When the twins finally went down for the night, I joined them on the couch. Rae nudged Cassian with her shoulder. "You Moonstone men are all the same," she said. "Broody, mysterious, heroic in a way that makes me suspicious."
Cassian chuckled. "And yet you seem to like us anyway."
She smirked. "Maybe I just like a challenge."
I rolled my eyes, hiding my smile. "Please don''t start flirting in front of the babies."
Rae winked. "They''re asleep."
The room was warm withughter. For the first time since I''de back, it felt like a home alive, full of light.
But of course, peace neversted long.
Two dayster, Kieran arrived again.
He didn''t call first. Just appeared at the door, his familiar confident smile in ce, a small box in his hand.
"Ellie," he greeted smoothly. "I hope I''m not intruding."
I hesitated, torn between politeness and dread. It wasn''t that I didn''t want to see him. I just wasn''t sure how Rae would react to him.
The two of them hadn''t met before to my knowledge, but I''d talked to her about him plenty. About his offer of a political marriage, about his fliration and charm, about the warnings I''d been given about him.
"No, of course not. Come in."
Rae, ever the extrovert, appeared from the kitchen, wiping her hands on a towel. "You must be Kieran,” she said brightly. "I''ve heard about you."
Kieran''s smile didn''t falter. "All good things, I hope."
I saw Rae size him up. His tall, lean figure, his light hair and sharp eyes. She took it
all in with a brief flicker of her eyes and I knew her well enough to see the suspicion settle over her.
Rae''s grin sharpened slightly. "Mostly.
The tension that followed was polite, Kieran assessing.
t electric. I could practically feel the two of them sizing each other up-Rae protective,
"I brought something for the boys," he said, offering the box. Inside were two small carved wolf figurines, polished and delicate. “Pine Ridge tradition. For luck."
"They''re beautiful," I said softly, though unease stirred under my gratitude. "You didn''t have to-"
"I wanted to," he interrupted, voice low, sincere. "I care about you Ellie. About them, and right now the only way I can really show that is through gifts. So let me spoil you a little."
Rae raised an eyebrow but said nothing.
The conversation stayed light after that, but I felt Kieran''s gaze on me constantly, studying, searching. When he finally left, Rae turned to me with arms crossed.
"He''s trouble," she said tly.
"He''s just trying to help," I said, though the words sounded weakven to me.
Rae gave me that look again, the one that saw through everything. He''s trying to
make you need him. That''s not help, Ellie. That''s control."
Her words sank deep, unsettling something I hadn''t wanted to name.
The next morning, I mentioned
Kieran''s visit to ric while we were walking the twins through the
packhouse garden. The air was
heavy with the scent of rain and thest of the light filtered through the trees.
"He came to see you again?" ric''s tone was even, but his expression shifted to something sharp, almost cold. I said, frowning "He
brought gifts for the boys, again. He was... kind."
ric stopped walking. “Be careful with him.”
I blinked. "You sound like Rae.".
"Then perhaps you should listen to her."
Something in his voice made me shiver. "Why do you say that?”
"Kieran''s family has always yed both sides of a line they im not to see," he said. “He hides it well, but his loyalty is to himself first. Remember that."
I wanted to argue, to say that Kieran had been nothing but supportive, but the look
in ric''s eyes silenced me. It wasn''t anger, it was knowledge.
He reached out, brushing a stray lock of hair from my face in a gesture that was paternal and
against you. It''s natural that you want to protect your boys, but don''t let that instinct overpower logic and caution. Trust me, it will lead to trouble."
His voice was soft, but the warning lingered long after he turned away.
It made me think of Nn. Taking the boys and running away like had was an act of
fear and the more time that passed the more it felt like a mistake.