wolf that takes over? Can you understand when people speak?”

Sera halted when Ian started to laugh, a deep rumbling, full of glee. Why was he laughing? Was he mocking her?

She must have made a face because Ian stopped and shook his head. “Sorry, Sera. You surprised me with your curiosity, that’s all. But before I answer all your questions, I can satisfy your first one.”

Moonlight still filtered through the windows as dawn pushed, shedding a silvery glow over them. Under this light, his black hair looked like silk.

Ian stood slowly and, to her surprise, started undressing. She turned her head.

“What are you doing?”

“If I turn with my clothes on, I’ll ruin them.”

“You need to be naked?”

“As a wolf, I’m naked. If you want to see me change into my beast, you better look at me, Sera.”

She bit her lips and hated acting so prudish. It wasn’t as if she hadn’t seen a naked male body before … but this time, it was Ian.

Slowly, she turned to him, zeroing in on his face. The cad was smiling, and she couldn’t help but smile back. The body before her was breathtaking, but it felt wrong to take advantage of him.

Before she could indulge herself, his figure blurred, and she saw his body changing, a mix of magic, energy and transformation. Fascinated, she inched forward and, a few seconds later, a huge and magnificent black wolf stood before her.

All air whooshed from her lungs. “Wow. Oh, wow.” His eyes glinted like hard amber, looking at her with the same intensity as Ian. It was Ian!

On her hands and knees, she padded forward.

“You are incredible. Ian, do you hear me?”

He didn’t answer and instead lay down, sniffing.

She extended her hand and hesitated once more. Could she touch him? Before she could over-think it, Ian pushed his head under her hand. Amazed, she stroked the thick fur over his hair and neck, almost forgetting that a man was within the beast.

Moved, she sat back, unable to detach her gaze from him. “You can’t imagine how much I would like to turn into a wolf.” Immediately, she bit her lip, revealing too much.

“Thank you, Ian. It was an honor to see you like this. You can’t imagine the privilege it was for me.”

Gracefully getting to his feet, the wolf transformed once more, and Ian was kneeling in front of her, magnificently naked, tattoos rippling over his muscled body.

Swallowing hard, Sera was about to repeat the words she had said to him when Ian leaned forward and kissed her. The contact surprised her, but heat coursed through her veins, and she surprised herself by slightly parting her lips, feeling his gasp of surprise. His caramel eyes turned feral, and overcome, Sera closed hers. It was wrong; she couldn’t let herself go with any man, any lover. Her own future was doomed, and she cursed the fates for sending her a male who dared to make her feel alive again.

Ian cupped her cheek, and Sera dared to look at him again, when she realized she couldn’t see. What she feared the most happened. All of a sudden, she had gone completely blind.