Page 40 of Knot Letting Go

I’ve always been cautious and a thinker. I had to trust in myself. As long as I kept that in mind, I’d make it through.

No impulsive decisions. How hard could that be?

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN - Quill

My runners slapped against the asphalt as I ran up the driveway and slowed as I neared the rear of the manor. Sweat glistened on my skin, but there had been a lovely breeze to keep me from looking like I’d been thrown into the ocean.

I’d cancelled my afternoon meetings in favor of a run. I was no masochist like Konstantin was when it came to business. I worked all morning, and I had a business dinner later. I needed time for myself. Time to run off all the excess energy I had thinking about Aubrielle and how sweet her pussy tasted.

“Fuck.” I shook my head and stopped outside of the kitchen door. Yanking off my t-shirt, I whipped my face and let my heartbeat slow only for it to speed up again hearing Lillianna’s laughter inside and knowing that her sexy nanny must be there with her.

I combed my fingers through my hair and opened the door. How fast could I get Aubrielle into a bikini and then out of it again?

Walking inside, the first thing I saw was Lillianna standing on a stool next to Enid as she instructed her how to knead the dough. One of Callista’s mates, Evander, sat on the other side of the island with flour dust in his dark hair.

Where was Aubrielle?

“Uncle Quill is home!” I announced and held open my arms with a grin.

“Uncle Quill!” Lillianna shouted and then crinkled her nose as she turned to look at me. “Eww. I’m not hugging you. You’re all sweaty.”

“Hey, it’s just like hugging fish in the sea.” I came over and tickled her, and she giggled.

“Yeah, stinky and slimy.” Evander snickered and got a laugh too.

I chuckled and kissed the top of my niece’s head as she went back to her dough. “Whatcha making, Miss Mermaid?”

“Enid is teaching me how to make pasta. We’re making lasagna for dinner tonight and I get to pick which vegetables go in it. That means no gross spinach, but I’m going to put in carrots because Aubrielle likes them.” Lillianna nodded and patted the dough like it was a good puppy. “Aubrielle and I got our materials to make our tails today. She let me pick my own and hers too. I knew just what color was perfect for hers. We will cut out our tails tomorrow, and she’ll show me how to work a sewing machine. I’ve never even seen one before. I thought they were like those big wood wheels, but they're not.”

“A spinning wheel, dear. Ladies used to twist wool on them to make yarn and thread.” Enid patiently explained and added a bit more flour to her dough and Lillianna’s. “We have machines that do that for us nowadays, though.”

“No way. We got rid of spinning wheels because princesses kept pricking their fingers on the needle and falling into a deep sleep. There are only so many princesses I wanted to kiss and wake up before I got bored with it.” I went to the fridge and got out a bottle of water. Where was Aubrielle? I peeked out into the dining room and through to the sitting room. No one.

“You don’t get to kiss all the princesses, Uncle Quill!” Lillianna chastised in that cute little kid way where you couldn’t tell if they were serious or not.

“Wait, I know this one. Um… Sleeping Beauty, right?” Evander glanced my way and I nodded. “Yes! I’m trying to learn all the fairy tales so I know what Isa is talking about. When she starts to talk.”

“Enjoy the quiet while you can. This one here is always talking.” I jerked my thumb teasingly at my niece. She crossedher arms and made a little shocked and appalled noise. I gave her my best smile. “You know I love you and all your stories, Lilli.”

“Yeah, I know.” She nodded and went back to her dough.

“While these ladies are busy in the kitchen, let me give you a tour of the new security system, Quill. I already took Konstantin around this morning, but you need to know the layout too.” Evander stood and motioned for me to follow him out of the room.

Wondering why I needed a tour, I took a big gulp of water and followed him out of the kitchen. I threw my shirt over my shoulder and walked beside the mountain of an Alpha. “Kon texted me all the new codes, so I have them stored in my phone.”

“Good.” Evander glanced over his shoulder and didn’t say anything else until we were nearly in the front foyer, almost as far from the kitchen we could get on the first floor. His brows furrowed and darkened his expression. “I didn’t want to talk about this in front of Lilli or Enid. No need to scare the girls.”

My body tensed, all humor from just a minute ago wiped away. “What’s going on?”

“I’m going to assume you know why Konstantin hired us.”

“Yeah, the fucking Pacettis.” The fact that Lorenzo walked onto that beach last Friday and scared Aubrielle still infuriated me.

“Right.” Evander grunted and folded his arms. “There was an enforcer following Lilli and Aubrielle today when we were out at a few stores. He didn’t even bother to try to hide it that hard. Luckily neither of the girls saw him, but we did.” He then added, “Turner is on duty with me today. He’s out patrolling around the manor. It’s less conspicuous and thus less stressful for Lilli that I’m the one inside with her.”

“What the fuck?” The plastic of my water bottle crunched as I squeezed it. The fuckers just didn’t give up. There wouldn’tbe any place on this planet for them to hide from my wrath if they touched either my niece or Aubrielle. “Where’s Aubrielle now?”

Evander exhaled slowly and gave me a hard and considering look. “That’s the other thing. I sent her upstairs to take the rest of the afternoon to herself. She was barely holding herself together.”

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