Page 18 of Knot for Me
“It’s too dangerous to take a mate.” Lucas sits back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. “We’ll be signing her death warrant.”
“We could get extra security,” I say. “The other packs have done it, but there hasn’t been a problem since Emily. They even caught that weasel beta on Pack Richardson property. He could have been the one who targeted Emily.”Maybe the threat is gone, I finish inside my head.
It’s not natural to be without a mate. We’re all driven by the urge to claim an omega, and Reagan is a delicious temptation we don’t need. Deep down, I think we all know that, but that didn’t stop us from agreeing to bid on her. Lucas was so affected by whatever happened at the Compatibility Ceremony that Cory and I agreed without question.
“Alice sent me a few messages asking what she did.” Lucas sighs.
“She’s been the maid for ten years.” Cory shakes his head. “Reagan can do something else.”
Lucas frowns. “No. She needs a job and that’s the easiest one for her to do. I don’t have time to make up an imaginary position.”
“I’ll arrange a healthy severance,” I say. “Alice will be set for a few years, and we can personally find her a good pack to work for.”
“Good.” Lucas stands and heads to the liquor cart. “Whiskey?”
“Yeah,” Cory and I answer at the same time.
“Emily’s clothes are in the closet still,” Cory says.
“Fuck,” I mutter. “I thought we got rid of those.”
“We had cleaners scheduled, but something came up with the pack…” Cory trails off, trying to remember what it was that made us cancel the scheduled cleaning. “I guess we forgot to reschedule.”
“Was she mad?” Lucas asks, pouring whiskey into three tumblers. He walks over and Cory and I take our drinks.
“Not mad,” Cory begins. “More surprised.” He sets his drink on the desk and pulls out his phone to make a call. “Hi. Pack Bullet needs to donate a closetful of women’s clothes.”
I glance at Lucas who has already finished his first round and heads for another. We really didn’t think this through. We should have made sure the room was ready for her instead of sticking her in there with Emily’s clothes. She’s probably freaking out about that. Omegas seize on little things, and I’m sure she thinks we have a girlfriend or something.
“Four weeks? Really?” Cory sounds more than annoyed. The local charity is usually busy. I’m not surprised it’ll be a while before they make it to our house for a pickup. “No, it’s fine,” he says, making his voice a little softer. “Yes, of course. Thank you.”
“Four weeks is a long time,” I say.
“She’ll be fine,” Lucas cuts in. “If it bothers her so much, she can clean it out herself. There are more pressing matters than what to do about the clothes.” He taps the pile of papers on his desk. Petitions from low packs, complaints from royal families, tasks sent to us by Cornelius, one of his fathers. He’s right. I don’t like Reagan having to deal with Emily’s clothes, but they’re not the most important thing right now.
Clearing his throat, he picks up the first paper, and we start discussing business. As part of the Royal Council, we’re in charge of inter-pack relationships. We’re glorified arbitrators and ass-kissers, but the pay is good and gives us a purpose. Besides, we’re good at schmoozing.
“We have the royal ball,” Cory blurts, suddenly remembering that in two weeks’ time, our house will be filled with alphas. Several of which are unmated.
“Reagan can’t be here for that event, Lucas.”
He gives me a look. “What do you propose we do with her? Lock her up?”
Tipping my head to the side, I imagine the feisty woman handcuffed to a bed and adjust myself in my pants. “That’s not the worst idea.”
“We’re not locking her up.” He drinks the rest of his expensive whiskey, not caring that it’s meant for sipping.
“So she comes with us. One of us stays with her the whole time,” I suggest.
Lucas pulls a face. “Then they’ll think we’ve taken a mate.”
“She can work with the servers. You know Katie will take care of her. She can stay in the kitchen and help get the trays ready. We can’t leave her alone… it’s too dangerous. But if she’s with Katie, she should be safe.”
Lucas and I both look at Cory, surprised he actually came up with a good idea. Cory is not the best at problem-solving. He bristles and scowls at us. “What?”
“That might work.” Lucas turns in his seat and grabs the remote from the desk drawer, switching on the big screen television on the side wall. A grid of twenty-four different pictures comes up, showing what’s happening inside and outside of our house. The extra security measures weren’t added until after Emily, but it’s nice to know we have a system continuously monitoring for intruders.
Reagan is pacing in her room, wearing a pair of yoga pants and a tank-top. She’s piled her brunette hair into a messy bun that bounces as she walks.
