FALLING FOR THE LYCAN BIKER: MY BESTFRIEND BROTHER

Chapter 74: THAT WALL HAD BEEN MADE OF PAPER

Chapter 75

Lumi

Waking up the next morning felt entirely different than it had in months.

Usually, the first light of dawn brought a tight, familiar knot of anxiety...but today, the room felt warm, quiet, and incredibly grounded.

I stirred slowly, the soft cotton sheets shifting against my bare skin. Before I could even open my eyes, I felt the heavy, solid weight of Ren’s arm draped over my waist.

He was tucked against my back, his chest rising and falling in a deep, rhythmic sleep, his breath warm against the nape of my neck.

I lay there for a long moment, just listening to the quiet hum of the apartment.

Everything from last night rushed back into my head—the couch, the whispered words in the dark, the intense, overwhelming way he had made love to me until my whole body was shaking. My skin still felt flush and tingly, completely sensitized from his touch.

I really let my guard down, I thought, a small, helpless smile tugging at the corners of my lips.

I had always lectured myself about boundaries and safety, building up a wall to keep him out.

But looking back, that wall had been made of paper. The second he touched me, it had crumbled into absolutely nothing. And the scariest part? I wasn’t even mad about it.

Slowly, carefully, I lifted his heavy arm and slid out from under the covers, trying not to wake him.

I grabbed my navy nightdress from the floor, pulling it back over my shoulders, and padded softly out of the bedroom.

The living room was quiet, the morning sun streaming through the windows and illuminating the space.

My eyes automatically drifted to the sofa, and a fierce blush instantly crept up my cheeks.

The fabric was noticeably rumpled, a tiny, faint damp spot still visible on the cushion from where my body had completely given up control under his tongue.

Oh, god, I thought, hiding my face in my hands for a second, my heart doing a wild flutter. I definitely need to clean that before Theo sees it.

Right on cue, a soft yawn echoed from down the hall.

I turned around just in time to see Theo stumbling out of his bedroom, rubbing his eyes with his little fists, his blue dinosaur clutched tightly under his arm.

He was wearing his curls wild and sticking up in every direction.

"Morning, my love," I whispered, kneeling down as he trotted over to me. He leaned his warm, heavy little body against my knee, resting his head on my shoulder.

"Mama," he mumbled, his voice thick with sleep. "Hungry."

"I know, baby. Let’s get you some breakfast."

I carried him into the kitchen, setting him up in his usual chair at the table. I started bustling around, pulling out eggs, butter, and the bread for toast.

The familiar, mundane routine of making breakfast usually calmed my nerves, but today, my ears were completely tuned to the hallway, waiting for the sound of heavy footsteps.

About ten minutes later, while the eggs were sizzling softly in the pan, I heard it.

Ren walked into the kitchen.

He had pulled his gray sweatpants back on, but he was still shirtless, his broad chest and defined abs fully on display in the bright morning light.

His dark hair was a messy bedhead, and his green eyes were still heavy with sleep, but the moment he walked into the room, the entire energy of the kitchen shifted.

He just carried this massive, unbothered presence that filled up every corner.

"Uncle Ren!" Theo suddenly squeaked, his entire face lighting up as he bounced in his chair. The blue dinosaur was instantly abandoned on the table.

Ren’s tough, rugged face softened immediately. That genuine, bright smile broke across his lips...the one that always made my chest flutter.

"Hey, buddy," he said, his voice a deep, gravelly morning rumble.

He walked past the stove, his green eyes meeting mine for a brief, intense second.

He didn’t try to kiss me or make any sudden moves with Theo watching, but he reached out and casually grazed his knuckles against the small of my back as he passed by, the quick contact sending a quiet spark through my skin.

He turned to Theo, lifting my son out of his chair with one easy, casual sweep of his large arms.

Theo giggled, wrapping his small arms around Ren’s neck as Ren hoisted him up, setting him firmly on his hip like it was the most natural thing in the world.

