Hannah nestled closer, resting her head on Gray’s chest again.His scent calmed the last trembling edges of her nerves.Her hand traced idle patterns over the ridges of muscle along his ribs, memorizing every line and shadow.
His breathing hitched once, then steadied again.Even in sleep, he responded to her.
Her eyes drifted to the news screen again.Pundits debated whether they were heroes or threats, whether the bond made them more dangerous or more stable.A few commentators used footage of Gray shielding civilians as proof that variants could be trusted.
None of them knew who he really was.None of them understood the man lying in her arms.
But she did.
And she loved him more completely than she thought her heart could handle.
She pressed one more kiss to his chest, whisper-soft.“I’m right here,” she promised.“And I’m not going anywhere.”
Gray didn’t wake, but the bond rippled with warm acknowledgement.
She finally let her eyes close, letting the quiet cradle her as the world outside argued itself hoarse.The storm had passed—for now—and she was wrapped in the one place she’d never expected to find peace.
Gray, asleep against her.
Her mate.Her partner.Her future.
Chapter Ten
Hannah
Morning slid gently into the Initiative compound, sunlight brushing across the bedroom like it was trying not to disturb them.Hannah lay awake, wrapped in warmth and the steady rise and fall of Gray’s chest beneath her cheek.For a long moment, she just listened to the quiet hum of the bond between them and reveled in the soft static that lingered along her skin.
The television across the room was still tuned to the news feed they had fallen asleep to.The volume was low, almost a whisper, but the images told their own story.Crowds standing outside the Capitol.A live poll tracking the shifting public opinion on variants.Headlines flickering with a familiar tension: FEAR OF SUPERNATURALS AT CROSSROADS and NEW ATHENS HEROES TURN THE TIDE?
The world wasn’t healed, not overnight.But it was changing.
She felt Gray wake beneath her even before he moved.His arm tightened around her waist, drawing her impossibly closer, as if the night hadn’t already proven he could hold her as tightly as he wanted without breaking her.His breath warmed her temple.
“You’re thinking too loudly,” he murmured, voice still sleep-rough.
She smiled against his skin.“You were listening?”
