#Chapter 25: A Seat at the Table

Darren “Now watch this… see how the cream gets thicker when you mix it?” “Wooow… That’s so cool!” “It’s science!” I wasn’t used to the apartment being so… full. Full of noise, full of people, full of laughter. It was a strange thing, to step inside and hear the sound of voices in the kitchen. To smell food being cooked by someone other than myself. Aria was in the kitchen with Lucas, teaching him how to make pancakes. She had him standing on a little footstool, wearing an apron that was far too big for his small frame. There was pancake batter all over the counter, whipped cream coating practically every surface. I hated messes. But I couldn’t find a reason to hate this one. Werewolf parents become accustomed to their children’s emotional phases in their pup forms—a wagging tail, ears laid flat, little teeth bared. They become so used to reading those cues that when a pup shifts for the first time, it’s a little jarring. Lucas wasn’t my b