Chapter 196

On the morning after the full moon, Paul came home.

When I opened my eyes, instead of being in my bed, I found myself on our private patio, sitting in my husband's lap. The sun beat down on us warmly, and I flung my arms around his neck the minute I saw him.

"Baby! You're home!"

He kissed me.

I pulled back and held his face in my hands, studying him. He looked worn out. There were dark circles beneath his eyes, and his hair had grown more than would be humanly possible in the short time that we'd been apart. It now reached his shoulder blades, and I realized why he man-scaped his body hair—the change triggered hair growth.

"How many changed with the full moon?"

He sighed. "Only about seventy of them, less than half. But Ran was one of them."

I smiled in relief that at least he wouldn't have to endure another month of the torture. But the downside was that I would have to be without Paul.

I kissed him and felt how much he had missed me. The large "reminder" of our time apart p