Chapter 58 - Watching Her
Silas didn't announce himself when he reached the healing wing.
He stopped just outside the doorway, remaining in the shadow of the corridor where he could see inside without interrupting.
Athena didn't notice him.
She was kneeling beside one of the benches, sleeves pushed slightly up her arms, dark hair falling forward as she focused on cleaning a cut along a young wolf's shoulder.
Her voice was soft.
Calm.
Confident.
"Hold still," she said gently. "You'll make it worse if you keep flinching."
The wolf obeyed without hesitation.
Silas watched the way Athena moved.
Not rushed.
Not uncertain.
Natural.
Like she had always belonged in this room.
Other pack members passed through, and every single one of them slowed slightly when they saw her.
Not staring.
Respecting.
Recognizing something they didn't fully understand yet.
Silas understood it perfectly.
She was fitting into his world without effort.
Without trying.
Without even realizing she was doing it.
And that made his chest tighten in a way that had nothing to do with the mate pull.
This wasn't instinct.
This was admiration.
She smiled softly at the young wolf when she finished wrapping his arm.
"There," she said. "Try not to be heroic for at least a day."
A faint laugh moved through the room.
Athena stood and crossed to the shelves, reorganizing supplies that didn't need reorganizing.
She just... did.
Because she cared.
Elara watched her with knowing eyes.
Silas stayed in the doorway longer than he should have.
He didn't want to interrupt.
He didn't want to break the moment.
Because watching her like this made something settle in him with quiet certainty.
She wasn't here because she had been brought.
She was here because she belonged.
Silas exhaled slowly.
A realization forming that he hadn't allowed himself to think until now.
He was falling for her.
Not because she was his mate.
But because of who she was.
Because of the way she moved through his world like she had always been meant to.
His gaze softened as he watched her laugh quietly with Elara.
She is already becoming my queen...
And she doesn't even know it.