Chapter 116

• Ayla POV
• The large man's hands gripped my arms firmly, but he didn’t squeeze as he pulled me away; he was quite delicate, which surprised me. We began our walk back toward the house, the smell of the wildflowers and the woodsy scent of the trees becoming fainter the closer we got, and as the trees began to thin out, replaced with the smell of freshly cut grass and roses. I glanced over my shoulder hoping to get a glimpse of Callan but instead saw the hulking black wolf I had met once before when Callan’s father had made him turn to stop him from hurting me. That ferocious beast flashed through my mind, but the fear I felt that night no longer accompanied the memories; now I felt awe when I gazed upon it. Callan’s wolf was enormous; his paws looked bigger than my head, and the muscles on his legs showed that Callan was powerful, but I had heard all about Callan’s father, and the fear that had been pushed deep down into my stomach because Callan had chased it all away by being with me, holding my hand, and touching my skin came clawing back up my body and gripped my heart with its talons. A stampede of stomping footsteps bellowed ahead of me, but the sound became fainter the closer we got to the grand house. I could feel the tension in the air; it was almost suffocating.
• “Kai, should we be worried about Callan’s father?” I asked, not fighting the huge man; I mean, what was the point? He towered over me, and his arm was bigger than my waist.