Chapter 83:

The first thing I notice when I wake up is the cold. The early morning air clings to my bare skin, sending a sharp shiver down my spine.

My fingers curl into the damp grass beneath me, the scent of earth and dew filling my nose. The sky is painted in soft hues of pink and gold, dawn stretching lazily across the estate.

I blink blearily, trying to shake off the haze of sleep, and then realization slams into me like a freight train.

I'm naked.

Panic flutters in my chest as I sit up abruptly, my arms wrapping around myself. At some point during the night, I must have shifted back into my human form.

And now, here I am, completely exposed in the middle of the garden.

I groan, squeezing my eyes shut.

"Aries," I call out, my voice hushed but urgent. "I need you to shift."

There's silence, and then Aries' voice rumbles in my head, thick with amusement. "Oh, do you now?"