Page 101 of Knot the Last Chapter

Corwyn grins. “Exactly. I was thinking… maybe you’d like to be my first author guest. When your book comes out.”

I blink. Something tugs in my chest. “You really think I could do it?”

“We all do,” Rhys says, not looking up from the dough. “You’ve got the mind for it. The instincts. Hell, you solved a mystery we’ve been ignoring for years.”

I flush under their attention, biting back a smile.

“I’ve only written scraps,” I protest softly.

“Scraps that breathe,” Tyler murmurs beside me. “Your writing has life. And a hell of a lot of heart.”

I glance between them, and I’m suddenly overwhelmed—not just by the compliment, but by how genuine they are. Each ofthem. Believing in me, like it’s the most natural thing in the world.

Rhys wipes his hands on a towel and turns toward us, leaning a hip against the counter. “We could help, you know. Tyler’s got the business brain. Corwyn knows the market, the tropes, the readers. And I…”

“You feed people,” I tease, grinning.

“I nourish,” he says, mock offended, but then his voice softens. “I make sure the people I care about are whole. That includes you.”

The air grows thicker, sweeter.

And I let myself lean into it. Let myself imagine it: us, working together. A pack not born of necessity or tradition—but choice. Love. Shared warmth.

I think of morning coffee and late-night editing. Rhys in the kitchen while I type. Corwyn reading chapters beside me. Tyler pacing and planning with a whiteboard and a stack of spreadsheets. The cat curled on someone’s lap.

I’ve never felt this seen.

This wanted.

And just as I’m about to say something—anything—to let them know how much this moment means—

A loud BANG shatters the stillness.

It echoes off the old wood of the house. Another bang follows, hard enough that I feel it in my ribs.

All four of us freeze.

“That’s the front door,” Rhys says, already pushing off the counter.

Corwyn is beside him in seconds. Tyler shifts protectively in front of me. The warmth in the room hasn’t vanished, not completely, but it’s changed—tightened, sharpened.

Someone’s come for me.

And I already know who, even if it’s so much earlier than anticipated. Too early. It would always be too early.

I don’t move. I sit at the table, my tea still steaming, and watch as three alphas I trust with my whole heart move into action around me.

This isn’t the end of the story.

It might just be the beginning.

Chapter sixty

Lila

Ihear the door open from the kitchen, and even though I’m surrounded by warmth—by Rhys baking, Corwyn steeping a spiced tea, and Tyler quietly slicing fruit—I go cold.

The scent hits me a heartbeat before the voice does.

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