Jasmin's POV
His arms closed around me with a force that stole my breath, desperate and claiming, before rational thought could even form in my mind.
I went rigid.
Not from terror, but from something infinitely more perilous. No man had ever held me this way. Not with such raw intensity. Not with this consuming need, as though he had battled through the depths of hell itself just to reach me. Just to feel my skin against his.
His essence overwhelmed me completely. Pure masculinity mixed with perspiration and the lingering ghost of smoke wrapped around me like a living thing, seeping into every pore until my knees threatened to buckle beneath his touch. His breath came in harsh waves against my neck, each exhale like rolling thunder. His pulse hammered so violently I could feel it through his chest, and with every thunderous beat, his hold on me grew more unforgiving, as if releasing me might shatter his very soul.
And Heather, my wolf, became utterly motionless.
