My heart swelled at her magnanimous response. I loved this woman beyond all reason. And, as soon as she was ready to hear it, I’d tell her as much.
“I’ll be here if you feel uncomfortable,” I whispered into her ear.
Colt jogged off upstairs to speak with Gavin and Flint flopped down onto the couch beside Stark. “So, how’s work going? Kill anyone interesting lately?”
Stark let out an irritated sigh. “I see things haven’t changed much since I left.”
With Colt upstairs, it was my job to act as a buffer between the two fractious wares. “Are you still doing private security, Stark?”
“I am,” my quiet brother answered, kind of killing any further conversation on the subject.
“Fascinating,” Flint said, rubbing his chin. “With such a smooth tongue, brother, I’m sure you have to beat the ladies off with a stick.”
Damn, Flint was in a mood tonight. I was going to have to get down to the bottom of his issue with Stark or else none of us were going to have any peace over the coming days.
“Flint, why don’t you go get some wood for the fire. Millie’s cold,” I told him, when I felt my mate shiver in my arms.
“Why don’t you go and get the wood, and I’ll keep Millie warm?” He countered, giving my mate a lazy grin.
I didn’t respond, only quietly stared at him. After a moment, Flint rolled his eyes and said, “Fine! I’ll get the wood.”
Standing, he loudly stomped outside to the stack that was on the front porch. I noted Stark let out a silent sigh of relief the moment he was gone.
Footsteps on the stairs drew my attention then. It seemed after a brief pep talk, Colt had managed to coax Gavin downstairs. The boy’s face was flushed and his hands were nervously shoved deep inside his pockets as he rounded the couch and sat in the now empty seat near Stark.
Flint returned with the wood then and thankfully didn’t make mention of Gavin’s arrival. Instead, he set about stoking the fire as Colt caught us up on one of his many adventures, this one in Thailand.
When I felt Millie begin to droop exhaustedly against my side, I said into the shell of her ear, “Why don’t you head upstairs and take a nice long shower. You’ve had a long day and I’m sure you’re ready for bed. I won’t be far behind you.”
Nodding, Millie excused herself and everyone said goodnight. Flint didn’t even make any rude comments as she left.
After she was gone, I caught the pack up to speed about what had happened over the last few days and why I’d called them all here. They knew I’d been waiting for Millie to go to bed before I rehashed all the shit she’d been through. No need for my mate to relive all of that trauma all over again.
“You’re sure it’s the Tupilaq pack doing this?” Colt posed, intently sitting forward as he waited for me to finish my thoughts.
“No, I’m not sure of anything,” I admitted. “But that’s my best guess. With Milie’s mother being one of their few omegas,and her coming of age, it makes sense why they’d want to drag her back into the fold. They want her for themselves.”
“But if that’s why they’re coming for Millie,” Colt reasoned out loud, “why not have her mother reach out and try to lure her back in herself? It seems like that might make the most sense, as she’s her only remaining living relative. Scary messages sent from a stranger doesn’t seem to be the smartest tactic. It might only serve to alienate Millie from the pack long term.”
I’d thought about that myself. There were certainly pieces to this complex puzzle we didn’t know yet. “That’s why I don’t think Millie’s mother is behind this push to drag her back into the Tupilaq pack. I think it might just be the work of a single individual, or select individuals, that somehow found out she exists. I think they’re attempting to force Millie back to Alaska with fear, because her mother isn’t part of the plan and they’re out of other options.”
“If they’re stupid enough to try that shit, they deserve the bullet that’s coming their way,” Flint piped up, his electric green eyes conveying exactly how much he’d enjoy delivering his brand of justice to anyone who messed with his family.
His protectiveness of Millie made me remember exactly why I considered this man my brother.
“Flint, have you reached out to your contacts about Millie’s mom yet?” If he hadn’t, it might be best to hold off until we unmasked the texter.
“I did, but I haven’t heard back from anyone yet. When I do, I’ll give you a complete run-down of my intel,” Flint assured me.
“Sounds good,” I told him, as I glanced toward the stairs, fear gnawing at my gut over the thought of anything bad happening to my mate.
Millie
I got up early the next morning because I’d accepted an extra shift at the coffee shop to make some cash. Starving after skipping dinner last night, I headed downstairs, not willing to wait for Ethan to get out of the shower to get some breakfast.
As I came down the stairs, I noticed that someone had already beat me to it. My heart dropped when I saw Gavin pouring himself a steaming cup of black coffee at the kitchen counter.
We both stilled when our eyes locked and I did a sort of stutter-step motion that betrayed how emotionally uncertain I was feeling about his presence.
