Chapter 19
The cursor blinks mockingly at me from my laptop screen.
I’ve just finished another chapter.
Fourteen pages. Damn amazing for a morning’s work.
I lean back in the wooden chair I’ve claimed as mine here in the watchtower, stretching my arms above my head until my spine pops.
A week of this routine and I’m finally hitting my stride again.
The words are flowing like they haven’t in months—hell, maybe years.
If I keep this pace, I’ll have the manuscript finished by the end of next month.
The thought sends a thrill through me.
For the first time since Chad’s betrayal, I feel like myself again.
Like the writer I was meant to be, not some broken shell of a woman questioning every word she puts on paper.
The morning sun streams through the windows, casting everything in golden light.
I dive into plotting the next chapter when heavy, deliberate footsteps thump on the wooden stairs outside.
“Don’t mind me,” Atlas’s deep voice rumbles as he steps into the watchtower, his full attention on me.
“Just enjoying the scenery.”
I twist in my chair to face him, and sweet Jesus, the man should come with a warning label.
He’s wearing jeans that could be classified as a public hazard for how perfectly they hug every inch of his powerful thighs.
His navy button-up shirt is rolled to his elbows, revealing those corded forearms that make my mouth go dry, and he’s got that slow, knowing smile that makes my heart perform Olympic-level gymnastics.
“The scenery of the forest is pretty spectacular from up here,” I manage, though my voice comes out breathier than I intended.
“I wasn’t talking about the forest.” His gaze sweeps over me, taking in my messy bun, my oversized sweater that’s slipping off one shoulder, and the way I’m curled up in this chair like it’s my personal throne.
“Oh?” Heat blooms in my cheeks, spreading down my neck.
“What scenery were you referring to, Chief?”
He strides toward me with powerful shoulders, chest out, lips pulling into a devious grin.
My skin prickles with awareness.
“A brilliant woman lost in her creative world, completely in her element.” He stops close enough that I inhale his intoxicating scent, and the heat radiating from him.
“That’s one hell of a view, Emma.”
My cheeks burn hotter, and I tuck a strand of hair behind my ear.
“Keep talking like that, and you’re going to give me a complex.”
“Good. I like making you blush.” His voice drops to that gravelly tone that does inappropriate things to my insides.
“Makes me wonder where else you blush.”
“Atlas,” I tease.
He chuckles. “How’s the writing going, sweetheart?”
I gesture to my laptop, trying to ignore how the endearment makes my heart flutter.
“Better than it has in months. I think being up here helps. Something about the isolation, the quiet… it’s like my brain finally has space to breathe again.”
“I’m glad.” There’s something almost tender in those dark eyes.
“You looked so defeated when you first got here. Seeing you like this, passionate about your work again, alive, is incredible.”
My chest tightens.
“You really noticed that?”
He opens his mouth to answer, then stops, his gaze shifting to stare past me toward the windows.
“Hold that thought. Look.” I turn in my chair, but he’s already moving, stepping back outside onto the balcony that wraps around the watchtower.
“Come here,” he calls softly.
I follow him outside.
The wood balcony is warm under my bare feet, and the morning air carries the scent of pine and wildflowers.
Atlas is standing at the railing, his body tense with stillness.
“What are we looking at?” I whisper, moving to stand beside him.
He points toward the treeline below.
A doe and her fawn are grazing peacefully in the clearing, the baby all legs and spots, staying close to its mother as they move through the tall grass with careful, graceful steps.
The morning light makes their coats gleam like burnished copper.
“They’re beautiful,” I breathe, not wanting to startle them.
“They come here most mornings,” Atlas murmurs, his voice low and intimate.
“This is their safe space.”
Something about the way he says it makes me look at him instead of the deer.
“Is that what this place is for you? A safe space?”
“Yes.” His arm comes around my waist, pulling me against his solid warmth.
“But lately, safe spaces include wherever you are.”
My body melts into his without hesitation, fitting against him like we were designed for this.
I tilt my head back to gaze up at him, and the sweet smile on his face leaves me swooning.
There’s something raw there, vulnerable beneath his Alpha confidence.
“Atlas,” I whisper.
Then he’s kissing me, and every coherent thought evaporates.
This kiss is soft and loving.
His lips are warm and sure against mine, tasting like coffee and honey, and I’m addicted.
The cool morning breeze whispers around us, carrying the scent of pine and earth, and for the first time in longer than I can remember, I feel completely free.
Like I could float away on this feeling and never come back down.
When we break apart, I’m dizzy and breathless, my hands fisted in his shirt.
“You came here to distract me,” I accuse, though my voice is husky with want.
His grin is pure sin.
“Is it working?”
“You know it is.” I try to step back, but his arm tightens around my waist. “But if we stay here, I know where this will lead… with me bent over my desk with my laptop crashed on the floor.”
His pupils dilate.
“Now, there’s a thought.”
“Down, boy.” I press my hand against his chest, feeling his heart thundering beneath my palm.
“Some of us have deadlines.”
He laughs, and my knees weaken.
It’s rich and uninhibited, the kind of sound that has me wanting to spend my life trying to hear it again.
