When Tatyana had told August this was going to be a long recovery, she had clearly not exaggerated. His mate slept most of every day away. There was never a day that was easier on her than the day before. The step down program meant that each day, his mate got less and less of what her body craved. Enough to make it through the day and nothing more. Then less the next day.

She cried out in her sleep, couldn’t be still, and only had brief hours of feeling well before she went downhill again. With the sun setting, she’d been unconscious for hours. When he’d run battles, they’d always been over fast. Robbie had the patience for long pursuits, Auggie did not. He wanted his mate healthy. He wanted to know her off the drugs. He craved more of what they had in the hours when she didn’t feel like she was dying.

He needed to know he could make her happy. Not to mention he woke up every morning perpetually hard. She slept on top of him. They always fell asleep on opposite sides of the bed and he’d wake up when she threw her body to cover his, as though she had become his blanket. He sighed. She smelled awesome.

Thanks to Lena, the house was filling up. They had furniture, clothes, food, and what she called knickknacks taking up space. Yesterday, Lena and Caitlyn had made Clarissa laugh for a good portion of the morning. He loved the sound even as he resented that they were taking up her time. What was the matter with him?

Robbie strolled down the street, seeming like he had not a care in the world, which Auggie knew not to be the case. His twin brother stopped in front of Auggie’s house before sitting on the steps next to him. “Nice night out here.”

“If you say so, my Alpha.” It actually wasn’t hard to call Robert that. He’d basically been their Alpha when he led them through war for two decades.

Robert rolled his eyes. “Weird coming out of your mouth. Hard enough with Devin and Dougal. Even Homer. I was always Robbie. Not even Robert. Like you’re Auggie.”

“Sometimes my mate calls me August.”

His brother smiled. “And he likes it, I can hear it in his voice.”

“You switched to third person why?” August wasn’t this obtuse. Alpha or no Alpha, Auggie liked screwing with Robbie.

Robert groaned. “You needed me. I felt it. I came.”

“I think you make up this twin shit.” Auggie leaned back on the stairs. He’d ask Lena for outdoor furniture soon. “I don’t feel your emotions.”

His twin shook his head. “You do. When I was going through mating, you were equally as attuned to me as I am to you right now. Talk to me.”

Talk to him? “I very rarely need to talk.”

Crickets chirped somewhere in the distance.

“Humor me.”

“My mate has been so sick for a month now. I know Tatyana says she’s getting better. I’m going to take her word for it.” He didn’t see it.

Robbie patted August’s knee. “You can trust her. She wouldn’t bullshit you.”

“There are dragons out there that have more eggs than I’ve ever seen in one place. I wish that didn’t mean what I know it has to mean.”

Robert stared up at the moon. It would be full soon. They’d all have to shift, except any pregnant females. They’d have to resist the call. He didn’t envy those women the long nights of protecting the unborn from the risk that came with shifting. An inherent flaw in the wolf design…

His brother finally spoke. “They’re growing a new Queen.”

“Yes.” One died. Another was born. Until all the eggs were gone. If they couldn’t get them all, there would be another Queen. And then another. When she was strong… war.

As they were, with all the people dying from drug withdrawal or fighting for their lives, they weren’t in a position to wage another war.

“We can’t save everywhere,” Auggie said, hating being the bearer of this news. “Just where we can ourselves try to oust them.”

His brother still stared at the sky. “That was the problem the first time. Packs should never have been gotten rid of. Each pack fighting for itself, protecting their own territory from the dragons could have succeeded. Centralizing is not the wolf way.”

“I know where those eggs are.” They could go and get rid of them.

“When your mate is better. Takes a decade to grow a Queen at least.” A muscle ticked in his brother’s jaw, a clear indication that Robert wanted blood. Like Auggie, Robbie was good at masking his scent. He still had his tells. The Alpha wanted blood.

August nodded. “Why did we ever agree to it? Why in the fuck did we say yes? Why did we think that was a good idea?”

Robert turned his head toward August slowly. “You don’t remember?”

“I remember… wanting to make them hurt.” That was his overall impression of two decades of battle and pain. The specific details blurred together in his mind.

Robert rubbed his eyes. “I’ve often wondered. You were so shut down, I questioned how much of it you retained. But then you were the perfect elite soldier, and neither of us were doing all that well with anything other than battling. Why bring it up?”

“I still don’t have the slightest idea what you’re talking about. All I know is that I said yes. I had a mate at home that I never even considered I might have, and she was left thinking I was dead. Now she’s upstairs battling through a hell I can’t wage for her. She says that’s not my fault. She says her decisions are on her.”

