Page 66 of In the Mouth of the Wolf

“Or,” he continued, “Elias offered to bring you to Chicago. We’d still try to make weekend visits work, but at least you’d be with one of us all the time.”

Archer sure had a lot of suggestions. I raised an eyebrow. “You guys have been talking about this without me?”

He shrugged. “It’s been weighing on us. As much as we’re enjoying this honeymoon period, we all have responsibilities that have been put off, and we need to return to the real world soon. But we don’t want to do that without a plan because your happiness and safety are now our top priority.”

I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from crying. “All I know is, living away from any of you will be impossible.”

Archer had reached over to grab my hand when Rachel exited the kitchen, balancing our order on a large tray. “I don’t even like considering it, either.”

“Okay,” Rachel chirped as she approached us. “Two double bacon burgers, cheese curds, and two root beer floats. Enjoy!”

I smiled my thanks and as soon as she was gone, I switched my plate with Archer’s.

He tilted his head in confusion and I whispered, “I’m not saying she spit in my burger. But I know that if I had just found out I was serving the female who stole my boyfriend, I might spit in her burger.”

“Oh, so I get the spit burger then?”

I pouted. “But I thought you were into that kind of thing?”

He rolled his eyes and took a quick bite. “Brat,” he mumbled.

I popped a cheese curd in my mouth and winked. “Thank you, alpha.”

32

MARLOWE

Ibarely had my shoes off before Cam ran into the room, picking me up into his arms and burying his face into my neck. “Mm, I missed you so much, babe.”

My heart craved the attention, but I was still upset. “I know someone who missed you, too,” I sighed. “Her name’s Rachel. Ring a bell?”

Cam stilled, slowly setting me back down on my feet. He shot a look at Archer, who walked by, patting him on the shoulder for luck before heading upstairs and leaving him to face me on his own. Nolan looked up from where he was working at the kitchen island. He closed his computer and smiled, bringing his hands up behind his head, ready to enjoy the show.

Cam panicked, and I secretly enjoyed watching him squirm. “She means nothing, I swear it. I haven’t even thought about her since I met you.”

I crossed my arms, tapping my foot. “Yeah, that’s entirely the problem! You didn’t think to shoot the poor female a text and let her know it was over? So she wouldn’t have to find out by meeting your omega while she was at work?”

Nolan whistled in amusement, and Cam shot him a dirty look before turning back to me. “I would have told her eventually, I just…”

“Has she tried to text or call you since last weekend?”

“Uh…”

The guilty look on his face enraged me. “You stood her up and then ignored her? That’s a horrible way to treat people, and you know it.”

He hung his head. “Yeah…”

“You’re going to call her,” I demanded, pointing a finger in his chest. “Callher, not text, and properly apologize. You’re not going to try to justify yourself. If she gets mad, you’re not going to get defensive. You’re going to acknowledge her feelings and admit you were wrong. Got it?”

His shoulders slumped and he looked down to the floor. “Got it.”

“Good.” I gave him a pat on the cheek. “And finally, you’re going to buy me a giant box of chocolates to apologize for the awkward situation you put me in.”

He nodded and then slinked off down the hall into his office, closing the door behind him.

“Damn, sugar!” Nolan said. “You almost killed my cousin for standing next to me, but after meeting Cam’s ex you sympathized with her? Does that mean you like me more?”

“Ha ha,” I replied, getting a can of sparkling water out of the fridge. “Maybe I’ve just evolved. Did you ever think about that?”

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