39. Harlan #5
She lowers herself into the chair and reaches for the highlighter with fingers that are visibly shaking.
Her expression smooths into something bright and agreeable, even as panic claws through our bond.
Of course.
Whatever you need.
I can do it.
I won’t be difficult.
There she is. The version of Cassidy we’ve spent so long trying to dismantle.
The omega who will abandon every need she has before she risks inconveniencing someone she loves.
Something inside me goes perfectly still. This is the line.
I hadn’t known where the line was. I trusted I’d know it when I saw it.
I do.
This is no longer pressure.
It’s damage.
And Harlan is too exhausted to realise he’s causing it. Cassidy is too frightened of being useless to stop him.
I’ve spent the week calling my restraint trust.
Perhaps it was, at first. It isn’t anymore.
Now, if I leave this, it’s negligence.
My alpha settles beneath my skin, no longer fighting for control. He knows we’ve got this. That I won’t let things lie.
I place my hand over Cassidy’s, gently removing the highlighter from her trembling fingers.
She looks up at me, her jaw dropping, her eyes wide with a frenzied panic.
Harlan growls.
I don’t look away from her.
“Enough,” I say.
The word lands with all the authority I’ve spent the week refusing to use. The bark is something an omega cannot ignore, especially not one this exhausted.
Cassidy’s breath catches, but she immediately stills.
Behind me, Harlan goes silent. I straighten slowly, keeping myself between her and the rest of the floor.
I’m not leaving without Cassidy.
And I’m not leaving Harlan here to destroy himself either.
This ends now.
They’re both coming home, and they’re going to learn that in this pack—in my pack—they don’t get to do this to themselves.
Harlan is the first to react. “What the fuck does that mean?”
“It means you’re finished, too,” I say firmly.
His laugh is sharp and humourless. “No.”
I turn towards him fully, remembering that we’re in a room with all of his inferiors, and I do not want to cause a scene.
“You should all go home and give yourselves a break. Nobody in here looks like they’ve slept all week.”
Harlan’s nostrils flare, but even he can’t deny the huge influx of hope amongst the staff.
“You’re all making decisions through exhaustion,” I add.
His face twists, anger pulsing, but with a look around the room, he seems to remember where he is.
For the first time, he properly sees them.
The bowed heads. The untouched coffees. The alpha at the end of the table rubbing at his chest as though he can soothe the agitation beneath it.
Harlan’s shoulders drop by the smallest amount, and he looks over to me, sliding past my anger, and looks at Cassidy.
Now, the anger is gone.
He’s resigned.
He’s panicked.
He’s remorseful.
For the first time in however long, my brother is not seeing his employee.
He’s seeing his mate.
She’s folded in on herself, both hands clenched in her lap now that I’ve taken the highlighter from her. Her skin is pale, her eyes glassy, every breath too shallow, and the faint strawberry cream lingering around her has all but disappeared beneath stress.
He’s horrified by what he’s let happen under his eyes.
“Everyone home,” Harlan says with a heavy look around the room. “Sleep. Rest. Breathe. We’ll meet back here on Monday at nine. Not any earlier.”
Cassidy, Harlan, and I remain where we are as people rush around to pack up.
To escape before he can change his mind.
When the area is a little clearer, Harlan approaches the table.
I squeeze his shoulder as he passes, and he crouches down next to Cassidy on her other side.
“Cass,” he murmurs.
She gives him that same bright, empty smile. “I’m okay, honest.”
His face crumples for half a second.
Fuck.
There’s my brother, and he’s fucking struggling, too.
“No, you’re not.” He scrubs a hand over his mouth, looking around her desk as if the evidence has only just appeared. “How long have you been here today, little luxury?”
Cassidy hesitates, and that’s answer enough.
Harlan closes his eyes. “Fuck.”
Nobody speaks. I don’t need to anymore.
When he looks at her again, there’s no command in his expression, only regret.
“We’re going home,” he says hoarsely. “We’re going to eat, and sleep, and not even look at our laptops.”
Her gaze darts towards the papers, her fingers fidgeting, and I know she wants to protest.
Lucky for us, our mate is unable to argue when two of her alphas are telling her the rules.
“I mean it, Cassidy. We’re both taking a break.” His voice softens, reaching up to tuck her hair behind her ear. “I’m sorry. I should’ve noticed.”
Cassidy nods, tears welling up in her eyes. “Are you sure?”
Harlan smiles. “I’ve never been more sure of anything. Let me grab my shit, and I’ll be back.”
He brushes a kiss to her forehead, gives me a nod, and strides to his office.
Cassidy breathes out a sigh of relief. She curls her fingers around mine.
“Can we go to yours?” she asks quietly. “And maybe Isaac and Evander could come over, too?”
The request settles somewhere deep inside me.
She isn’t asking to hide.
She’s asking for her pack.
This is what I’ve been building all this time. This is what I’ve worked so fucking hard to provide.
“Yes, little moonlight.”
I pull out my phone with my free hand and immediately open up the group chat.
Silas
Mission accomplished.
Silas
Two for one deal, and we’re heading to mine.
Evander
Fuck yes.
Isaac
What do they need?
Silas
Isaac, can you order food? Evander can pick it up on his way over.
Evander
Sure. I want a burger, Isaac.
Isaac
I’ll sort it.
Silas
Good.
Silas
We’ll be half an hour.
“Isaac’s ordering food, and Evander’s going to collect it on his way over,” I tell her softly. “Every laptop is being confiscated at the door. We’re doing nothing tonight.”
Cassidy’s mouth twitches. “Bossy.”
“Correct.”
Her laugh is weak, but it’s something real.
Fuck, she’s far too resilient.
Harlan comes back with his bag, and we both help Cassidy pack her things. With one hand in mine and one in Harlan’s, she breathes easier.
Tonight, they’re coming home. This weekend, we’re going to put them back together.