Chapter 82 Luca
I hadn’t planned on ending up at Silverpine Lake tonight. Yes, this particular lake had been named after the town. One minute I was dropping Mason off, promising him I’d go home and actually rest for once, and the next minute the wheel had already turned, the headlights slicing through the trees on instinct. Some part of me knew I wouldn’t be able to breathe unless I came here first.
The lake was calm. A flat, dark mirror that made everything inside me feel louder. I killed the engine, letting the quiet swallow the leftover arguments in my head. I should’ve gone home, tried sleeping and I should’ve stopped trying to glue together every messy piece of the people around me.
I met Aria there, staring at the still waters and her hair billowing about her and suddenly, everything in my chest loosened like someone had let the pressure valve out.
She climbed into the passenger seat with that the kind of smile that knocked my pulse off beat. Her hoodie sleeves were pulled over her hands again, like they always were when she was feeling things she didn’t want anyone to know.
“You okay?” she asked gently, shutting the door quietly like she didn’t want to disturb the quiet too much.
I tried smiling back. “Yeah. I just needed air and the calm.”
Her knee brushed mine barely, but enough to wake every nerve in my leg. Her milk and honeyed scent slipped into the car the second she closed the door. It was warm, sweet, and like the last days of summer. It calmed me in ways I didn’t understand yet.
And that was exactly the problem.
“You look like your brain is doing that thing,” she said, bumping her shoulder into mine. “The Overthinking Job.”
I huffed out something between a laugh and a groan. Figured she’d see right through me without even trying. That’s what she did. She noticed things the way most people wouldn’t effortlessly.
“It’s Sienna,” I finally said.
Her expression softened immediately concern taking over the space between us.
“Yeah, she’s back,” Aria said. “She said she was with her aunt but I don’t think that’s true.”
“I know she’s different now.” I admitted quietly. Aria nodded with understanding like she wasn’t afraid of the truth but just afraid of what it meant for Sienna.
I stared straight out over the lake. “She smelled stressed.”
Aria leaned closer, so close her hoodie brushed my arm. “Do you think she’s in danger? I know you two were a thing in the past so you must still care for her.”
I winced. “I don’t know.”
And that part where Aria mentioned our past relationship made me feel sick. “Mason thinks she’s hiding something big. I just hate not being able to fix it. But for the record, what happened between us is in the past.”
Her hand came down on my arm. “You don’t have to be the person who solves everything,” she said softly. “You’re allowed to just be human. Even if you’re not completely. And I know the past stays in the past.”
My heart punched the back of my ribs at that. She didn’t say it like she pitied me or put me on some pedestal. She said it like she saw me—the whole me—and didn’t flinch.
Her hand started to pull away so I caught it.
“There’s something else. I once said I was gonna tell you something,” I said, breath catching a little.
She blinked, surprised. “Okay.”
I shifted, turning fully toward her. I could hear the soft ripple of water outside, the whisper of wind through the window, and the way her breath hitched. Every part of this moment felt too big and fragile.
“I’m tired of things feeling complicated between us,” I said.
Her eyes widened fractionally but she didn’t look away. She froze like she was afraid to breathe wrong and ruin the moment.
“Complicated?” she echoed softly.
“I don’t want it to be,” I said. “Not with you. I want clarity. I want simple and not simple like small or casual.” I swallowed. “Simple as in real.”
Her lips parted, but no sound came out. She looked like she was trying to convince her lungs to work again.
“You don’t have to say anything yet,” I added quickly. “Though just let me get this out before I lose the nerve.”
She nodded, eyes flicking down to where I still held her hand.
“I like you,” I said honestly. “More than I’ve admitted. More than I know what to do with half the time. I’m done pretending it’s not there, or that I don’t want something serious with you. Whatever happens with Sienna or my family or school, I want you in it.” My voice dropped. “If you want that too.”
The lake seemed to hold its breath with her. She looked out the window first, staring at the way the moonlight rippled across the surface. Then she looked back at me, and her eyes were really bright like she’d just made a decision she’d been circling for weeks.
“I don’t want complicated either,” she said. And then, quieter: “I want you. I know we’re mates and the bond plays a great deal in this but I’d still want you even without the bond.”
My heartbeat stuttered. She laughed a little, shaky. “I’ve always wanted you.”
I didn’t realize how tightly I’d been gripping the wheel of my thoughts until that moment everything inside me loosened all at once.
“So…” I said, letting a small smile pull at my mouth. “You’re my girlfriend now?”
Her cheeks flamed pink instantly. “If you’re asking me, then yeah I am.”
I laced our fingers again slowly and her thumb brushed mine like she was memorizing the shape of my hand.
We didn’t kiss. No, we didn’t need to. This moment already felt sacred and special. I could hold her hands forever and stare longingly into her eyes. The air between us felt warm and steady like the world had finally stopped spinning long enough for us to catch up to it.
We talked for a while after that, about school and Nora’s chaotic group chat and how Max apparently planned to run for student council on a platform of “free snacks and chaos.” I laughed at that and her head eventually finding my shoulder like it belonged there and it sure did. My wolf was busy doing a happy dance and whistling a happy tune.
Finally boy, you did the greatest thing ever!
For the first time in ages, the weight I carried didn’t feel unbearable. Not when she was right there and certainly not when she was mine.
AUTHOR’S NOTE:
Okay, THEY’RE FINALLY OFFICIAL??!! Your boy Luca pulled up to the lake and pulled OUT a whole confession as he should. This is their soft little breath before everything gets messy again, and honestly? They earned it.
Drop a 💙 if you swooned even a little. And yes, Sienna’s secrets are coming.