Chapter 44 THE TRIGGER II
“I believe that you are the trigger.”
For a second, I didn’t understand what she meant. My mind felt slow, like it was wading through thick water. The marks were still glowing faintly along my arms, warm under my skin, like embers that hadn’t fully cooled.
Kael stiffened beside me.
“I am?” he asked quietly.
The physician didn’t look surprised. She looked… thoughtful. Careful. Like she was handling something sensitive.
“Yes,” she said. “Or more accurately, your pheromones are.”
She asked Kael to step back.
That alone made my chest tighten.
He hesitated, eyes flicking to me, clearly not wanting to move even an inch away. But at her gentle nod, he took a step back. Then another.
She sprayed something into the air. A sharp, herbal scent flooded the room, cutting through Kael’s familiar warmth. It burned my nose a little.
And just like that… The marks faded.
The glow drained away as if it had never been there. The burning eased. My skin felt… normal.
I stared at my arms in disbelief.
Kael inhaled sharply. “They’re gone.”
The physician nodded. “Now,” she said, turning to Kael, “release your pheromones again. But this time, try thinking about him in a way that'd make your scent a little more neutral instead of soothing.”
Kael looked at me. “Are you okay with this?”
I swallowed. My heart was pounding, but I nodded. “Yeah.”
He closed his eyes.
I felt it before I smelled it.
Kael’s presence filled the room: warm, heavy, comforting... It wrapped around me like invisible arms, sinking into my lungs, my skin, my bones. My body reacted instantly. My chest loosened. My shoulders dropped.
Then the warmth turned… thick and sweet.
My breath caught.
And the burn came back.
I gasped as the marks flared to life, crawling up my arms, across my chest. Light spilled from beneath my skin, bright enough that I could see it reflect faintly off the walls.
The physician hummed softly. “There it is.”
She watched closely, eyes sharp.
“Now,” she said, “Kael—can you make it… more alluring?”
My face went hot.
Kael hesitated. I could feel it. Then the air changed again.
It wasn’t just comforting now.
It was intoxicating.
My knees went weak. My head felt light. I leaned back on the bed without realizing I’d moved. My pulse raced, heat pooling low in my stomach in a way that made me embarrassed and confused and very aware of my body.
The marks blazed brighter.
The physician nodded, satisfied. “As I thought.”
She turned to us. “Do the marks appear often when you’re intimate?”
I nearly choked.
Kael coughed. “We—haven’t had sex.”
She raised an eyebrow, unimpressed.
Kael exhaled slowly. “But… a few nights ago, they stayed longer than usual.”
My face burned hotter.
He continued calmly, like he wasn’t confessing something wildly personal. “He was sleeping shirtless. I was… aroused. Barely holding it together.”
I wanted the floor to swallow me whole.
The physician nodded again. “That explains it.”
Kael’s voice tightened. “Is it dangerous?”
“For now,” she said, “no. The marks respond to your wolf—specifically your pheromones when tied to strong emotion. Possessiveness. Desire. Protection.”
She looked at me gently. “Your body is reacting to its mate.”
My stomach flipped.
Kael asked the question I’d been terrified of. “Can we confirm if he has a dormant wolf?”
She studied him. “Have you ever felt it?”
Kael shook his head. “No. And my wolf doesn’t sense one either.”
She tapped her fingers together. “Then I suggest this, I’ll stay a few days. Watch closely. But to move forward…”
She paused.
“You should mark him.”
The room went very quiet.
Mark.
I knew that word. Kael had explained it once. And it sounded very much like something humans don't do.
Kael nodded slowly. “Thank you.”
He told her she could stay in the room for the night, that he’d arrange better quarters in the morning. Then he helped me off the couch, his hand warm and steady at my back.
As soon as we stepped into the hallway, my legs gave out.
“Carry me?” I asked softly.
Kael didn’t even answer. He just scooped me up like I weighed nothing.
As we got to our room, he set me down carefully. I sat on the bed, hugging my knees.
“So…” I said quietly. “Marking. Is that… the bite thing?”
He smiled faintly. “Yes. But it’s more than that.”
He explained it slowly. How marking completes the bond. How it lets mates feel each other’s pain, comfort, distress. How wolves can communicate through it.
I swallowed. “But if I don’t have a wolf… won’t yours be lonely?”
Kael leaned down and kissed my forehead. “No. My wolf loves you. Wolf or not.”
Something in my chest loosened.
He pulled me into his arms, holding me close. “You can relax now. You’re not turning into a monster. And those marks aren’t demonic.”
I laughed weakly. “Good. I was starting to feel like a horror movie.”
I shifted closer. “Can you kiss me until they come out again?”
He froze for a second.
Then he chuckled roughly. “You want me aroused, baby? That’s dangerous.”
I turned away, embarrassed, but he caught me, pulled me back, and kissed me anyway.
He paused against my lips. “I don’t need to kiss you to be aroused.”
The marks bloomed instantly.
They burned, but not like before. More like candle wax. Quick. Fading fast.
I barely noticed it.
I was too busy staring into his eyes, as they're glowing faintly in the reflected light of my skin.
“Does it hurt?” he asked softly.
“Not really,” I whispered. “The burn fades fast.”
He smiled and kissed my neck.
I suddenly felt lighter inside. Less scary.
Then I noticed something else.
My underwear was… uncomfortable.
I tried to roll away.
Kael laughed quietly. “It’s okay. I have it too.”
I glanced down… I shouldn’t have.
He was hard too.
Very hard.
My face went nuclear.
“It’s normal,” he said gently. “Completely normal.”
I nodded, mortified.
But for the first time in a long while, I wasn’t scared. I wasn’t turning into a monster.
I was just… Adam.
And Kael was right here.