Ayla’s POV
I wake up later than usual, and for a moment, I don’t move. The room feels… different this morning, though I can’t explain why.
The air is still, but there’s a new kind of hush, as if something shifted while I wasn’t paying attention.
Then I remember, and the memories come in waves—the forest, the bond, and then them.
My breath catches. I sit up slowly, the blanket slipping from my shoulders in a soft heap. My gaze drifts across the room—familiar shapes, familiar shadows—until last night returns to me: the party.
The memory flashes behind my eyes. The brothers standing in the community room, watching me.
“Eat if you want,” Kael said, his voice low and nonthreatening. “Or don’t—no pressure or expectation.”
I glanced at the table, then slowly moved forward and reached for a
