Nova and Elle stumbled through the door of their shared quarters, filthy, bruised, and dead on their feet.
Nova collapsed face-first onto her bed with a groan. "Remind me never to say Draven looks cranky again."
Elle dropped her training bag, flopping backward onto her mattress, hair splayed like a halo around her. "He was cranky. But now we're dead. I think he was trying to kill us."
"I think he succeeded," Nova mumbled into the pillow.
It was well past dusk, and their bodies ached from hours of relentless drills. After the morning archery showcase, Draven had clearly decided he needed to reassert his dominance. Sparring with blunt staffs turned into full-contact hand-to-hand drills that dragged on long after the sun had disappeared.
"I'll take an arrow to the shoulder over that elbow combo from Milo any day," Elle muttered, stretching one arm across her eyes.
Nova winced as she rolled onto her back. "I'm not built for brawling."
"Right?" Elle huffed. "All I could think about during drills was how Jax, Cael, and Fin left before things got sweaty and humiliating."
Nova chuckled. "Part of me was relieved. Too much pressure when they're around."
"Way too much pressure," Elle agreed. "I can't elbow Ash in the ribs when Cael's standing on the sidelines smirking like he's watching a play."
"And I can't focus when I feel Jax's gaze like a heat lamp," Nova groaned, rubbing her shoulder.
The room fell quiet for a moment, both of them breathing heavily, staring up at the ceiling.
Then Elle said, "You know what the worst part is?"
Nova didn't move. "What?"
"We have to do it all again tomorrow."
Nova let out a slow, pained exhale. "We're joining the wrong profession."
Elle grinned, eyes still closed. "We should've been potion makers."
"Or florists," Nova murmured. "Nobody tries to punch florists."
The two of them burst into exhausted laughter — that ragged, punch-drunk kind that comes only at the end of the worst kind of day.
Both girls had dragged themselves to the bathing chamber, silent and aching as they rinsed off layers of grime and bruises. They didn't even bother drying their hair — Nova brushed hers lazily and Elle gave up halfway through hers with a muttered, "Close enough."
Back in their room, they collapsed into their beds without a word. Exhaustion swallowed them whole. And for the first time in days, neither of them fell asleep thinking about their mates. No pressure, no expectations — just the quiet peace of shared exhaustion and a little, blessed silence.
A few minutes passed. Then a knock at the door.
No answer.
The door cracked open. Cael peered inside, raising an eyebrow and glancing back at Jax behind him in the hall. He held up a finger to his lips with a grin.
Jax gave him a look like don't you dare.
Cael dared.
He crept inside, scanned the room where both girls were clearly half-asleep, faces mushed into their pillows, and then—
"Boogogogogog!" He screamed at the top of his lungs and banged a training stick against a wooden bedpost.
Both Nova and Elle screamed high-pitched, bolting upright like someone had dropped a ghost in their laps.
Nova threw her pillow at Cael's face, annoyed. "WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?! You can't just break into our room like a discount poltergeist!"
Jax lost it. She was so cute when she was mad. Leaning against the doorframe, he doubled over in laughter, shoulders shaking, eyes watering.
He hadn't laughed like that since he'd been back. Gods, he needed this. Them. The four of them.
Cael caught the pillow and tossed it back at her. "Just making sure you're not dead. Again."
Elle clutched her chest: "Gods, my soul left my body!"
Both girls look at each other and burst out laughing.
Jax stepped into the room, still chuckling. "Have you two eaten?"
No one answers for a second.
Cael sighed and rubbed his forehead. "I'll mindlink."
They all settled into the room, grabbing spots on the beds and the rug. The energy in the air shifted — warmer now. Familiar. Comfortable.
"So," Cael started casually, "Elle, I heard you punched Ash today. Nice work."
Elle snorted, "Where did you hear that?"
Instead of answering her, Cael grinned and said, "You ever going to explain how your right hook did more damage to Ash than anything we've seen in three moons?"
Nova chimed in. "Seriously, I even felt that punch. He looked like he was going to cry."
Cael dryly said. "Poor guy." Not even trying to hide his dislike for Ash.
The door creaked and the omega entered with a tray of crackers and two tonic drinks clearly not from the kitchen.
"Food delivery. You're a hero," Elle said.
As they started nibbling, Jax's sharp eyes caught the way Nova and Elle both moved a little slower than usual — thinner, still too pale. He watched as they each grabbed just one cracker.
Cael read his thoughts. "They haven't really eaten," he said, softer now. "Not since…" He trailed off. No one needed the word poisoned hanging in the air again.
