Page 55 of The Pack

“At what?” he asked, his pale eyes meeting mine.

“Being part of a pack,” I answered simply.

He seemed to consider that for a moment before giving a small nod. “So are you.”

The warmth in his gaze made my heart skip, and for a moment, the world felt a little less crazy.

My heart fluttered in a way I didn’t expect, and my cheeks warmed as I let myself really look at him. The defined angles of his jaw, the curve of his shoulders, the faint sheen of sweat still clinging to his skin where Tobias had stitched him up.

I didn’t want to feel this way. Not here. Not now. But I couldn’t stop the heat pooling low in my stomach, the ache that made me shift on the mossy ground beneath me, the way my pussy clenched at the thought of being with all five of them again with a clearer head…

It was ridiculous. I was surrounded by danger, by uncertainty, by these men who were supposed to be terrifying. And yet…

I was starting to feel for them.

For their strength and loyalty. For the way they moved as a unit, each of them so different, but so fiercely tied to one another.

I was starting to wonder if I could be part of that too.

A surge of boldness hit me, the kind I couldn’t quite explain. Maybe it was the firelight, or the way the rest of the pack’s teasing had made me feel more at ease, or maybe it was just the weight of everything finally catching up to me.

I just went with it.

I leaned in, my lips brushing his ear as I whispered, “Maybe I could take your mind off it for a little while… unless you’re too sore for something like that…”

Thorne froze, his eyes widening slightly as he turned to look at me. For a moment, I thought I’d overstepped, but then his lips twitched into the faintest hint of a smirk.

“I think I can manage,” he said, his voice low and rough.

Heat surged through me, my heart pounding as I let myself give in to the moment. I tilted my head, my lips brushing the curve of his neck. His skin was warm beneath my mouth, and I felt a shiver run through him as I pressed a soft kiss against his pulse point.

He inhaled sharply, and I couldn’t help but smile at my small victory.

This wasn’t me. At least, it hadn’t been. Before all of this, I’d been someone else entirely—a girl who followed the rules, whodidn’t take risks, who wouldn’t have even dreamed of acting on feelings like this, but everything had changed since then. These men—these wolves—had thrown my world into chaos, broken everything I thought I knew, yet they’d also pieced something back together within my heart. They’d made me into something stronger.

I wasn’t just surviving anymore. I was living. Even though it terrified me, I realized I wanted to live like this, to feel the way that they made me feel.

I couldn’t deny it anymore. I was falling for them. For Magnus’s calm authority, for Callum’s warmth, for Tobias’s fierce protectiveness, for Killian’s wild energy, and for Thorne’s quiet strength.

It wasn’t just desire, although that was there too, simmering under the surface and flaring to life whenever they were near.

Maybe it was time to stop denying it altogether.

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught movement—Killian and Tobias, sitting a few feet away, watching us.

Killian’s grin was wide and teasing, his golden-brown eyes gleaming in the firelight. Tobias, as ever, was stoic, but there was a flicker of heat in his burning stare that made my pulse quicken.

Further back, Magnus and Callum crouched near the fire, their hands moving with practiced ease as they fed branches into the flames. Callum caught my eye, his boyish smile softening into something more thoughtful. Magnus glanced over too, his silver eyes unreadable, but knowing.

They were all watching.

Heat surged through me—not from embarrassment, but from something deeper, something raw and unfamiliar. Their gazes didn’t feel judgmental or intrusive. They felt expectant. Encouraging.

That was all the permission I needed.

I turned back to Thorne, leaning closer until our knees touched. His hand went to my cheek then slipped to my jaw, his thumb brushing my skin in a way that made me gasp. I tilted my head, my lips brushing the curve of his neck. His breath hitched, just barely, but it was enough to spur me on.

“Does this hurt?” I whispered, my lips grazing his pulse.

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