"You eating all your eggs today?" Ren asked, bopping Theo’s nose with his finger.

"Yeah! With ketchup!" Theo cheered, completely thrilled to have his favorite person back in the room.

I stood by the stove, holding the spatula, just watching them. My chest felt incredibly tight, but for the first time, it wasn’t from fear or anxiety. It was from a strange, overwhelming sense of completeness.

For weeks, I had convinced myself that keeping Ren away was the only way to give Theo a normal, happy life.

But watching them right now, watching this giant, powerful man let a three-year-old treat him like a jungle gym—I realized something.

Maybe a normal life didn’t mean a life without complications. Maybe it just meant having the right person standing by your side through them.

"Eggs are ready," I said, my voice softer than usual as I plated the food and set it on the table.

Theo immediately dug into his food, too distracted by his breakfast and his dinosaur to pay attention to anything else.

Ren pulled out the chair next to him, sitting down and resting his forearms on the table. He kept his eyes locked on me as I sat down across from them.

"You’re thinking too loud, Lumi," he said quietly, his voice low enough that it didn’t disrupt Theo’s happy humming over his food.

"I’m not," I lied, taking a small bite of my toast.

"You are," he murmured, a tiny smirk touching the corner of his lips.

"Stop worrying. We’re good. I told you last night, I’m not going anywhere."

I looked across the table, meeting his steady gaze. The intensity in his eyes was still there, but the cold, dismissive wall from his apartment was entirely gone. He was completely here, grounded right in my kitchen.

"Okay," I whispered, a genuine smile finally breaking through my lingering nerves. "I’ll try."

He nodded, his expression softening into pure tenderness as he reached across the table, his fingers briefly catching mine under the edge of the placemat where Theo couldn’t see.

As we all sat down at the table together, the quiet sounds of forks scraping and Theo’s happy babbling filling the room, I realized the script had completely changed. I didn’t want to run anymore. One day at a time, just like he said.

Once breakfast was finished and Theo was completely occupied with a cartoon in the living room, the quiet reality of the morning settled back in.

My skin still felt warm from the night before, and every time Ren’s green eyes locked onto mine across the kitchen counter, my stomach did a little flip.

"I need to wash up," I murmured, leaning against the sink as I rinsed the last of the breakfast plates. "And we need to get Theo ready for daycare."

Ren stepped up behind me, his massive frame completely blocking out the morning sun from the window.

"Together," he said, his voice a low, gravelly rumble against my ear.

I didn’t argue. Ten minutes later, the bathroom was filled with the thick, warm steam of a hot bath.

Stepping into the water with him felt entirely different than the frantic, desperate energy of the couch.

Ren sat back against the tub, his long legs bent to accommodate his height, and pulled me down right between them.

I leaned my back against his chest, sighing softly as the hot water hit my tired muscles.

He didn’t waste any time. His large, rough hands grabbed the bar of soap, working up a thick lather before sliding over my shoulders and down my arms. His touch was slow, deliberate, and completely possessive.

"You’re still tense," he whispered, his lips brushing the wet skin of my neck.

"Just thinking about the day," I breathed, tilting my head back against his shoulder.

He didn’t let me finish the thought. He caught my chin with his fingers, turning my face toward his, and captured my lips.

This kiss wasn’t hidden behind kitchen counters or kept polite for Theo’s sake. It was deep, wet, and heavy with the leftover heat of last night.

His tongue slid into my mouth, circling mine with a slow, sure rhythm that made my hands instantly fly up to grip his wet hair.

The water sloshed against the sides of the tub as he pulled me tighter against him, his mouth tasting completely like the coffee we’d just shared.

My chest pressed flush against his broad chest, our skin slick with soap and water. By the time he finally broke the kiss, my lips were flushed and my breath was coming in short, shallow gasps.

"Better?" he murmured, a faint, dark smirk playing on his lips.

"Much better," I confessed, my cheeks burning as I hid my face against his neck.