Robert nodded. “I like her already.”

He grabbed his brother’s arm. “Robert.”

“When we first joined, it was the very beginning of the war.”

That, Auggie could remember. The dragons had attacked out of nowhere. Packs were disbanding. They needed to join, to help, to protect… They’d hugged their parents goodbye, laughed with their brothers, and taken off. Then twenty-some-odd years later, Robert had killed the Queen.

Here they were. It really did feel that fast. There were details all over the place but that was the gist.

“We were strong. Natural leaders. They somehow knew it was better to keep us together than separate us. We were put in charge of a group of soldiers.”

Yes… He could sort of see it now. They’d been so proud. So sure of themselves. And then…

“Terrible battle. So many dragons.” His voice sounded weird to his own ears, hoarse. “We’d never see so many of them again. Maybe a thousand of the dragons.”

Robert put his hand on his back. “All of our wolves died. Every single one of them. We tried to save them. You pulled them out of ditches, ran through fires that should have burned you. Some estimated that ten percent of those dragons died because of you. I did my best. I don’t think I came close to what you did. In the end, they were all dead. Every one of our soldiers. Command didn’t hold us responsible. They were somehow impressed by what we’d done instead of seeing us as utter failures.”

August’s body went numb. Yes, that was right. They’d been so horrified, so destroyed. They’d had no capacity to handle that kind of pain. He, at least, had never believed it could be possible that he’d lose everyone. There was nothing he’d ever done in his whole life up until then that he hadn’t been good at.

The leadership offered them a chance at redemption. Lead the elite, teach others to do what they had been able to do, pretend to be dead so no one would ever come looking. They’d felt dead anyway.

Robert put a hand on his arm. “Are you okay?”

No, he wasn’t okay. He’d not been okay a day since. “Sure.”

“Liar.” Robbie groaned. “You were always the one to have to pretend everything was fine. Dad lost his job and everyone was terrified, you were fine. You led us, and we believed in you. After that day, you decided I was to be in charge of things. Before that, we all followed you. Everyone you encountered felt the Alpha in you. Even me. And then it was like you killed it off. No one felt their deaths more than you did.”

He didn’t know about any of that and the time for self-analysis was long over for August. “Have you asked yourself why we’re alive? Why the hell we didn’t die that day?”

Robert shrugged. “No.”

No. That was right. Robert didn’t ask those questions and that’s why he could go about leading a pack and not feeling he had to go destroy every flying miserable beast who came into his path. Or the ones that didn’t. That’s why his twin brother, who used to resemble him so closely their own mother couldn’t tell them apart, had been able to simply stop.

And Auggie wasn’t sure—not even with his mate upstairs asleep—that he ever could.

“Goodnight, Robert.”

Robbie darted to his feet. “Are you okay? I know I just asked. I can’t read you right now. I can’t scent anything coming from you.”

“Get some sleep.” He patted Robert on the shoulder and walked back into the house. Closing the door, he knew a lock wouldn’t keep Robert out. Even before he was Alpha, he’d have chased after August if he wasn’t done with him. Tonight, he could hear his brother walking away.

They were likely not finished, but Robbie recognized August was done with it tonight.

He leaned against the door. How could he have forgotten them all? Those faces. August would see thousands die in the wars. But those initial twenty? They’d been babies together. Or, okay, that wasn’t fair. They were all grown males, but they might as well have been babies for all they understood of this world.

They’d all come from packs. Alpha challenges were the most violent deaths anyone saw, and in August’s pack, there hadn’t been a serious one in his lifetime. Usually, the Alpha stepped down. The dragons had swooped down from the sky and…

“August?” Clarissa called down to him from the top of the stairs. Why wasn’t she asleep?

“Yeah? Are you okay?” He had to pull it together. She needed him. The last thing his mate needed was a male falling apart over memories that were two decades old. His wolf strained inside of him. Auggie was in no condition to question why.

She took the stairs two at a time. “Are you?”

“Did something wake you?” He could do avoidance with the best of them.

Clarissa stood in front of him. “Yes. Your distress. I could scent it. You were outside, but I knew you needed me. Then you came in.”

She could scent it? Robbie had said he had no idea what August was feeling. “I…”

Clarissa threw her arms around him, and he froze. Hugging was so foreign to him. He… He gave up. August threw his arms around her and held on for dear life. His body shook. He might have said something, he wasn’t even sure.

“Sshh.” She rubbed his back, pressing her face into his chest. “I’ve got you.”

