The wind had grown colder that morning, sweeping through Silverglen like a warning. I stood by the stream, tossing small pebbles into the water as Erya slept wrapped in a wool blanket near the fire. The ripples moved quietly, almost afraid to disturb the surface. Just like me.
Behind me, I heard Darius's footsteps before he said anything. I knew the rhythm of them now—calm but steady, sure like the man himself.
He came up beside me and touched my arm.
"Hey," he said softly.
I didn't turn to look. "Hey."
For a while, we just stood there, listening to the trees whisper around us.
Then he said it.
"I've been thinking… I want us to have another pup."
The words hit me like an arrow—sharp and sudden. My body tensed. My heart paused.
I slowly turned to face him. His eyes were warm, hopeful. The same way they looked the day he first held Erya. The same way he looked at me the night he said he loved me.
But I didn't smile.
I didn't say anything.
