CHAPTER 40
AMOS
“Windy!” I blaze into the house like my ass is on fire. The moment Wolf called me, I dropped everything and flew home like a bat out of hell. Something was telling me that I needed to be home, and I need to be home right at that moment.
“WINDY!” I yell again, hearing nothing in return.
I didn’t see her car in the driveway on my way in, but I wanted to give the benefit of the doubt that she’d leave like that. I should’ve known that she would, regardless of what delicate situation she finds herself in. She’s hardheaded and stubborn.
“AMOS!” Wolf’s voice cracks through the house like a whip, sharp enough to jolt me out of my spot as I race to the front entryway. He’s supposed to be downtown at the office, buried in meetings, but the moment he realized Windy was home alone, he dropped everything.
“What?! What?!” I shout back, already moving.
He barrels into the living room, chest heaving, tie half-askew, like he ripped it loose on the drive over.
“Finian is at the office,” he pants. “He’s going to step around the corner and check on her.
She’s at Sip-A-Brew with the girls. Something about a book club thing.
From what I got out of it, she hasn’t been to one of those in quite a while. ”
Relief hits me so fast my knees nearly give out.
Sip-A-Brew.
With the girls.
Not alone.
Not vulnerable.
Four omegas around her, loud and chatty and nosy in the best possible way. They’ll keep her laughing, keep her distracted, keep her safe.
I drag in a breath, steadying myself. “Good. That’s good. She’s not by herself.”
Wolf nods, though the tension in his shoulders doesn’t ease. Mine doesn’t either. I pull my phone from my pocket, thumb hovering over her name.
“I’ll text her,” I say. “Tell her to message us before she leaves so we don’t worry.”
Because we will. We always do. And until she’s back under this roof, surrounded by us, I won’t breathe right.
If I knew she wouldn’t get mad at me for going, I would drive to Sip-A-Brew and sit in the parking lot and watch them inside.
But she would. Windy would not appreciate me sitting in the parking lot like some creeper.
Wolf’s jaw flexes when I say I’ll text her.
He doesn’t argue, but the tension rolling off him is thick enough to taste.
Wolf is not the type of alpha that allows things to happen to him like this.
It was completely unorthodox that he allowed the fire with Luscious to simmer without doing a thing about it.
So, for him to step back and allow me to take the lead on this means that he’s nearly freaking out to the point of being unable to function.
“Good,” he mutters, pacing once, twice, like he’s trying to burn off the leftover panic. “Just … make sure she answers.”
“I will.” My thumb is already tapping her name.
Before I can hit send, Wolf’s phone buzzes violently in his pocket. He snatches it out, glances at the screen, and his whole posture shifts.
“Finian,” he says, then answers. “Tell me you see her.”
I can hear Finian’s voice faintly through the speaker—fast, breathless, but not panicked. Wolf’s shoulders drop half an inch.
“Yeah. Okay. Good. Stay with her. Don’t crowd her, but don’t let her out of your sight either.” He pauses, listening. “No, you have to stay. What? Fuck! If anything happens, I’ll hold you personally responsible.”
He ends the call and exhales like he’s been holding his breath for hours.
“She’s fine,” he says. “Finian sees her. She’s laughing at the table with her friends. But he can’t stay. He’s on his way home to work on his client’s file. He said we need to let her breathe just a little or she’s going to suffocate.”
The words hit me right in the chest.
Laughing.
Safe.
Surrounded.
I finally send my text.
AMOS: Hey, sweetheart. Glad you’re with the girls. Text me before you leave, okay? Just want to make sure you get home safe.
My phone buzzes almost immediately.
WINDY: How did you know I was with the girls?
AMOS: A good guess?
WINDY: Creeper. I’ll be safe. Promise. Don’t worry so much.
I let out a breathless laugh I didn’t realize I’d been holding. Wolf leans over my shoulder to read it, and for the first time since he stormed through the door, some of the wildness in his eyes eases.
“She texted,” I say, showing him the screen.
He nods, slow and relieved. “Good. Good … okay.”
But even as he says it, I can see the truth in the tight set of his mouth.
Neither of us is going to stop worrying until she’s home.
Ever since we saw her get pepper-sprayed in the face by some punk, it’s like our entire life flashed before our eyes.
Dramatic? Maybe. But she’s our little omega.
We don’t want to see her in pain of any kind, and we’re bastards for putting her in pain in the first place.
All too soon, the front door swings open so hard it bangs against the wall. Finian steps inside like he’s been holding his breath the entire drive home, and he’s finally taking a breath again. His eyes sweep the room. He’s counting bodies, and once he sees us both, he frowns.
“You made me think she was in trouble, Wolf. She’s just at the coffee shop drinking a coffee with her friends.”
