Unnerved, I didn’t realize that Ash had stopped until I walked straight into his back. I gasped. “Sorry—” Ash jerked, air hissing between his teeth. That sound. My gaze flew to his face. Tension bracketed his mouth—his eyes had darkened to a steel gray, and the white aura had brightened behind his pupils. Instinct urged that I take a step back because the sound he’d made reminded me of a wounded animal. Was he hurt? I reached for him out of a different kind of instinct, like I had when I’d come upon the kiyou wolf. Immediately, I thought of the Shades. “Are you okay?” “Don’t,” he snapped.
Nooo, sad male backstory incominggggg
