Page 29 of Knot The Only Onee

“Let's give her a bit, and then Alena can retrieve her.” Simon pocketed his phone and folded his arms over his chest again. “I know you have a solid plan to take care of the woman I consider my sister, but I feel it’s necessary to repeat myself. If you hurt her in any way, I will bring Xavier and his knives with me to gut you.”

Fancy talk coming from the stuffy British lawyer.

James snorted. “That would sound like a threat if Xavier was saying it. You?” James looked Simon up and down. “Nope.”

Simon narrowed his eyes before he practically started pouting. Alena bounced into view–I adored how much she’d come out of her shell since the first time we’d seen her–and wrapped her arms around Simon’s waist. “He’s right.” She giggled. “But I still think you're fierce and sexy.”

And back to the lovey-dovey comments that made me want to gag.

Well, that wasn’t entirely true. They pissed me off because I was jealous as fuck, and wanted to experience that sort of banter with Bridget.

But I had to be patient, I kept reminding myself.

Simon grumbled under his breath as he returned his mate’s embrace and kissed the top of her head.

“So, I think we’re all on the right page concerning Bridget.” Noah drew us all back to the more pressing subject. “Patience. Show her we care without coming on too strong and making her feel as comfortable as possible.”

James and I nodded, and I kept my mouth shut by biting my tongue. More snarky comments wouldn’t do anything except earn me another spanking tonight. Although the idea was hot…

No. I needed a clear head.

Well, as clear as it could get when it was jammed packed with so many other random thoughts.

“I’m going to go up and say goodbye.” Alena drew herself from Simon's arms. “And I’ll bring her down in a few minutes.”

“Thanks, Alena,” Noah grinned, but the gesture didn’t reach his eyes. Our poor alpha had the weight of the world on his shoulders, and I knew there was something he wasn’t telling us about the state of the ranch.

I’d been poking around trying to figure it out, but he kept everything locked upright.

I shared a glance with James, who saw the same thing I did.

If I had to distract myself from Bridget, I would find out what Noah was keeping from us. We knew that the finances weren’t in good shape, but this seemed like it was beyond that.

And I was going to make Noah tell us.

When I set my mind to something, nothing would stop me.

CHAPTER14

Bridget

Alena poked her head inside my room as she knocked on the door. “Hey, can I come in?” She was tentative as if I were a wild deer about to bolt at any moment.

“Yeah,” I answered and plucked my AirPods out of my ears and put them back in their case.

She sank on the bed next to me and turned those large, expressive eyes toward me. “Are you okay?”

I snorted. “That’s a loaded question. One with no certain answer.”

“Fair enough.” She thought about it for a moment. “I still have trouble with thinking I’m worthy sometimes. After we spend our whole lives being told we’re nothing more than property to trade and barter over, shifting that thinking can be almost impossible.”

“God, that’s so true.” I nodded and swiped beneath my eyes to capture the stray tear that escaped. “I want to believe I’m good enough for them. I do. But it’s going to take time.”

Alena nodded and placed a comforting hand over mine. “It is. And the guys understand that. They’re going to give you time. But they aren’t going away.”

“They’re way too damn stubborn for that.” I let out a barking laugh.

“You’ve already gotten to the heart of them in one day. You’re going to fit in perfectly here.”