Page 39 of Knot That Delicate

Asher shrugged. "I can hear them. They'll be here soon, no doubt," he said, sitting down on one of the benches, stretching his hands out to warm them by the fire. "Are we just doing s'mores, or should we get some steaks out of the freezer?" Ash asked after a moment, cocking his head to the side.

I looked at him. "You know what? Steaks might not be a bad idea. I was going to do chilli, but on an open fire? Steaks, for sure. It doesn’t look like it’s going to rain anytime soon, so yeah, sure." I nodded. I loved grilling meat just as much as the next man, and there was something about steak cooked over a bonfire that just tasted that much nicer.

Asher huffed, standing up with a groan. "I'm getting too old for this shit," he said with a smile, heading towards the cabin. His steps halted as he noticed Juniper and Dylan coming out of the cabin. The first thing I noticed was Juniper's blinding smile. It was like she was lit up with joy, her eyes sparkling, and she seemed ten pounds lighter, as if a burden had been lifted from her shoulders.

Then I saw why. Her hair was gone.

"What the hell did you do to your hair?" I asked with a frown.

Juniper's steps faltered, and her smile dimmed. Dylan glared at me—it was one of those seriousI’ll fucking murder you if you make a wrong step nowglare. I hadn’t been on the receiving end of that glare many times, but it was terrifying."It looks lovely," I said, doing my best to put as much fake enthusiasm into my voice as I could. Personally, I couldn’t understand why the hell she had done it. She’d looked stunning before, and her hair wasn’t exactly even now. Had she just hacked at it with scissors? And why was Dylan standing over her protectively, glowering at me?

"Hey, Juniper, I'm going to go in and get some steaks and potatoes to bake on the bonfire. Want to give me a hand?" Asher asked. As he passed her, he ruffled her hair. "This is cute," he said with a smirk.

Juniper beamed. "Sure, I can help," she said, following him into the cabin.

That gave me a moment to turn to Dylan. "What the hell, man?"

Dylan’s face was serious as he turned to me. "You don’t say shit about her hair. That was her choice. It’s what she wanted to do. That fucker who kidnapped her made her keep her hair long. She wanted to cut it short and she always intended to do it once she got home, but because there was no heat in the cabin, and she had soaking wet hair, she decided now was the time and she asked me to even out the back.” It was more words than I’d heard from Dylan in a while, and he crossed his arms, glowering. "Don’t make her sad about it."

"I won’t. I just can’t believe her hair is so short. She looked so good with long hair," I muttered.

Dylan cocked his head. "Are you saying she doesn’t look good now?" he challenged.

I shook my head. "You know I’m not saying that. She’s stunning, no matter what." This conversation about her being beautiful was so bizarre, considering we’d all agreed she was hands-off. At least, for now.

Dylan’s face softened, a smile spreading. "I like it. It’s a bit crooked, but she looks cute. And what's more important—it makes her happy.”.

I shut my mouth. I had no right to discuss this. She wasn’t my omega, and even if she was my omega, that didn’t give me the right to have an opinion about how she chose to style her hair. Then there was what Dyaln said…about the guy who kept her. This Alec guy. Juniper had been very hush-hush about whatshe had been through, but I gathered enough to know she’d been forced to live a lifestyle she didn’t enjoy.

"He really made her behave like a princess, didn’t he?" I asked quietly.

Dylan nodded. "Yep. I think that’s why she hates being called ‘princess.’ She hates anything pink, doesn’t want to touch a dress to save her life, and she wanted to cut her hair short. I don’t think she has had agency in a long time, so we should respect that."

"I am respecting that," I said, nodding.

"Well, you’re making her feel bad about her hair. She was so happy when she cut it—she was literally dancing in the bathroom. So, shut your mouth, make the steaks, and be nice to her," he growled.

"Of course, I will," I said, turning back to the bonfire and grabbing a large poker to stoke the logs. It was like I’d entered the twilight zone. Dylan was being protective over Juniper, and he was accusing me of being mean to her. I was the least mean—well, actually no, Asher probably got that accolade, but I had only ever been nice to her. I was the one who’d rescued her in the woods, for God’s sake. But now, something had shifted in Dylan. I could see it in how he was around her, he stood over her, protecting her, watching her from a distance.

Before I could think of anything else to say, Juniper was bouncing out of the cabin, Asher hot on her heels. She had several potatoes in her arm, wrapped in tin foil, and Asher was carrying everything for the steaks.

"Sorry it took so long. This one decided he had to season all the steaks perfectly before cooking them," she said, jerking her head towards Asher.

The alpha in question merely shrugged. "Hey, a little garlic powder, salt, and pepper goes a long way."

Juniper shrugged and rolled her eyes. "I don’t care. Meat is meat, and I like meat."

Asher met my eyes, both of us having to bite back a grin at her words. She had no idea that what she had just said sounded inhumanly filthy. "Don’t worry, darling," Asher said. "I’ll prepare my meat just right for you," he teased, walking forward to the fire, overtaking her and placing the tray of marinating steaks down.

Juniper gawked. "Oh, don’t make it dirty! You men are gross creatures," she said, mock-glaring at us.

Dylan raised his hands in anI surrendergesture. "Hey, I said nothing," he pointed out.

She turned to him. "You’re not too bad. You’re surly and grumpy, but at least I understand why.”

"How about we stop discussing the meat and actually start cooking the meat?" Asher suggested, pulling out a grill pan from underneath the firepit. We stashed a lot of BBQ supplies there over the winter for moments we would need them, like these.

"Hey, Juniper, do you want to put the potatoes by the edge of the fire to bake? I can do it if you don’t want to risk burning your hands," Asher said.

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