Chapter 177

** Ryder’s POV ** The sight inside the small house takes my breath away. Paige is sitting on the sofa, sunlight lighting up her face, with Jaxon on her lap and Parker slumped behind her like he’s barely awake. Leo is standing behind Parker, with a hand on his shoulder and a relieved look on his face. But it’s her face that steals the air from my lungs. Her eyes are too bright, and her skin has that faint shimmer again, like moonlight dust brushed across her cheeks. She looks exhausted and wired at the same time, like she’s been running a marathon in her mind for hours. And when she lifts her gaze to mine, something inside me fractures. I don’t move at first. I don’t breathe. I just take her in, every detail, every tremble, every breath. She shouldn’t look like this. She shouldn’t be carrying this much. Callen bumps into my back before stepping around me, and Remy lets out a breath as he stops at the threshold. But none of us speaks. Paige’s voice comes out sounding fragile in a way tha