I straighten from where I’m standing near the entryway. “You saw her?”
He nods once, sharp. “Yeah. She was fine. Laughing. Didn’t look stressed.” His voice is steady, but the tension in his shoulders tells a different story. He’s wound tight, coiled like he’s ready to sprint back out the door if anything changes. “Don’t scare me like that again.”
Wolf exhales, rubbing a hand over his face. “She texted us. Said she’d message before she leaves.”
Finian’s gaze flicks to me. “Good. Next time, give a guy a heads-up. I had to hide while getting a coffee.”
I can picture it—him leaning against the counter, pretending to scroll his phone, eyes never leaving her table. He probably didn’t even blink.
“She didn’t notice you?” I ask.
His mouth twitches, not quite a smile. “She noticed, but her little nose is the only thing that twitched. When she looked, I hid behind this big, beefy alpha who was with a little omega.”
I feel some of the tightness in my chest easing. Not all of it. Not nearly. I don’t think it will ease until she’s back in this house and not out there alone. But it’s enough that I can breathe without feeling like my ribs are going to crack.
Finian steps farther into the room, finally letting his shoulders drop a fraction. “I stayed until the alpha left with that little omega. Then I hunkered down and snuck out the back. Figured she was safe in that chaos.”
Wolf snorts. “Those women could take down a small army when they get going.”
“Exactly,” Finian says.
I don’t know how long it’s been, but I do know that it’s getting really dark outside.
My heart is in my throat as I wait for that infamous buzz.
I’m ready for her to be home where she belongs.
She should be lying in her nest right now with one or all of us snuggling up to her, paying close attention to her needy body.
My phone buzzes again.
All three of us freeze for a heartbeat before I check it.
WINDY: We’re wrapping up soon. I’ll text when I’m heading out.
I show them the screen.
Finian nods, jaw tightening again. “Good. When she leaves, one of us should be close.”
Wolf looks at me. I look at Finian. None of us says it out loud, but the truth hangs heavy in the air.
We’re not letting her come home alone. We’re all going to be there waiting for her to leave the coffee shop.
After we all pile into the car, the silence is thick enough to choke on.
No one says a word as we pull out of the driveway.
Wolf drives like the steering wheel insulted him, jaw clenched, eyes locked on the road.
Finian sits forward in the passenger seat, elbows on his knees, bouncing one leg like he’s trying to keep himself from exploding. We’re all on edge.
I’m in the back, staring out the window, counting every second until we get there. I don’t take in the surroundings. All I’m focused on is seeing Windy again and taking her home.
When we finally pull into the coffee shop parking lot, the first thing I see is her car.
All three of us exhale at the same time—one shaky, collective breath of relief.
“She’s here,” I say, more to myself than them.
We wait. Watching. We don’t say a word as we wait, as if one syllable will break the tenseness between us all. The shop slowly empties, people drifting out in twos and threes. The sun is dipping lower, shadows stretching across the pavement.
Then the last group steps out—the girls.
But Windy isn’t with them.
My stomach drops so fast it feels like the ground disappears beneath me.
We’re out of the car instantly. Wolf doesn’t even bother shutting his door. We stride toward the group, and they all freeze like we’re a pack of wolves descending on them.
One of them steps forward, chin lifted. “I’m Remi. You must be Windy’s pack. Nice to meet you.”
I don’t have the patience for introductions. “Where’s Windy? I’m Amos. That’s Finian. That’s Wolf.”
Remi blinks, confused. “Well, Amos, Finian, and Wolf, she left about an hour ago. She’s not here.”
Dread slams into me so hard I sway. An hour.
An. Hour.
I look at Wolf—he’s already staring down at his phone, his expression darkening by the second.
I text Windy.
Delivered.
Not read.
I wait. Five seconds. Ten. Fifteen.
Nothing.
I text again. “She’s not answering.”
Remi’s voice is tight. “Are you saying that Windy didn’t make it home?”
“That’s exactly what I’m saying.” My fingers fly across the screen, sending message after message.
AMOS: Windy, answer me. Please. Where are you?
Still delivered. Still unread.
Wolf curses under his breath and opens the tracking app, like he’s just remembering he has that, thanks to the necklace we have her wearing. I’ve never been thankful for a necklace until right now. His thumb moves fast, his breathing faster. Then he freezes.
He looks up, eyes sharp with fear, he’s trying—and failing—to hide.
“She’s in the city,” he says. “Traveling fast.”
My heart stops.
I look back at her car, seeing it sitting there all alone, then back at the women in front of us, before looking at Finian and Wolf. Fear encompasses me. If her car is here …
“How is she in the city if her car is right here?” I ask shakily.
“Better question is: who is she with?” Wolf grits out.