Jax's jaw tensed.
"We've been drinking Elias's herbal mixes," Nova added quickly, not wanting Jax to spiral. "So we're both okay."
That didn't help.
Jax stared at her, trying to piece together how much he'd missed — how much she'd suffered while he was out.
"Why didn't anyone tell me?"
Nova pushed his hair back trying to calm him. "This is the first time we're eating since you got back so that's why."
He didn't speak. Just grabbed the hand that was stroking his hair and kissed it.
She blushed.
Elle changed the subject fast. "Okay but real talk — if Fin ever volunteers to be a moving target again, I'm not responsible for the outcome."
Cael laughed. "That man is the most dramatic Alpha I've ever seen. Catching arrows mid-air like it's a duel of fates."
"I mean, it was impressive. I didn't know he was so knowledgeable. " Nova admitted.
Jax didn't love that part.
"Oh please," Cael grinned. "He only did that to impress you."
Nova blinked, caught off guard. "He did not."
"He absolutely did." Elle said.
"100%. His hair even looked extra wind-swept." Cael agreed.
"No, he did it because he helped me with it the other day. We were picking up where we left off." Nova insisted.
Jax had an expressionless face but everyone could feel tension.
"True. He probably wanted to show off his coaching skills for everyone to see." Elle said, realizing the situation and trying to turn it back into a joke.
"Well it worked. Everyone kept talking about him all afternoon and Draven got cranky." Nova said.
Cael laughed, "Draven was desperate for our help. You guys had arrows flying backwards away from the targets before we showed up." He shrugged and grinned. "Maybe target practice with the Alpha was a bit over the top."
That did it. They all burst out laughing.
And in their small room meant for Omegas — there was laughter, warmth, and healing.
About an hour later, Jax noticed Nova's head beginning to dip, her eyes half-lidded from exhaustion. Without a word, he rose and gently offered her his hand. She took it, and he led her back to their quarters, his touch as steady as the moonlight outside.
She was asleep before her head even hit the pillow, curled up in his arms. Jax held her close, breathing in her scent, letting it calm the storm that had been roaring in his chest all week. The chaos, the violence, the near-loss… it all faded when she was in his arms. She was his sanctuary. His grounding.
He looked down at her sleeping face and something tugged in his chest — something deeper than instinct, more potent than the mate bond alone.
He wanted to give her everything.
Not just the protection of his name, or the warmth of his bed — but a future. A ceremony. A ritual. A celebration that marked her not just as his mate, but as his Luna — in title, in standing, in sacred rite.
She deserved more than a bite in the night.
He imagined her dressed in white, the entire pack watching as she was officially named Luna of House Thorne.
It would give her the rights of a Gamma… to sit with him on the council, to share leadership, and to stand as his equal. The thought stirred something reverent in him. Not just pride. Devotion.
His mind briefly flicked to his first mate and their own ceremony. It had been a good day — filled with light and promise. But with Nova… gods, it already felt different. Bigger. Deeper.
Was it too soon to bring it up?
He didn't know. All he knew was that she was it for him. There was no one else. No one who ever could be.
Sleep tugged at him, but he stayed awake for a while longer, just holding her and watching the slow rise and fall of her breath.
Sometime later, Jax startled awake as Nova jolted upright in bed, slick with sweat and gasping like she'd surfaced from deep water.
He blinked, disoriented. "Nova?"
"Sorry," she mumbled, already sliding out of bed. "Didn't mean to wake you. I'll be right back."
She disappeared into the bathing chamber. He sat up, brows furrowed.
Nova splashed cold water on her face, gripping the edge of the basin. Her pulse was racing, her hands trembling. Something in that dream had terrified her — but the memory was already slipping away, like fog in sunlight.
She dried her face and forced herself to breathe. Deep, even. When she returned to the bedroom, Jax was already up, walking toward her, worry etched across his face.
"Just a bad dream," she said quietly, crawling back into bed. Her voice was steady, but her eyes were distant.
He slid in beside her and wrapped his arms around her again, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "What was it about?"
She paused. "I don't know."
"You don't remember?" he asked gently.
"No," she whispered. Then added, "I blame Cael."
That earned a soft chuckle. "Poor bastard's not even here to defend himself."
"Exactly why I'm blaming him."
Jax smiled, kissed her lips once, twice, three times — and held her tightly until sleep returned for them both.
But even as her body relaxed, something deep in her wolf stirred.
Something wasn't right.
And whatever it was… it was coming.