(Edythe POV)
I barely heard the next song, just allowed myself to be led by Kate. It reminded me of times we danced and didn't have to keep it human slow, able to dance with speed and grace natural to our kind.
Kate had always been one of the most graceful vampires I had yet to come across. Her psychic shocking ability was another special ability of hers. It was one of the most frightening powers out there for our kind. To be shocked and immobile for even seconds was a death sentence when you moved as fast as we could. Its only weakness was that it required physical touch, but with practice and time that could change.
"You're doing that thing," Kate murmured, eyes locked on mine like she was trying to read my thoughts through them.
"What thing?"
"Holding three different conversations in your mind while your body moves on autopilot."
I smiled at her, "It's my wedding day. I am allowed."
She gave a soft laugh, and her eyes automatically sought out Thomas, mine following hers.
Across the yard, Thomas was being mobbed by Renee while Phil tried to contain the excitable woman. Charlie was approaching the group, though he looked reluctant. I smiled at Sue's hand on his arm steering him with a patient nudge, knowing that's all the steering he would allow.
Thomas handled it well, much better than he would have when we first met. He did not do well in crowds back then, and three was a crowd. He was growing past his trauma, and I loved him for that.
Kate gave a somewhat defeated sigh when she looked back at me.
"He is good for you," she said.
"I know."
"And you are good for him," She followed. "Witch is…inconvenient for everyone who hoped you'd stay…available."
I turned my eyes back to her, "You will find this one day, Kate. I cannot describe the feelings he brings me. You and I were fun and passionate at times. But he…he is the light by which I see everything now."
"Well, if you see someone like that for me, send him my way… I would love to have the look in my eyes the same as you have for him."
The song ended and I led Kate to a table so we could talk easier.
"How long do you plan to stay?" I asked carefully.
Her smile widened, "Well, you will be busy for the next few days, I'm sure. So probably tomorrow morning, I need to get back to Irena and Tanya. Eleazar and Carmen are more comfortable when we are all together as well."
Trying to keep the worry from my voice, "And what will you tell them?"
Kate took a moment to look around, finding Leah looking back at her. "I have spoken to Bella and Edward. I am convinced she tells the truth of her encounter with Laurent. The wolves here are something different from what we know. Not the savage monsters that attack everything in their path. Irena will come to terms with this. When I get back, we will all go into the deep woods for a couple of months and help her get past it."
Kate held Leah's gaze for a moment longer.
Then she said, very softly, "She's different."
"Yes," I agreed. The word carried more weight than it should have.
"You didn't invite her to be polite," she said
I smiled, "Polite is for strangers. Or people you are unsure of."
She paused, "And you're looking at the future the way you always do, like it's something you can build with your hands."
Heat rose in my chest, sharp and instinctive. Not embarrassment. Not exactly.
"Careful," I warned, not harshly.
Kate lifted both hands a fraction in surrender. "I'm not judging."
I didn't answer. Because there was nothing to deny that would be honest.
Kate's gaze softened, a rare thing for her. "You and Thomas… you're thinking about what you can't have. When you should first spend time thinking of what you do have."
My fingers went still. The ring on my hand was cool, unchanging.
Kate didn't press. She let a silence form and breathe between us.
"He's already changed you," she said.
"I let him," I replied.
Kate's eyes narrowed, thoughtful. "That might be the most terrifying thing I've ever heard you say."
I arched a brow.
She shrugged, unapologetic. "You were always the one who endured. The one who held. The one who survived." Her gaze sharpened. "Now you're the one who wants."
I didn't flinch from it. Because it was true.
The music shifted again, another song bleeding in, something faster, something meant to pull people back onto the grass and make them forget they'd ever been nervous.
Kate rose smoothly from her chair, the movement graceful enough to be art and controlled enough to be harmless.
"I should go," she said. "If I stay at this table any longer, Alice will decide I'm plotting."
"She wouldn't be wrong," I said.
Kate's smile flashed, sharp as a blade and just as familiar. "I'm always plotting."
Then she leaned in and kissed my cheek, light, careful, a gesture meant for humans and performed well enough that any human watching would only see affection.
Her voice was a whisper only I could hear. "Enjoy your husband, Edythe. I'll handle Irina."
I held her gaze. "Be careful."
