(Kael)
I woke up to sunlight streaming through the bedroom windows. Aria was still asleep beside me, her breathing soft and even. The events of last night came back to me, not just the passion, but the deeper connection we had formed.
I carefully moved out of bed, trying not to wake her. She deserved the rest after everything that had happened recently. The pack meetings, the challenges to her authority, the constant pressure of proving herself as Luna.
I pulled on clothes and headed to my office. There were reports waiting on my desk from the night patrols. Nothing urgent, but I wanted to review them before the morning briefing.
A knock at my office door interrupted my reading. "Come in."
Kim entered. His expression was serious.
"Alpha, we have a problem. Three of our border scouts
