Page 132 of Down Knot Out
Chloe joins us, and Holden pulls plates from the shelf and syrup from the cupboard. As Blake grabs silverware, Dominic steals his glass of orange juice, finishing it off in three gulps. And through it all, Chloe watches, still a little dazed, as if she can’t quite believe this is her life now.
I lean over to bump her arm with mine. “Still no regrets?”
Her warm gaze meets mine. “Only one.”
My heart stutters, and the other Alphas in the kitchen freeze.
“What are you regretting?” Holden asks for us all.
“That I didn’t give up my apartment lease the last time I was there.” She wrinkles her nose at us. “I could have already been fully moved into the Homestead by now.”
Dominic blows out a relieved breath. “I’ll hire movers today. No need for you to ever go back there.”
Blake claps him on the back. “Good man.”
Holden sets a plate stacked with pancakes in the center of the island. “Dig in before they get cold.”
Blake slides the butter dish toward Chloe first, while Dominic cuts his pancakes into precise squares before drowning them in syrup.
As my pack shares their first meal since the Heat, a new certainty settles over me. Blake had said this was what we were missing, and he was right. We needed Chloe to be complete.
Chloe catches me watching her and tilts her head. “What?”
“Nothing.” I spear a piece of pancake. “Just happy.”
She nods, understanding without words.
Everything is different now.
And everything is exactly as it should be.
We eat in companionable silence, everyone exhausted but humming with a quiet energy after the last three days.
I wait until forks scrape on empty plates before bringing up the topic I know is weighing most on Blake’s mind, now that the bond with Chloe is secure, even if her familial pack is still an issue.
“Before Quinn gets home, we should discuss how we want to handle Sadie’s visit tomorrow.”
The kitchen falls silent. Chloe’s fork pauses halfway to her mouth. Dominic stops wiping syrup from his plate with a last bite of pancake.
Blake exhales hard, dragging a hand over the top of his head, and damp strands slip loose from his bun to cling to his temples. “Sadie and Mrs. Reynolds will be on the midday ferry.”
Holden rises, gathering empty plates and moving to the sink. The sound of water rushing from the faucet fills the pause. “Who do you want there?”
Blake doesn’t answer right away as he considers the question. Then he leans past me to addressChloe. “I want you there. If Sadie tries to twist things, Quinn’s going to need to see you standing with us.”
Chloe blinks, caught off guard. She traces the rim of her mug, her movements slow, and the ripple of her uncertainty travels through the bond.
“I don’t know if that’s a good idea. If Sadie isn’t coming here for a fight, I don’t want her to see me and think you’re trying to replace her role in Quinn’s life.” Her head jerks up. “Which I know you’re not doing, but alcohol does horrible things to the mind?—”
“I know, and if Sadie brings that up, I’ll correct her.” Blake reaches past me to take Chloe’s hand. “But you’re pack, so I don’t want you hiding. You matter to Quinn, too.”
“Okay,” Chloe agrees, though she still looks uneasy with the request.
Whatever her feelings, though, she’ll be there if it’s what Blake and Quinn need. That intention rings clear through the bond.
I clear my throat and draw my phone closer. “How about we plan out what we’re going to say? Set a clear front. No matter how the conversation with Sadie goes, Quinn needs to hear from all of us that she’s safe, and that she’s not going anywhere she doesn’t want to go.”
Dominic folds his arms behind his head, chair creaking as he leans back. “Yeah. That’s what matters most. Consistency. She needs to see we’ve got her. Every single one of us.”
