Chapter 55. Go. Now

And now, I’ve noticed that every time he interacts with her, he goes out of his way to be gentle, considerate, and to include her in every single conversation. He pauses, gives her space to speak, asks her opinion—small gestures, really, but they carry tremendous weight. I can’t help but hope that this turnaround in him isn’t merely a performance because she happens to be my mate. I want to believe that he has genuinely changed, that he’s grown beyond the selfish impulses he once indulged. Deep down, I think he has. I’ve witnessed subtle but significant differences in the way he frames his thoughts, in how he weighs the consequences of his decisions. He’s no longer quick to anger; instead, he listens and thinks before he acts.

Most tellingly, he’s abandoned any attempt to lie about or diminish his responsibility for the errors of his past. Instead of deflecting blame or minimizing his misdeeds, he has owned up to every transgression, even when faced with my wrath. His honesty