Page 6 of Down Knot Out (Pack Alphas of Misty Pines #3)

Chapter Four

Chloe

I reach for the last triangle of sandwich at the same time Nathaniel does, and our fingers brush, shooting off sparks that leave me tingling all over.

I turn to him with a mock frown. “A gentleman would let a lady have the last piece.”

“A gentleman wouldn’t point out that a lady already ate two-thirds of the sandwiches,” he teases before drawing his hand back. “I suppose you can have it while I start on the cookies.”

With a gasp, I lunge for the container. “No, you can have the sandwich!”

He laughs as he holds it out of reach, forcing me to climb on top of him, hands grasping.

His arm comes around me, tugging me close. “ Nuh-uh. You made your choice. Live with the consequences.”

“But I have regrets!” I bounce in his lap, trying to reach higher. “Sandwich regrets!”

Nathaniel’s arm tightens around me with a soft growl, and I look down, realizing how close we are, our faces only inches apart.

My cheeks warm, and I blink. “Oh, hello.”

“Hello.” His nose nudges mine, and my breath hitches. “Might I suggest a compromise?”

I lick my lips. “I like compromises.”

“How about we share the last sandwich and open the cookies together?”

“I like the way you think.” I turn in his arms and settle in his lap instead of returning to my spot beside him on the blanket. I wiggle my ass to situate myself and grab the last triangle of cucumber sandwich, lifting it to his lips. “Big bite.”

Hand on my stomach, he leans forward and takes a bite, his lips brushing my fingers in the process and sending a shiver through me.

“Delicious.” He swallows and nuzzles my neck. “Are you cold?”

I start to protest, but he’s already moving, reaching for the thermos set beside him. The lid pops open, steam curling out in lazy ribbons that make my mouth water even before I smell the chocolate.

“Here.” He pours, his steady hands not wasting a drop as he fills the metal cup. “It’s still hot.”

The rich, sweet scent hits me like a hug, and a little sigh slips out as I take it from him. Our fingers brush, and the heat that blooms at the contact has nothing to do with the drink.

“Thanks.” I pop the rest of the sandwich into my mouth so I can wrap both hands around the cup.

Nathaniel’s arms come back around me, tucking the jacket closed. “I should have brought a blanket.”

I lean against his chest. “Why when you can keep me warm?”

He starts to purr, the vibrations traveling through me, and I sigh with contentment as I take a careful sip. Rich, smooth chocolate spiced with a hint of cinnamon.

Perfect.

Everything about this is perfect, and I feel almost safe.

He props his chin on my shoulder. “Something you want to talk about?”

The question startles me, since we’ve been talking this whole time .

I swallow my mouthful of chocolate and look around. “Oh, uh, Holden outdid himself with the picnic basket, didn’t he?”

“He did.” Nathaniel’s lips press to my temple. “If you don’t want to talk about it, it’s okay. But it’s not good to hold things in for too long. As Blake keeps telling me, we’re stronger together.”

Keeping my mom’s debt and Louie’s threat hidden had put us in danger, I understand that. But things have been moving so fast, and I’ve been handling everything alone for so long, I’m never sure when it’s right to unload on them when I’m not part of the pack yet.

But should I even be joining the pack without putting all my cards on the table?

It’s these kinds of thoughts what keep me up at night.

I cradle my hot chocolate in my lap and stare out at the waves. “The man I grew up thinking was my father kicked my mom and me out of the Sinclair pack after a DNA test proved I wasn’t his daughter.”

He hums but doesn’t speak, already knowing all this.

“And then my mom bound me to her loan shark, so he’d keep giving her money.

Then also extorted me for money once my books became popular.

” God, my life sucked. “Only she falsified my DNA, which meant the courtship with Louie was all invalid, but no matter how much I think about it, not even my mom would screw over the Santaro pack, so why ?”

“Louie never said anything?” Nathaniel asks.

I hang my head. “On his yacht, he said I was the key to making his dreams come true. When I asked what he meant, he said I’d find out after we were bonded.”

Nathaniel growls at the suggestion that I’d bond with another Alpha before he cuts it off with a hard exhale. “That’s never going to happen now. And no one from the Santaro pack has approached you, right?”

“No.” I straighten with alarm, the idea never having crossed my mind. “Do you think that’s a possibility?”

He shakes his head. “Louie didn’t appoint an heir. They’ll be too busy infighting over the next head for a while. Their casinos alone are worth billions. They were in the process of scouting a location for their newest all-inclusive when Louie died.”

My mouth gapes. “How do you know all that?”

“Blake’s father put in a bid to build it once they settle on the location.” He rubs my arms. “Is this what’s been bothering you?”

“Some of it.” I take a sip of cocoa and whisper into my mug, “I have nightmares.”

“Oh, sweetheart.” He takes the mug from my hands and sets it aside before shifting me to face him. “Is that why you’ve been holing up in your room every night? Because you don’t want to disturb any of us?”

Unhappiness stings with the threat of tears. “It’s unattractive and jarring. Might scare you away.”

“Or not being alone might keep the nightmares at bay.” He cups my cheek, drawing me to face him. “If it doesn’t, one of us will be there to hold you until you can go back to sleep.”

I sniffle and blink quickly. “You’re very logical.”

“It’s one of my best and worst qualities.” His lips quirk. “Blake tells me so.”

Gaze dropping to his lips, I lean closer. “Blake’s very smart.”

“Don’t tell him that,” Nathaniel whispers, his breath feather-soft on my face. “We’ll never hear the end of it.”

