His expression darkened slightly at the reminder that our lives weren’t exactly normal. That danger lurked in the woods and politics simmered beneath every pack interaction.
I bumped his shoulder with mine. “Hey. We’re okay. The twins are okay. Everything is okay.”
“For now.”
“That’s all we ever get. For now. Might as well enjoy it while we can.”
He looked at me for a long moment, gray eyes studying my face before he leaned in and kissed me. Slow and sweet and full of everything we didn’t say out loud.
“Rowan asked me what happens when the baby comes,” Knox said after pulling back slightly.
“What did you tell him?”
“That he and Thea would be the best big siblings in the world. That they’d get to help take care of the baby and teach them everything they know. That having a little brother or sister is the best gift they could get.”
“That’s sweet.”
“Thea asked if she could bite the baby.”
I choked on a piece of chicken. “What?”
“She wanted to know if babies taste different from regular people. I think she’s been watching too many nature documentaries about wolves.”
“Oh my god.”
“I told her absolutely no biting the baby. That babies are fragile and need gentle hands. That biting is not how we show love in this family.”
“And what did she say?”
“She said okay but she looked way too thoughtful about it. I give it a week before she tries anyway.”
“Our daughter is feral.”
“Our daughter is five. And half wolf. Feral comes with the territory.”
We finished eating and Knox cleared away the plates, carrying everything back toward the kitchen. When he came back he had that look on his face. The one that meant he wanted to talk about things I didnotwant to discuss.
“We need to talk about security,” he said.
There it was.
I set down my water glass carefully. “Knox.”
“Lina. Please. Just hear me out before you shut me down.”
“I’m not shutting you down.”
“You’re making that face.”
“What face?”
“The face you make when you’re about to tell me I’m being overprotective and controlling and that you can take care of yourself.”
He knew me so well.
I’d been humoring him for months. Ever since I started showing, Knox had become increasingly paranoid about my safety. He wanted guards following me everywhere, wanted me to check in every hour. Wanted to basically wrap me in bubble wrap and lock me in a tower until the baby was born. It was suffocating.
“I have security,” I pointed out. “Cole checks on me three times a day. Hunt does a perimeter sweep every time I’m at either shop. Noah has my location on his phone. I’m probably the most watched pregnant woman in the state.”
