Page 18 of Pack Down Bad

Rhys returns to the stove, where he seems to be cooking scrambled eggs that have taken on a questionable consistency as he ignored them in favor of giving me his attention. Knox side-eyes the eggs before going to the fridge to retrieve a glass bottle of maple syrup. Percy grabs cutlery from a drawer near the dining table and starts setting four places.

The scent-match this morning is particularly difficult to ignore. Somehow, their scents seem stronger than yesterday. I didn’t doubt my initial attraction to them, but I was hoping that it could take a backseat to getting my bearings today.

The kitchen smells like an earthy bakery: apples, citrus, sage, and cinnamon. The scents are so natural together that I’m finding it hard to imagine a world where they part. I know I’m only staying in their cabin out of necessity for now... but surely there could be space for me here.

I wouldn’t mind waking up like this every day.

“How can I help?” I ask, realizing that the best way to ensure they consider keeping me as an option is to make sure I don’t seem like a burden on the household.

All three guys snap their necks to stare at me with wide eyes and brows furrowed in bewilderment.

“Help?” Rhys echoes as if the word is a foreign concept.

Percy simply shakes his head.

Knox grunts and walks the syrup to the table, where he places it gingerly in the center before pointing to a chair. “You can help by sitting right here so that we can feed you.”

Oh. They must be worried I’ll disrupt the flow of their morning routine.

“Maybe I can help with clean-up,” I suggest instead.

“No.” Knox gestures more insistently at the offered seat. “Sit.”

My shoulders droop as I shuffle toward the seat and plop down. I just want to be helpful and prove my value to them. A scent-match is a strong start for a potential pack relationship, but scents aren’teverything. There’s still a choice to be made.

“Try not barking at our house guest,” Percy tells Knox, his tone exasperated.

Knox huffs and crosses the room, opening a door that I think is a pantry based on the small peek inside I get from my vantage point. He rifles around inside with a lot of dramatic thunks and muttering.

“Don’t mind him,” Percy tells me. “He’s going through something.”

Hopefully thatsomethingisn’t my presence in the house. If he’s that grumpy because he doesn’t want me here... I’m doomed.

I try to lighten the mood with a joke and fake whisper to Percy, “Is it puberty?”

His chuckle helps me relax.

Rhys strolls over and plunks a muffin down on my plate with a flourish. “Let us take care of you this morning. If you really want to help with something, you can join me for house chores after breakfast, and I’ll put you to work.”

His wolfish grin makes me think he doesn’t intend to have me dusting the mantel.

“You all don’t have to take care of me.” They’re already doing so much for me, and I’m nottheiromega to have to take care of. Not yet. Maybe not ever, based on Knox’s attitude toward me.

“Maybe not.” Percy shrugs one shoulder and drops into the seat diagonal from me. “But we want to do it anyway, so there’s no sense in arguing. Just lean back and enjoy breakfast.” His body tenses with his last words, and he shoots a quick glance toward Rhys, who is returning to the table with the pan of eggs now to dole out.

Rhys serves me first, scooping the eggs onto my plate with an unexpected thunk. The eggs seem to be... harder than I would expect scrambled eggs to be. He puts a serving on the plate next to me before moving over to serve Percy and the last plate that’s sitting across from me.

“We have fruit, too!” Rhys announces excitedly as if just remembering the addition.

“Thank god,” Percy whispers under his breath.

I arch an eyebrow over at him, wondering if he really likes fruitthatmuch or what?

Knox returns to the table with empty hands despite how intensely he seemed to be searching the pantry. He slips into the seat beside me and eyes the plate in front of him with the caution of someone approaching a wild animal. He glances over and catches me watching him, then quickly glances at Rhys, who pulls a glass bowl of fruit out of the fridge.

Knox leans over and presses his lips to my ear. My whole body freezes as he places a chaste kiss on the sensitive flesh of my earlobe.

What the fuck?

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