before t

her with whatever needed doing before the rest of the pack was even awake. I lay there for a minute, staring at a

, and the three s

even heard him leave. I wasn't sure if I wa

d to a wedding or a funeral, and made my way out into the hallway, hoping I

against the wall outside my door like

hab

in his pockets. "Most people who marry into this house sleep until noon out of spite

t most

s voice went a little more serious

. "Is this the part where

. Is it

N

'd told a joke instead of

uiet and straightened up the second they saw me, like they weren't sure yet whether I was someon

ssed one to me, and leaned against the counter like h

you somethi

way

me? Really. Not the flirtin

esn't trust anything he didn't choose himself. Phiona because she's spent two years clawing her way into looking important, and you walked in and made her look small without even trying. My father bec

urprising

, you're funny. And you made Phiona speechless at dinner,

early, in this house, after everything. "What about Rau

just slightly. "Ra

not an

happened with Raphael, that's not who he is, deep down. But he learned a long time ago that being soft in this family gets you eaten alive. Parker would've torn hi

bborn part of me didn't want an explanation that made Raulph easier to understand.

into place like a mask he was more comfortable wearing. "Y

ing fo

t like weak links standing next to his sons in public. Raulph's supposed to be there, but knowing hi

about

lmost gentle under the usual charm. "For what it's worth - I meant what I said last night. Don't let this place turn you cold. Yo

breath, leaving me alone in a kitchen full of st

comfort of being the first interesting thing to happen in this house in years, ac

ask if I needed anything, I asked her where I could find the training grounds instead.

d planned for me, I wa

grass gold for a few minutes before it would melt away completely. Back home, my mother used to say mornings like this meant good lu