Graham—Mr. No Bullshit, No Risks, No Playing Games—is agreeing with me.
Warmth spreads in my chest. Sometimes, I do have good fucking ideas.
Hunter shakes his head. “So what? We just let you play the bait? He’s dangerous. You’ve read his file.”
I roll my eyes. “Actually, Willow is the bait, whether we let it happen or not.”
His nostrils flare, jaw ticking as his gaze flicks between me and Graham, waiting for him to shut this down.
Graham exhales slowly through his nose. “It’s not a terrible idea,” he finally mutters.
“That guy kills alphas,” Hunter scoffs. “It’s insane.”
“I didn’t say it wasn’t.” Graham lifts his brows. “But it might be the only way to get her to see Finn for what he really is.”
Hunter’s shoulders tense. He doesn’t like it. He hates it. But he doesn’t immediately shoot it down.
Which means I’m making progress.
I smirk. “C’mon, Hunt, don’t act like you don’t see the value here. She wants him.” His fingers curl into fists, and I hold up my hands before he can deck me. “I didn’t say she loves him. But she’s drawn to him. And you and I both know that you can’t force an omega to break that kind of bond—not with logic. She has to see it for herself.”
Hunter grinds his teeth so hard, I swear I hear it crack.
Graham nods once, firm. “He’s right.”
“He’s right?” Hunter barks a humorless laugh, his frustrationsnapping. “So we just hand her over? Just sit back and let Finn?—”
“We don’t hand her over,” I cut in. “We control it.”
Hunter exhales hard through his nose, still pissed. Still resisting.
I step closer, lowering my voice. “You know her, Hunt. If we keep forcing her into a corner, she’s going to run or murder us herself.” I glance at Graham. “And I don’t know about you, but I’d rather she run toward us than away. That and I enjoy breathing.”
That lands.
Graham’s expression tightens, his mind clearly working through the logistics. He hates not having control, but he also knows I’m right.
Hunter’s jaw flexes. His pulse ticks in his throat. He drags a hand through his hair, frustration rolling off of him in waves. “And if it backfires? If she doesn’t see what we want her to see?”
I smirk. “Then we handle it. Like we always do.”
Hunter mutters something under his breath before shooting Graham a look. “We better handle it.”
Graham nods once, sharp and decisive. “We will.”
A beat of silence.
Then I clap my hands together. “Great. Let’s go put this plan in motion.”
Hunter groans. “Oh yeah, this will go over real well.”
CHAPTER 39
Willow
I barely slept.
Not because I wasn’t exhausted…I was. But every time I closed my eyes, I felt everything pressing down on me. The suffocating presence of them outside my door. Not that I looked out into the hallway, I just knew they were there. The new lock on my window. My dad—the traitor—backing them up instead of me.
