I met his furious gaze without flinching. "A lone wolf. A drifter. A turned wolf from the outer territories. Anyone would do."
"Anyone but you."
Fenris's breath caught.
He closed his eyes and drew in a long, slow breath.
Then he reached into his coat and pressed something into my hand.
I recognized it at once: the gift I'd given him ten years ago, the day he left for the front.
Back then, it had taken me half a year to find the moonstone, and another half to have it carved into a ring threaded with silver.
When I placed it in his palm, I'd said, "May we be like this stone. Hearts never parting, forever bound."
The ring looked exactly the same as it had then.
But all I wanted now was to sever every thread that tied me to Fenris Vargr.
He didn't know what I was thinking. His voice softened. "Seraphina, I fought on the frontier for ten years, and you waited for ten. Every wolf in Aurelia knows the depth of your devotion."
"Saying you won't mate with me now, that's just anger talking."
"This ring is the one you gave me before my first campaign. I'm leaving it with you. On our mating day, you'll tie it on me yourself."