Chapter 172 Aria

Chapter 172 Aria
The old metal box felt heavier than it should have.

I knelt at the edge of the small clearing behind our old apartment building in the city — or what used to be our apartment building. The complex had been torn down last year, but the patch of wild grass and broken concrete where Mom used to park her car was still there. I’d driven four hours just to stand in this spot. Four hours to say goodbye to something I wasn’t sure I’d ever fully let go of.

Inside the box were pieces of my old life: the cracked keychain from the city bus pass I used every day, a faded photo of Mom and me at the pier the summer before the divorce, a crumpled note she’d left on the fridge that just said You’ve got this, kid. And the lucky pen I used to carry everywhere — the one I thought would somehow make everything okay.

I dug a small hole with my hands, the dirt cool and damp under my nails. One by one, I placed the items inside.

“I’m not forgetting you,” I whispered. “I’m just not carrying the bad parts anymore.”

The doubt that had followed me from the city — the fear that I was always one bad move away from losing everything again — I buried that too. Not the memories. Just the weight. The version of me who believed love always ended in suitcases and new zip codes.

When the hole was covered, I sat back on my heels and let out a long breath. The wind moved through the grass like it was answering. For the first time in years, the knot in my chest felt looser.

I drove back to Silverpine with the windows down, music low, and something peaceful settling in my bones.

Luca was waiting for me at the forest edge just like I’d asked. He leaned against a tree in a dark gray henley and jeans, looking unfairly good for someone who’d spent the morning in pack meetings. The second he saw me, his whole face changed — that soft, possessive smile that still made my stomach flip.

“You came back,” he said, voice low as I walked into his arms.

“I always will.”

He kissed me slow at first, tasting like mint and relief. But the bond had other plans. It flared hot between us the moment our lips touched, pulling tight like it had been waiting all day. I pushed him backward until his back hit the wide trunk of an old oak, hidden from the main trails by thick brush and shadow.

“Missed you,” I murmured against his mouth.

His hands slid under my shirt, palms hot against my waist. “Show me.”

The kiss turned hungry fast. I tugged at his henley, and he helped me yank it over his head, tossing it aside. My fingers traced the lines of muscle on his chest, the faint scars from old fights, the strong beat of his heart under my palm. He groaned softly and walked me backward until I was pressed against a smooth section of mossy ground shielded by low branches.

We didn’t have time to be gentle.

I shoved his jeans down just enough. He pushed my skirt up, fingers hooking into my panties and dragging them down my legs. The cool forest air hit my skin, but then Luca was there — mouth on my neck, hand sliding between my thighs, finding me already wet and aching.

“Fuck, Aria,” he breathed, circling my clit with two fingers. “You’re soaked.”

“Because of you.” I reached down and wrapped my hand around him, stroking slow and firm. He hissed, hips bucking into my touch.

We didn’t bother with the rest of our clothes. He lifted me, pinning me against the tree with one strong arm under my thigh. The bark was rough against my back, but I didn’t care. I guided him to my entrance, and he pushed inside in one smooth thrust.

We both moaned.

He filled me perfectly — thick, hot, deep. The bond sang brighter, wrapping around us like golden threads. Luca set a fast, desperate rhythm, hips snapping forward while his mouth found mine again. Every thrust dragged against that perfect spot inside me, making my toes curl.

“Mine,” he growled against my lips. “All mine.”

“Yes,” I gasped, nails digging into his shoulders. “Yours.”

He angled his hips, going deeper, harder. One hand slipped between us, thumb finding my clit and rubbing tight circles. Pleasure coiled fast and sharp in my belly. I clenched around him, moaning his name as the orgasm crashed over me. My legs shook, back arching against the tree as waves of heat rolled through me.

Luca followed right behind me with a low, broken groan, burying himself deep as he came, hips stuttering against mine. He pressed his face into my neck, breathing hard, the bond glowing warm and satisfied between us.

For a long moment, we just stayed like that — connected, breathing each other in, hearts racing in sync.

He kissed my neck softly, then my jaw, then my lips. When he finally pulled back to look at me, his eyes were soft silver.

“You okay?” he asked, voice rough but gentle.

I smiled, brushing damp hair off his forehead. “Better than okay.”

He helped me fix my clothes, then pulled me down to sit with him on the soft moss. I rested my head on his shoulder, his arm around me, the forest quiet except for the wind in the leaves.

“I went back to the city today,” I said quietly. “To the old apartment spot. I buried some things. Not the good memories… just the doubt. The fear that everything good always gets taken away.”

Luca’s arm tightened around me. “And how do you feel now?”

“Light,” I whispered. “Like I can finally breathe here. With you. With all of this.”

He turned and kissed the top of my head. “You belong here, Aria. Not because of the bond. Because you chose it. Because you fought for it.”

I tilted my head up and kissed him again — slower this time, full of everything I couldn’t put into words. The bond hummed warmly between us, content and steady.

For the first time since moving to Silverpine, I wasn’t running from my past.

I was finally home.