MasukI let out a shaky breath, my hands curling into the thin blanket draped over me.That wasn’t it, that couldn’t be it.Damon didn’t do things halfway. He didn’t hover. He didn’t stay. He commanded, he left, he handled things.But staying by my side? That felt… personal.A groan slipped past my lips a
Aria’s POVPain was the first thing I felt.It sat in my bones, in my chest, in every breath I tried to take, like my body had forgotten how to exist without hurting. My lashes fluttered as I forced my eyes open, the world around me blurry at first, light too bright, sounds too distant.“Aria?” The
Damon’s POV“What?”The word left my mouth before I could stop it, sharp and disbelieving, like my mind refused to process what I had just heard. I stared at Lyra, searching her face for any sign that she didn’t mean it, that this was just another one of her empty threats thrown in the heat of the m
Mira turned to Kade, her lips pressing into a thin line. “If you’re not going to help her, then stop pretending you care.”Kade scoffed, but there was something off about it, something forced. “I said I’d help,” he muttered. “Just not like that.”I let out a slow breath, then made my decision. “Fine
Damon’s POV“What do you mean no?”The words came out low and controlled, but there was nothing calm about the way my wolf slammed against my ribs, clawing for release. I stared at Kade, my eyes narrowing as I waited for him to correct himself, to take it back, to do the one thing that should have c
Thorne nodded immediately. “It’ll be done.”Silence fell again, heavier this time.“You should be out there,” he added carefully. “We need to assess the damage, figure out how this happened.”“I know.”But I didn’t move because every time I looked at Aria, every time I saw how still she was, how fra







