Trigger was on his feet before the sound fully registered, crossing the room and lifting it.
“Trigger,” Wolf’s voice came through—rough, tired, and threaded with something else.
Emotion.
Trigger straightened. “Go.”
There was a pause on the other end. A breath.
Then—
“She’s here,” Wolf said. “Nora’s okay. Baby’s okay.”
I sucked in a sharp breath, my hands flying to my mouth.
Trigger didn’t speak. He just closed his eyes for half a second like the weight he’d been carrying finally shifted.
“A girl,” Wolf continued, his voice breaking just slightly. “Seven pounds even. Loud as hell. Looks like her mother. Thank God.”
A smile spread across Trigger’s face before he could stop it. Real. Unguarded.
“That’s good,” he said quietly. “That’s really good.”
“I wanted you to hear it from me,” Wolf said. “Nora asked about Rylie.”
My throat tightened.
Trigger glanced at me. “She’s here. She’s safe.”
There was relief in Wolf’s exhale. “Good. Keep her that way.”
“I will.”
Wolf hesitated. “Town’s still quiet. Too quiet. Thomas hasn’t shown again yet.”
Trigger’s smile faded, instinct sliding back into place. “He will.”
“I know.” A pause. Then, softer, “But today, at least for a minute… we’re going to hold on to this.”
Trigger nodded even though Wolf couldn’t see him. “You should.”
“Give Nora my congratulations,” I said. “I can’t wait to meet her.”
Trigger looked at me again, something warm and steady in his eyes.
The radio clicked off.
Silence returned—but it felt different now.
I lowered my hands slowly, tears blurring my vision. “A baby,” I whispered. “She had her baby.”
Trigger nodded. “She did.”
I laughed softly, the sound breaking through emotion I hadn’t realized was backed up inside me. “Wolf’s a father.”
“He’s going to be a good one,” Trigger said without hesitation.
Something loosened in my chest.
