Chapter <b>39 </b>
**Paige’s POV **
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Ryder appears not long after we finish eating, his hair still damp from a shower. His shirt clings to his chest, like he didn’t dry off properly. He looks exhausted, but more himself than yesterday. His eyes find mine, and he smiles.
“Hey,” he says, his voice still a little sleepy.
“Morning,” I smile. “You look better.”
He steps into the room, leaning down to kiss the top of Jaxon’s head as he passes. “I feel better. Slept like
a rock.”
Parker gives him a quiet nod and goes back to clearing tes. I can sense tension between them, and I
hope I’m not the cause of it.
“I was thinking,” Ryder says, turning to me, “if you’re up for it, I can take you to see Callen.”
My heart stutters. “Now?”
He nods. “It’s quiet out there. Patrols are up. He’s stable. Figured we should go sooner rather thanter, and he would love to see you.”
“I do,” I say quickly. “Thank you.”
Parker nces up. “I’ll stay here with Jax.”
“You sure?” I ask, searching his face.
He offers me a soft smile, one that settles something deep in my chest. “Positive. You’ll feel better once
you see him.”
Jaxon climbs off the chair and wraps his arms around my legs. “Are you leaving me, Mummy?”
My chest tightens as I kneel to his level. “Just for a little while, sweetheart. Your dad’s going to take me to
check on Uncle Cal.”
“Can Ie?”
“Not this time, baby. He needs lots of rest, and we don’t want to disturb him. But Parker’s going to stay
with you, okay?”
Jaxon pouts but nods, leaning in for a hug. I hold him tight, pressing a kiss to his forehead before standing
again.
“Shall we y on the X–Box?” Parker asks, and Jaxon instantly forgets he was sulking a second ago as he bounces up and down excitedly.
Ryder picks him up and carries him back into the living room with Parker trailing behind them. I run
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upstairs to dress back in yesterday’s clothes. I’m going to need to go home today to pick up some more stuff for me and Jax if we are staying here again.
When Ie back downstairs, Ryder is waiting by the door, one hand resting on the frame, the other running through his still–wet hair. Jaxon cheers from the living room, and I nce his way. I catch Parker watching us. Something flickers in his expression before he looks away. I can’t tell if it’s jealousy or
something else. Maybe regret?
I grab my coat and follow Ryder outside. The air is warmer now, the sky a soft blue streaked with clouds. He doesn’t say much as we walk down a dirt track, and I’m grateful for the silence. My mind is already
churning.
Parker’s touch still lingers on my skin, his words echoing louder now that I’ve had time to breathe. Let me
hold the pieces until you’re ready.
I wasn’t ready to kiss him, but I was close. Too close. Now I’m walking hand in hand with the man who still
holds arge part of my heart, no matter how badly he once broke it.
I nce at Rye and see the tight set of his jaw. I should say something, but I stay quiet. Because
underneath everything else, there’s a part of me that’s afraid of what I’ll feel when I see Callen. I’m afraid
of the guilt. Afraid that I’ll cry and won’t know how to stop.
“You okay?” Ryder asks, breaking the silence.
I nod. “I just… I need to see him.”
The road winds through the forest. It’s so peaceful out here, like the world is pretending nothing happened. Like there aren’t hunters out there who nearly killed someone I care about, and would just as quickly kill my son, or the three other men I’ve been fated to.
The silence between us stretches, but it isn’t ufortable. It’s full of everything we’re both thinking but not saying. Ryder nces at me now and then, and I can feel the weight of his gaze even when I’m not looking back.
I let out a breath. “He’s really okay?”
“He’s still healing,” Ryder says. “But yes. He’s going to make it.”
“I was horrible to him,” I whisper. “Right before it happened. I shut him out, pushed him away…”
“He’ll understand,” Ryder says without hesitation. “You were overwhelmed. That doesn’t cancel out what you feel for <b>him</b>.”
I look at him. He’s grown since Ist knew him, and not just physically, but as a person. He’s more patient, calmer, but the storm behind his eyes <b>hasn’t </b>vanished, it’s just buried deeper now.
The trees thin as we follow the winding path, and then suddenly, it opens up into something out of a storybook. I take a deep breath and prepare myself to face Callen, to apologise, to see with my own eyes that he’s okay.
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< Chapter 39
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Ryder stops, pulling on my hand, so I’m facing him. He looks down at me and smiles as his eyes search mine. He reaches up to brush a thumb over my cheek.
“I know you’ve already met a few of the pack, but you’ll likely see more around here. They are going to look, they’ll assess you, and you may feel ufortable. But I promise you they won’t hurt you. They are just curious about you. You are the mother of their future alpha, which makes you very important, even more so if you ept the mate bond with me and Callen.”
Awesome.
“So no pressure,” I halfugh, but nerves twist in my belly.
