Chapter 35
Chapter Thirty-Five
Neveah
Sage woke up before anyone else this morning and has spent hours alone in her nest already.
As soon as I noticed she was in there, I offered to hire someone to put the wallpaper up, but she made the cutest disapproving scowl at the suggestion.
She insists on doing it herself, saying she looked it up on Riley’s tablet, and she hasn’t let any of us in to see it.
It’s now early afternoon and I feel like I’m going to crawl out of my skin.
We’re all checking on her every couple hours. Knocking on the door and asking if she’s okay, if we can help, what she needs.
She sends us away every single time. Finally, I send Riley to the shop and Brooks to work, although they both keep texting me for updates. I think Brooks is going to cry soon if she doesn’t at least accept a snack, so I head back up there to try again.
“Sweetling, baby. I really need you to eat something.”
I wait, hoping she’ll agree, but there’s just a muffled, “eh” that comes from behind the door. I don’t know if I should be worried about her ambivalence or lack of appetite, but I am. I sigh, then decide to pull out the big guns.
“I’m worried about Brooks. He’s not handling you not eating very well—”
The door flies open about six inches, only enough space for a stricken omega to stare out at me with wide eyes and a barely contained mass of wavy hair. Her sweet floral scent floats out the door, nearly distracting me from my mission.
“What’s wrong with Brooks?”
Maybe it’s wrong, perhaps it’s manipulative, but it’s also the truth. I am worried about Brooks. Though I’m more worried about him breaking down our omega’s door and barreling in to force food down her throat rather than anything that would actually be harmful to the alpha himself.
“He’s losing his mind about you not eating. I know you’re not hungry and you’re in nesting mode, but can I please bring you something? We’d all feel better knowing you let us care for you, it would help settle our alpha instincts.”
Sage blinks at me, then shuffles her feet as she pulls her face from the door to look into the room behind her. I catch a glimpse of turquoise blue, but refrain from peeking any further. She turns back to me with one decisive nod.
“Okay,” she says, then shuts the door in my face.
I blink, amusement and consternation swirling through me. “Okay… You’ll eat?” I call.
“I’ll eat,” she calls back. “But don’t come in yet!”
I hurry back to the kitchen to see Brooks pacing around the counter.
“I thought you left for work?”
“Came home to check on her.” His voice is gruff, and he scrubs a hand down his face. “Heard you up there. Any luck?”
“She said she’ll eat, but not to come in yet.”
He perks up at that, and we both rush around the kitchen to put a plate together for her. A deli sandwich, a banana, a stack of apple slices, a pickle, some extra cheese, two cookies from the bakery—Brooks and his mushy heart—and a cold bottle of water.
I take the tray up and knock on the door. “Your food is ready!”
“You can set it out there!” she replies.
I huff a laugh under my breath, then tsk. “Don’t think so, sweet girl. I’ll turn around so I don’t see anything, but you’re going to open the door and take at least one bite of something so I can report back to Brooks.”
“Fine,” she huffs behind the door, and I spin around, putting my back to it. Then it opens, I hear the crunch of an apple slice, and the door closes firmly again.
Then a sweet, muffled “Thank you, alpha” from the other side of the door.
“You’re welcome, Sage.” I smile, my nerves settling in my chest. “I can’t wait to see it when you’re ready to show us.”