Elio’s gaze lingers, cautious, before he finally gives a clipped nod. If I weren’t watching him so closely—tracking every flicker, every tell—I might have missed it. The way the unease in his dark eyes softens and gives way to something else. Tentative respect for the pack Alpha.
My own wolf preens at this, pride for her mate and his leadership making her cheer like a shameless groupie pressed against the bars of her prison cell.
Rennick mirrors Elio’s nod with a dip of his own chin, then braces both hands on the table as he straightens in his chair. The movement shifts his weight, his thigh pressing more firmly into mine, and at this point, I’m certain he’s doing it deliberately. Heat sparks low in my belly, and I smother the upward twitch of my lips with a scowl instead.
“I overheard you mentioning you needed a few things,” he says, his gray gaze steady on the omegas. “If you want, I can take you guys and Noa down to the pack’s general store. If they don’thave what you’re looking for, we can check the lodge. Gareth, our pack’s chef, usually hoards extra things when shipments come in. I can show you around the territory while we’re at it, help you get your bearings.”
Where Siggy looks excited to go outside and explore her familiar stomping grounds, Hattie and Elio wear twin sets of wide eyes and bloodless cheeks. The very thought of notion, of stepping outside, freely, makes them look like cornered animals who’d rather vanish beneath the table than face it.I watch them mentally battle the fear and the old conditioning that tries to keep them chained down, and then, almost at the same moment, it dawns on them. They’re not captives anymore. They’re free to walk outside, to shift, to run until their lungs burn if they want to.
Hattie brightens. “That sounds amazing,” she chirps, her smile wide as she stares at Rennick like he hung the damn moon.
My wolf bristles, a low, possessive growl coiling behind my ribs, but I choke back the asinine reaction. I can’t blame Hattie. He’s…well, he’shim. Rennick Fallamhain, for all his faults and all the pain he’s bestowed on me, is hotter than sin. Like panty-melting hot. Anyone with eyes in their head would stare.
If Rennick notices the hearts currently replacing Hattie’s pupils, he doesn’t let on. “When we’re done with breakfast, I’m going with Noa to check on Juno. Bring her more food and water, see if by some miracle she’s shifted back and decided to join us.”
I turn my head enough to catch his eye, lifting a brow in question. I hadn’t expected him to accompany me for that. But then again, Juno may be mine to care for, but she’s under his roof. I can’t exactly shut him out. And the very idea of putting space between us right now makes nausea bubble in my belly. Through all of this, I’ve tried to handle it with as much grace asI can, but coughing up blood this morning has more than rattled me. It’s terrified me.
“After that, Noa and I both have to attend a quick meeting with everyone, but when that’s over, we’ll come find you both to head out and explore. Sound good?”
Hattie and Elio nod eagerly, their faces brightening, only to be interrupted by a burst of laughter from behind us. I twist in my chair just as Canaan jerks his skillet, trying to flip a pancake with more flair than usual. The half-raw circle arcs through the air, misses the pan entirely, and lands on the floor with a wet slap that makes the whole room wince.
Canaan grimacing, lifts hazel eyes toward his mate. Rhosyn stands with her arms folded and one hip cocked. She’s the picture-perfect embodiment ofunimpressedand the visual has me smothering a snicker with my palm.
She drags her gaze over him slowly before delivering her flat sounding verdict. “That was the least attractive thing I’ve ever seen you do, and that’s saying something because I once caught you taking a mirror selfie.”
Chapter 11
Rennick
Breakfast felt more like a performance than a casual meal. Everyone had been careful with their words and tone, trying to settle into a new rhythm under my roof.Too much had happened too fast. The attack, the rushed packing, the sudden move to an unfamiliar territory. The tension was easy to spot if you knew where to look. Shoulders held too high, smiles that looked practiced rather than natural. And on top of it all, the unspoken reminder of the dark coven’s threat clung to us like a shadow we could not shake.
We weren’t only playing at cool for our own sake. The act was for Hattie and Elio. We were overcompensating, smoothing our sharp edges and masking our unease, doing everything we could to make sure the new omegas could not see how rattled we all still were.
I’d remained in my seat beside Noa, our thighs still pressed together beneath the table.The contact steadied me, but it also fed the hunger I’d been holding back since she stepped into my house with bags that said she meant to stay. My wolf prowled inside me, demanding more, but neither of us, me or her, were ready for that. Even through layers of clothes, that small point of touch made me restless, and when I remembered the way her hands had trembled around the coffee mug earlier, concern sliced through the haze of want.
Splitting my attention between the table’s conversation and her had felt like a battle of wills. Rhosyn, Siggy, and Noa did their best to include Elio and Hattie, but the newcomers foldedin on themselves each time our group’s attention landed on them. They turned wide-eyed and stiff, like prey begging to go unnoticed. We all saw it, and it only took a handful attempts before Noa’s sharp look halted any further efforts. We finished the meal with small talk that felt lighter than it should have, all of us grasping at the illusion of normal for as long as we could.
Once the plates were cleared and the kitchen was scrubbed clean,Noa turned her attention to the new omegas and directed them toward Seren and Siggy. She assured them we’d return once Juno had been seen to and our meeting was done. The way they listened told me they already trusted her more than anyone else here. Rightfully so.
When we reached the guest room door, I hadn’t realized I’d been holding out for a miracle. The kind where months of captivity and fear unraveled in a single night of safety and left a girl standing where a caged wolf had been.But when we eased open the door and found a shaking, snarling she-wolf crammed under the perfectly made bed, I felt the hollow bite of disappointment.
Noa hadn’t blinked, leaving me unsure of whether she shared my disappointment or not. She’d moved first, because of course she had, unfazed by the angry sounds coming from the wolf half hidden beneath the sleigh-style bedframe.
Now, I watch as Noa drops to her knees in the threshold. She inches the tray of water and raw beef inside with one hand but makes no move to breach the feral wolf’s territory beyond that. I remain standing, my attention fixed on Juno’s dark shape, but Noa won’t allow it. She flicks a look over her shoulder, the weight of her silent order unmistakable. Without a word, I drop into a crouch at her back.
The simple change in position eases the snarling from under the bed a fraction.
And then we stay like that and wait. For Juno to realize we’re not a threat, to catch the scent of the bloody meat, forsomething.
But the vibration of displeasure never ceases.
After a while, Noa lets out a quiet sigh. The sound is more resignation than frustration, and my wolf bristles at the defeat it carries. She rises to her feet, every vertebra straightening in deliberate slowness, giving the wolf time to watch and assess.
I mirror her because it seems the safest thing to do—to simply follow her lead and not disrupt whatever fragile calm she’s been trying to fill the air with.
That is until she bends, scoops the tray up, and edges deeper into the room.
My chest tightens, protective instincts scraping as Juno’s growl deepens with every step Noa dares to take. The shift rouses my wolf, urging me to close ranks, to guard her. I obey without hesitation. I press into her back, my presence nothing more than a shadow draped over her smaller frame. My focus remains pinned to Juno, noting every tense ripple of movement of her muscles beneath her matted fur. She tracks us with sharp precision, her head canted at an uneasy angle, ears pinned fat against her skull.