Kate's eyes glittered. "Always."
She turned away before I could say anything else, slipping back into the reception.
I watched her go, then let my attention drift back to Leah.
Leah was still seated. Still stiff. Still watching.
And when our eyes met across the space, she didn't look away.
Neither did I. Until a thought crossed my mind, and it caused me to smile.
It was easy enough to see the question in her eyes at my smile. I stood up and walked to Thomas, knowing Leah was still watching me.
He'd drifted to the table that held the drinks and was talking with Ben. I assumed talking to Renee enough to escape made his throat dry.
He was mid drink when he became aware of my approach. Ben stopped talking and looked at me rather awkwardly.
"Hey… Uh, Edythe. Congratulations. I am really happy for you both." Ben's eyes kept moving in nervousness.
I smiled my most gentil smile, "No, Ben. Thank you. For coming, and for bringing Angela. I can't tell you what it means to us to have you both here."
With perfect timing Motley Crew's 'Without You' started over the speakers. "Would you mind if I steal my husband for a dance." It sent a shiver down my spine being able to call him that, so I was doing it at every opportunity.
Ben nodded, "That's a good idea, I think I will ask Angela to dance as well."
I took Thomas's hand and pulled him to the center of the dance area.
As we began to dance, I saw Thomas's eyes catch Kate talking with Rosalie and Emmett. "How was your talk with Kate, Mrs. Raizel?"
I laughed "I see I am not the only one getting a thrill out of our new labels for each other."
He joined in my laughter.
"It went well, we will not have to worry about the Denali coven coming to take revenge for Laurent."
"That's a relief, I don't think the Pack even know that was a potential problem. I plan to keep it that way as well."
Thomas's right hand stayed steady at my waist as we moved, the song pulling us along with that slow rhythm. Motley Crue wasn't exactly what Alice would've chosen if she'd been building a "timeless" moment, too raw, too eighties, too honest, but it fit Thomas and I in way's that lace and violins never would.
"We'll keep it that way," I agreed softly, and let my gaze drift past his shoulder.
Leah was still seated.
Thomas noticed the shift in my attention immediately. He always did. He didn't follow my gaze yet, he waited, like he was giving me the chance to decide whether I wanted to say it out loud.
"You are planning something." He murmured.
"I'm always planning something," I said, and couldn't keep the small amusement out of my voice.
We turned slowly, just taking a moment to enjoy our day. The music swelled and he held me closer. I couldn't imagine ever being happier than I am right now, and yet I hope Thomas will prove me wrong.
"So," I said lightly, steering the conversation where I wanted it. "What's going on with Charlie and Sue?"
Thomas's mouth pulled into a faint, helpless smile. "No idea. But he looks…less stoic when she's near him." He glanced again, quick. "And Renée and Sue were giving each other a look. I kind of wish you'd been there to interpret for me."
"I saw enough," I said. "And you're right. It's something we'll need to keep an eye on. Forks will implode the second anyone notices. Charlie the bachelor sheriff is something of a town legend."
Thomas huffed a quiet laugh. "That's an understatement."
"Bella will be leaving for 'school' soon," I added, keeping my tone casual even as the word tasted like a lie. "Maybe he's realizing he likes coming home to someone. Even if he pretends he doesn't."
Thomas's gaze softened. "Who knows, love."
There was the opening I was looking for.
I let my eyes drift, deliberate, unhurried, to Leah. Still seated. Still stiff. Still watching like leaving would be easier than staying, and she was staying anyway.
I looked back at Thomas. "Ask Leah to dance next."
His eyebrows rose a fraction. Not refusal. Surprise.
"I think I'm the only one who's asked her so far," I continued, quiet enough that only he could hear. "And she came. She sat through everything. I want her to have a good time too, love."
Thomas's jaw tightened once, an instinctive flicker of protectiveness I don't think he noticed, and then, it eased.
He followed my gaze at last, found Leah, and held the look for a beat.
"Okay," he said simply. "I'll ask."
The music carried us through the last few measures. When it ended, he didn't let go of my hand right away, just squeezed once, a silent I'm with you.
Then he stepped back and started walking straight toward Leah, the way he always did when he'd chosen something.
(Leah POV)
I saw him coming before he was halfway across the yard.
