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Chapter forty-two

VIOLET

Gray huffs against my neck, nuzzling into the spot just below my ear a few hours later. “Princess, you’re gonna give yourself a headache,” he mutters, wrapping an arm around my waist, holding me against his chest.

I glare at the stack of papers in my lap, the legal jargon swirling into nonsense the longer I stare at it. “I just want to be useful,” I grumble, flipping to another page.

Gray tugs the folder out of my hands, tossing it onto the coffee table. “You are useful. You keep this place running with sheer willpower alone.”

I roll my eyes, but I can’t fight the warmth curling in my chest at the words. I glance over at Sofie, who’s curled up in Hawk’s lap, minding her own business like she wasn’t just clinging to me the second I walked through the door. She’s got her hands wrapped around a mug of cocoa, steam curling up toward her face, and she hums happily as Hawk rubs slow circles on her back.

“See? Sofie’s happy with some hot cocoa and marshmallows.” Gray tightens his grip on me, nosing at my jaw. “Why can’t you be happy with that too?”

I scoff, trying to squirm out of his grip, but Gray’s stronger than he looks when he wants to be. “Because someone has to figure out what the hell is going on,” I argue, shifting in his lap, only for him to grip my hips and grind me back down against him. My breath hitches.

His lips graze my ear, voice dropping into something dark and smug. “You wanna be useful, princess?” His fingers flex against my waist, digging in just enough to send heat down my spine. “I can think of a few ways.”

I shove at his chest, cheeks burning as Lance chuckles from across the room. “Gray, Jesus, I think one public show a day is enough, yeah?”

Gray leans back, hands raised in mock surrender, but there’s that fucking smirk on his lips, the one that tells me he’s going to make me pay for denying him later. “Alright, alright, back to business,” he drawls.

Hawk clears his throat, shifting Sofie just enough to grab a few of the papers from the pile. “None of this looks like anything we didn’t already know,” he says, scanning over one of the documents. “No real leads, just speculation and a lot of expensive-ass problems.”

Lance groans, running a hand through his hair. “Great. So we’re still fucked.”

Puma strolls into the room, rolling up the sleeves of his shirt as he surveys the chaos. “Not necessarily,” he muses, plucking a sheet from the pile in Hawk’s hands. “We just have to keep playing it smart. Let Banks work his legal magic. No one do anything stupid.”

I snort. “Yeah, good luck with that.”

Gray pinches my thigh, and I yelp, slapping his hand away. “Excuse me?” he teases. “You saying we’re not the picture of restraint?”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying, Mr. Alpha who watched me get fucked by another Alpha out on the fucking driveway.” My cheeks warm at the recent memory before I shake it off.

Puma leans against the counter, arms crossed, watching me like he knows exactly how this is gonna go. “You’re not gonna solve this shit in a day. We’ve been seeing this artist pop up for a while, but he’s never sold anything on this side of Ansdale. This is the first time it’s hit this close to home.”

I exhale sharply, wanting to be more helpful than I have been. For some reason, I feel like I have to be. “I like puzzles,” I mutter, running a hand through my hair. “But this one? It’s pissing me off. It’s too hard to decipher, and the worst part is—” My jaw tightens. “It might be my fault.” It clicks why the flip switched the moment I stepped inside. It feels like if I don’t do all I can, then it won’t be enough.

It’s the same way I handled Sofie. It was my fault her parents kicked her out. It was my fault that my parents all but disowned me. And it was my fault we couldn’t survive on our own. It would have never worked—and that’s my fault. Gray tightens his arms around me, his lips brushing my ear. “Breathe princess. Deep breaths for me. There you go. This shit is not your fault, do you hear me? You wouldn’t have known. None of us did. The guy is a damn good forger.”

I let out a bitter laugh, arms crossed tight over my chest. “Yeah? Well, someone should’ve known. Someone should’ve caught it sooner.” If I had been more attentive then I could—

“Vi.” Puma’s voice is softer now, but no less firm. He pushes off the counter and steps into my space, leaning down to grip my chin between his fingers. “It’s not on you.”

