Chapter 45

Victoria The wind whipped through my hair as Leo's sleek black SUV pulled up to the gates of Howlthorne territory. I gazed out at the familiar landscape—rolling hills dotted with pine trees, the sprawling Pack house visible in the distance—and felt a curious mixture of dread and determination settle in my stomach. "You don't have to do this alone," Leo said for what must have been the tenth time since we'd left Shadow Pack territory. His knuckles were white against the steering wheel, jaw clenched tight. "Let me come with you." I reached across the console to place my hand over his, feeling the tension in his muscles. "We've been through this," I reminded him gently. "If you come, it'll only reinforce Aurora's claims that I've handed control of Howlthorne Pack to Shadow Pack." "I don't give a damn what that woman thinks," he growled, Ronan clearly close to the surface. The protectiveness radiating from him was almost a tangible force in the confined space of the vehicle. "But I do," I