Page 115 of Fated to the Lone Shifter
We’re not a normal pack. Hell, we’re not even a real one—witch, wolf, healer, hybrid, and a pup with a future none of us can predict. But it works. Somehow, it works.
SERA
This is what family feels like.
It’s strange how something can feel brand new and ancient at the same time. Like a memory I forgot I was part of.
Tori shifts closer, arms brushing mine. “He’s not all bad,” she whispers, motioning toward Marcus. “But I’m still sleeping with one eye open.”
“You and me both,” I whisper back, and we share a look only cousins can manage—one part exasperation, one part affection.
Noah joins us, his hand finding mine again. There’s a glint of mischief in his eye. “You know this means you’re stuck with all of us now, right?”
I squeeze his fingers. “Good. Because I’m not going anywhere.”
The pup yips again, like it’s agreeing. Marcus howls—low and soft, almost reverent—and the pup joins in, his baby voice cracking halfway through.
We all laugh, warm and unguarded.
For the first time in a long time, I don’t feel like I’m pretending to be someone else. Not a spy. Not a soldier. Just… Sera. Witch. Woman. Mate.
And finally, free of my secrets.
When the laughter settles and the fire crackles into a quieter rhythm, Tori steps forward again. Her face is soft, unreadable. She holds out another small velvet pouch.
“For both of you,” she says.
I take it from her hands and open the pouch. Inside are two matching necklaces—delicate chains holding identical pendants. Each charm is a fusion of three symbols: a Celtic cross, a flame, and a wolf’s paw print. It takes my breath away.
Tori explains, “I had them made. A fire witch. A lone wolf. A fate bound by fire, magic, and legacy. One of a kind—like the two of you.”
Noah takes his with reverence, holding it up to the firelight. The metal glows faintly as if it remembers the magic we’ve walked through together.
“Fated,” he says.
“Forged,” I whisper.
“Forever,” we say together, like a vow neither of us needs to speak aloud—but do anyway, because sometimes magic needs to be expressed.
We step closer, slipping the chains over each other’s heads at the same time. The pendants settle at our hearts. Right where they belong. Each flickers like magical sigils the moment the necklaces press our chests.
TOGETHER
“I’ve never worn a necklace in my life. But this? This feels like armor. Like truth. Like home.” The moment is almost more than Noah can bear.
Sera presses her hand to the pendant resting against his chest. “This doesn’t mean we’re married,” she teases, but there’s a hint of something deeper in her voice.
“Damn right. It means more than that.”
Everyone in the pack recognizes his intention…what it took to get here. How together they bled and burned and broke to finally create this bond.
Noah drops to one knee—not with a ring, but with every fiber of his being. “But if you ever want that, you only have to ask.”
Her lips curve. “What if I ask now?”
He laughs, pausing in hesitation before rising to his feet. “Then I’d say yes in every lifetime.”
Sera leans in for a kiss—soft and slow. The kiss lingers long after their lips part, a spell sealed with breath and firelight.
