Page 85 of Anders
You okay?Anders asked.
Etta turned to him, examining the strong lines of his face, the watchful eyes that missed nothing, the tension he carried in his shoulders even now.
The guardian, always vigilant.
Herguardian.
I think I will be,she said honestly.For the first time since… Well, maybe for the first time ever, I know who I am.Who I want to be.
Anders stepped closer, his hand coming up to brush a strand of hair from her face.
She gestured to the territory spread out before them.I meant what I told the alphas.This feels right.
It is right,he said.You belong here.
With me, he didn’t say—but he didn’t need to.
As if in response to his words, Etta felt something shift deep inside her—her wolf, rising ever closer to the surface as the last remnants of chemical suppression continued to fade.
The sensation was no longer frightening but exhilarating, like recovering the use of a limb she hadn’t known was missing.
Chimera was still out there, still hurting others like her.
But for now, in this moment, Etta allowed herself to feel something dangerously close to hope.
She had a name—her real name.
She had memories, painful but authentic.
She had a pack willing to accept her despite everything.
And she had Anders.
For the first time in her newly remembered life, Etta Barone—Eliana Thornwood—was exactly where she belonged.
CHAPTER 20
ANDERS WATCHEDETTA CLOSELYas they walked away from the Old Packhouse.The council meeting had clearly taken a toll—even though she’d been ultimately accepted, she’d been tested and challenged.
As they followed the trail, a movement caught Anders’s attention.
Dante, Una’s youngest brother, caught up with them, coming up to walk on Etta’s other side and glancing at Etta with obvious curiosity.
Anders went rigid, his wolf pushing forward in an instinctive territorial response.Years of tactical training barely helped Anders contain the urge to place himself between Etta and the other male.
My sister says you’re joining Sunburst,Dante said, offering a friendly smile.Welcome to the pack.
Anders fought to keep his hands from clenching at his sides.
Intellectually, he knew Dante meant no threat.
Emotionally, every fiber of his being screamed that he needed to protect Etta.The mate bond thrummed with a possessive energy that threatened to override his carefully cultivated self-control.
Etta responded to Dante with a polite but reserved smile, her own heightened awareness clearly picking up on Anders’s tension.The bond between them transmitted emotions with increasing clarity—her amusement and reassurance cutting through Anders’s protective instincts.
See you two later.With a wave, Dante moved past them, jogging down the trail.
Anders found himself calculating the distance between himself and Etta.Close enough to protect.Far enough to maintain some personal boundaries.
