Chapter 228

** Paige’s POV ** Morning comes softly. Not with alarms or panic or the edge of fear that’s lived under my skin for days, but with light filtering through the curtains and the quiet sound of breathing around me. The cabin smells like coffee and earth and clean air, like the forest itself has forgiven us for the violence brought into it last night. I wake up tangled in warmth. Callen is behind me, solid and steady, one arm draped over my waist like he anchored me there in his sleep. Parker is on my other side, his presence gentle and calm even when he’s unconscious, one hand resting loosely over my hip. Remy is stretched out at the foot of the bed, still in the wolf form that he’s favoured over the past few days. Ryder is already downstairs; I can hear the clattering of pots in the kitchen. The bond hums. Not loud or demanding. Just… alive. I lie there for a moment longer than necessary, breathing them in, grounding myself in skin and warmth and the simple fact that I am still here. Sti