Chapter 154

Freya Italy had been everything I didn't know I needed. Sun-drenched vineyards,winding coastal towns,warm evenings with Silvano's hand wrapped around mine. For two weeks,we'd wandered through landscapes that once belonged to the Shadow Pack,his ancestral lands. History clung to the ruins we explored,but instead of ghosts,I found peace there. For the first time in years,I'd woken up without a knot in my chest. No boardroom politics. No pack drama. No Jasper. Just Silvano's steady presence beside me—the man who looked at me as though I'd always been his. We'd laughed until our stomachs hurt,tasted wines older than either of our packs,and I'd even learned to drive his ridiculous vintage motorcycle along the cliffs. He gave me space when I needed silence,warmth when I needed comfort,and passion that burned so brightly it chased away the shadows of the past. I thought the trip would end quietly. That I'd step on the plane home and close the chapter of my life labeled Stone Lake Pack. Then m