Author's pov
When Aria returned to the beach house, it was already past six in the evening.
The place felt different tonight. Quieter. Even the usual guard was gone. Alpha Damien had apparently given the security guard Christmas Eve off.
This Christmas Eve was lonelier than last year's. At least last year, she and Max had celebrated together in Canada. They'd cooked a real dinner, exchanged small gifts, then watched the snow fall like a normal family.
She could see Christmas lights twinkling in houses across the water, warm glows from windows where families were gathering. But tonight, she couldn't bring herself to cook anything fancy. She made simple pasta from Damien's groceries and called it her Christmas Eve dinner.
Standing on the balcony, she watched the distant neig
