Page 129 of Knot All is Forgiven

The linens are warm as I pull them out and fold them. Did I stand there for an entire cycle and watch them wash and dry?

No matter now.

After packing the linens and filling the third crate, I empty my drawers of all the clothing we bought at Omegamart and the soft things Icarus has picked up for me over the past few months and fill the last crate.

One. Two. Three. Four.

Everything I wanted stacked outside the front door.

My designation as a four-act tragedy.

I'll need to schedule a pickup from the Omega's shelter for all these things.

I won't need them anymore.

One last pass-through of the nesting room reveals the teddy bear with the maroon bow Rafe got me. It stares at me in judgment from the side of the room where I tossed it when I stripped the mattress.

That bear wasn't given to Jordan Cross. It was given to Jordan the Omega.

I box him away as well.

Chapter forty-nine

Athena squints at meover her coffee while I worry a napkin between my fingers. "And you think it was a good idea, going forward with trying to go after them with a lawyer?"

"What else are we supposed to do?" My shoulders slump as I stare at the half-drunk mug of chamomile in front of me. "She's devastated. She loved her job. The least we can do is try to get her a severance so that pressure is gone while she figures out what to do from there."

"It doesn't seem like you have much of a case, Icky, and I worry you're getting her hopes up." My sister flicks her braid over her shoulder before leaning onto her elbows. "She's fragile. She may shatter if this doesn't go well."

"Jordan is stronger than you give her credit for," I insist firmly. "She will come out on top of this. She's not just some delicate Omega."

"God, Icarus, I wasn't implying that. But she's had a weird couple of months. Anyone would be feeling unmoored in her position." She hands her empty mug to the waiter who comes by to check on us, smiling at him. He blushes and scurries away. "All I'm saying is that her life is vastly different than it was this time last year, and this could be the straw that breaks the horse's back."

"Is that the saying? I think it's a camel. I believe the saying has origins in the Middle East, and camels are most com-"

"Icky, fuck. Stop with the info dump," she groans, interrupting my speech. "I get that you're worried, but I do not want to be on the receiving end of another one of your lectures."

A twinge of pain in my chest has all of my words drying up. I like sharing knowledge with others. It gives me something to contribute to a conversation, especially if I'm feeling anxious.

And if I'm anything right now, it's anxious.

I am concerned about Jordan. While she is strong, and I know whatever happens, we will weather this storm together and come out on top, it doesn't stop me from imagining the worst-case scenario.

My phone rings, yanking me from my thoughts, and I rip it out of my pocket, hoping it's Jordan, but I don't recognize the number.

"Hello?"

"Dr. Valentine?"

I struggle to place the feminine voice on the other end of the phone. "Speaking. Who is this?"

"It's Crystal, Dr. Talbot's assistant."

Athena raises her eyebrows in question, and I shake my head, turning my shoulder towards her and facing the blank wallbeside our table to drown out the chaos around me. "Crystal, this is a surprise. How can I help you?"

Her voice is frantic."Please don't report me. I can't lose this job."

"Woah, woah, report you for what?"

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