Page 25 of Pack Down Bad

“That’s still her choice to make.” Once she finds out we lied... “She deserves the truth.”

“She deserves time.”

“Time forwhat? To fall for a fantasy? For a version of her life where we trap her in a cabin and hope she doesn’t ask too many questions?”

Rhys sighs and runs his fingers through his hair. “I didn’t lock her in a basement, Knox. I gave her space to breathe and process her feelings about finding us. Do you really think Belle is worried about scrolling the internet while she’s following us around, learning about us and the cabin? Doesn’t seem to me like she’s missing anything much.”

His voice is thick with innuendo.

He doesn’t think anyone is waiting for her at home. I’m not so sure. She’s too sweet and curious to be alone. An omega like her? Alphas would line the block to take care of her, even if they wouldn’t be taking half as good care of her as we can.

“None of that is the point.” What is keeping her worth if we have to trick her to make her stay? “Her memory is going to come back, you said it yourself. And then what happens if even after all of this, she still chooses to go home? Because if that’s the choice she makes, I’ll tell you right now that I won’t let our pack disrespect her right to make that decision for herself.”

For once, Rhys doesn’t seem to have a snappy comeback at the ready. He crosses his arms, his expression unreadable.

* * *

Rhys

There has to be some way to change Knox’s mind. I know that the truth will inevitably come out. I’m not trying to keep Belle in the dark forever, just for a little longer. Like a teeny, morally grey grace period.

“I’m going to tell her the truth,” Knox says. His voice has that infuriating finality to it, the kind that makes you want to launch a snowball directly at his face.

If he could just wait until we’re all wearing matching pajamas and eating waffles made by my gloriously gifted hands–like a real pack–that’d be ideal.

He’s the pack alpha. Ultimately, this should be his choice to make. But I can’t let him make the choice without one last-ditch effort to convince him to give us a little more time. Belle already seems so happy here. In another day or two, I think she’ll have a hard time leaving even if her memory comes back in full.

“Before you tell her, there’s something you should see,” I tell him.

“Nothing will change my mind.”

I’m sure he believes that. I also know that Knox has a soft, marshmallow center under that dark, broody exterior. Beneath the I-fight-my-inner-demons-and-they-win energy, he’s basically a gooey pile of whipped cream.

“Just come with me.” I wait until my back is to him to roll my eyes.

Knox isn’t nearly as tough as he pretends. I see the way he melts for Belle when he thinks no one is looking, like she’s the sun and he’s just some tragic vampire trying to catch a tan. His whole body relaxes, his lips tipping up into a secret smile when he watches her.

I’m counting on his soft spot for her to kick in and stop him from potentially sending her back to where she came from prematurely. I want our mark on her before she goes home... and to only stay there long enough to pack her things.

Belle’s home is with us now. She can burn her old place to the ground, for all I care.

As expected, Knox follows me to the house with only a little grumbling under his breath. I ignore that the way I usually do, content to let him grumble away so long as he follows.

I pause at the threshold of Percy’s office.

We all share the spaces on our property as needed, but Percy gets the most claim to the small library room with custom bookshelves that I built for his book collection a few years ago. He’s the only one of the three of us who works anything close to a traditional desk job. Knox prefers to do his art in the workshop, which has been optimized with a lighting setup perfect for his social media posts. And I spend as much of my time as possible outside, even in the winter, maintaining the property and looking for new ways to improve our cabin’s efficiency.

“Look,” I whisper to Knox, stepping aside to let him fill the doorway.

I rest a hand on his shoulder, squeezing to try and alleviate the tension there. Lying to Belle is eating at him, but as I watch the omega, I tell myself that sometimes you have to make desperate calls in life.

Belle is so mesmerized by Percy’s shelves that she doesn’t notice us watching her as she stares wide-eyed at the spines of each book one by one. She might not be totally in love with the three of us yet, but she’s definitely in love with Percy’s home library. She’s only moved one bookshelf down since I last peeked in on her, and her face is still lit up with joy as if seeing the room for the first time every time she finds a new book title she recognizes.

Our sweet snow bunny loves books as much as Percy does, if not more.

“This is the most wonderful thing I’ve ever seen,” she announces dreamily.

Percy, who has been watching her from his desk chair, laces his fingers behind his head and leans back in his chair with a wide smile. I couldn’t have helped Knox witness a sweeter moment if I tried.

---