Page 14 of A Pack of Honey
Anonymous threats, whispered warnings, and the vandalism at the front gate have all been unsettling, but this… this feels like a violation I can’t grasp. I never imagined someone could descend to such darkness to strike at me. My heart races, and I want nothing more than to crawl into my nest, curl up, and disappear from it all.
I feel small and exposed under the weight of their gazes, the world closing in around me. Each breath is heavy with dread. This spiraling anxiety has become my constant companion lately, a relentless burden that claws at my very soul. I just want to escape, to hide from the chaos and the dread gnawing at me, but it feels like every path is blocked. I don't know how much longer I can endure this.
Instead, I draw in a deep, fortifying breath, lifting my chin defiantly as I turn to face my two employees. Cole's arm slides from my side, a subtle loss I ache from. "Did anyone see them?" I ask, my voice steady.
Cole stands so close that I can feel the brush of his tailored jacket against my bare arm, igniting a tantalizing spark. I don’t pull away. His scent is intoxicating, wrapping around me like a warm embrace, making me feel simultaneously grounded and dangerously exposed.
Sally and Sean both shake their heads. My eyes snag on the spray paint again, and for a moment, I can't remember what todo. As the owner, I should know, but nothing like this has ever happened before.
"Have you called the police?" Cole asks. My eyes snap back to him, but he isn't looking at me. He's exuding all of his dominance on the two beta twins who work for me.
"I—not yet," Sean admits.
"We don't get a signal out here," Sally says. It's true. You have to drive into town for that, and even then, it's best to be at The Evergreen Café for a signal that isn't spotty as hell.
My eyes stay on Cole. When this vandalism started, there were two possible culprits. One is standing next to me now, and though I think it's the other, how can I be sure? The way he'd acted at dinner, so morose. I'd thought that he realized what I was trying to say. That we're a terrible match that couldn't fit together. But what if he'd been expecting this to happen, and that's the reason for his surly mood? What if this was the plan? To further intimidate me into selling.
Cole looks back down at me, and when our eyes meet, I know he understands what I'm thinking. I turn to march back up to the house. I have a landline where I can call the police.
A hand reaches for my wrist, and I snatch it away. "Don't grab me," I snap at him. His eyes meet mine, and he raises his hands in surrender. His salt and pepper hair tosses in the wind.
"We didn't do this," he says, his voice a low growl. Even without trying, his dominance flexes in the air around us. I don't care. I'm not his bound omega, and I won't be quelled by him.
I look to Sally and Sean, who appear torn between defending me, and running away from such a dominant alpha. "I'll meet you at the house. Use the landline to make the call, please." They hesitate but finally leave, glancing over their shoulders at us the whole way. I turn back to the alphas.
Cole looks at me steadily with his hands in his pockets. Luca, Jess, and Hunt all seem stunned at the implication between me and Cole.
"So, you hound me for months about my land, and then come here, and now the vandalism escalates? I'm supposed to just believe that's a coincidence?" I look between them. I'm not even sure why I stayed to talk to them. What can they say? There's no proof either way.
"Why would we agree to dinner if we planned on doing this?" Hunt asks. I have a feeling he's usually the rational one. He comes across like a boulder in a lake. No matter how the storm churns, it never wavers.
"I don't know." I'm being stubborn now. I know who did this in my soul, but I can't stop taking all my frustration out on these alphas. Having them here with their scents is crushing. Knowing this can't work makes me feel overwhelmed in a way I haven't let myself experience in a long time.
"You want my land, and people have been threatening me, and now you're here, and we justhappento be scent-matched, and then this happens. None of that seems like a coincidence." I'm still pushing. I can't stop myself.
"People have been threatening you?" Jess growls. "Who?" He looks as though he may rip off the head of anyone that I name at this moment. I roll my eyes.
"You, maybe." I throw up my hands in exasperation and then bury my face in them. This is the tipping point. I'm going to have a breakdown. Between Gran's diagnosis, the farm, the legal battles, the Night Pack, and our scent-sensitive match. This vandalism stretches me too far. I don't know how I can handle all of this.
Large hands grip mine with a possessive intensity, drawing them away from my face. Cole stands before me. I can see the contours of his strong jaw. His brows knitted together inconcern. His vibrant green eyes pierce into mine. One hand cradles my face. His thumb glides softly across my cheek as he wipes my tears away. The intimacy of the moment ignites a spark, leaving me yearning for more.
"I'm sorry," he says. A sharp intake of breath from the alphas behind him tells me that this is not a phrase he uses often. "I'm sorry for the language I used when I was trying to buy your land. And I'm sorry for every damn thing I did that made you believe that we would stoop to doing anything like this." Gesturing toward the pole barn and the broken things around it. He hunches down so that we're at eye level. Alphas are so tall. "Please, hear me when I say we would never do this."
Tears slip from my eyes again. I really need that to be true. Them being behind the vandalism would ruin me. It might be my breaking point if I'm mated to people who are that cruel.
I nod, and he straightens. I start returning to the farmhouse, the guys trailing behind me. My feet are clipped by a couple of twigs as I walk. I don't know how I didn't get stabbed in the foot on the way out. Maybe I did, and adrenaline just didn't let me notice. Hunt jogs a little to catch up, stopping me with a light touch to my shoulder.
"Your foot is bleeding," he says. I look down to find a red smear curving up from the bottom of my right foot. Now that the adrenaline is wearing off it’s started to ache. His eyes are concerned, and his expression practically breaks my heart. His gaze is so soft and vulnerable.
"Please let me take you the rest of the way,” he says.” I can't watch you walk like that."
It's an honest-to-god tug of war in my soul between my pride balking at being carried like a child, and my omega, whodesperatelywants to get as close to their scents as she can.
The bleeding foot wins out, along with Hunt's soft expression. If any of the others had asked, I would have refuse. I nod, andhe offers me his back. My foot hurts so much at this point that I'm afraid to jump up, but Luca is behind me. He places his hands on my waist and lifts me slightly so that I can grasp Hunt's shoulders while Hunt hooks his arms under my knees. Heat sizzles every place where our bodies meet, and I perfume.
I want to cry again. Could today get any more embarrassing? I think not. Thankfully, everyone ignores it, probably sensing my embarrassment, and we move on.
Hunt smelled of laundry left out on the line and soap. It's so clean and refreshing that when I put my chin on his shoulder, I allow the scent to take away my thoughts. I feel more put together when we get back to the farmhouse. The police car is just coming up the driveway. We aren't too far from town. Hunt sets me down, and the pack moves to the side to discuss something in hushed whispers.
