Page 21 of Knot My Boss

Pulling into the driveway, the outdoor lights trim the large house. Not wanting to displace my parents, when I took over as alpha, I built a new home. Pressing the button on the garage door opener, I wait patiently to pull in. Darby is difficult to read—her mind is a steel trap, and her face is expressionless.

My shoulders slump as disappointment fills me. This isn’t how I pictured things going when I brought my mate home for the first time. After pulling inside, I shut the car off and climb out. Reaching the door that connects the garage to the house, I press the button to close the door and shut out the cold.

Darby remains frozen in place.

Scrubbing my hands over my face, I enter the code to lock the door. No matter what she does, Darby is locked in. Do Ifeel guilty about taking such measures? Yes. However, it appears that it must be done, or we will never move past this.

Moving past the mudroom, down the hall to the primary bedroom, I strip off my clothes and head toward the shower. I smell like the restaurant and am offensive to myself, let alone my mate.

Washing quickly, I pull on a pair of sweatpants before leaving my room to check on Darby. The house is silent as a tomb as I check the kitchen, dining room, great room, and the other three bedrooms. She is nowhere to be found. Grabbing a beer on my way back through the kitchen, I check the garage. Sure enough, Darby is still sitting in the car.

“Are you coming in so we can talk?” I ask defeatedly.

“I want to go back and see my sister,” she says petulantly. “You dragged me out of there before I even got to meet the babies. That’s my niece and nephews.” Darby fights back tears. Holding back the cringe, since she is right, I try a different approach.

“Please,” I say, pleadingly. “We need to talk. I promise to take you back to them as soon as we clear the air.”

Dangling that carrot in front of her might get her out of the car and into the house, but I have no intention of taking her anywhere tonight. Propping a shoulder against the doorframe and taking a pull off my beer, I feign a relaxed posture. After several minutes of just staring at each other, Darby reluctantly gets out of the car.

“Can I get one of those?” she asks, giving a chin lift in the direction of my beer.

“Help yourself,” I say, waving an arm in the direction of the kitchen and bowing slightly as if she is royalty.

Darby moves inside, passing by me as she flattens herself against the wall so as not to brush up against me. My bear is irritated, but I shove him down. The last thing I need is to freak my mate out any more than she already is.

Tracking her steps with my eyes, I keep some distance between us. Darby rummages around my refrigerator before coming out with three beers. Sitting them on the island in the center of the room, her eyes scan the open floor plan while popping open one of the bottles.

“Nice place,” she comments offhand.

“Thanks,” I remark, moving to get myself another drink from the refrigerator. “My cousins decorated the place.” I watch Darby nod in possible approval. “If there is anything you want to ch—” Holding a hand up in the air, she cuts off the rest of my statement.

“Hold it right the fuck there,” she states angrily.

“Look,” I say, defeatedly. “You are my mate. I only get one. I have no interest in trying to control you, although you could tone it down a little.” I wave a hand in a circle, encompassing all of her.

“This is the exact bullshit I was talking about,” she yells. “If you can’t take me as I am, you can fuck right off.” Darby’s language causes me to cringe. This isn’t how an alpha’s mate is supposed to react. Or act, for that matter.

“How long are,were, you planning on staying in Padston?” I ask, changing tactics.

“Permanently.” She chugs down the rest of her beer and opens the second one. “I already have a lease with Gypsy, to rent the apartment above the bar,” Darby informs me as the alcohol loosens her tongue.

“If you need a job,” I start, before she cuts me off, shaking her head from side to side.

“I have a job,” she informs me. “I need a space to open my new business.”

My bear perks up at this as my mind whirls through possibilities. There are a couple of empty storefronts in town,one of which is across the street from Simmer Down. There’s a new law firm next door.

“What type of business are you opening?” I ask, expecting something feminine. The response I get has me spitting the mouthful of beer I just took across the room.

“Tattoo parlor with piercings.”

Darby’s confidence doesn’t waver, despite my reaction.

“You do know that this town is full of paranormals, right?” I ask.

“Yes,” she snarks, narrowing her eyes at me. “The guy I apprenticed under was a shifter. He taught me what needs to be done for paranormals.”

Holding my hands up in surrender, so I don’t dig a deeper hole for myself, I step away from the counter, moving through the dining room to the great room. The far wall features a large gas fireplace, serving as the focal point of the room. I turn the fire on and then move to turn on the Christmas lights, including the large tree.

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