로그인** Poppy’s POV **Ronnie doesn’t waste time after that. Blood samples are taken quickly from us all. Jake handles most of it with steady hands and a focused expression, as if he’s clinging to something he understands. Something that makes sense to him… science. I can barely feel the needle. Or mayb
** Poppy’s POV **I mull over Ronnie’s words. Even though I’d already started piecing it together, hearing the words spoken aloud lands hard.Collides… like we’re something dangerous and unstable. As if we’re the problem.My stomach twists. “So what? We just… stay away from each other?”Ronnie’s gaz
** Poppy’s POV **The silence doesn’t last. Footsteps hit the hallway, fast and heavy, then the door swings open hard enough to rattle the frame. Callen steps in first, eyes scanning the room in a sweep before locking onto Paige.“What the hell is going on?” he demands, already moving toward her. “I
** Poppy’s POV **The cracked glass shouldn’t still be holding, but it is.I stare at it, my breath caught somewhere between my lungs and my throat as another thin fracture splinters outward, branching like it’s alive. The water inside trembles, rippling faintly.Leo’s arm is still locked around my
“What?” Leo asks, softer.I hesitate. Because I don’t know how to explain it without sounding insane.“It’s like…” I swallow. “Like everything is louder when I stop fighting it.”“There it is,” the voice murmurs.My eyes fly open.“Stop,” I whisper.Jake’s expression sharpens. “What happened?”“It s
** Poppy’s POV **The room feels too heavy after my outburst. Like my mates and even the walls themselves are waiting to see what I’ll do next. My stomach is still in knots, heat and shame twisting together so tightly I can’t tell where one ends and the other begins. Jake is staring at me like he’s
“They’re pushing,” she says through clenched teeth. “More of them, at least three groups. I don’t think I can reach them all, not yet. I can try, but…”Her light strains against its limits, dense enough that it hurts to feel through the bond. She’s not losing control; she’s containing it. And sudden
** Paige’s POV **The sentence lands heavily, but I can’t say I’m totally shocked.“What?” I ask softly.She finally looks at me then, eyes bright and too guarded all at once. “I’m not staying, Paige. Not here. Not now.”My chest tightens, but I don’t interrupt.“I need space,” she continues, her vo
** Paige’s POV **Leo’s chest rises as he sucks in a breath. His fists are clenched at his sides. He looks like he’s on the verge of shifting, and I can almost see the war in him, duty versus love, control versus fear.“You’re not safe alone,” he says, his voice low now, dangerous.Poppy shakes her
Paige’s gaze flicks toward her, worry threading through the bond like a soft ache.Poppy stands abruptly. “I’m going to check on Jax.”Paige nods. “Okay.”Poppy doesn’t meet her eyes. She slips out quickly, like she’s escaping a conversation that hasn’t even started. I could tell her that Jax is sti







