Rhodes stepped into the room, looking as exhausted as I felt. He dropped into one of the two chairs in front of the desk with a groan.
“I fucking hate people,” he muttered.
“That good, huh?” I tried not to smirk.
“Lowman is planning to ride this out. They think that since they’re so isolated in their tiny little Canadian territory that Norwood won’t care about them.”
I sighed. “They’re north of Windale, right?”
He nodded.
“I’ll ask Dante to call Griff. Worst case scenario maybe he can offer them a place if they can get out in time.”
“Speaking of Griff,” Dante said, walking in and sitting next to Rhodes. “He’s officially in. He can’t come out here in person since they’re surrounded by Norwood on all sides, but he’s announcing to his pack tonight that they’re formally joining Blackwater.”
“Thank fuck,” Rhodes mumbled, rubbing his temples.
“Is Michael still here?” Dante asked.
I shook my head. “Zoe was taking the evening shift at the cafe and Michael went to stay with her. He’s worried she’s doing too much since she’s so far along.”
Now that Zoe was in the last weeks of her pregnancy, Michael was becoming more and more protective of his mate, which I understood completely.
I had already made peace with the neanderthal in me that would have Skye wrapped in bubble wrap and doing nothing but relaxing when she had our kid. I would hire a dozen people to wait on her hand and foot for whenever I wasn’t there to take care of her myself.
And she would probably kick my ass for it.
“I talked to Tate earlier,” Dante added. His mouth flattened. “She’s thinking it would be best to cremate Luke. When all this is over, we’ll take him back to Brooks Ridge and spread his ashes. But we could still have a memorial service, if there’s time.”
“We’ll make time,” I said firmly. “Luke was our friend. More than our friend.”
Dante’s eyes dropped, and I knew he was struggling to reign in his feelings.
“We all need this,” I finished quietly.
Rhodes nodded, clapping a hand on Dante’s shoulder. “He’s right, man. And we’ll do whatever Tate wants. We’ve got her back.”
“I’m just waiting for her to get back,” Dante admitted. “Everything feels wrong without her here.”
“I know,” I murmured, rubbing my jaw.
He winced. “Shit. I’m sorry, bro.”
I waved it off, even though the reminder that Skye wasn’t here was like an unexpected gut punch. “Don’t worry about it. I’m glad you and Ryder have each other.”
“I’m just glad you and Ryder figured your shit out last year,” Rhodes cracked with a grin.
Dante flipped him off, but a small smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.
“Seriously,” Rhodes added. “If I had to watch you two dance around each other any longer, I would’ve helped Tate lock you in that damn room.”
I snorted.
“What the hell does that mean?” Dante demanded, eyebrows raised.
“He means Tate was about to lock you two into a room until you sorted out your issues and realized what we all did,” I told him, laughing.
His eyes widened. “No way.”
Rhodes nodded gleefully. “Oh, hell yes. She actually recruited us to help. She had the lock to your bedroom door changed so it locked from the outside. She had a whole plan on how to get you two into the room and leave you there until you worked it out.”
“But you two managed to do it yourselves,” I added.
Dante sighed and shook his head. “It was me, you know? Not Ryder. Ryd’s been my best friend since we were kids. I didn’t want to fuck that up when things started to change, and I let expectations for being an Alpha get in my head.”
“I still don’t know how you can share your girl,” Rhodes admitted. “If Remy touched Lark, I’d rip his arms off.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Same, fucker.”
“I think it only works because I love Ryd as much as I love Tate,” Dante confessed. “Even when neither one of us wanted to admit it. ”
“You know, everything’s different now,” I told him. “Once we stop Norwood, it’s a new world. You can go back to Brooks Ridge with Tate and Ryder. No one will judge you.”
He shook his head. “No. I mean, I appreciate it, but Brooks Ridge joining Blackwater was the best decision for the pack. We’ve been struggling for years. And honestly? Not having the responsibility is kind of a relief. I don’t know what will happen once Tate’s back and this is all over, but I like the idea of being able to make whatever life I want with the people I love. Zero expectations.”
I got that. Hell, I totally got that.
Barely a week into being Alpha and I already felt like I was drowning.
But part of me knew I wouldn’t have it any other way. I would never walk away from my pack and my family.
“You’ll always have a place here,” I said firmly, meeting his eye.
“I appreciate that,” Dante said. He glanced down at his phone. “Ryd’s back. I’m going to go see him, unless you need me?”
I shook my head. “No. We’re done for tonight. I’ll call Griffin myself to work out the logistics.”
Rhodes stood up with Dante. “Yeah, I’ll see if Larkin needs help with dinner.”
I frowned. “We can order out or something. I don’t want Larkin to feel like she’s our personal chef.”
Rhodes shrugged. “You know Lark. She wants to help any way that she can. Besides, she likes cooking.”
“Still,” I said, “she has a fuck of a lot more value to us than just cooking. She needs to know that.”
Rhodes grinned and winked at me. “Oh, trust me. I remind her of her value every night. And morning. Several times a day, actually.”
I groaned. Larkin was like my sister and Rhodes was my brother. I didn’t need that image.
“Whatever,” I muttered.
“You coming?” he asked me, pausing in the doorway.
“I’m going to call Skye first. She should be waking up now,” I answered, my phone already out. I was becoming addicted to my phone in a way I never imagined.
But soon I would have her back and then I planned to hide my phone for a few days while I reacquainted myself with every part of my mate.
I was suddenly glad I was sitting behind the desk. Rhodes definitely didn’t need to see the semi currently pressing against my jeans.
“Cool. Tell Skye we miss her,” he said, tapping the wall as he and Dante left me alone and headed for the main floor level.
Gritting my teeth, I readjusted myself in the chair before calling her.
I almost had my body under control when she answered the video call, her face filling the screen.
“Hey,” she greeted warmly, her emerald eyes sparkling. “Hang on a sec, okay? I just got out of the shower.”
She set the phone on a countertop for a second before picking it back up with a towel wrapped around her chest.
A fucking towel.
I stifled another groan. That imagery definitely wasn’t helping my situation.