Claire barely remembered the flight home. The hours blurred into a haze of silent tears, the mate bond throbbing with Xander’s desperate attempts to reach her. She kept her phone on airplane mode the entire way, unable to face his messages or calls. By the time the car dropped her off at the Hudson house, it was late afternoon and she felt completely drained.
Her parents were in the living room when she walked through the door. The moment they saw her red, swollen eyes and the suitcase she dragged behind her, their expressions shifted from surprise to deep concern.
“Claire?” her mom said, standing up quickly. “Sweetheart, what happened? You were supposed to be gone the whole weekend.”
Claire dropped her bag and walked straight into her mother’s arms. The dam broke again. She sobbed agai
