---- 16 The touch sent an unexpected shiver through me, and Istammered in response. "No... nothing's wrong. Just tired from the flight." Garrett studied my face for another moment, then smiled and handed me the thermos he'd been protecting so carefully. "Moonherb tea," he said softly. "Just made it before I left to pick you up. It'I] warm you up." I took the thermos, and my fingertips brushed his as he transferred it to my hands. The contact sent another little jolt through me. My wolf had shifted in summer, so I was particularly sensitive to cold weather -a quirk that only my family knew about. The fact that he'd remembered and prepared for it made my chest feel tight with emotion. I looked down at the thermos with its pink cartoon wolf paw prints and couldn't help but smile. The sight of this powerful Alpha carrying something so cute ---- was endearing in a way that made my heart flutter. "Garrett, why did you buy something so cute?" I asked, trying to lighten the suddenly charged atmosphere. Garrett didn't answer directly. He just curved his lips in a mysterious smile and started the car. After starting the engine, he deliberately reached over to adjust the air conditioning, lowering the temperature. "Let me turn this down a bit," he explained, his hand brushing mine as he reached for the controls. "The temperature difference between the rain and the warm car might make you catch cold." Everything he did seemed designed to take care of me, but there was an intensity to his attention that felt new. Different. As we drove through the familiar streets of home, Garrett kept glancing over at me. Whenever we hit bumpy road sections, he'd slow down in advance and ask if I was comfortable. When other cars got too ---- close, his jaw would tighten protectively. "How does it feel to be back?" he asked during a quiet moment. "Strange," I admitted. "Like I've been away for a lifetime instead of just five years." "A lot has changed," he said carefully. "But some things haven't changed at all." Something in his tone made me look at him curiously, but his expression was unreadable. Throughout the ride, Garrett asked about my life in the northern territories these past years. I answered each question with a light tone, trying to keep things surface-level. "T successfully passed the healer certification and got work at a top-10 research institute," I told him. "The potions I developed even received praise from the chief healer." "I'm proud of you," Garrett said, and the warmth in his voice made my cheeks heat again. "You always