Chapter 153

Theo's POV The flight to Paradise Cove felt like ascending toward salvation. Claire sat beside me, her hand entwined with mine as we soared toward Bob's island . The weight of recent months—the false accusations, the legal battles, the medical crisis she'd single-handedly resolved—had left marks on both of us that only complete separation from our usual world could begin to heal. She'd been through a lot and emerged stronger than ever, but I could see the exhaustion in the subtle lines around her eyes, the way her shoulders still carried tension despite our victory over our rivals. My brilliant mate had saved hundreds of lives with her corrected synthetic protein treatments, had cleared her name and exposed the conspiracy against her, had proven herself to be everything I'd always known she was. But the cost of that triumph had been steep, and she deserved even more. "I can see why you love this place," Claire said softly as the island grew larger beneath us, her voice carrying the fir