Chapter 41 Winnie
Winnie
The nest space at Corbin’s cabin is big. It has smooth, circular walls like most nests, and there are no windows. It has no scent and no decor. Perfect for making it completely my own. The attached master bedroom does have a scent. Unmistakably Corbin’s.
“I can call a company to come in and have it neutralized,” Corbin offers. He’s leaning against the hallway doorframe, watching me take the space in. His posture is calm and reassuring, but the way his eyes track me and his muscles stay rigid tells me he’s nervous about my reaction.
“Have you ever had anyone else stay in this house?” I ask as I make a slow turn around the room. Everything Corbin had in here has been stripped out. They want to take me to Traverse City to make purchases.
He takes a deep, steadying breath. “No.”
I barely suppress the smile creeping across my lips as I step closer. His arm bands around my waist, and my hands fist in the front of his shirt.
“You sure you’re going to be okay with all of this?” I ask.
“I—”
A crash comes from downstairs, followed by the sound of Deputy barking at someone’s clumsy mistake.
“It’s fine!” Zeke’s voice calls from below as chagrin ripples through the bond. “I’m fine! Everything’s fine!” He yells in a tone that clearly means everything is not fine, and we should absolutely not come look.
I bury my face in Corbin’s chest, holding in a laugh as he sighs deeply and runs his fingers through my hair.
We stay like that for a long moment, just him holding me in the doorway.
“I know you like your cottage, Sweetheart,” he says, and my heart sinks a little. “But when you’re ready, I do want you here. All jokes aside. I want this room to be yours, if you like it.”
I pull back enough to look up into his pale blue eyes, already focused on me, already watching.
I nod, but the words won’t come. I do want to move in. I do want to be with them. But that cottage is mine. It’s hard to let go of something you built on your own. It’s hard to plunge into the next thing, the big change, even when you know it’s what your heart needs. Letting go is hard.
I follow Corbin down to the living area, where Zeke is picking up the last of a shelf he knocked over.
“Do you guys have any gigs the weekend after next?” I ask, kicking myself for not asking sooner.
Things have been chaotic with the new baby and everything.
Five sets of eyes turn to me. Gage leans against the kitchen counter.
Eli stands off to the side, nibbling on toast, and Rafe scrambles eggs in a pan.
“No, Princess. Not yet. We were waiting to hear about Stella’s shop. Why?” Gage asks.
“Flora extended an invite to you all for her wedding. She says it’s to be nice, but I think she had some last-minute cancellations. Anyway, I’ll—”
“Yes,” Zeke says without waiting for details. The guys are right. He has no chill. I love that about him.
Zeke’s eyes meet mine and widen slightly, and my heart stutters. Did I just broadcast that down the bond?
Do I love Zeke?
Oh my god. I think I do.
Still, I’d rather tell him in my own way than have it spill through the bond. He opens his mouth again, but Gage cuts him off, completely oblivious to our internal spiral.
“What Zeke means to say is that if you’d like us to come, we’d be happy to. Is it black tie?” he asks.
I nod. My tongue feels too big for my mouth.
“Is the mask an issue?” Eli asks from his corner of the room.
I shake my head. “You know it’s not. They all loved you, Eli. The mask is part of you, and they get that.”
He blushes, but nods and goes back to eating.
“All right then. It’s a date,” Corbin says, swooping in to kiss me lightly. He tastes like mint and musk and just Corbin.
When we pull apart, Zeke is gone, and I’m left wondering.