Of course I did.
My first instinct was to look away.
Not because I was scared of him. Not exactly. But because being watched, being noticed, at a vampire wedding in a yard full of things that could kill me if they sneezed wrong felt like volunteering for pain. But that was just physical pain. Thomas was possible emotional pain.
So, I didn't look away.
I'd done enough of that in the last couple of years.
He stopped in front of me, close enough that I could smell him over everything else. Warm skin. Soap. Something faint and metallic that wasn't blood and wasn't vampire, just…him. Shifter. Human. Whatever he was when he chose to be.
"Leah," he said, and didn't put anything on it. No edge. No fear. No fake friendliness.
I kept my hands on my knees for a second longer than necessary, just to prove to myself that I was the one deciding what happened next.
"You're brave," I told him flatly, because it was easier than admitting the other thing, that my stomach had tightened the moment he started my way.
His mouth twitched. Not a smile. Something close. "Probably stupid, too."
I flicked my gaze past him without meaning to.
Edythe was watching.
Not like a predator. Not like a judge. Like someone holding a door open and letting me decide whether I wanted to walk through it.
I hated how much that did something to me.
Thomas followed the direction of my glance and then looked back at me, as if to say, I didn't come over here by accident.
He held out his hand.
Palm up. Fingers relaxed.
No pressure.
The music on the speakers shifted, something slower, something meant for couples and soft moments. The kind of song that made humans lean into each other and pretend the world wasn't complicated.
"Dance with me?" he said.
It was an ask, not an order.
I stared at his hand like it was a trap.
Because it could be.
Not the hand itself. The meaning of it.
A man asking me to dance at his wedding because his vampire bride had suggested it, because she wanted me to feel included, because she wanted to prove something.
Because she wanted something.
Because I might want something.
My jaw worked once. I forced the words out before I could swallow them.
"Why?"
Thomas didn't pretend not to understand the question. He didn't give me a speech. He didn't say because Edythe asked. He didn't say because you look lonely.
He just looked at me…steady, direct.
"Because you showed up," he said simply. "You didn't have to."
I huffed, sharp and quiet. "That's not an answer."
"It is," he said, and there was a little steel under it. Not threatening. Certain. "You came anyway. So you get one normal thing. One song. No agenda."
My eyes narrowed. "No agenda?"
His brows lifted. "If you want an agenda, you'll have to ask my wife. She's the planner."
The word wife landed wrong in my chest. Not jealousy. Not bitterness. Something more complicated. Something I didn't have permission to name.
I didn't move.
I could feel eyes on us. Humans pretending not to stare. Vampires pretending to be human. The whole yard balanced on string lights and delicate lies.
My control, what if I slipped?
What if my wolf snapped to the surface and I ruined everything?
What if my hands shook and everyone noticed?
What if I wanted something and it showed?
"I can't…" I started, then stopped. Because I didn't even know which version of can't I meant.
Thomas didn't fill in the blank for me. He waited. Hand still out. Breathing steady. Like he'd done this before with someone who didn't trust kindness.
Like he'd learned how to stand there and not take it personally.
"You won't ruin anything," he said, quieter. "And if you want to stop, you stop. No explanations."
My throat felt tight. Stupid. Useless.
I could say no. I should say no.
Instead, I lifted my hand.
My fingers hesitated an inch above his. Too many thoughts running through my head to take notice of any single one.
Then I put my hand in his.
His grip closed around mine…warm, careful, controlled.
"Okay," I said, and the word came out like surrender even though it wasn't.
Thomas nodded once, as if that was all he needed, and led me toward the center of the dance area. I hesitated, several excuses jumped to my lips. He stopped them all.
His hand tightened just a bit, and his face went stern for a moment. "No. Not at the edges. You deserve the center as much as anyone."
The words hit like a shove.
Not hard. Not violent.
Just…direct.
I blinked at him, caught off guard by the certainty. By the way he said it like it wasn't a kindness, like it was a fact he'd decided to enforce.
"I don't…" I started.
"You do," he cut in, still quiet. Not sharp. Just final. "One song."
My jaw clenched. Every instinct in me wanted to refuse on principle. Pride. Habit. The old, familiar comfort of being the one who didn't need anything.
But his grip didn't pull.
