Chapter 21. In the woods

WILLA’s POV

I shouldn’t have agreed to this.

The thought repeated itself over and over in my mind as I followed Nox through the dense woods, my steps too loud, too ungraceful compared to his effortless strides. The men did the hunting in my pack—it was always the men who ventured into the woods, returning with their prizes slung over broad shoulders. Kael did the hunting. I wasn’t supposed to be out here, hunting had never been my forte …wasn’t trained for it, and certainly wasn’t used to this sort of tension coiling in my chest.

The only times I’d been in woods like this was with Kael.

My eyes were drawn to Nox's back as he walked ahead of me, just as Kael used to.

I would admire him from behind—his lean frame, the way his back moved when he stepped over a ridge. But Nox... Nox was different, every muscle in his body rippling beneath his shirt as he climbed up the slight hill in front of us. His broad shoulders stretched the fabric just enough to make me wonder what