I shake him off and turn back to the papers, my head a mess of frustration. My eyes flicker over the little signature, that weird little mark that keeps staring back at me like a challenge. “I can’t just let it go,” I murmur, mostly to myself.

Sofie’s voice pipes up from the couch, where she’s curled up in Hawk’s lap, nursing a cup of cocoa. “She won’t,” she says simply, nudging Hawk’s arm like he should already know this. “Whenever Violet is determined about something, she won’t give it up.”

Hawk smirks, pressing a kiss to the top of Sofie’s head. “Sounds familiar,” he muses, eyes flicking to Lance.

Lance grins, shaking his head. “Yeah, but at least we know when to take a damn break.”

I glare at them. “I do take breaks.”

Sofie snorts. “When?”

Gray chuckles as Puma releases me to sit beside us. “You can’t fix everything overnight, princess,” he murmurs, pressing a kiss to my shoulder. “We’ll figure it out. But you’re not gonna do it by driving yourself insane. It’s also not going to happen tonight.”

I huff, but I don’t fight him. “Let it breathe, dove.”

“From the research we pulled earlier, it looks like all, or at least most, of the fakes came from Ash & Ivory.” Hawk offers. “There were a few at the gallery Violet used to work at but not many.”

A slow coil of unease winds through my gut. “Then Xavier or his son has to know something.”

Gray’s lets out a low whistle. “He’s always been ambitious, but this? This is a different level of recklessness. Reckless ruins people in this business.”

The room stills, thick with tension, but before anyone can respond, Sofie suddenly stretches, arms reaching high above her head as she lets out a dramatic, exaggerated yawn. “Okay, that’s enough for tonight,” she announces, her tone light but her eyes sharp with finality.

A low chuckle rumbles through the room, a mix of amusement and exasperation, but the moment one of them even thinks about arguing, she cuts through it with a soft growl, lips twitching when they all react exactly as expected.

Gray groans, tipping his head back. “Sunshine.”

Sofie lifts her chin, completely unbothered. “And none of you are allowed in the nest tonight.”

Puma chuckles, already knowing better than to push back. “Can’t argue with an Omega in charge.”

Hawk smirks but doesn’t protest, and Lance leans back further, arms crossed, looking entirely unsurprised by the turn of events. Before I can react, Sofie slips from Hawk’s lap, grabs my hand, and tugs me toward the hallway. The door shuts behind us with a quiet but final click, locking us into the warmth of the bedroom, shutting out the rest of the world.

She doesn’t let go of me, fingers curled tight around my wrist as she pulls me closer. The shift is subtle, but I feel it instantly. I study her, searching for something in her expression. “Are you angry, baby?” My voice is quieter now, the sharp edges of the night dulling under the warmth of her presence. “What’s wrong?”

Sofie tilts her head, grinning up at me, all mischief and sweetness, her body pressing flush against mine as she murmurs, “Nothing’s wrong.” A pause, just long enough for me to feel the shift in the air. “I just wanted you tonight, that’s all.”

I cup her cheek, brushing my thumb over her bottom lip, watching the way she reacts to the simple touch. “You could’ve just said that.”

She giggles, leaning into me. “Where’s the fun in that?”

The corner of my lip twitches, amusement cutting through the weight of the night. God, I love her. Sofie pulls me into her nest, settling the pillows around us, waiting for me to lay down before curling into my chest. Her breathing slows until it stills before she speaks again.

“Vi, I know you’re going to do something stupid. You’re going to try and solve this even if it’s not entirely your burden to bear.” I open my mouth to speak but she shakes her head. “No, don’t lie to me, Vi. Just promise me you’ll come back. Whatever you’ve got planned in that head, I know you’re going to do it. You may not even know it yet. Our Alphas won’t like it but there’s no stopping you when you get all determined like this. Just promise me one goddamn thing.” She angles her head up to me, tears glazing her eyes. “Come back to me.”

I hate how well she sees me. And now I know why she really wanted just the two of us, because she knows that I’m going to try something that will inevitably piss off the men we left in the living room. “I promise,” I whisper before pressing my lips to hers. I just hope I can keep it.