He just stood there, holding the space open like a challenge and an invitation at the same time.
So, I went.
He led me into the cleared patch of grass where the lights made everything look softer than it was. The song was slow and forgiving, the kind that gave humans a script, hands here, bodies there, smiles on cue, and let them pretend they weren't terrified of doing it wrong.
I was more terrified than any of them.
Not of the dancing. Of the meaning.
Thomas set his hand at my waist with careful distance, not pressing, not claiming. Like he understood boundaries better than most people who'd known me longer.
I placed my hand on his shoulder and kept my fingers light. Too light. Like if I touched him properly, something in me would crack.
We moved.
One step. Another.
I forced my body into the rhythm, forced my spine to loosen, forced my face into something neutral. The wolf in me stayed coiled, watchful, ready to bolt, ready to fight, ready to run before anyone could decide I didn't belong.
Thomas didn't look around to see who was watching.
He looked at me.
Not hungry. Not curious. Not cautious.
Just…there.
"You're stiff," he murmured.
"I'm fine."
His mouth twitched. "You're doing that thing where you say you're fine and your whole body votes no."
I glared at him on reflex.
He didn't flinch. Just kept guiding us through the slow turn like my glare was weather and he'd lived through worse storms.
"I don't do this anymore," I muttered.
"Dance?"
"This," I snapped. "Being… looked at."
Thomas's grip didn't change. His voice stayed low.
"Yeah," he said. "I noticed."
There was no pity in it. No teasing, either. Just acknowledgment. Like he wasn't trying to fix me, just trying to stand in the same space with me without making it worse.
We circled once, the grass damp under my shoes. I could feel eyes from the crowd, the weight of attention like hands on my skin. Humans pretending not to stare. Vampires pretending they weren't listening to every breath.
I kept my chin up anyway.
Thomas leaned in slightly, close enough that his words were only mine.
"You're not going to shift," he said.
My breath snagged.
He wasn't asking. He wasn't hoping.
He was stating it like he'd decided my fear didn't get to make rules.
"You don't know that," I said, and it came out rougher than I meant.
"I do," he answered, calm as a locked door. "Because you're not a bomb. You're a person."
My throat tightened again, stupid and sudden.
I hated him for saying it like that. Like it was obvious.
Like he hadn't just stepped into the one sentence I never let anyone say around me without paying for it later.
I swallowed hard and forced the next words through my teeth.
"And what if I want to be left alone?"
Thomas didn't hesitate.
"Then you would've left," he said simply. "You wouldn't have come. You wouldn't be sitting in the middle of my reception with your shoulders squared like you're daring the world to try you."
I stared at him.
He stared back.
And I realized, with a cold jolt, that he wasn't guessing. He wasn't being polite.
He had seen me, again. Why is it that he see's me?
Not Leah the problem. Not Leah the wolf. Not Leah the cautionary tale.
Just…me.
My steps faltered for half a beat.
Thomas adjusted without breaking rhythm, steadying the turn like it was nothing.
"Breathe," he said, softer. "Just breathe. One song."
I forced air into my lungs like it was a choice and not a reflex.
"Why do you care…today of all days?" I asked, quieter. The question that mattered. The one I shouldn't ask.
Thomas's gaze didn't shift away. He didn't look toward Edythe. He didn't look toward the crowd.
"I care because I do," he said, "and because she cares."
There it was.
The honest line.
Then, after a beat, he added, voice lower, like he was offering something he didn't hand out lightly:
"Because you're here, for us."
My chest did that stupid tightening thing again.
I looked past him once, fast.
Edythe was watching, still as stone, expression composed, but her eyes were on me like she was holding that door open and refusing to let me pretend I didn't see it.
When I looked back at Thomas, his mouth pulled into that half-smile again. The one he tried to hide.
"See?" he murmured. "Center of the dance floor. Still alive."
I scoffed. It came out almost like a laugh.
"Don't get cocky," I warned.
His smile widened a fraction. "Wouldn't dream of it."
We turned again, slow and steady, and for a brief second, just one, my shoulders loosened.
"Maybe…Two songs would be okay." I murmured.
While I said that, I felt it inside, I had given up. No more, I won't lie to myself any longer, come what may, I was walking through the door Edythe Cull… No Edythe Raizel was holding open for me.