Last Female Sypher and Her Brother's Friends novel Chapter 64

Barric

The forest is quieter than it should be.

That’s the first thing I notice.

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Leaves crunch beneath my boots as I walk beside Aria, the scent of pine and damp earth thick in the air, but

the usual rhythm of the pack–distant laughter, shifting paws, the low hum of life–feels far away. It’s just

us out here. Just the steady beat of two hearts that are… tied together now, whether she’s ready for it or

not.

She’s uneasy, my wolf murmurs, pacing beneath my skin.

“I know,” I mutter under my breath.

Aria glances at me. “What?”

“Nothing,” I say quickly, offering a small smile. “Just thinking.”

But that’s not entirely true. I’ve been thinking too much, actually. About her. About us. About the way she

looks like she belongs here and doesn’t all at once.

The bond between us hums faintly, a thread I can’t ignore. It pulls at me, steady and constant, urging me closer, urging me to fix whatever tension lingers in her shoulders.

I exhale slowly.

There’s no avoiding it anymore.

“So…” I start, shoving my hands into my pockets as we step over a fallen branch. “How are you feeling

about all of this?”

She doesn’t answer right away.

Her gaze stays forward, scanning the trees, like she’s hoping the answer might be written somewhere in the

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Chapter 64

bark.

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“About…?” she asks finally, though we both know exactly what I mean.

I huff a quiet laugh. “Don’t do that. You know what I’m asking.”

She hesitates again. Then she stops walking.

I take another step before realizing she isn’t beside me anymore. Turning, I find her watching me, her arms

wrapped loosely around herself.

“Do you want honesty?” she asks.

My wolf lifts its head, alert.

Always, it growls.

I nod. “Always.”

She studies me for a long second, like she’s weighing whether I actually mean that.

Then she sighs.

“It feels like I’m two people,” she says.

The words hit harder than I expect.

I don’t interrupt.

“There’s… this part of me,” she continues, gesturing vaguely between us, “that feels it. The pull. The connection. It’s… physical. Instinctive. Like my body just–decided for me.”

My wolf rumbles in agreement. Because it did.

“But then,” she adds, her voice quieter now, “there’s the rest of me. The part that thinks. Those questions. And that part…” She shakes her head slightly. “That part feels like I don’t know any of you. Not really.”

Silence stretches between us.

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Chapter 64

The forest seems to hold its breath.

(

I drag a hand through my hair, letting her words settle. Letting myself actually hear them instead of

reacting.

Because she’s not wrong.

“I can see how that would be hard,” I say finally.

Her brows lift slightly, like she expected me to argue.

“I mean it,” I add. “Human relationships… they’re different from ours. Completely different.”

She tilts her head. “Different how?”

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I shift my weight, leaning against the trunk of a nearby tree. “For us, it’s simpler. Not easy–but simple. When a mate bond forms, that’s it. There’s no questioning whether it’s real or if it’ll last. It just… is.”

It’s law, my wolf adds.

“Most shifters don’t even bother getting serious with humans,” I continue. “Not long–term.”

“Why?” she asks, though something in her expression tells me she already suspects the answer.

“Because of this,” I say, gesturing between us again. “The mate bond.”

She watches me closely.

“It’s the biggest reason,” I admit. “We know that if our true mate shows up someday, everything changes. And when that happens… whoever we’re with before that?” I shrug. “They have to step aside.”

Her lips press together.

“So you just… avoid it?” she asks.

“Most do,” I say. “Casual hookups. Nothing too deep. Nothing that would hurt too much when it ends.”

“And humans?”

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I huff a quiet breath. “Humans don’t work like that. They build something real. Something lasting. And

when you ask them to step aside for something they don’t understand…” I shake my head. “Some of them

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