Chapter 107

**ADAM**

After lunch, Aria stretched, yawned, and retreated to the bedroom with the kind of slow steps that made my chest ache. She was exhausted. Carrying hybrid twins was taking its toll, and though she tried to hide it, Austin and I noticed every time her breath caught or her eyes dimmed. She needed rest, and we knew better than to argue.

When she closed the door behind her, Austin turned his phone horizontally and resumed a video call with Garrett. I gave them space and cleaned up our lunch dishes, catching bits of their conversation as I moved about the kitchen. Reports about patrol schedules, upgrades to the northern fencing, and a recent training assessment. Garrett was sharp, thorough, and efficient—everything Austin had always said he was.

When Austin hung up, he looked content. Not relaxed exactly, but steadier.

"Sounds like things are running smoothly," I said, drying my hands.

"Better than I expected, honestly," he replied. "Garrett’s good. I knew he was capable, but he’s handling things like a natural."

"Think he's gunning for your job?"

Austin chuckled. "Not likely. But I’ve been thinking about reorganizing once we return full-time."

I arched a brow. "Yeah?"

"I haven't told him yet, but I'm considering making him head of operations," Austin said, rubbing the back of his neck. "A new role. He'd oversee logistics, strategy, daily execution. I haven't come up with a proper title yet."

"It makes sense," I nodded. "You as alpha, me as beta, Garrett taking point on internal operations. Strong structure."

Austin smiled. "Exactly what I thought."

There was a quiet moment, filled only by the faint ticking of the clock on the wall.

Then the topic shifted.

"She’ll need to be turned soon," I said, glancing toward the bedroom door. "We don’t know how much time she has before her body starts failing her."

Austin sighed. "You’re being pessimistic."

"I'm being realistic," I said firmly. "We agreed to wait so it wouldn’t feel like a necessity. But the more we delay, the greater the risk."

Before Austin could respond, the door creaked open. Aria stepped out, her arms crossed, eyes sharp.

"Well, if you're both so desperate to turn me, why don't we just do it now?"

We froze.

I stayed quiet as Aria's words hung between us. Her voice hadn't been sharp, but it struck me all the same. There was no anger behind her tone, just something deeper—hurt. Disappointment.

I hated that I’d been the cause of that.

"Aria..." I took a breath, then stepped toward her slowly. She’d crossed her arms, her posture defensive, but her eyes told a different story. They looked tired. Not just physically exhausted, though that was obvious—but weary in the way someone looked when they’d been carrying too much for too long.
"I would’ve preferred to take our time," I admitted softly. "I would’ve waited as long as you needed. Forever, if it meant you felt safe and ready. But the truth is—we don’t have forever, not right now. The pregnancy... it’s draining you. And I can’t ignore the risk it’s putting on your body. On our babies."

She didn’t speak right away. Instead, she sat down heavily on the sofa, shoulders hunched slightly forward. Her fingers brushed the curve of her belly, still faint but beginning to take shape. Austin and I joined her, one on either side, a triangle of tension and love.

"I know you’re right," she said, her voice quieter now. "It’s just... this changes everything. Becoming a hybrid isn’t just a physical thing. It’ll change who I am.
Maybe not overnight, but... eventually. And that scares me."

I felt a dull ache in my chest. I knew how much she valued her identity—how fiercely she clung to the version of herself that had existed before all this supernatural chaos.

She looked at Austin then. Her voice cracked.

"I’m scared that one day, you’ll resent me. That you’ll realize that without me, you’d have never gotten to this point. That becoming a hybrid wasn’t your path until I came along and forced your hand."

Austin reached over and took her hand gently. The look on his face wasn’t frustration or anger. It was love—pure, unshaken.

"Aria," he murmured. "Don’t you get it? Everything I’ve done—it’s because I chose it. I chose you. I chose us. And becoming a hybrid... it’s not a sacrifice, it’s a gift. A chance to share a lifetime—an eternity—with the woman I love."

She looked down, tears welling in her eyes.

"And the thought of raising a family together," he continued, brushing a strand of hair from her cheek, "that fills me with more joy than I ever thought I could feel. I’m not scared of what’s changing. I’m grateful for it. Because it means I get to keep you."

Emotion thickened in the room like mist. I felt like I was intruding on something private, something sacred.

I started to rise from the couch. "Maybe I should give you two a minute—"
"No," Aria said, reaching out and grabbing my hand. Her touch was firm, grounding. "Don’t go. This is a family conversation. And you’re part of this family."

That stopped me in my tracks.

Family.

The word hit harder than I expected. I’d always felt protective of her—of Austin too. But hearing her say it like that... it mattered more than I could express.
I sat back down.

"Then let’s talk about it. All of it," I said. "Let’s lay it all out now—fears, hopes, all of it—before we take the next step. Because whatever happens... we’re in this together."

Aria nodded, and for the first time in what felt like days, she smiled—a small, tremulous smile, but real.

And it was enough to make me believe we could face anything.