Maximus stood beside me. Close enough to feel and far enough to miss.
The night wrapped around us like silk—quiet, cool, and too intimate for words.
The balcony stretched wide and the city below was hushed, its lights scattered like fallen stars across the GrandFord lands. The air carried the faint scent of pine and smoke from distant hearths, a reminder that the Pack was alive... breathing, waiting.
The moonlight caught the edge of Maximus jaw, the line of his shoulder, and the way his hands stayed tucked in his pockets like he didn’t trust them. His presence was steady, but his silence was heavy.
I didn’t speak. Neither did he. But the silence between us wasn’t empty. It was full. Full of everything we hadn’t said.
“You didn’t answer my call,” I said, my voice barely above a
