Chapter 63

Avery

Morning light filtered through the curtains of Ryker's bedroom, turning the air golden and soft. I woke slowly, cocooned in warmth and his lingering scent and for a few precious moments, I let myself simply *be*. Safe. Wanted. Held.

Then memory caught up: the shawl Kendra had draped around my shoulders, the weight of generations in its silver-threaded fabric. The tears I'd cried into her emb