He kissed her, hard. Didn’t even particularly think about it. He tipped her head back, and he pushed against her mouth. Was it too much? He’d hardly kissed her. A peck, really. And he’d bitten the crap out of her neck. He didn’t want to…

She sighed, wrapping her arms around his neck. Screw good sense. He kissed and kissed and kissed her. Clarissa was soft everywhere. She’d gained some weight over the last month and was filling out in all the right places.

He just loved that she smelled healthier.

His beautiful, beautiful mate.

He picked her up and carried her into the living room. They had a rug. He’d hardly looked at it. For now, it was where he was going to kiss his mate until she told him to stop. August didn’t need air. He just needed her.

Auggie lowered Clarissa to the floor. She squirmed beneath him. Did she want him to stop? No, her hands were suddenly on his shirt. She tugged at it. All right, he’d take it off. In two decades of time away from almost all females, he’d had little experience with this.

And maybe he should stop it. She wasn’t well. But her hands were on his chest, and then her mouth was. She kissed him everywhere. He growled, and she beamed, the pure wolf in her eyes for one split second.

“Are you going to keep me dressed?” Her question taunted at him. “Come on, Mate.”

He loved when her edge showed up. He hadn’t been made for a mate that was gentle all the time. He tore off her shirt. Threw it aside.

She hissed out a breath. “You’re so strong. I love it.”

She did? Yes, he’d always be strong for her. Whatever she needed. Her breasts were bare. She’d been asleep. No bra. He took her nipple in his mouth and sucked, hard. Her hips bucked against him, pressing her groin to his already aching cock.

He groaned. Gods, he was already so hard. She reached between them, cupping him through his pants. Unable to stop himself, he jerked into her hand. Fuck, he might explode.

“I think you’d better take those pants off fast, Mate.”

August nodded. Talking was too much for him. He couldn’t even remember how. He would take his pants off but not until he took off hers. Some things he hadn’t forgotten since he was a youth, and one of them was how to make a female come.

His mate was going to before he did. He’d have no argument on that.

Like her shirt, he ripped off her pants. She had plenty now. Boxes of clothes had arrived on their doorstep. If she needed more pajama pants, he’d get her some. Her legs were long and shapely. He ran his hands all over her thighs while she watched him with hooded eyes. Auggie dipped his head, kissing those thighs until he’d had his fill of them.

“Tease,” his mate called out to him, and he nodded. Yes, in this case, he absolutely was.

He moved forward, finding her clit fast with his tongue and circling it. She cried out. The best sound, ever. All he wanted was to give her pleasure—now, always. She tasted like heaven and his wolf senses loved it. This was his female. She belonged to him.

It didn’t take long to bring her to climax. She pulsed around him, and he moaned. This was as good as anything else. Clarissa finding pleasure was everything…

She grabbed onto his shoulders, pushing him back. “In me. Please. Or let me put my mouth on you.”

No, that wouldn’t do this time. He’d never make it in her if she so much as put her hand on him. His cock pulsed, and his balls ached. Yes, this was going to be fast. He pulled off his pants with shaking hands then had to deal with his briefs. He had still been dressed from the day.

She touched his chest, kissing him there again. Her lips were heaven. By the gods, they were. He stopped her only so he could position himself closer to where he wanted to be. With a slight push he was inside of her. She called out his name, digging her hands into his back. They weren’t her claws, but her fingernails hurt.

He raised his eyes to meet her blue, almost violet, gaze. “Too much? Hurt?”

She shook her head. “More. August. Don’t hold back. More.”

He pushed in and then pulled out, giving her everything he had. She had to know how much he treasured her. Everything had gone wrong with them. He hadn’t gotten to court her, hadn’t taken her out on supervised dates. But he could show her this way. He was so glad she was his mate.

She lived. She was his. She existed.

Clarissa raised her hips to meet him with each thrust, and soon, he was moaning her name, more and more as their breathing matched. They were both panting, wild for each other. He’d never been so close to losing control so fast. It didn’t matter. He had to have her pleasure. She would come again before he did, always.

“August.” Her voice sounded low. “Please. Almost.”

“Anything you need, Angel Face. Anything.” He thrusted harder, rubbing against her clit, hitting her spot. She exploded. Watching his mate come was the single most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. Her muscles squeezed him until he finally, with pure happiness—maybe for the first time in his life—came deep inside of her, where it felt like he was always supposed to be. His fangs shot down. He’d not even thought about that happening. August had already marked her. But he gave into the urge and bit down, the spot he’d already designated as his on her neck calling out to him.

She cried out, coming again. Yes, that was how the marking was supposed to go. That was the right way.

He closed his eyes. His wolf howled in delight. For just a little while, Auggie wouldn’t think at all. He’d just be with this amazing creature who kept surprising him every day.

