Page 41 of Knot my Alphas

She suddenly appears in the room and halts before us. Panting hard, she gazes at us.

Tears pool into those emerald-green eyes as she runs forward and wraps her arms around Damon who’s closest to her. “Are you okay?” she asks, touching his shoulders, arms and chest. “Did you get hurt that night?”

Damon pulls her against him tightly. “I’m fine, Wildcat. You’re the one we’ve all been worried about.”

Iris pulls away from him and fixes her eyes on me next. Her gaze sweeps over me, taking in the way my leg juts out at an odd angle. “Julian,” she whispers, her lips trembling. Kneeling before me, she stares up at me. “You’re hurt.”

Reaching out, I wipe the tears that stream down her cheeks. “I’ll be fine,” I say in a gentle voice.

She shakes her head and suddenly leaps to her feet. “You’re such a jerk!” she snaps. Without any warning, she punches me in the chest.

“Ow!” I gasp as my broken ribs poke into my lungs. “What was that for?”

“You locked me in that room and went ahead to face those men on your own,” she shouts, looking fiercely angry. “Don’t ever do that to me again!”

“What is she talking about?” Caleb asks.

Iris rounds on him. “He locked me in Damon’s bedroom and walked out on his own,” she tattles. “As if he could fight against them all by himself. Those assholes would’ve hurt him and eventually come for me. They were here for me. They’d have never left before taking me with them.”

“Relax,” Raiden mutters, moving closer to her. “Remember the condition Dr. Lawson laid out for you to be here? Come on.” Taking her arm, he coaxes her onto the couch beside me.

“I’m sorry,” I say in a low, gentle voice. “I couldn’t let them come near you.”

She swipes at the tears streaming down her face. “You have no idea how worried I was,” she says, wrapping her arms around me. “What if they killed you?”

Her hug sends another spasm of agony through me but I stay quiet and swallow the pain. My hand caresses her back as she breaks down completely.

“It’s okay,” I say as painful sobs escape her. “I’m alive and will heal in a couple of weeks. We’re all okay now.”

She blubbers incoherently and fists my shirt in her hand.

“His ribs hurt, Wildcat,” Damon says softly, coming to my rescue. He gently pries her arms off me and pecks her lips.

“What?” Her gaze roves all over me. “Your body hurts too? You should’ve told me,” she says, looking terribly anxious.

“They’ll heal. But you...you’re supposed to eat,” I say, holding up a bowl of chopped melon.

A shrewd expression crosses her face. “You’re trying to distract me.”

“He’s right, though,” Raiden says with a worried face. “You need to eat something.”

She grabs the bowl from my hands, stabs a piece of melon, and pops it into her mouth. Chewing with her mouth closed, she gazes at us with a grim look. “I’ve got to tell you guys something.”

“Now that you’re here, we have all the time in the world,” says Caleb.

Shaking her head, she puts down the bowl of fruit. “This can’t wait.”

Caleb and Damon glance toward Raiden.

“This is the reason she hurried back home this late at night,” Raiden says in a low, grim tone. “She hasn’t told me anything yet.”

Determination and fury flash across her pretty face as she takes in a deep breath. “Callahan is the leader of the Black Widow.”

The room falls silent at her declaration.

“What are you talking about?” I ask in a grim tone.

“You heard me. CallahanisBlack Widow,” she says, glancing at us. “He’s been hiding in the military and leading the organization all these years.”

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