(Audrey’s POV)

Another wave of awkwardness washed over both Florian and me as Grandmother asked so directly about our mate bond ns. I could feel the heat rising to my cheeks, and I quickly tugged at my grandmother’s arm.

“Grandmother, let’s get you back to your healing chamber. You need to rest,” I said, trying to divert her attention from the ufortable topic.

But before I could lead her away, Florian’s calm voice cut through the tension.

“grandma,” he said with surprising gentleness, “I promise you that I will form a mate bond with Audrey soon.”

My head snapped toward him in shock.

“But we’ll have to wait until your health improves,” he continued smoothly, not even ncing at me. “We wouldn’t want to hold the marking ceremony without you there to witness it.”

I stared at him,pletely baffled. How could he make such a significant promise without even consulting me? Yet he spoke with such conviction, as if our future together was already decided.

grandma’s face lit up with joy. “That’s wonderful news! I knew you two would work things out.”

“Grandmother,” I interjected quickly, “you need to eat breakfast now. Healer Reed will be arriving soon to continue your treatment.”

“Oh, yes, the new healer,” she nodded, allowing me to guide her back toward her chamber. “He seems very knowledgeable.”

I shot a pointed look at Florian over my shoulder, silentlymunicating that we would discuss his presumptuous statementter. He merely raised an eyebrow in response, his expression unreadable.

After ensuring my grandmother had eaten and wasfortable, I stepped out to inform Healer Reed’s Beta assistant that the Emma Shadowcrest situation had been resolved. As expected, the healing team arrived shortly afterward, equipment in tow.

“I’ll returnter this afternoon, Grandmother,” I promised, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

She squeezed my hand. “Bring Florian with you next time. I want to discuss pack hunting grounds for your future pups.”

I nodded nomittally, not wanting to upset her with the reality of the situation between Florian and me. With the healing team settled in, I decided to head back to Central Territory. The territory hotel was nice enough, but I’d made a promise to Leo about staying at my old territory den in Moonlight Towers.

The drive back was peaceful, giving me time to process everything that had happened. By the time I reached Moonlight Towers with my travel pack, I’d mentally prepared myself to face the memories that would inevitably flood back once I entered my old territory den.

What I wasn’t prepared for was the sight that greeted me when the elevator doors opened on my floor.

Florian Stormhowl sat in his wheeled healing chair outside my territory den, with little Leo standing attentively beside him. The young pup’s face brightened immediately upon seeing me.

“Luna Aunt!” Leo eximed, bouncing on his toes.

“What are you two doing here?” I asked, stepping out of the elevator with my travel pack slung over my shoulder.

Leo rushed forward, wrapping his small arms around my legs. “Uncle Florian brought me down to y with you!” he exined excitedly. “He said you’d take care of me while he’s at his boring pack meeting.”

I looked up at Florian questioningly. He shrugged, the picture of casual indifference.

“Is that true?” I asked him directly.

“I was just leaving,” Florian replied, reaching out to yfully pinch Leo’s cheek. “Be good for Luna Aunt, or she’ll lock you in the scent-sealed closet.”

“Florian!” I scolded, shocked by his suggestion.

His golden eyes met mine, amusement dancing in their depths. “What? You’re not violent?”

“Of course not,” I huffed, setting down my travel pack to dig for my scent-lock key.

Florian watched me for a moment, then his expression turned serious. “I have a pack meeting that can’t be postponed. I’ll pick him upter tonight.” His gaze deepened, sending an unexpected shiver down my spine. “And when I do, I want to hear the answer you were about to givest night before Cassandra interrupted us.”

Without waiting for my reply, he wheeled himself to the elevator, leaving me standing there with a young pup and a thousand unanswered questions.

“Well, Leo,” I sighed, finally locating my key, “looks like it’s just you and me for now.”

I had expected chaos with a young pup in my territory den. Previous experiences with my pack friends’ children had taught me that pups Leo’s age were typically bundles of endless energy, constantly requiring attention and supervision.

To my surprise, Leo was exceptionally well-behaved. He followed me inside, looking around curiously but not touching anything without permission.

The territory den itself was immacte-not a speck of dust anywhere, despite having been vacant for two years. As if reading my thoughts, Leo piped up.

“Uncle Florian hired a pack cleaning service,” he exined matter-of-factly. “Theye every quarter moon to keep it nice for when you returned.”

