Page 23

The restaurant Gray picks isn’t what I expected. When he said he had “somewhere special” in mind, I thought he meant a private, romantic spot in the woods or maybe one of the quieter pack-gathering areas. But this place? This place is packed.

The tables are filled with shifters. The smell of sizzling meat and fresh bread fills the air, and there’s music playing from a corner where a few pack members are plucking away on guitars. It’s charming, but far from intimate.

A group of kids races past, their laughter ringing out as they duck under tables, and I raise a brow at him.

He smirks, holding the door open for me. “What, you don’t like it?”

“I didn’t say that,” I reply, stepping inside. “I just thought… I don’t know. Something quieter.”

“Quieter would’ve felt too expected,” he teases, leading me toward a table near the back. “This place feels more like us.”

I don’t argue. He’s right, in a way. It’s relaxed, unpretentious, and a little chaotic. Kind of like my life lately.

The waitress, a cheerful she-wolf with a wild mane of curls, greets Gray by name. Of course she does. The alpha walks in, and everyone knows who he is.

“Alpha Gray,” she says, smiling warmly. Her eyes flick to me, and something curious passes over her face before she schools her expression. “And you must be Jaslyn. I’ve heard about you.”

“All good things, I hope.”

“Only the best,” she replies with a wink before handing us menus and disappearing to grab drinks.

“Famous, are we?” I tease, settling into my chair and flipping open the menu.

“You’re the witch who helped save the pack,” Gray points out, leaning back like he doesn’t have a care in the world. “People tend to talk about things like that.”

“I’m not sure I like being a topic of discussion,” I grumble as I skim the options. “What’s good here?”

“The burgers,” he answers without missing a beat.

“Don’t all shifters say that about every restaurant?”

“Maybe. But here, it’s actually true.”

The banter is easy, and for a while, I let myself enjoy it. We order food, and as we wait, the conversation shifts to lighter topics—my admittedly terrible aim with throwing knives, his surprising skill at baking. We talk about old times in Red Arrow, back when we were kids. Life was easier for him then, that’s for sure. He never had any problem fitting in. It’s fun. Comfortable. Almost normal.

But the longer we talk, the more I notice something off about him. He’s smiling, laughing, but there’s a tightness around his eyes, a weight in his voice that I can’t quite place.

“You’re quiet tonight,” I say after a lull in the conversation.

“I’m always quiet,” he replies easily, taking a sip of his drink.

“No, you’re broody. There’s a difference.”

He smirks, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. “Maybe I’m just enjoying the company.”

“Gray.”

He meets my gaze, and for a second, I see it—something flickering behind those blue eyes. But before I can press him, the waitress arrives with our food, and the moment slips away.

The burgers are as good as he promised, and I let the conversation drift back to safer topics. But the knot in my chest tightens with every passing minute. There’s something he’s not telling me. Something big.

It’s not until we’re halfway through the meal that he finally sets his fork down and leans forward.

“Jaslyn, there’s something I need to say.”

Here it is. The moment every part of me has been bracing for.

“Okay,” I say slowly, setting my burger down and wiping my hands on a napkin. “What’s going on?”

He doesn’t answer right away. Instead, he studies me like he’s trying to memorize my face, like he’s weighing every word before he speaks.

“You’re free,” he says finally, his voice quiet but steady. “You can leave, Jaslyn. Go wherever you want. Do whatever you want. You’re not tied to the pack anymore.”

The words hit me like a punch to the gut. For a moment, I can’t breathe. Can’t think.

“What?”

“I promised you freedom,” he says, his jaw tight. “The demon threat is gone. The pack is safe. You don’t owe me—or anyone—anything.”

I stare at him, trying to process what he’s saying. The laughter, the easy conversation, the playful teasing—it all feels like a cruel setup now. Like he brought me here just to drop this on me.

“You’re… letting me go?” I manage, my voice trembling despite my best efforts to keep it steady.

His hands clench into fists on the table, but his voice remains calm. “It’s what you deserve. You’ve been through enough, Jas. You’ve earned the chance to live your life on your terms.”

“You already gave me permission to leave before everything was settled with the demons, remember?” Anger flares, sharp and hot. “What if I don’t want to leave? What if I’m happy here?”

He looks away. “You think you’re happy now, but—”

“But what?” I snap. “You think I don’t know my own mind? That I don’t know what I want? I chose to stay before, didn’t I?”

“It’s not about what you want. It’s about what’s best for you.”

“And you think what’s best for me is leaving the one place I’ve felt safe in years? Leaving you?”

The silence between us is deafening.

I push back from the table, and my chair scrapes loudly against the floor. “You don’t get to decide what’s best for me, Gray. Not after everything we’ve been through. Not after—” My voice cracks, and I swallow hard. “You don’t get to do this.”

