The heat broke on the third morning.

I woke to pale sunlight filtering through the curtains and a body that finally felt like my own again—sore, exhausted, but no longer burning. The frantic need was gone. In its place was a deep, bone-heavy tiredness and the lingering scent of alpha and sex that clung to every inch of the sheets.

Kai was already awake.

He sat against the headboard, one arm still around me, watching the light move across the wall. When he felt me stir, his hand stroked once down my bare back.

“It’s over,” he said quietly.

I nodded against his chest. My voice came out rough. “Yeah.”...