Remy must sense it, because he squeezes my hand gently. “Hey, breathe. You’re not broken. You’re just… evolving.”
A shaky laugh escapes me. “Evolving? Like a Pok?mon?”
He grins, mischief flashing in his eyes, cutting through the tension. “Exactly like that. Except hotter, and with more emotional trauma.”
Callen snorts. “Trust you to be the one comparing this to Pok?mon-you’re such a boy mum.”
The small moment of levity eases the heavy weight pressing on my chest. It’s minor, but enough to coax a smile from me.
**Paige’s POV**
Parker let out a slow breath, the tension easing from his face just a little. “I’ll have a word with Jake. Maybe he can run some scans, check your energy levels, make sure all this glowing isn’t causing you any damage.”
I gave a reluctant nod, though the idea of being poked and prodded by a healer made me uneasy. “But how do we keep this under wraps? If I keep lighting up like a Christmas tree every time one of you stubs a toe, the whole pack’s going to notice. We can’t risk the hunters finding out, and I don’t want to be treated like some kind of ticking time bomb.”
Ryder caught my eyes, his expression steady and reassuring. “No one’s going to look at you that way. You’re their Luna. They’ll be just as amazed by you as we are.”
Callen grinned, adding, “And we’ll try extra hard not to stub our toes in public.”
Ryder nodded. “I’ll get Ronnie to come by after his patrol too. He might have some answers for us.”
Remy stood up and headed toward the kitchen. “Come on, let’s get you some food before Parker starts drawing up charts and theories.”
Parker rolled his eyes with a smirk. “I don’t need charts. Not yet.”
Callen chuckled as he followed Remy, but Ryder lingered beside me for a moment. His hand covered mine, fingers warm and steady.
“You scared me,” he said quietly.
“I’m fine,” I whispered back. “Just… glowed at a really inconvenient time.”
He let out a small laugh and leaned in until our foreheads touched. “Promise me you’ll be careful, Paige. I’ve already lived without you once. I’m not going through that again.”
My chest tightened with emotion. “You won’t have to.”
His thumb traced gentle circles over my knuckles. “Good. Because whatever this is, whatever you’re becoming, it doesn’t change how I see you. If anything, it makes me even prouder.”
Words caught in my throat, too thick to speak. Instead, I squeezed his hand, letting the silence between us say everything.
From the kitchen, Remy shouted something about burnt toast and Callen’s “scientific incompetence,” drawing a genuine laugh from both Ryder and me.
The smell of burnt toast hit the room a moment later, and Ryder groaned, pushing himself up from the couch. “Feral wolves and basic appliances,” he muttered as he headed toward the kitchen, where chaos was already unfolding.
Parker was waving a tea towel at the toaster, Callen was trying hard not to laugh, and Remy had opened a window, muttering curses about “idiots who can’t be trusted to toast bread.”
“Maybe we should let Jaxon cook next time,” I teased, leaning against the doorway.
Callen glanced over his shoulder, mischief sparkling in his eyes. “He’d probably do a better job, to be honest.”
The laughter that followed was easy and familiar, melting away some of the tension from earlier. It was the kind of moment that made me wonder if Ryder had orchestrated it on purpose. Either way, it was exactly what we needed. For a few minutes, everything felt right-just my mates and me, bickering over breakfast like any family would.
Ryder grabbed a loaf of bread from the counter and tossed it to Callen. “Try not to set this one on fire, genius.”
Cal caught it effortlessly, rolling his eyes. “You’re never going to let me live this down, are you?”
“No chance,” Remy smirked.
Watching them, a warm feeling spread through my chest. These moments of laughter and chaos were the heartbeat of our strange little world. My life had once been quiet, dull, revolving around keeping Jaxon safe and trying to please Greg. Now it was loud, unpredictable, and full-and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
When Parker finally managed to produce edible toast, he slid a plate toward me with exaggerated care. “For the Luna,” he said with a grin.
I rolled my eyes, but my smile gave me away. “You make it sound like some royal offering.”
“It is,” he replied. “Especially considering the burnt casualties we’ve suffered this morning.”
Callen chuckled. “Rest in peace, first batch of toast. You died a hero.”
Ryder snorted. “You’re all ridiculous.”
“Maybe,” I said softly, taking a bite. “But it’s the good kind of ridiculous.”
That earned me grins from all four of them, and for a moment, everything felt right again. Yet beneath it all, I could still feel that faint hum beneath my skin, thrumming quietly like a second heartbeat.
I looked down at my hands. They no longer glowed, but the sensation lingered-alive, waiting. It didn’t hurt, nor was it unpleasant. Just… present. When I looked up again, Ryder had that distant look in his eyes, the one that meant he was communicating through the mind-link. The others watched him expectantly, waiting for whatever news he was receiving.
“This morning’s tests on the creek came back clear,” he said, leaning against the counter. “But we can’t assume this is over. The hunters are changing tactics. They’re getting smarter.”
“They used to come at us head-on,” Remy said, arms crossed. “Now they’re poisoning water, taking warning shots, and leaving symbols on trees like it’s some kind of game.”
“Game or warning,” Callen muttered. “Either way, they’re trying to scare us from stepping outside our borders.”
“They won’t win,” I said quietly but firmly.
Four sets of eyes turned to me. Ryder’s expression softened, pride shining through. “No, they won’t.”
Remy nodded. “We’ve been reactive for too long, always a step behind. It’s time we take control of the narrative. We need to think offensively-set the rules ourselves.”
Callen’s eyes lit up like a kid given permission to play with explosives. “Oh, offense. I like the sound of that.”
Parker snorted. “You do realize you sound terrifying, right? In a good way.”
Callen folded his arms. “Okay, offensive how? We’re not an army. We’re a pack.” He looked around at each of us before settling on me. “Paige, what can you feel? Anything new since the glow?”
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