“Jaslyn—”

“No.” I cut him off, grabbing my bag and slinging it over my shoulder. “If you want me gone, fine. But don’t pretend you’re doing it for me.”

I don’t give him a chance to respond. My hands are trembling, and my chest is tight, but I hold my head high as I walk out of the restaurant. The night air hits me like a slap. I breathe it in, trying to calm the storm raging inside me.

But I can’t.

I don’t stop walking until I’m well outside the pack’s territory, the forest closing in around me. My legs ache, my heart feels like it’s been ripped from my chest, and still, I keep going.

Because if Gray wants to let me go, I’ll make it easy for him.

I’m blinded by anger and tears. My chest feels like it’s caving in, and the memory of Gray’s words crushes me with every step. He let me go. He wants me to leave.

And the worst part? I thought… I thought we had something. I thought he felt it, too.

“Damn him,” I mutter, swiping angrily at my face. My voice cracks, and I hate the weakness in it. “Stupid, self-righteous alpha.”

A twig snaps to my left, and I freeze. My wolf stirs uneasily, but when a familiar scent carries on the breeze, I nearly collapse with relief.

“Jaslyn?” Isadora’s voice carries through the trees.

“Over here,” I call back, my voice raw from holding back tears.

A moment later, she appears, and her eyes narrow as she takes me in. “What the hell are you doing out here?”

“Walking.”

“Walking,” she echoes, raising a skeptical brow. “Through the forest. Alone. Crying.”

“I’m not crying.”

She steps closer, folding her arms and tilting her head like she’s daring me to lie again. “You look like a wreck, Jaslyn. What happened?”

“Nothing,” I snap, but my voice wavers. “Just… leave it alone, okay?”

“No.” Her tone is firm, and she plants herself directly in my path. “You don’t get to brush me off. Spill. Now.”

I glare at her as my throat tightens, but the fight drains out of me as quickly as it came. With a shaky breath, I drop onto a fallen log and bury my face in my hands.

“It’s Gray,” I mumble through my fingers.

“What about him?” Isadora asks. She sits beside me with her hand resting lightly on my shoulder.

“He told me I’m free,” I choke out. “That I can leave, that he’ll annul the marriage. Like… like I’m nothing to him.”

Isadora is silent for a moment. When she speaks, her voice is thoughtful. “He actually said you’re nothing to him?”

“Well… not exactly,” I admit reluctantly.

“What did he say, then?”

“That it’s what’s best for me. That I deserve to live my life how I want.” I laugh bitterly, wiping at my face. “But he didn’t even ask what I want. He just decided for me.”

Isadora hums, and her fingers drum lightly against her knee. “Let me ask you something, Jaslyn. Have you ever seen Gray look at anyone the way he looks at you?”

“What?” I blink at her, caught off-guard.

“We’ve both known him for a long time, haven’t we? I don’t know about you, but I’ve seen that man go toe-to-toe with demons and alphas twice his size without flinching. But when it comes to you? He’s different. Every time you’re near, it’s like you’re the only thing he sees.”

My heart stutters, but I shake my head. “That doesn’t mean anything. He let me go, Isadora.”

“Because he’s trying to protect you. Not because he doesn’t care. He thinks letting you go is the right thing to do. That it’s what you need.”

I want to argue, but her words settle deep in my chest, cracking open something I’ve been too angry to face. Gray isn’t pushing me away because he doesn’t want me. He’s doing it because he thinks it’s what’s best for me.

“He’s an idiot,” I mutter.

Isadora chuckles. “Well, yeah. He’s a man.”

A wry smile tugs at my lips, but it fades quickly as the weight of realization sinks in. Gray thinks he’s doing the right thing, but he’s wrong. He doesn’t get to decide for me. If he’s too stubborn to fight for us, then I’ll do it myself.

“I have to go back,” I say suddenly, standing and brushing off my pants.

Isadora raises a brow. “You sure about that?”

“Absolutely,” I reply. “He’s not getting rid of me that easily.”

She grins, rising to her feet. “Now that’s the Jaslyn I know.”

Before I can take another step, a low, croaky growl rips through the air. Every hair on the back of my neck stands on end. Isadora freezes beside me, and her hand snaps to the small dagger at her hip.

“Tell me that was your stomach,” I whisper.

“Not even close,” she replies as he scans the shadows around us.

The growl comes again, louder this time, and the undergrowth ahead of us moves. My magic comes alive in an instant, crackling at my fingertips. Isadora tightens her grip on her dagger.

A hulking shape emerges from the darkness with sickly, glowing yellow eyes. My breath catches as recognition slams into me.

“Demon,” Isadora hisses.

It charges, and there’s no time to think—only react.