(Carla's POV)
Carla watched the table like a chessboard.
Each piece was in motion, subtle and silent, but deeply telling.
Kane Hanma sat at the head like it was his rightful place relaxed, confident, powerful. He wasn't just present. He owned the room in a way that unsettled even the strongest among them.
And Carla saw everything.
Rosalie was trying desperately not to look at him. Her posture screamed defiance, but her fingers betrayed her. Resting on the table, her nails drummed in quiet frustration. She was angry, yes, but beneath it was something more dangerous.
Attraction.
And fear of that attraction.
Carla couldn't blame her. Kane was like a force of nature too much to ignore, impossible to control.
Alice kept glancing at him with sharp eyes and parted lips, always half a question away from speaking but never quite saying what she wanted to. She was curious in a way Carla hadn't seen in years. Not passive curiosity pulling curiosity. Drawn like gravity.
Jasmine and Emily exchanged silent looks from time to time, but neither of them addressed Kane directly. Still, they listened. Every word he said landed. Measured. Heavy. Intentional.
Even Esme, ever the gentle heart of the household, was leaning forward more than usual, her smile a little too polite. Cautious.
And Edith dear, unreadable Edith was silent but watching. Her golden eyes tracked Kane like a predator circling another predator. She wasn't threatened. But she was calculating.
Kane himself said little. He didn't need to say much.
His presence spoke volumes.
He wasn't defensive. He didn't posture or over-explain. He didn't hide.
That, Carla thought, was what made him dangerous.
And what made him real.
She refilled her wine glass not because she needed it, but because the action gave her time to think.
Kane was shifting their world, and he hadn't even tried.
"You're not nervous, are you?" he asked her suddenly, his tone dry and almost teasing.
Carla met his eyes across the table. His were sharp more animal than human but there was a flicker of respect there.
"No," she replied smoothly. "Should I be?"
He smiled. "Not yet."
Rosalie scoffed quietly beside him. "You're enjoying this."
Kane didn't even look at her. "You think I shouldn't?"
"It's not a game," Rosalie hissed.
Kane turned toward her, finally, his voice low. "Then why are you playing?"
Carla felt the air tighten. Rosalie's mouth opened like she might strike but then closed just as fast.
That restraint? That hesitation?
That was new.
Carla interjected, her voice calm but clear. "Let's remember why we're here."
"To interrogate the new guy?" Kane offered with a smirk.
Carla smiled politely. "To meet him. Officially. And to see if what we've felt… is real."
The word hung in the air.
No one spoke.
Not even Rosalie.
Carla leaned back in her chair. "You've shaken us, Kane. That much is obvious."
He didn't deny it.
He didn't have to.
"And yet," she continued, "I've never seen this family more awake. More alert. Maybe that's a good thing."
Edith finally spoke, her voice quiet but firm. "Or maybe it's a warning."
Kane glanced at her with an amused smile. "Warnings are for people who need them."
"Are you saying we don't?"
"No," he said. "I'm saying I don't."
Carla watched Edith's expression flicker just slightly, then settle.
The tension was heavy again but now it was layered. Complex. Alive.
She looked around the table.
Rosalie: flushed with conflict.
Alice: silently enchanted.
Jasmine: cautious, thoughtful.
Emily: still, but watching.
Esme: uncertain.
Edith: unblinking.
And Kane?
At ease.
As if he belonged here more than any of them.
Carla sat forward, folding her hands neatly.
"We've never met anyone like you," she said plainly.
Kane tilted his head. "I know."
Her eyes didn't waver. "That's not a compliment. Not yet."
"I'm not asking for one."
"Good," she said. "Then we can be honest."
Kane's smile grew. "Finally."
And with that, the silence turned into something else acknowledgement.
He was here.
He wasn't going anywhere.
And Carla knew whether the others admitted it or not they were already his.