==Lila==
The chaos exploded around the tables.
Remy clutched his stomach hard. Sweat already beaded on his forehead. His face twisted in pain. The dark liquid from the flask spread across the ground like a bad omen.
"Get him inside!" someone shouted from the crowd.
Strong hands lifted him right away. I pushed through the people around us. My thick thighs carried me fast even after the ache from the trial. My soft belly rose and fell with panicked breaths. I stayed right beside him the whole way. I could not let him out of my sight.
They laid him on his bed in the pack house. The room smelled of wood and old herbs that hung in the air. Remy's body jerked once. Then again. The poison worked fast and mean.
I dropped to my knees beside the bed. My full breasts pressed against the edge of the mattress. "Remy. Stay with me please."
His eyes fluttered open for just a second. Those gold flecks looked dimmed by the pain. "Lila..."
I ran to the kitchen on shaky legs. My hands trembled as I heated up my special gumbo. The one with extra cayenne and those secret spices from Grandmother. The one that always brought comfort when nothing else did. I carried the bowl back carefully. Steam rose warm against my face.
Mira appeared in the doorway. Her scarred face looked worried. She touched my shoulder gently. "He took it for you. The traitor is getting bold now."
I nodded. There was no time for fear right then.
I sat on the edge of the bed. I spooned the gumbo to his lips slow and steady. "Eat this. It will help fight the poison."
He swallowed slowly. Each bite seemed to cost him something. His hard chest rose uneven with every breath. Sweat soaked through his shirt. I wiped his forehead with a cool cloth. My soft fingers brushed his skin each time.
The partial bond pulsed between us. It felt weak but it was still there. It pulled at my heart in a way I could not ignore.
Hours passed slowly in that room. The space grew quiet. Only the sound of his ragged breathing and the spoon scraping against the bowl filled the air.
Remy's cold mask started to crack little by little.
In the middle of the night his eyes opened again. They looked clearer this time. He looked at me. Really looked. "Why are you still here? After everything I did to you."
I kept feeding him the gumbo. My voice came out soft. "Because you drank poison meant for me. Because somewhere under that Alpha bullshit you still care about me."
He reached up slowly. His fingers traced my cheek. Rough but gentle at the same time. "I never wanted to hurt you. That night... my father's last order. He said if I claimed a soft wolf the pack would fall apart. He made me promise on his deathbed."
Tears stung my eyes. My curves felt heavy with the weight of his words. My soft belly pressed against the bed as I leaned closer to him.
"You could have told me the truth," I whispered.
"Would you have believed me back then?" His hand dropped to my wrist. It felt weak but still warm. "I watched you for years. Your cakes. Your smile. The way you moved like you owned every curve. I wanted you then. I want you now more than ever."
The gumbo bowl sat half empty now. Color slowly returned to his face. The poison fought hard but my food fought harder with every spoonful.
Mira slipped back into the room later. She checked his pulse quiet. Then she pulled me aside near the window.
"The traitor is closer than we think," she whispered. Her scarred arm brushed mine. "Someone inside this house. Someone who knows his routines well. Watch everyone. Even the ones who smile the most."
I nodded. Fear twisted tight in my gut. My thick thighs shifted as I stood up. The amulet under my dress grew warm against my skin. It reminded me of the vision. Of me dying if the bond stayed broken.
Back at the bedside Remy's breathing steadied a bit. His eyes stayed on me. They looked vulnerable now. The cold Alpha mask lay shattered on the floor between us.
"You stayed," he said again. His voice sounded rough from the poison.
"I stayed," I answered. My hand rested on his chest. I felt the strong beat under my palm.
He caught my fingers. He held them there against him. "Lila... I..."
His eyes closed again. Exhaustion pulled him under. But this time it looked like real healing sleep instead of pain.
I stayed awake through the night. I watched over him. I fed him more gumbo when he stirred. I wiped the sweat from his brow every time it came back. My soft body ached from the long hours but I refused to leave his side.
Mira checked in once more before dawn. "The elders are asking questions already. Be careful who you trust right now."
The first light crept through the window slow. Remy's face looked more peaceful now. The poison had lost its fight.
His eyes opened suddenly. They looked clear. Sharp again.
He grabbed my wrist. Tight. Desperate.
His voice came out a rasp. Raw and broken.
"I never stopped wanting you. But if I claim you now, the traitor wins."
I sat there frozen for a moment. The words hung heavy in the quiet room. My heart pounded hard in my chest. The amulet warmed even more under my dress. It pressed between my full breasts like a living thing.
Remy's hand stayed on my wrist. His grip felt stronger than before. The gumbo had done its job. But the poison had left him weak and honest in a way I had never seen.
I thought about the vision again. Me older and bleeding. Him holding my body with tears on his face. The thought made my soft belly tighten with fear.
"Why does it have to be like this?" I asked. My voice cracked a little. "Why does loving me have to risk everything?"
He did not answer right away. His thumb brushed over my skin slow. "Because my father planted fear deep in this pack. He made us believe soft bodies meant weakness. But you... you proved him wrong every single day."
I looked down at my own body. My thick thighs spread on the edge of the bed. My wide hips shifted as I leaned in. My soft belly rested heavy and real. These curves that I had carried with quiet pride now felt like the center of a storm.
Mira's warning echoed in my head. Someone inside the house. Someone was smiling while they plotted. The thought sent a chill down my back.
I spooned the last of the gumbo to his lips. He took it without complaint. His color looked better. The sweat had dried on his forehead.
"You scared me tonight," I said quietly. "Seeing you fall like that. I thought I might lose you before we even fixed anything."
Remy's eyes softened. "I was scared too. Not for me. For you. If that poison had hit you instead..."
He trailed off. His fingers tightened on my wrist again.
The room felt smaller with the morning light. Birds called outside in the bayou. Life moved on even while poison and promises hung between us.
I wiped his face one more time. My soft fingers lingered on his cheek. The partial bond hummed a little stronger now. It pulled at me with warmth and need.
"I am not going anywhere," I told him. "Not until this curse breaks. Not until the traitor is gone."
He nodded slowly. Exhaustion still sat heavy on him but his eyes held mine steady.
"Stay close then," he said. His voice stayed rough. "But be careful. Trust only what you feel here." He pressed my hand harder against his chest.
My curves ached from the long night. My full breasts rose with a deep breath. My soft belly moved with it. Every part of me felt tired yet awake at the same time.
The amulet pulsed once under my dress. A reminder. A warning. A promise of power waiting to wake fully.
Remy's breathing evened out again. Healing sleep pulled him back under.
I stayed right there. Watching the rise and fall of his chest. Feeling the bond between us grow just a fraction stronger.
The traitor waited somewhere in the shadows. The curse still worked its slow poison on our pack. But in that quiet room with gumbo bowls and cool clothes I felt something shift.
I stayed. He had been honest. And for the first time the mask was gone.
Now we had to figure out what came next. Before the traitor struck again. Before the vision became real.
My hand stayed on his chest. Warm skin under my palm. Strong heartbeat.
I was not leaving.
Not tonight. Not ever if I could help it.