LOGIN** Jake’s POV **A minute later, the cabin door opens again. Callen steps out with far too much satisfaction written across his face. Poppy follows a second later. The moment she sees all four of us waiting, she hesitates, her steps faltering. Her gaze lands on me, then Leo. Then it drifts to Alaric
** Jake’s POV **My wolf practically whines in my head as my eyes track Poppy walking inside with Callen. Every second I spend with her makes every second away from her more difficult. “I know this is difficult,” Ryder says, pulling our attention back to him. “But for Poppy’s sake, you all need to
“Hey,” Paige says softly.“Hey,” I reply, my voice cracking. Her smile fades and her eyes narrow as she studies me. “What happened?”“Nothing, I’m okay.”Callen snorts a laugh, and I shoot him a look. “Callen, get out,” Paige orders.“Well, that’s rude.”“Out,” she demands, and he wisely retreats,
** Poppy’s POV **The door closes behind us with a soft click, and I finally take my first real breath in hours. I want to freak out. I want to shout that this isn’t supposed to be happening. But allowing myself to get worked up is not good for anyone or anything. Stuff will break, people will pani
“I was trying to figure you out,” he shrugs.“You were lurking.”Callen gasps. “Shadow boy was lurking?”Bastian’s eyes narrow. “Shadow boy?”“Oh, don’t worry,” I say. “It suits you.”For one strange moment, his expression softens. Not much, but enough that I see it. Enough that my heart skips a bea
** Poppy’s POV **The branch is still lying where it fell. I try not to look at it as we walk away, but my eyes keep finding it anyway. Split wood, torn bark, and leaves scattered across the ground as if it had exploded from the inside out. Because of me.One stupid argument. One moment when everyth
** Paige’s POV **The field goes silent, like the world itself is holding its breath.I stare at my hands. They’re glowing. It’s not the sharp, radiant gold I’m used to. This is softer, deeper somehow. It pulses slowly, steadily, like a heartbeat that isn’t mine alone.“Ronnie,” Ryder says carefully
** Paige’s POV **“What the hell was that sound?” Poppy repeats, skidding to a stop beside the edge of the field, her eyes scanning the trees like she expects something to step out and wave.Around us, the pack murmurs in confusion. Enforcers shift uneasily. A few of the Twiceborn bare their teeth,
Callen feels different.The pull toward him is sudden and sharp enough that I gasp.It isn’t like the bond tug I’m used to, the constant hum that connects us all. This is directional, intentional. Like something inside me has turned its face toward him specifically and decided, ‘There. Him.’“Paige?
** Ryder’s POV **The second the car doors shut, the world goes quiet. It’s not a peaceful or relieved quiet; it’s a stunned silence.Paige sits between me and Parker in the back seat, staring straight ahead. She hasn’t said a word since the police finally let us go. Her glow has dimmed to almost no







