Page 61 of Knot Her Mountain Men

That wasn’t as difficult now as it would’ve been before. Everyone needed rest. Exhaustion dragged us all under, and by the time I woke again, my knot had finally deflated. Bear looked like he was fully asleep while kneeling behind Morgan. I tapped him gently and he blinked down at me before waking up enough to understand what I wanted. Bear slipped free and I carefully rolled Morgan to the side and into Ryder’s arms so I could sit up. He cocooned her in his arms instantly, not even waking to do so.

I got unsteadily to my feet, my stomach growling obnoxiously. Pumpkin was in her glory when I emerged, hopping excitedly around me. I refreshed her food and water before sinking onto one of the cushions in front of the fire. We needed something easy. I dumped several cans of beef broth into a pot along with carrots, tomatoes, and corn my cousins had grown and canned for us. I roughly chopped some potatoes and bison jerky so we could get some protein and I wouldn’t have to add much salt. It was simple, but it would be effective. I needed something we didn’t have to babysit, and soup was always a winner.

Pumpkin scarfed down her food next to me, tail wagging happily. Bear climbed out of the tent, moving immediately to pet her head.

“Do we just schedule around Morgan’s heat in the future and make sure no one is staying here?” I asked Bear. “Her nest won’t be able to stay in the living room. I can’t imagine she would be comfortable having so many strangers around it.”

He sat down at my side with a groan and signed, “She hasn’t agreed to stay.”

“Do you really think she’ll leave?”

Bear shrugged. “I hope not, but it’s not up to me.”

“Then answer what you think we should do, so we’re prepared.”

He sat in silence for a moment, probably collecting his ideas, before offering me a list. “Build an extension for her. Separate entrance for guests. Separate bunkhouse.” Bear shrugged. “Flip the study. Make it her nest.”

“She didn’t want the study, though.”

“She might if we make it hers. Right now it’s ours.”

“I guess that makes sense.”

“Extension is probably best. New space.”

“Fair point. We can bring it up with Ry and Mav later. I’m not sure how spooked Morgan would be if we started discussing where she wants a permanent nest to be.”

Honestly, I had no idea how she would feel on the other side of her heat. She’d have nothing pushing her to be close to us once it was over, and anything that happened would be down to her logical choices, with no extra hormones to influence her.

Maybe she would still want us, maybe not.

She trusted us; that much was clear, and my mom had always told me that trust was the most important foundation in any relationship. You could build anything if you had a strong base to support it.

I added a few handfuls of dry pasta when the soup was nearly finished, purely to get in some extra calories. We had broken Morgan’s heat and everyone had to refuel.

“Food’s ready,” I announced after testing one of the noodles.

Bear jostled the others awake.

“Do you need to eat in the nest, little fox, or do you want to stretch your legs?”

Morgan crawled out of the tent and flopped onto the cushion next to me, laying her head on my thigh and curling her legs to drape over Bear’s lap.

“You should sit up. I don’t want you to choke.”

She let out an adorable petulant sound and stared up at me until I helped her up, letting the weight of her body lean against me. I passed a bowl to Bear, then to Maverick and Ryder, before filling one for myself to share with Morgan. After making sure it wasn’t going to burn her, I spoon-fed her small bites. She kept her eyes closed for most of it, opening her mouth like a baby bird each time the spoon tapped her lips.

I alternated bites with her so she didn’t feel rushed, and we made it through three bowls together before she started grumbling.

None of this was a representation of what a normal day would be like with her, but I could easily imagine early-morning breakfasts like this, or midnight snacks after a solid day of work.

“How do you feel?” I asked.

“Good. Tired.” She yawned and lazily stretched her legs, pointing and flexing her toes. “Everything hurts, but mostly in a good way.”

If any of us were in any condition to make the trip, I’d have suggested a soak in the hot springs, but she wouldn’t be able to walk. I was pretty sure none of us were up to marching through the snow with her weight on our back. We would need a decent sleep, and a couple more meals in us, before that was plausible.

Morgan drifted back to sleep against me. I turned, seeing Ryder and Maverick also passed out, empty bowls in their laps.

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