My heart clenched at this revtion. Florian had maintained my territory den all this time, holding onto the hope that I would someday return. The thought brought a lump to my throat that I quickly tried to swallow down.

“That was thoughtful of him,” I managed to say.

Leo nodded solemnly. “Uncle Florian thinks about you a lot. He used toe here sometimes when he was sad.”

I busied myself with unpacking to hide the emotion that threatened to overwhelm me. Leo chattered happily about his pack training, his friends, and his favorite hunting ground training simtions, filling the silence with his sweet, innocent voice. When I eventually settled down to work on some healing formtions I’d been developing, I expected Leo to demand attention. Instead, he quietly retrieved a territory puzzle from his small backpack and sat on the floor near my feet, concentrating intensely on theplex patterns.

“You’re quite focused for someone your age,” Imented, impressed by his concentration.

Leo looked up at me with serious eyes. “Uncle Florian says doing things with divided attention leads to mistakes in pack matters. He taught me to focus on one task at a time.”

“That’s very wise advice,” I agreed, attempting to ignore the warmth that spread through my chest at the thought of Florian patiently teaching Leo such lessons.

Hours passed infortablepanionship, and I found myself enjoying the young pup’s presence far more than I’d anticipated. As evening approached, a knock at the door interrupted our peaceful coexistence.

Expecting Florian, I smoothed down my clothing and went to answer it. But standing in the hallway was not Florian, but Cassandra.

“Hello,” she greeted with a surprisingck of her usual sass. “Thought I’d stop by before my trip.”

“Mama!” Leo cried out, rushing past me to fling himself into his mother’s arms. “I missed you so much!”

Cassandraughed, picking him up and spinning him around. “It’s only been a day, silly pup.”

“That’s a long time,” Leo insisted, pressing his face into her neck. “Are you still going to the Western Territory? Can Ie too?”

Cassandra set him down gently. “Would you like to? I can always cancel your pack training.”

Leo’s expression became strangely serious for a pup his age. He shook his head. “I can’t. I have important business that I promised Uncle I wouldn’t tell anyone about.”

Cassandra and I exchanged puzzled nces.

“Please,e in,” I offered, stepping aside. “Would you like some moonlight wine? I found a bottle in the kitchen cab.” “No, thank you,” Cassandra declined, entering the territory den. “I have to drive tonight. But I appreciate the offer.” Once Leo was happily upied with his puzzle again, Cassandra turned to me with an uncharacteristically serious expression. “I want to know what your intentions are with my cousin,” she said bluntly.

I was taken aback by her directness. “I… I don’t really know yet,” I admitted. “We have aplicated past.”

“That’s an understatement,” Cassandra snorted. “You do realize there’s a twenty-year gap in your experiences, right? You were gone, then you came back as Luna Moonstone, then you disappeared again for two years… and now you’re back once more.”

I nodded slowly. “I know. I’m a different wolf now than I was before, and these past two years have set us even further apart.”

“I’m not surprised,” Cassandra said, leaning against the counter. “Actually, the main reason I came by was to ask you to take care of Leo.”

She nced at her son, lowering her voice. “Florian’s temper has gotten worse in the past two years. He tries to control it around Leo, but sometimes…”

“I’ll make sure Leo is okay,” I assured her without hesitation.

Cassandra’s eyes softened with gratitude. “Thank you.”

She hesitated, then added, “There’s something else you should know about Florian. After the explosion… his vision was impaired for a while. He waspletely blind for several months.”

My heart lurched painfully in my chest. “I didn’t know that.”

“He wouldn’t want you to,” Cassandra said. “His eyes eventually healed, but his leg… well, you’ve seen the condition it’s in.” “Did he get proper treatment?” I asked, thinking of his obvious difficulty walking.

Cassandra’s expression darkened. “Eventually. At first, he refused all treatment. He didn’t see the point.” She met my gaze directly. “I had to tell him that if he died, I would make sure you were buried alongside him ording to ancient pack ritual.”

I felt the blood drain from my face. “What?”

“I’m sorry,” Cassandra said, not looking particrly apologetic. “I didn’t like you back then. You abandoned him to go back to. Arthur Moonstone.”

“What happened after you said that?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

“He started working with the pack healers again,” Cassandra replied simply.

She paused, then added, “He was diagnosed with spirit sickness shortly after you returned to Arthur Moonstone’s side.”

My head snapped up, shock coursing through me. “Spirit sickness? When exactly was he diagnosed?”

Cassandra’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Shortly after you went back to Arthur Moonstone.”