Page 111 of Down Knot Out
And my father? He’ll know before we’ve even finished filing the paperwork.
Should I warn him? Get ahead of it? Or would it just give him a reason to interfere more with our pack?
No. We should stay quiet. Deal with this ourselves. Chloe gets to choose when to light the fuse, if that’s what she wants.
I gather the papers into a single stack, slide everything into a black folder, and walk it to the file cabinet to lock it up with a quiet click.
Time to go find her.
She needs to understand what we’re risking and what we might be able to win.
I find Chloe on the front porch, knees drawn up on the seat, a mug of cocoa balanced on her knee. It's empty already, but it gives her hands something to hold. Her notebook sits on the small table beside her, along with the promised cup of tea.
The sun slants in through the fir branches, streaking the porch with dappled light. When mymother brought me here as a child, the world always seemed separate from the machinations of pack politics. I had shared that with my bondmates, and we had wanted to offer the same magic of escape for other people when we decided to open the resort.
I wish the magic of Misty Pines could have protected Chloe from all of this, but when we invited the real world onto our shores, it brought all the problems of the real world, too.
I slide onto the chair beside her and accept the tea she passes over.
“The call went about as expected,” I say.
She hums in agreement. “It’s going to get worse, isn’t it?”
I look out at the tree line, past the wild-rose tangle that hasn’t bloomed yet. “It will. Once Milo files the addendum, the Sinclairs will know we’re prepping for a fight. And so will everyone else in their orbit.”
Chloe blinks hard and focuses on a spot in the yard where Sprinkles is stalking a squirrel. “I’m sorry for dragging you into this.”
“Don’t do that.” I set my mug on the wooden boards and take her hand. “I offered.”
“You didn’t have to.”
“Yes, I did.” Taking her mug, I set it on the table before I draw her up and settle into her chair. I pull her down onto my lap, snuggling her close. “All my life, every connection my father built, every favor he banked, was for his own gain. This is the first time I’m using any of it for myself, and it’s to keep you safe. I’d call that a better use of family connections.”
She nuzzles my neck. “Aww, you do care.”
“Don’t spread it around,” I warn, and her mouth curves against my skin.
For a long while, the only sound is the creak of tree branches and the distant caw of crows from the northern wood.
Then Chloe lets out a long sigh. “I don’t want your pack to get hurt because of me.”
I could lie. I could say it won’t happen. Instead, I slide my hand over hers and link our fingers. “It’s your pack, too. This is what we do for those we love.”
She freezes before she releases a shaky breath. “Do you mean that?”
I don’t pretend to misunderstand. “Yes, I love you. I didn’t want to at first, but you snuck into my heart, and now you’re stuck with me.”
“I’m happy to be stuck.” She shifts, her lips brushing the sensitive spot behind my ear. “I loveyou, too. Even if you were grumpy toward me at the start.”
For a while, we let the quiet stretch. I keep my arm around her, our hands linked, and her breaths warm the curve of my shoulder.
Eventually, though, the spell breaks.
“Do you want to go for a walk with me?” I ask when she stirs. “There's something I want to show you.”
She rubs her head on my shoulder, hair tickling my neck. “Only if you let me wear your jacket.”
“Deal.”