“Well, speaking of distractions… I want to take you out.”
“Oh?” I cross my arms, which makes his gaze drop to my cleavage for a split second before snapping back to my face.
“What’s the occasion? Did I win the lottery? Get nominated for a Pulitzer? Finally master the art of not burning toast?”
“Do I need an occasion to want to spend time with my gorgeous Omega?”
The possessive pronoun makes heat spike through me, but I’m not about to let him off that easy.
“Flattery will get you everywhere, Chief, but it won’t answer my question. Spill it.”
His hands find my hips, and his thumbs rub small circles through my sweater, making it hard to think straight.
“Levi and River are getting ready to go join the police for a thorough investigation on the burned cabin. Figured you could use a distraction, and I may have planned something special.”
The mention of the cabin sends ice through my veins.
“You think they’ll find something?” The words come out smaller than I intended, and I can’t help wringing my hands.
Atlas takes my hands, gently prying them apart and wrapping them around his waist instead.
His touch is warm, grounding.
“It’ll all be fine, you’ll see. I promise.”
The words are burning on my tongue before I can stop them.
“So, once it’s all done and the police no longer require me to stay here, you want me to?—”
“Nope.” His voice is firm, but there’s amusement dancing in his eyes.
“Don’t say it.”
“You don’t know what I was going to say.” My voice has that stubborn edge it gets when someone tries to tell me what I’m thinking.
“I do.” He leans down and kisses the tip of my nose, and I scrunch my face.
“You’re going to ask if we’re going to want you to leave and go back to your boring little town where nothing happens and no one appreciates how fucking incredible you are.”
My mouth drops open.
“How did you… that’s exactly what I was going to say, you smug bastard.”
He throws his head back and laughs, and the gorgeous sound turns my insides to liquid fire again.
That three-day scruff has him resembling some sort of rugged wilderness god.
I want to trace every line of his jaw with my lips.
“I know you better than you think,” he says, still grinning.
“I can practically see your brain working, calculating exit strategies and worst-case scenarios. But here’s the thing, Emma… you’re not going anywhere. You’re ours now, and we want you to move in with us for good. Bring your things from your town. We’ll help you pack. This is your place now.”
“Are you serious?” My voice comes out barely above a whisper.
“Dead serious.” His expression turns fierce, possessive.
“We marked you with our bite, Emma. You belong to us now. All of us. And we’re not letting you go.”
Joy bubbles up in my chest, bright and effervescent.
I can’t help the smile that spreads across my face as I throw my arms around his neck and hug him hard, pressing my whole body against his.
“You have no idea how happy that makes me.”
He kisses the top of my head, his arms tightening around me like he’s afraid I might disappear.
I freeze for a beat, still holding onto him, heart thudding in my chest. Did he really just ask me to move in with him?
God. This is happening.
Am I ready for this?
I mean, yes, technically, I don’t have a place right now.
So, moving in sounds perfect in theory.
Logical, even. But moving towns?
Starting over? Putting my toothbrush next to theirs and waking up in the same bed every day?
That’s not nothing. That’s…
big. Huge.
And what if I mess it up?
I pull back just enough to meet his gaze, nerves suddenly jamming in my throat.
His eyes soften as he lifts his hand, his thumb brushing slowly across my lower lip.
“Hey,” he says, voice low and steady, like he’s trying to tether me to the ground.
“Don’t overthink it.”
I blink at him, caught between laughter and tears.
“Let’s just have fun today, okay?” he continues.
“We’ve got time to figure everything else out.”
And somehow, I believe him.
“So then… day out?”
“Absolutely.” I pull back to grin up at him.
“Lead the way, Chief.”
We head downstairs, and I hear Levi and River’s voices before we even reach the bottom.
They’re in the kitchen, gathered around the coffee pot as if it holds the secrets of the universe.
“Morning, sweet thing,” Levi says when he spots me, abandoning his coffee to cross the room.
His eyes are warm and appreciative as they sweep over me.
Before I can say a word, he takes my hand and spins me away from Atlas.
“Hey!” I laugh, stumbling slightly as Levi pulls me against his chest.
“My turn,” he murmurs, one hand sliding into my hair while the other settles at the small of my back.
He kisses me, slow and thorough, as though he has all the time in the world to explore my mouth.
When he finally releases me, I’m breathless and flushed.
“Good morning to you, too.”
“Don’t hog her, Wolf,” River complains, but there’s laughter in his voice as he appears on my other side.
“Some of us haven’t had our Emma fix today.”
“Wolf?” I raise an eyebrow at Levi, who just shrugs.
“His last name is Wolfe,” River explains, then grins wickedly.
“Plus, he’s got that whole lone wolf brooding thing down to an art form.”
“I don’t brood,” Levi protests.
“You absolutely brood,” River and Atlas say in unison, making me giggle.
River takes advantage of my distraction to spin me into his arms, dipping me dramatically as if we’re in some old Hollywood movie.
“Hello, gorgeous,” he says.
“You’re too adorable,” I tell him, but I’m grinning.
“Adorably handsome,” he agrees, then kisses me senseless.
When he sets me upright, I have to grab his shoulders to keep from swaying.
