Chapter 27
I stood still for a moment, breathing in the fresh air. Behind us, Zane’s screams echoed like some ghost refusing to die. But then, silence Just like that, it ended. And it didn’t feel like victory. It felt like closing the last page of a story I should’ve bured long ago.
I turned to Callan, Even bruised and dirt–streaked, he looked unfairly good. Strong jaw, sharp eyes, that steady calm in his posture. I couldn’t stop staring. He was painfully attractive, and right then, all I wanted was to be closer.
His hand came up and gently cupped my cheek. His thumb brushed my skin like I was something fragile. “Thank you for saving me,” he said quietly. “No one’s ever done that for me before.”
I reached up and rested my hand over his “You’ve saved me more times than I can “we’re mates. It’s kind of part of the job, right?”
ncount This is
His eyes searched mine, like he was trying to understand something deeper. I didn’t look away. “I heard you I added. “You said you love me.”%
His eyes widened slightly. “Does that mean, you didn’t finish the ritual?“%
I shook my head slowly. “Of course not. That would’ve been the stupidest mistake I ever made.”
He let out a breath, something between a laugh and a sigh of relief. But I wasn’t done
“But why didn’t you tell me we were mates from the start?”
He was quiet for a while, and I waited.
s nothing. Besides…” I smiled a little,
Then he said, “Because I was cursed.” He looked down. “Every mate I’ve claimed… they died. Some didn’t even make it past the moment my wolf recognized them. I didn’t want to lose you too.“}
My chest tightened. I didn’t just hear it. My wolf felt his pain. His fear.
I touched his chest gently and he added, “So now what do I do with you? I don’t want to be away from you. But I don’t want anything to happen to you either.“2
That’s when we heard someone coming through the trees.
The healer appeared, walking like she’d just finished watching a romantic show. She was laughing as she stepped toward us. “Alpha,” she said, smirking at Callan, “you do realize your curse was broken the moment Quinn refused to finish the ritual, right?”
Callan blinked. “What?*%
She rolled her eyes “Did you forget t what I told you before? When you did the ritual to bind your wolf, I warned you. If your next mate chose to undergo a ritual too, but had the strength to undo it… the curse would break. That’s what Quinn did. She recognized your bond, and she stopped it
I looked up at him, tears in my eyes. His whole face changed. Like the weight he’d carried for years finally dropped.
I couldn’t help it. I stepped into him and wrapped my arms around him tightly.
“No one’s stopping us now I said into his chest “No one can separate us.”
His arms came around me just as tight!
By nightfall, we amived at Stormbane Pack
ey saw us approaching–me
Jalen was already waiting at the gates, pacing. Tony stood nearby, arms crossoput visibly tense. When they practically glued to Callan’s side–the worry on their faces shifted into something else entirely
“Well, well,” Tony said, raising a brow “Looks like someone finally got his girl
Jaden whistled “Damn, took a life threatening curse to make you two act like a couple.”
Callan didn’t even bother hiding the way his hand slid to my lower back, pulling me a little closer. “Jealous?“) “Disgusted.” Jalen smirked. “But only because i wasn’t warned. Should I look away now or are you two gonna start ripping each other’s clothes off in the training field?%;
laughed and swatted at him Callan leaned down and kissed my temple in front of them like he didn’t care who saw.
Tony grinned and muttered, “About time she found someone worthy ”
The teasing continued, but I didn’t care. Heaned into Callan’s touch, smiling like a fool. Because for once, I wasn’t pretending I was
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