I giggle and start to kiss him when his phone buzzes. With anyone else, I’d think the moment was broken, but Nathaniel silences it without checking the screen, his attention unwavering .

“Sorry,” I say, though I’m not sure what for.

For dumping my issues on him? For the electric thing happening between us? For wanting him to touch me so much I might combust?

“Don’t be.” His fingers thread through my hair to massage the back of my neck.

I swallow hard, heart racing as his pheromones intensify, surrounding me in leather and clove.

“Oh, look.” Nathaniel’s other hand lifts, pointing across the water. “Out there.”

At first, all I see are waves and white foam…

“Oh!” The exclamation bursts from me as a glossy black fin breaks the surface, followed by another, then another. “Are those whales?”

Nathaniel’s fingers trail down to my nape. “Looks like a pod of orcas.”

A larger one breaches, body suspended above the waves for a heartbeat before crashing back with a splash visible even from our distance.

“Look at them!” I clutch the front of Nathaniel’s polo shirt. “Whales!”

They continue their journey parallel to the shore, fins breaking the surface as they swim past.

I sit transfixed, joy bubbling up inside me, all the worries forgotten. “They’re so beautiful.”

“Yes,” Nathaniel agrees.

But when I turn to share my delight with him, he’s not looking at the water. His dark brown eyes focus on me, burning with an intensity that steals my breath.

Time suspends. The whales, the ocean, the entire beach stilling.

“Nathan—” I begin, but don’t finish.

His warm mouth finds mine, lips moving with deliberate pressure, tasting of coffee, chocolate, and cucumber.

Heat spreads through my core, my Omega instincts singing at the contact. My lashes flutter down, and my hands find purchase on his shoulders, kneading the slender muscle beneath his polo shirt. He smells so good, the leather-clove scent intensifying with his arousal.

His tongue traces the seam of my lips until I part for him with a small whimper of desire. His hand tightens in my hair, not painful but commanding, holding me to him as if I might otherwise float away.

Behind my closed eyelids, I see stars despite the daytime, my body melting into his touch like it was made for this.

Made for him. The blanket beneath us, the containers from our picnic, the open beach curving outward in either direction…

all of it fades under the skill of his mouth on mine, the press of his body as he shifts closer .

When we separate, both breathing harder, a flush heats me from cheeks to chest. My lips tingle, sensitive and swollen.

Nathaniel’s dark eyes meet mine, pupils expanded with desire. “I’ve wanted to do that since we left the Homestead.”

I lick my lips, tasting him. “What took you so long?”

His laugh transforms his face, and my heart skips. “Anticipation heightens the pleasure.”

His mouth finds mine again, hungrier this time, and my body responds, heating beneath the padded jacket.

Nathaniel’s hand slides around my neck, thumb tracing my jawline in a possessive gesture.

The kiss deepens, grows more urgent, and I melt into him.

Then his hand moves to my waist, fingers splaying across the thin fabric of my T-shirt.

“Is this okay?” he murmurs against my mouth, his voice gravel-rough with restraint.

I nod, not trusting words. His hand drifts lower, skimming my hip, tracing the curve of my thigh.

Through the fabric, his touch burns, desire pooling between my thighs.

It’s been too long since the shower with him and Blake, and now I regret all the nights I slept alone, wishing his hands had been on me.

Nathaniel kisses along my jaw, down the column of my throat, his teeth grazing my pulse point. The sensation sends shivers through me, and I tilt my head, offering more of myself. His leather-clove scent intensifies, and I inhale, letting it fill my senses.

“You smell so good.” His breath flutters over my collarbone. “I want to expand the garden so I can add your scent to it.”

His desire to incorporate me into his home shifts a hurt place inside me. Flowers take forever to grow. He’s planning for a future with me in mind, and it heals a piece of me that broke when my father disowned me.

His fingers trace patterns on my inner thigh, each circle moving higher, teasing. My breath comes quicker now, shallow and uneven as his hand slips up under my shirt to cup my breasts, thumbing my hard nipples through my bra.

I gasp, his touch igniting a molten heat in my belly that spreads downward, turning my limbs liquid. He watches my face, reading every micro-expression with intense focus as his fingers slip around to the back, undoing the clasp, and then palming my bare flesh.

His mouth finds mine again, hungrier this time, his tongue sweeping into my mouth in slow, languid strokes that leave me trembling.

I answer with a soft moan, fingers tightening in the fabric of his shirt.

His heartbeat pounds through his chest, steady but strong, holding himself in check. His restraint only fuels my desire.

I shift in his lap, straddling him more fully, and his breath catches. His hands drop to my waist, steadying me, and his fingers skim below my waistband. Shivering at the contact, I press closer, desperate for more.

His lips trace a path from my mouth to my jaw, then lower, his teeth grazing the sensitive skin beneath my ear. “Still sure?”

“Yes.” The word leaves me in a breath, with no hesitation. I tangle my fingers in his hair to keep him close, heart pounding so hard it pulses in every limb. “Please.”

He exhales slowly, as if he’s letting go of something heavy, and his hands begin to move again with more confidence.

One slides up beneath my shirt, fingers splaying across my back as he guides me to lean into him.

The other glides down, along the outside of my thigh, making me hyperaware of every inch of skin, every shift of fabric.

“You’re so soft.” His lips brush along my collarbone. “So warm.”

I gasp when his hand curves behind my knee, lifting it to settle me more securely. The move surrounds me with his warmth, his body a wall of strength I never want to escape.

He shifts us, laying me back on the blanket. “Still okay?”

“More than okay.” I stretch out beneath him, back arching. “I need you, Alpha.”