“We should have a competition,” River announces, winking at me.
“See whose kiss Emma loves the best. ”
“Absolutely not,” Levi states, but there’s a smirk on his lips.
“We all know I’d win.”
River gasps in mock outrage.
“Them’s fighting words, pretty boy.”
“Nope, I’m out of this one,” I declare, holding up my hands.
“I plead the fifth, sixth, and seventh amendments.”
“That’s not how amendments work,” Levi points out with a small smile.
“Don’t care. I refuse to choose between you beautiful Alphas.”
Atlas clears his throat.
“If you two are done molesting our Omega...”
“Actually,” Levi interrupts, checking his watch, “we should get going. The police want to meet us there in fifteen.”
River’s expression grows more serious.
“Right. The cabin investigation.”
Atlas’s hand settles on my lower back.
“You two be careful, okay? And call if you find anything.”
“We will,” Levi promises, then comes over to kiss my forehead.
“Try not to let this one corrupt you too much while we’re gone.”
“No promises,” I say with a grin.
River bounds over, stealing one more quick kiss.
“Save some energy for when we get back,” he murmurs against my lips, making me blush.
They finally leave, and the sudden quiet feels strange after their boisterous energy.
Atlas turns to me with a white box in his hands .
“This is for you,” he says, and for the first time since I’ve known him, he looks almost shy.
“Go upstairs and change into it.”
I take the box, eyeing him suspiciously.
It’s surprisingly light, which could be good or very, very bad.
“Should I be worried?”
“Go,” he says, smacking my ass playfully, making me yelp and laugh.
“You’re lucky I like you,” I tell him, heading for the stairs.
“I’m counting on it,” he calls after me.
Upstairs, I sit on the bed and carefully unwrap the box.
Inside, nestled in tissue paper, is a bikini.
The world’s smallest, most scandalous bikini I’ve ever seen, in bright yellow that will probably glow against my skin.
“Holy shit,” I breathe, holding up the scraps of fabric.
There’s barely enough material here to cover a postage stamp, let alone my assets.
“Really?” I call down to him.
“And what exactly are you wearing for this mysterious adventure?”
“Quit stalling,” his voice drifts up from downstairs.
I hold the bikini up to myself in the mirror, trying to figure out how it’s even supposed to work.
The top is basically two tiny triangles connected by strings, and the bottoms..
. well, calling them bottoms is generous.
They’re more like strategically placed patches of fabric held together by more strings.
“What the hell,” I mutter, stripping out of my clothes.
“When in Rome... ”
Getting into the bikini is like solving a puzzle.
There are strings everywhere, and I’m not entirely sure I’ve got them all in the right places.
When I finally look at myself in the full-length mirror, I barely recognize the woman staring back at me.
The yellow fabric is practically neon against my skin, making my hair look like spun gold and bringing out the amber flecks in my hazel eyes.
But more than that, I look.
.. sexy. Dangerously, devastatingly sexy.
The kind of sexy that stops traffic and starts wars.
The top pushes my breasts up and together, creating cleavage that could probably be seen from space, while the bottoms sit low on my hips and high on my thighs, showing off legs that look endless.
The back is basically non-existent—just a string that disappears between my ass cheeks.
I feel exposed and powerful all at once, as if I could conquer the world or at least reduce a certain fire chief to a puddle of want.
The thought makes me grin wickedly.
I quickly pull on denim shorts and an oversized t-shirt over the bikini—no way am I walking downstairs dressed like a centerfold model—and head back down to find Atlas closing the tailgate of his truck.
“Ready?” he asks, opening the passenger door for me.
“Such a gentleman,” I tease, climbing in.
He starts the engine, and country music fills the cab.
I reach over to squeeze his thigh, then slide upward.
The muscle jumps under my touch.
“Keep touching me like that, and we’re never leaving this driveway,” he warns, his voice rough.
“Promises, promises,” I say, but I move my hand back to my own lap.
For now.
We’re barely out of the driveway when his phone rings through the truck’s speakers.
The caller ID shows Claire’s name, and Atlas glances at me with an apologetic grimace before answering.
“Atlas here.”
“Hey, boss!” Claire’s voice is bright and cheerful, clearly not knowing she’s on speaker.
“How are you doing today? I hope I’m not interrupting anything important.”
“What do you need, Claire?” Atlas’s voice is clipped, professional in a way that makes me bite back a smile.
“Oh, just checking in! We got some new volunteers today, and I have the team showing them the ropes. Everything’s really quiet here, but don’t worry, if anything happens, I have you on speed dial.” There’s a pause.
“So, where are you off to today? Anywhere special? Anywhere you might want some company?”
She giggles, and I have to cover my mouth to keep from snorting.
The audacity of this woman is almost impressive.
“Just kidding!” she adds quickly, but the damage is done.
“But seriously, if you need anything at all, and I mean anything, I’m here for you. You know that, right?”
I can see Atlas’s jaw tightening, the muscle ticking in a way that means he’s reached his limit.
“Claire, we need to talk.”
“Oh?” Her voice perks up hopefully.
“About what?”
Atlas glances at me, and I nod encouragingly.
It’s past time someone put a stop to this.