Talon was still avoiding me.
It had been almost a week since the runestone grove, since everything changed, and still he wouldn’t look at me the same way. He spoke to my brothers during training, to the other warriors, even to the Alpha, but when I was near, he turned away. Polite, distant but unreadable.
It shouldn’t have hurt the way it did. But it did.
I told myself I didn’t care. That I was fine. That I didn’t need him to steady me. But the ache sat heavy in my chest, deep where the bond hummed, restless and bright.
My brothers could feel it. They didn’t say anything…not directly…but I knew they knew. The Moonbond made it impossible to hide. I’d catch Kael’s eyes sometimes, narrowed in quiet suspicion, or Ryn’s sharp looks when I tried to smile and failed. Soren had started watchin