August woke on top of his mate, still on the floor. By the Gods, had he fallen asleep right there inside of her? On the ground? His poor mate. Why couldn’t he do anything the way it was supposed to go? Mates were to be taken care of, not fucked on the rug, and left there unable to move.

He pulled out of her, his dick hardening again from the contact. Clarissa sighed, her eyes closed. She was asleep and clearly she could breathe, so he hadn’t suffocated her to death or crushed her with his weight. Her scent didn’t speak of pain. If anything, she seemed to be resting comfortably.

His wolf sighed inside of him, happy at the sight of the mark back on her shoulder and how it had been delivered this time.

August stood, stretching for one second, and then bent over to pick her up. He’d put her back in their bed where she could be comfortable and secure. Her eyes fluttered open, her wolf in them. He smiled. This was different. His wolf sometimes rose to the surface to see through human eyes, but before they’d made love, he hadn’t seen hers do it before.

His mate stayed asleep. She might not even know.

“You kept her safe. All those years where she could have been destroyed out there in the world, with no one to protect her. The drugs could have killed her. You kept her safe. You’re strong, little wolf. I won’t let anything happen to her from now on.”

The wolf regarded him and then spoke in his mate’s voice. “We can keep you safe, too.”

She closed her eyes. These were tender moments he’d never thought to have. He’d stick that away in a box somewhere in his mind so he could always remember it happened. As gently as he could, August brought her upstairs and laid her in the bed. He climbed in next to her. She immediately rolled over, nearly her entire body covering his.

All right, so he really loved that she sought him in sleep. Finding rest with her on him had been a challenge for a few days, but now, he actually liked being so close to her in the bed.

He pulled the cover over both of them.

The dreams came, and they weren’t kind. Those boys, the ones he’d let die under his command that first year in the battle to end all battles, flashed in front of his eyes. Mark—he’d been short but strong. Dave—fast to laugh. Peter—had never left home before. Ted—he’d died in Auggie’s arms, calling for his mother. There were countless others. They all hated him. They blamed him; it was his fault.

The dragons filled the sky. He could hardly see the blue or the clouds. How were there so many? What were they supposed to do? Robert stood, open mouthed, as they all were, while the dragons dove. His brother hit the ground at the same time he did. They’d always moved in sync that way. This wasn’t going to be any exception.

August shoved Robert to the left while a fireball exploded around them. Robert coughed, getting to his feet. Auggie had to protect his wolves. He ran toward a dragon, shifting in mid-air. The dragon roared.

“Wolf.”

It spoke? No one had told them they spoke. No matter. He couldn’t speak. He was a wolf. He tore at the dragon. Had to get it down before it hurt anyone. Had to. They were his wolves. They’d been given to him to take care of until this war ended. The dragon fell from the sky. He was already covered in blood. He jumped onto another dragon. This one fought harder, so August did, too. If he had to, he’d take every dragon out of the sky himself.

Below him, frenzied shouts started. Some had shifted but not everyone. Several of his men stood staring at the sky open mouthed. No, that was absolutely wrong of them to do.

Why hadn’t they run? Why had they stood there? He howled at them to run. Run. Run!

He jumped down off the dragon and raced toward them. He’d get them to move. He’d make them. His breath came in short bursts. There was a dragon headed straight for them. He was going to beat it, somehow. Those guys wouldn’t die because he wasn’t fast enough. He ran harder, faster. It was the dragon or him. One of them was going to win.

And…

He sat up in the bed, his heart racing. Or at least he tried to. His soft mate was still strewn over him. August must not have been asleep very long. She murmured something and shifted slightly. His heart started to calm. In her sleep, she kissed him. He sighed. Okay, this was going to be okay.

He closed his eyes.

Maybe what he really needed was to breathe.

No, what he needed was his mate again. She had to heal. He should leave her alone. Except he wasn’t going to. August rolled her over. He kissed her awake. She sighed against him, finally kissing him back.

Earlier, he’d been frenzied. This time, he’d take his time.

“Angel Face, I need you.”

Her gaze was kind. She lifted her mouth to meet his. Unhurried, he tried so hard to show her everything.

She rubbed her nose against his. “Why do you call me, Angel Face?”

“Do you not like it?” He would stop if she didn’t. It just came naturally to call her that. Since her face was so angelic…

“I love it.”

Good, then he wasn’t going to stop doing it. In their bedroom, covered with the blanket of night, he would make love to his mate until she came over and over again.

“You never answer my questions with words. It took me some time to realize it… you answer other ways.”

She might be the only one who understood him then. His mate.