The night ended quietly.
Too quietly.
Lila realized it the moment she woke, breath shallow, heart steady but alert. The Alpha floor lay wrapped in shadow, moonlight slipping through the tall windows like pale silk. Caleb slept beside her, one hand still resting over her stomach as if his body had learned the habit before his mind ever did.
The baby was awake.
Not restless.
Not anxious.
Watchful.
Lila lay there, listening to the way the quiet pressed differently tonight. It wasn’t danger. It wasn’t peace either. It felt like a pause held too long.
She shifted slightly, careful not to wake Caleb, and placed her hand more firmly over her belly.
“I feel it too,” she whispered. “You don’t have to tell me.”
The baby rolled once, slow and deliberate.
A knock sounded at the door.
Not u
