Chapter 15 Silas
Chapter fifteen
Silas
I lie still for a minute as I wake up, listening.
The wind is… quiet. Not gone, but softer. Normal.
My next thought, immediate and unwelcome, is: Is she awake?
Great. Love that for me.
I scrub a hand over my face. Since last night... since that drunken "Fuck Scent Matches" toast... my chest is feeling… looser.
I’m still acutely aware that there is an omega in my house, but somehow I don't feel like that's a problem anymore. If anything, I catch myself actually looking forward to seeing her.
Damn, that’s probably a bad sign…
I pull on clean sweats and a long-sleeve shirt and head out.
I find everyone in the kitchen, exactly where I expected. Liam is already at the counter, reading his book, mug in hand. Felix is, predictably, into some kind of conversation with Naomi, his voice bright and painfully energetic for this hour.
Naomi's wearing the same kind of clothes she's been wearing since we got snowed in. Her hair is pulled back in a simple ponytail and still manages to look... elegant.
And I notice she and Felix are standing a little closer than usual.
“—and then the entire B-squad tried to copy the move in practice,” Felix is saying, flipping something in the pan. “Half of them high-sticked themselves. It was like a live-action blooper reel.”
Naomi snorts. “That sounds physically impossible.”
“You haven’t met the B-squad,” he grins back at her.
She glances up at him, and for a second they both just… linger there. Her smile catches, his eyes flick to her mouth and back. Then they both look away a little too fast.
Huh.
Guess maybe the movie got more interesting after I passed out on the couch? Good for them. Though, if so, I might be feeling a bit left out…
“Morning,” I grunt, heading for the mugs.
Naomi startles, then straightens. “Morning,” she says quickly.
“Hey, sunshine,” Felix adds, just a beat after her, his voice a touch too bright. “Slept okay?"
Their shoulders brush when they both move to give me space.
Yeah. Something definitely happened.
"Actually yes, although I did have nightmare where I was snowed in with a lawyer," I say, pouring coffee. "Oh wait. That's real."
Naomi just rolls her eyes, but the smile doesn't fade. "Glad to see you're still embracing your natural charm."
A small smile tugs at my lips as I take a sip of coffee.
Liam looks up from his book. “By the way, in case no one’s noticed, the storm’s breaking,” he says, calm as ever.
As if on cue, a shaft of sunlight hits the drifts outside and bounces, flooding the kitchen with white.
“Whoa,” Felix says, abandoning the stove to go to the glass. “Look who decided to show up.”
Naomi moves to stand beside him, mug cupped between both hands. Right at this moment, a sharp ping cuts through the room.
Her phone, on the counter, lights up. Then it buzzes. And buzzes again.
She stiffens, sets her mug down, and snatches the phone up. “Mia? Yes, I'm fine. Everything's okay."
And just like that, the lightness is gone.
“No, really, I promise," she says, pacing a short line between island and window. “Yeah, we really still have enough food.”
She listens, jaw ticking. “…Okay. So you think the roads will be practicable?”
She drags a hand through her hair. “Right. So probably the day after tomorrow if nothing else comes in. Got it.” A pause. “Yeah. I’ll be ready. Thanks, Mia.”
She ends the call and just… looks at the black screen, thumb rubbing absently over the edge.
“Good news?” Felix asks, careful.
Naomi turns. “That was Mia,” she says. “She thinks rescue should be able to get up here sometime in the next day or two if the weather behaves.”
So that’s it, then.
She’s leaving.
The “problem” gets airlifted or driven out, and everything goes back to how it was.
Exactly what I said I wanted.
My stomach doesn’t seem to have gotten the memo. It dips like I just took a hit into the boards.
It’s fine. It’s relief. I must feel relieved.
“Oh,” Felix says, and he can’t keep the drop out of his voice. “Wow. That’s… that’s great. Good news.”
“Yeah,” Liam adds, closing his book without actually looking at it. “That’s… good.”
Naomi’s gaze moves over the three of us, quick and assessing. “Well,” she says finally. “Whatever happens, whenever rescue gets here, I'd like to thank you for the hospitality. It's been… really nice."
She turns toward the hallway. The silence stretches, no one quite sure what to say.
“Maybe we should get out now.”
It’s out before I’ve thought it through.
She stops and turns back. Three pairs of eyes land on me, questioning.
I clear my throat. “I mean, we’ve been trapped inside for three days,” I say. “The weather’s finally safe. We could go outside.”
She looks at the window to the knee-deep drifts, her brow hitching. “Outside to do what, exactly? Your driveway currently looks like Narnia.”
“Yeah man, I'm not really following," Felix starts then perks up, "unless you're finally ready to build that snowman?!”
I let a small smirk slip. “I’ve got something better in mind. Something more… thrilling.”
Liam straightens on his stool, that spark lighting his eyes. “You’re thinking what I think you’re thinking?”
“Yep.”
“Oh.” Felix breathes, understanding dawning on his face. “Oh! Hell yes, I’ve been waiting for this.”
Naomi looks between the three of us. “What are you three plotting?” she asks.
“You’ll see,” I say. “But you’ll want layers. Gloves. Hat. Extra socks."
She studies my face for a long second. I keep my expression steady, try to let her see I’m not winding her up.
Trust me, I try to say without actually saying it.
Slowly, her mouth curves. “Okay then,” she says, and there’s real excitement in her voice now. “Whatever this is… I’m in.”