46. A Step Closer
Norman
A month had passed, and I still couldn’t bring myself to face her.
I saw her every day. Working beside Wren, moving through the pack grounds with quiet grace, during supper or breakfast and when I ‘mistakenly’ took the longer route that led to her side of the mansion. She greeted others with small, careful smiles, the kind I used to think were just for me. Now they belonged to everyone.
And yet, even with the distance, I noticed.
Her movements were slower now. Her steps were more measured. The curve of her belly, once flat and hidden beneath her layers, had started to swell. Barely, but enough that I saw it. Enough that it tightened something sharp and aching in my chest and I could tell.
I hadn’t touched her in weeks. Hadn’t spoken more than a few words. It
