Chapter 26

Chapter Twenty-Six

Blake

D awn's light filters through the trees, casting shadows across the path as I trudge through the woods with Nathaniel at my side, tension in the air between us.

We haven't spoken since last night's heated argument about Chloe.

When I inhale, I imagine I catch a whiff of her intoxicating scent of lilies and lilacs, even out here. It's all too easy to get lost in thoughts of her, which is what Nathaniel fears—that she'll be a threat to our business, distracting me from my responsibilities.

In my head, I understand his point. My heart, on the other hand, screams that Chloe is special, and letting her slip away is the worst thing for our pack.

"Blake." Nathaniel releases a heavy sigh, breaking the silence. Wariness paints shadows beneath his dark-brown eyes as he scans our surroundings. "I'm not doing this to hurt you. But you know we can't afford any mistakes right now."

"Trust me, I'm aware." I run a hand through my hair, pulling it back into a messy bun. "Our lives can't only be about work, though. Chloe's different."

Nathaniel scoffs, but concern etches his face. "You haven't known her long enough to know that. She's just an Omega whose scent is triggering your instincts. Your judgment is clouded."

"It's possible." I remember her softness beneath me last night, the warm clasp of her body as we came together and how right it all felt. "But she's not the first Omega I've met. There has to be a reason why my Alpha is screaming at me to lock her down. I'm not the only one she calls to, either. She could be good for us if you gave her a chance."

"Good for us?" Nathaniel repeats, his face incredulous. "Or good for you? She means nothing to me."

My hands clench into fists at my sides as I resist the urge to call him out on his lie. Nathaniel has always prided himself on having control of his instincts, which has served him well in business, but not so well in relationships. His father has really done a number on his emotional growth, making him believe reason comes first and the heart a distant second.

Tense silence falls between us. I wish I could have made this trek without Nathaniel tagging along today. Unfortunately, he overheard Holden telling me to search for the rest of Chloe's possessions.

It's not like I could have told him I wanted to go alone when he needs to see how much damage the storm did to his family's cabin.

The tension becomes suffocating, each breath heavy with unspoken words. With how entangled our pack families were, we've shared all of our experiences. First heartbreaks, discovering we were both Alphas, our first ruts when we didn't know what was happening. We've had plenty of fights along with our good times.

Growing up together will do that.

We were raised with the expectation that he would take over the pack business, and I'd step into my father's position as his second hand. Loyal servant to his master. When Nathaniel asked me to break away from our packs to start a new one of our own, I followed without question.

It's been a long time since we've butted heads like this. If someone had asked me last week, I would have said nothing could make our bonds waiver.

But Chloe entering our lives has caused a rift neither of us know how to cross.

The bright blue tarp draped over the cabin's roof peeks through the screen of leaves, out of place among all the green. I'd been here just yesterday. Not even twenty-four hours ago.

Why does it feel like a different lifetime?

We round the path, and the cabin comes fully into view.

Nathaniel freezes in his tracks, his stern composure cracking to betray a rare glimpse of sadness. "Damn. After all these years of it standing strong… right when we can't afford another setback."

"The blue tarp is just loud." I clasp his rigid shoulder. "It's not as bad as it appears."

"You know as well as I do how much unseen damage water can cause." Nathaniel shakes his head. "Between the Omega and this… It's another complication we don't need."

My arm falls back to my side, and I clench my teeth to hold back my retort. Does Nathaniel think that saying her name will somehow make her a real person instead of a chess piece he can shuffle off the board and move on with his life?

"Well, let's get on with this." He continues forward, each step heavy.

We approach, and I point at the sawdust covering the ground around a pile of logs sitting off to the side. "As you can see, it wasn't that big. It only took out the corner. We should have an arborist out to check the other trees in case their root system is compromised."

Nathaniel's brow furrows as he stomps over to inspect what's left of the tree. "We had the area inspected when we built the Homestead."

"They could have missed something." I shrug. "It's been over a year since then."

He nods, but uncertainty fills his expression as he takes everything in.

I join him and frown at all the footprints dried into the mud. A path of them leads down the side of the cabin, pacing in front of the window that the desk overlooks.

Emily and I had made a full circuit of the exterior to check for other damage, but I don't remember walking back and forth that much. It had been a hectic day, though, full of mind-numbing labor. Maybe I'm just forgetting.

Nathaniel follows my line of sight, and his eyes narrow as he scans the area, too. "Is this corner the only part affected?"

"Yeah, as far as we could tell. The structure still felt solid yesterday morning." I turn away from the log-littered ground. "Let's head inside."

The door sticks before it pops open, releasing a musty scent. I lift the lantern I brought along, hanging it on the decorative hook on the wall. The cabin had been retrofitted with electricity, and we'd kept some of the old fixtures to add to the rustic vibe.

"Watch your step," I warn as Nathaniel follows me.

He brings in a second lantern, and their combined illumination is enough to see that the damage hasn't gotten better in the last twenty-four hours. The bubbled finish on the floorboards can't be fixed, but the solid wood floor beneath should be fine once it dries out, and we have extra laminate flooring that we can weave in to replace the damaged boards.

A frown tugs at my lips as I glance around. It feels like things have been moved, but I can't pinpoint what, exactly. Maybe it's just the uneven light from the lanterns? Or one of the construction workers came by to inspect how much work it will take to repair? That would explain the footprints. I'll have to speak to Emily about it later.

