LOGINDamon’s POVFor the first time in weeks, I wasn't working. No patrol reports, no council meetings, no elders trying to force decisions onto my desk. Just Aria.I had made that decision the night before and refused to let anything interfere with it, though unfortunately Aria was currently trying to.
For a moment, he just stared at me then, slowly, his expression softened again, like he was slipping back into a version of himself that knew how to win me over.“You’re really choosing him,” he said quietly. “After everything I did for you?”I let out a short, humorless laugh. “You didn’t do anythi
Aria’s POVThe infirmary was too quiet, not peaceful—never peaceful—but had this kind of silence that felt forced, like the walls themselves were holding their breath. The smell of antiseptic was sharp enough to sting my nose the moment I stepped inside, and for a second I almost turned back.Almost
For a moment, he just stared at me then, slowly, his expression softened again, like he was slipping back into a version of himself that knew how to win me over.“You’re really choosing him,” he said quietly. “After everything I did for you?”I let out a short, humorless laugh. “You didn’t do anythi
Aria’s POVThe infirmary was too quiet, not peaceful—never peaceful—but had this kind of silence that felt forced, like the walls themselves were holding their breath. The smell of antiseptic was sharp enough to sting my nose the moment I stepped inside, and for a second I almost turned back.Almost
Aria's POVThe feeling wouldn't leave, it followed me through lunch, through the reports stacked on my desk, through every conversation I barely paid attention to and no matter how many times I reminded myself that Damon could handle himself, that he had survived far worse than a day spent with Kade
“Aria.”Damon’s voice softened when he turned back to me, and I hated that it affected me instantly. The bond stirred violently, pulling at me, reaching for him in a way that made my chest ache.I shoved it down. “No.”His expression hardened immediately. “Stop doing that.”“What?”Damon didn’t spea
Aria's POVThe rain fell so heavily that it blurred the battlefield into streaks of gray and black.For several seconds after Lex's words, I couldn't hear anything except the pounding of my own heartbeat.‘You still killed me.’The sentence echoed inside my skull over and over until it drowned out t
Aria’s POVUnease settled deeper in my chest as I crossed the apartment toward the door.Lex almost never came here alone.Not because he disliked me, but because Lex moved through the Packhouse like a shadow most days, quiet and careful in ways Damon never was. If he wanted to speak to me, it usual
“I am proud of you.”The words hit harder than they should have.Damon noticed immediately because his expression shifted into concern. “Aria?”“Nobody’s ever said that to me before,” I admitted quietly.Pain flickered briefly across his face before he lowered his head and kissed me slowly, carefull







