All Chapters of Claimed By His Daddy (Stripper/Nerd): Chapter 211 - Chapter 216

Arielle I woke up before the sun today not because of fear or pain or the bond tugging me awake the way it used to but because my mind simply would not rest. The room was still dark and quiet, the kind of quiet that only comes when a place has finally learned peace. Kael was asleep beside me, one arm heavy around my waist his breathing deep and even. It still startled me sometimes, waking up to that sound and realizing I no longer needed to check if he was alive. That he was here. That he was whole. That I did not have to be strong for the both of us every second anymore.I stayed still for a long time just listening to him breathe, my palm resting on his chest where his heart beat steady and sure beneath my hand. There was a time that sound had felt like a miracle I was afraid to believe in. Now it felt like home. Outside the window the sky was just beginning to pale, that soft gray blue that comes before morning fully decides to exist. The moon was still visible watching in the

KaelI found Jax where I always seemed to find him these days, at the edge of things never fully inside what he was born into and never fully outside it either. He stood on the balcony that overlooked the lower grounds where the pack trained at dawn and drank at night, the place where boys dreamed of becoming men and men learned how much blood it took to remain standing when the world pushed back. The torches below flickered softly and the night air carried the scent of iron and something that reminded me of all the years I had stood right where he was standing now, thinking I was alone in my thoughts when the whole world was already watching.He had a book in his hand. It was am old and leather bound, the kind that smelled like dust and secrets and time that refused to stay buried. He was not reading it. He was holding it like it might bite him if he loosened his grip. He did not turn when he sensed me. He never did anymore. Jax always knew when I was near. Maybe he always had bec

AriannaI learned early that loneliness does not announce itself. It does not knock or scream or fall apart dramatically the way people expect. It settles instead kike dust on furniture you stop noticing until someone runs a finger across it and shows you how thick it has become. That is what the outskirts of the pack felt like most days. Not sad or tragic. Just quiet in a way that made you listen to your own thoughts whether you wanted to or not.I worked the bar six nights a week. Sometimes seven when the owner was short staffed or when someone decided not to show up because life out here was hard and people broke easily. The club was not fancy. It did not pretend to be. Low ceilings with sticky floors no matter how often we cleaned. Lights dim enough to hide stuff but bright enough to keep things from getting dangerous. I liked it that way. I liked knowing where I stood. Just work and tips and the dull satisfaction of surviving another week.I moved here four years ago. The day