Page 121 of Hot Knot Summer
River finishes his call and joins us, somehow managing to squeeze onto the couch, so I’m completely surrounded by solid Alpha warmth. “Detective has the photos from his team, and he’s also putting out a lookout for Megan to bring her in for questioning.”
I lean back against the couch, trying to process everything. “It has to be something to do with Chad, right? Why else would she do this? What could she possibly gain from breaking in?” A thought strikes me suddenly, and I sit up straighter. “You know, I accidentally brought Chad’s duffle bag with me on this so-called vacation. It got burned in the fire, but... could that be what she was after? Could she have broken in looking for that bag?”
“What was in it?” Atlas asks immediately.
“Just clothes and toiletries,” I trail off. “That would make sense, right?”
“So, she breaks in looking for the bag,” River muses, “finds you asleep instead, and decides to what? Burn the place down with you in it?”
“Maybe she panicked,” Levi suggests. “Maybe she moved the candle to create a distraction while she searched, not realizing it would cause a fire.”
“With fabric from her own scarf as kindling?” I shake my head. “That doesn’t seem right.”
Atlas stands abruptly, his jaw set in that way that means he’s made a decision. “I’m making you somehot chocolate,” he announces. “With an obscene amount of marshmallows.”
“Oh, you don’t have to, but I can’t say no.”
“You’re in shock. You need sugar, and taking care of you gives me something to do besides fantasizing about strangling your ex-boyfriend with my bare hands.”
Despite everything, his protective fierceness makes me smile slightly. “Thank you.”
While Atlas clatters around downstairs, River disappears briefly and returns with a plate of cookies, the chocolate chip ones.
“Here,” he says, settling back beside me and offering the plate.
I take one with trembling fingers, not because I’m hungry but because the gesture is so sweet, it makes me want to cry. The cookie is perfect—soft and chewy with just the right amount of salt to balance the sweetness.
“How did you even remember I liked these?” I ask.
“We remember everything about you,” Levi says simply, his arm tightening around me. “Every little detail, every preference, every story you’ve told us. That’s what you do when you love someone.”
The casual way he drops the L-word makes my heart skip, but before I can process it fully, Atlas returns with a mug of hot chocolate that looks more like a marshmallow sculpture than a beverage.
“Damn, Atlas,” I laugh despite myself. “Did you leave any marshmallows for the rest of the world?”
“Nope,” he says unrepentantly, settling on my other side and pressing the warm mug into my hands. “You need spoiling, and I need to spoil you. Win-win.”
The hot chocolate is rich and sweet and comforting in a way that makes me feel like a child being cared for after a nightmare. Which, I suppose, isn’t far from the truth.
“You know what the worst part is?” I ask after a few sips, the sugar already starting to calm my shattered nerves.
“What?” River asks, his fingers threading through my hair in a soothing rhythm.
“I came here to get away from Chad’s bullshit. And somehow, the bastard still managed to impact my life in the worst possible way.” My voice cracks on the last word. “Even when he’s not here, even when I think I’ve escaped, he’s still finding ways to destroy everything good that happens to me.”
“No,” Atlas says firmly, his hand finding my free one and squeezing tight. “He’s not destroying anything. We won’t let him.”
“But he already has,” I protest. “Look at this mess. Look at what I’ve dragged you all into.”
“Emma, listen to me.” Levi’s voice is gentle but implacable. “You didn’t drag us into anything. Someone else did… Megan, Chad, or whoever created this situation. You’re the victim here, not the perpetrator.”
“And you’re not alone anymore,” River adds,pressing a kiss to the top of my head. “This isn’t just your fight. It’s ours now. All of ours.”
“We protect our pack,” Atlas says simply. “And you’re part of our pack now. Completely and utterly part of our family.”
Suddenly, I’m crying, not the panicked, desperate tears from before, but something deeper. Relief, maybe. Gratitude. Love.
“I don’t know what I did to deserve you guys,” I whisper through my tears.
