The silence between them wasn't peaceful. It was loaded.
The fire in the hearth snapped and spit, casting flickering shadows on the stone walls of Theron's quarters. Noah sat curled in one of the oversized armchairs, wrapped in one of Theron's shirts big, worn, and smelling of pine, smoke, and Alpha. But his eyes? Sharp. Studying.
Theron leaned against the wall, arms crossed, his face half-lit and unreadable.
"You've been avoiding me," Noah said, voice soft but edged.
"I've been protecting you," Theron answered, tone low, as if that somehow made it better.
Noah tilted his head. "Is that what you call shutting me out?"
Theron's jaw tensed. "This isn't something you can understand."
"Because I'm an omega?" Noah snapped. "Because I'm yours and that means I don't get to know what's breaking you from the inside out?"
That hit.
Theron's gaze snapped to him, and for a second just a breath Noah saw the crack. Not the Alpha. Not the cold, calculating leader. But the man.
The scared, angry, tired man.
"I'm not just carrying this for me," Theron said, voice rough. "Every decision I make puts lives at risk. Every second I hesitate, someone dies. And if they take you, Noah…" He looked away, swallowed hard. "There won't be anything left of me to come back."
Noah stood, crossing the space between them with slow, purposeful steps. "And if you keep hiding behind this Alpha mask, I'll start to believe that mask is all that's left."
Theron's breath hitched. "Don't."
"Don't what?" Noah challenged, pressing a hand flat to Theron's chest. "Don't see you? Don't love you past the rage and the blood and the weight of your damn title?"
He could feel Theron's heart pounding beneath his palm.
"You shouldn't love me," Theron whispered.
"Well, tough shit," Noah said, voice trembling with heat and hurt. "Because I do."
And then the Alpha kissed him not soft, not tender but a desperate one.
Hands fisted in hair, mouths clashing, their bodies colliding like waves on rocks. It wasn't about dominance or submission it was about truth. About need. About the fire that had burned between them for far too long without release.
Noah shoved him back until they hit the wall, never breaking the kiss. "Let me see you," he whispered against Theron's mouth. "Let me in."
Theron's hand gripped the back of Noah's neck, grounding himself. "If you do… you'll see everything I've done. Everything I've become."
"Then show me," Noah said. "I'm not afraid."
And maybe that was what broke the last chain. Because Theron exhaled, shaking, and his arms wrapped around Noah like he was the only thing keeping him from crumbling.
They sank to the floor, tangled in each other, raw and exposed. Theron's head rested against Noah's chest, not speaking. Just breathing. Just being.
Noah stroked his hair, whispered soft things in the quiet. And for the first time, Theron let him.
Let him hold the weight.
Let him see the storm.
Let him love him.