Chapter 239
Chapter 239
Healing. Slowly, but healing.
The door opened.
“I thought you’d be asleep,” Ellie said, her voice soft enough to blend with the sunlight.
I turned toward her, and the ache in my chest – the one no wound had caused – eased instantly. She held one of the twins against her hip, the other curled sleepily on her shoulder.
Her hair was a little messy, her cheeks flushed, and she looked… like home.
“I’ve slept enough to last a lifetime,” I said with a faint smile.
That wasn’t entirely true – just sitting upright felt like a full-body workout – but if staying awake meant seeing her, I’d fight through it.
She crossed the room, placing one of the boys gently into my arms before settling beside me.
The baby’s small hand curled instinctively around my finger, tiny but strong.
I froze.
I’d never get used to this, to holding them, looking at them They were everything I had always thought I needed in my life and so much more.
More than just the fated mate born heirs to Silver Fang. They were beautiful, strong, amazing like their mother. “He’s-” My voice broke unexpectedly. I swallowed hard. “He’s perfect p>
Ellie’s expression softened. “That’s lan. August is the one attacking my hair p>
“I know,” I said softly, looking back down at lan. In my visits to the twins in her
apartment, I had quickly learned to tell them apart. Ian had a hint of pine to his scent and a tiny freckle on his right cheek.
I watched as August gave her sweater a determined tug with chubby fists. I
chuckled, careful not to jostle the baby in my arms.
“Fitting,” I murmured. “How did you come up with their names? I’ve been meaning to ask p>
“Well, August is a good name for a leader. And lan… lan was one of the people who raised me at the orphanage.” I nodded, not able to think of anything to say to that.
For a while, we simply sat. The boys made soft, content sounds – tiny huffs and gurgles that melted straight into my chest. I couldn’t stop staring at them. At Ellie. At the life I’d missed the beginning of.
“I missed this,” I said quietly. “Their first months… all of
Ellie’s breath hitched, just barely. “You couldn’t have known p>
“I should have,” I whispered. “I should’ve felt it. The bond the moment they were born My jaw tightened. “I let too much anger blind me p>
Silence stretched. Heavy but not suffocating.
When I finally looked at Ellie, she wasn’t angry. Or disappointed. She was studying me caution, with something that made my chest feel too full.
with gentleness, with
“You’re here now,” she said at last. “That’s what matters.m not… I’m not going to keep them from you again. It
1/2
Chapter 23
*25 Bonus
was wrong of me. I convinced myself that I was protecting them and myself but, I know now that I was wrong p>
I held her gaze, letting her words settle somewhere deep. The sunlight caught her hair, turning it honey gold, and for a moment the world felt impossibly still.
“I meant what I said before,” I murmured. “I’ll prove I can change. Not by saying it. By showing it p>
Her eyes softened – warm but guarded. “You’re off to a good start. I appreciate that you’ve given us space, but I think that we’ve had enough of that p>
lan stirred in my arms, yawning wide enough to show his tiny gums. I smiled, brushing his cheek with a careful thumb.
“What does that mean? You’ve had enough space from me p>
Ellie laughed under her breath, the sound bright and light. It means that I want the twins to know what it’s like to live with their cold, demanding father p>
Her words sank in slowly and I looked at her for a long moment with hope flooding through the bond. “Are you saying that you’ll come home p>
“Yes,” she said without hesitation. “Moonstone will always be our home, too. The twins were born here, my family is here, but… they’re the heirs to Silver Fang. It’s time that we let the world know they’re here p>
We fell into a quiet that wasn’t awkward. Peaceful. The kind that settled into your bones.
For a few perfect seconds, the world beyond this room – the rogues, Felicity, the weight of leadership – disappeared.
Just sunlight.
Just the boys breathing softly in our arms.
Just her.
And for the first time in years p>
I felt like everything might actually be okay.
2/2