I press my palm against the wall near the damage, push, and grunt with satisfaction when it doesn't give an inch. "We'll have to check it with a moisture meter, but if we set up some heat lamps and fix the one corner, we should be okay."

Nathaniel toes at a board poking up on the floor and grunts, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

I take his lantern and head toward the sectioned-off bedroom. "I need to find some of Chloe's clothing that I missed when packing her belongings after the storm."

Nathaniel trails after me. "What are you looking for? I'll search, too."

Possessiveness surges through me. I'm protective of Chloe's panties hiding somewhere in the cabin and don't want to share the details with him when he can't even say her name.

Copper fills my mouth as I bite the inside of my cheek. "Just a personal item. I can do it alone."

"Come on, Blake," Nathaniel insists, his slender muscles tensing beneath his quilted jacket. "It's not like I haven't seen women's clothing before. Let me help."

His words grate on my nerves, and my frustration boils over. My hand clenches around the handle of the lantern, knuckles creaking with strain. "I said I can do it."

Nathaniel scoffs, the sound derisive in the quiet room. "If the thought of me handling her clothes makes you like this, how did you ever expect to share this Omega with the rest of us?"

"If you'd stop calling Chloe the Omega, I might feel better about you touching her panties," I growl, the heat of my anger radiating through my body. Burnt applewood and cider scorch the air around me. "She's a person, not a designation."

Nathaniel studies me, his expression a mixture of disappointment and concern that only serves to fuel the fire. It infuriates me how calm he remains while my emotions run wild.

"It doesn't matter," he says finally, his even tone holding an undercurrent of resentment that has me bristling. "Based on Chloe's reaction when she saw Dominic last night, she'll be off the island on the next water taxi out."

I swallow hard, the sound harsh in my ears.

However much I want to deny it, he's right. The fear in her eyes when Dominic came downstairs, as if the devil himself had appeared, was clear as day. If she could have fled the resort that very moment, she would already be gone.

My heart aches at the thought of losing her so soon after finding her.

It came as a shock to discover our Dominic had known Chloe before any of us and that they have a bad history. And I had been disappointed when I tried to talk to Chloe, only to be turned away. I fucked up by giving in to desire without first talking about our expectations.

"Chloe fits in so well with Holden and me." I hang my head. "I just hoped that, once you met her, you'd feel the same way."

Nathaniel touches my stiff back. "This is why packs court together . Sneaking around trying to arrange everything on your own never works. Even if I was drawn to her, her rejection of Dominic would have made it pointless."

"You're right," I murmur, though no part of me wants to give up.

My chest tightens with the knowledge that no matter what we do, if Chloe rejects a courtship, there's nothing we can do about it. I've heard stories of rejected bonds, but never thought it would happen to us.

Nathaniel clears his throat, rubbing at the thick silver ring on his finger, a remnant of his grandfather's legacy. "Let's focus on finding her missing…intimates."

In a different mood, I would tease him for the slight flush to his cheeks, but I don't have it in me.

Crouching, I search under the bed, see it's empty of anything except a dust bunny in the back corner, and knee-walk over to the wardrobe. When that proves panty-free, I pass the light to Nathaniel and pull out the bottom drawers in case something fell behind them.

No lacy culprit there, either.

We split up, Nathaniel taking the lantern into the bathroom while I crawl around the front room, looking beneath the sofa. I find a soggy troll doll and a crystal, which I pocket, then pull up the cushions. My frustration builds with each passing moment when we don't find the missing articles of clothing. The storm wasn't harsh enough to carry them away, and the cabin's size means searching should be easy.

Where else could they be hiding?

"Anything?" Nathaniel asks, his gruff voice echoing against the tiles.

"Nothing." I toss the pillows back onto the couch.

"Is it possible she missed them in the suitcase?" Nathaniel joins me. "Knowing how you pack, they're probably stuck in one of the side pockets."

"I'm not that bad." A reluctant smile tugs at my lips. "I'll ask her to take another look."

"Good plan." He turns to the vase of flowers on the kitchen table, the stems wilted and petals scattered. "Think she wants these?"

"Naw, that's just depressing." I pick up a water-logged notebook from the floor, hoping that it's not too important, and spot the box of fan gifts by the kitchen table. "But Holden will want the vase back. Pretty sure that's the one his mom gave us as a bonding gift."

"I'll toss them out." He lifts it and heads for the trash bin.

As he does, my phone rings in my pocket and I pull it out. My heart sinks as I see Mrs. Reynold's name on the screen. Sadie better not have locked her out of the penthouse again. The last thing I need right now is to deal with another one of her drunken tantrums.

I press answer and lift the phone to my ear. "Hey, Mrs. Reynolds. What's up?"

At the sound of the housekeeper's name, Nathaniel turns toward me with concern.

"Mr. Harris." Panic fills the older woman's voice. "Ms. Patel— I only left her for an hour?—"

Resignation and sadness sweep through me. I've been waiting for a call like this for a long time. "Just tell me."

Nathaniel comes over, his arm wrapping around me as he leans in close to listen.

"She found some pills. I don't know where she got them from. I swear I searched the house—" She breaks off on a sob. "The ambulance just came to take her to the hospital."

"Okay." I don't even feel panicked anymore by these calls. They've happened so many times that I'm just numb to it all. "I'll come pick up Quinn. If you can just stay with her?—"

"I can't find Ms. Quinn," Mrs. Reynold's wails. "She was here when the ambulance arrived, but now she's gone. I called the hospital, but they said she didn't get into the ambulance! I can't find her!"