What if they hate me?
“No pressure,” Ryder shakes his head. “You have already made a good impression <i>on </i>Ronnie and my enforcers. Regina likes you, and somehow you have Parker wrapped around your finger already. The rest
will love you when they get to know you.”
My heart skips a beat at the mention of Parker. If only he knew why Parker liked me so much.
“Okay,” I breathe. “Let’s just get to Callen, the rest doesn’t matter right now.”
Ryder nods and gives my hand a squeeze. “The healers‘ cabin is this way.”
We walk through a small group of cabins. It’s a small vige, warm and quiet. Hidden by the tall trees that surround it like guardians. The cabins are all wooden with stone chimneys. Wildflowers and moss–covered stones line the path. It’s beautiful.
Children areughing faintly from somewhere deeper in the vige, and a few people nce up as we pass. They bow their heads to Ryder and look at me with curiosity, but none seems unkind.
“This is our home,” <i>Ryder </i>says quietly beside me. “It’s usually a bit more lively than this, but most of the pack are either out, running extra patrols, or keeping the kids safe indoors.”
I don’t say anything, just nod as I take it all in.
Ryder leads me into a quiet cabin. The scent of antiseptic hangs faintly in the air. Someone’s done their best to clean and sterilise, but the sharp tang of blood still lingers. A young woman nods to us as we enter.
“Good morning, Alpha. We moved him into the room at the back. He’s awake,” she says softly. “But he’s
tired, so try not to stay too long.”
“Thank you, Nina,” Ryder nods and leads me down a short hall.
He pushes open a door and pokes his head inside before stepping in fully. I hesitate. It’s just Callen, with his ridiculous jokes and cocky smirk. Callen, who makes Jaxonugh until he wheezes. Callen, who kissed me like it meant something… and then nearly died without me getting the chance to tell him why I was pushing him away. No matter what his condition, I can handle it.
I take a breath and quietly step inside.
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< Chapter 39
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The room is dim, blinds pulled halfway down against the morning sun. The light falls in a soft glow across the bed and the man lying in it.
He looks pale and unusually still.
There’s faint stubble across his jaw, and shadows under his eyes that weren’t there before. His shirt is off, bandages cover his chest and one shoulder, dark spots seeping through near his ribs. An IV is taped to his hand, and there’s deep bruising in blotchy patches over his chest and face. If I didn’t know better, I’d think
he’d been in a horrific car crash.
My hand flies to my mouth, and before I can stop myself, tears well up.
His eyes flutter open as the door clicks shut behind me.
“Hey,” he says, his voice hoarse and scratchy. But it’s him.
His eyesnd on me, and he tries to sit up, wincing immediately. “Sh*t. Bad idea.”
“Don’t move,” I rush forward, grabbing the chair beside his bed. “Don’t even think about moving. You
absolute idiot.”
Ryder chuckles, and Callen’s mouth curves into the faintest grin. “I missed you too.”
The sound that escapes me is somewhere between augh and a sob, and I press my fingers to my mouth
again.
“I didn’t think I’d get to see you again,” I whisper.
“I didn’t think I’d get to see anything again,” he says. “But I’m too damn stubborn, and besides, I’m still holding you to that talk you promised me, so I couldn’t die until after that.”
I shake my head with a smile and reach for his hand, careful of the IV. I wrap my fingers around his.
His thumb brushes mine. “I’m okay, Paige. Promise.”
“I’ll give you two some time alone. I have a few things to do while I’m here. Don’t leave this room. I’ll be back soon,” Ryder says, leaning down and kissing the top of my head. “Go easy on him, and no matter how
much he tries to convince you to climb on top of him, he’s not up for it.”
“Wow, thanks, bro. I almost died, and you still c*ckblock me,” Callen grumbles as Ryder walks out.
I smile, happy to see he hasn’t lost his humor.
“How long will it take you to heal?” I ask, my eyes taking stock of his injuries.
“A couple of days, I think. As soon as the wolfsbane is out of my system and my wolf is strong enough, I’ll shift and heal in no time. I won’te home until I’m fully healed. I don’t want Jax to see me like this.”
I shake my head. “Thank you for thinking of him, but you don’t have to do that. We can work around it if we need to. I <i>could </i>even take him home for a few days. I don’t want you to stay away from home because of
us.”
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“<i>It’s </i>not <i>safe </i>for you to go back there, Paige, not with him. And I know you’re not sure about me, but Ryder <i>needs </i>you. He’ll go crazy if you leave him, even if it’s just for a couple of days.”
<i>Guilt </i><i>eats </i>at me. He thinks I’m not sure about him, and that’s not it, not really. I have to tell him the truth.
N.O Darling
Sorry I <i>couldn’t </i>fit the whole scene in the word count limit for this chapter. I’ll get the next one up as soon as possible.
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