Page 42 of Saving Nevin
My boots crunched through the snow, my gloved hand tucked inside Kace’s bigger one, as together we walked through the maze-like display of lights and decorations that the town had put up for the holidays.
We got cups of hot apple cider. A vendor was selling roasted turkey legs, so Kace and I split one, taking turns taking bites as the juices dripped down our chins.
Still, I couldn’t help but feel like I was being watched. There was a tingling at he back of my neck, and my wolf was on high-alert, warning me of danger. I even swore I caught wind of Rex’s gasoline scent at one point. Panic gripped me, but Kace was there to calm my frantic heart.
“Relax, honey,” he said, cupping my face in both of his. “It’s probably just someone’s exhaust. Everything’s okay. I won’t let anything happen to you.” He pressed a sweet kiss to my lips and I leaned into it, needing that comfort. When he pulled back, he smiled down at me. “Let’s go home. It’s getting cold.”
“Okay,” I agreed, more than happy to get the hell out of here.
Cozied up on the couch, wrapped in blankets with mugs of steaming hot cocoa and leftover Christmas cookies that Gracie had brought over earlier in the week, we settled in to watch a holiday Hallmark movie. The kitten curled up on my lap and purred gently.
Still, I kept catching myself stealing glances out the window, worry in my heart. Expecting to see my ex-Alpha standing there, sneering at me.
Because deep down, I knew that Rex wouldn’t stop until he got what he wanted—me.
29
NEVIN
It’d been an eventful morning,to say the least. Kace and Sevren went out into the woods and chopped down a Christmas tree, then dragged it home and set it up in the living room. It looked almost out of place, wild and free amongst all the homey things, but Kace assured me that soon, it would fit right in.
He went up into the attic and brought down a weathered gray tote filled with holiday decorations; strings of colorful lights and sparkly garland and ornaments galore.
“Have fun,” he said with a wink, and I glanced between Klei and Xan, who grinned back at me. Guess we were going to have an Omega decorating party, then.
Xan queued up a Christmas playlist on his phone and blasted it through the speakers of our TV. We began to string lights on the tree, while the Alphas went outside in the cold to hang some on the front of the house.
It wasn’t long before the spindly fir tree was plush, aglow with a rainbow of lights that glittered off glistening silver garland, glass bulbs and colorful ornaments hanging from its branches. Xan even climbed up on the back of the chair to put a lighted star atop the tippy-top of the tree.
The three of us stepped back to admire our handiwork, and I had to admit… It was pretty nice.
Bianca mewed and gazed up at the glistening glass bulbs with big eyes, her tail swishing back and forth. I reached down and scooped her up before she could start batting them off the tree. “Behave, kitten,” I scolded. She simply began to purr and my heart melted.
Then Ofelia Rose began to cry, so Klei set up her high chair and began to airplane mashed carrots into her mouth. Me and Xan lounged on the couch while “Walking In A Winter Wonderland” played. Xan flipped through his phone, browsing Pinterest, when he suddenly sat up straight.
“Hey! We should do some arts and crafts,” he said, thrusting his screen out towards me. “Look!” He’d pulled up a crafty how-to for “reindeer treats” using pinecones, peanut butter and birdseed. I tilted my head, but he was already on his feet, bouncing on his heels. “C’mon, Nev! Grab your coat!”
“I don’t know…” I glanced out the window, towards the tree line. Kace’s property was right in the heart of pack territory, off the edge of the forest, but lately, even leaving the house made me feel a little nervous.
What ifhewas out there? Watching me. Waiting for me. It was probably ridiculous. We hadn’t seen sight nor scent of him since the day they’d attacked us at the mall, but those old fears still clung to me.
“We won’t go far, I promise,” Xan said, turning his big, brown puppy dog eyes on me. “Pretty please? With cherries on top?”
“Alright, alright, fine. But you have to do all the bending down to pick up the pinecones. I’m way too pregnant for that shit,” I said around a laugh.
He grinned. “Deal. You can carry the basket.”
“We don’t even have a basket,” I pointed out.
“Easily fixable.” He strode into the kitchen. In the middle of the table sat Kace’s fruit basket, which was currently full of red delicious apples and a single banana that was a bit too ripe for either of us to eat. Xan went over, dumped the fruit unceremoniously onto the table, and handed me the basket.
“There, problem solved.”
I giggled. “You’re such a brat.”
“That’s what they all say.” Xan flashed me one of his flirtiest, one-hundred watt smiles. “Grab your coat.”
We bundled up, even though my winter coat barely zipped up over my belly now. I was seven months along now and baby Zee would be here sooner than we knew it.
