Chapter 307

The next morning, I go down to find Mom. She’s in the kitchen, whipping up breakfast. We’re set to leave after we eat, so Mom is cooking up a big farewell breakfast, likely the size and scope of our dinner last night, sans the alcohol.

There’s a lot on my mind. Everything that happened with Mr. and Mrs. Hayes, what we should do with the recording, returning to the Pyramid today. But the one that’s sticking out at the front of my mind, apparently the most pressing among the rest, at least for me personally, is the near mating bite created by Beau.

“Mom,” I say. She stops stirring the scrambled eggs to look back at me. She gives me a small smile.

“Start buttering that toast, will you, Chloe?” She nods her head toward the towering stack of wheat bread placed on a very small plate near the toaster. The toaster pops and another pair of slices jump from the toaster.

I jump a little with them.

Mom sees it and her eyes narrow.

I look away, a little sheepish.

“Okay,” Mom says. “You are here and we’re cooking. Now’s the time to talk to your mom. What’s going on?”

I lift the butter knife and begin to butter the first slice of bread atop the tower. I take that time to gather my thoughts. It’s difficult to just jump right into this, although maybe that’s the only way to do it.

“If someone… hypothetically…” I clear my throat.

Mom glances back at the eggs. Her looking away from me gives me the courage I need to finally blurt out the words.

“If someone almost gives someone else a mating bite…”

Mom drops the spatula she had been using into the eggs. Fortunately, she realized what she’d done with a gasp. The eggs were almost done so not much is lost as she grabs the skillet and pulls the whole mess to a cool burner on the stove.

As soon as nothing is in danger of catching fire and burning the entire house down, Mom abandons the skillet and rushes to me. She takes my by the elbows and turns me to face her.

I feel slightly ridiculous, holding a butter knife in one hand and a slice of toast in the other.

Mom doesn’t care. She just stares at me with wide eyes. That gaze drops to my neck, right at the crook of my shoulder. She’s looking for a bite.

“I said, ‘almost!’” I say, trying to shake her off.

“You can’t blame a mother for being worried,” Mom says. She relaxes somewhat now that she’s seen that my neck is clear of bites. “A mating bite before you wolf even manifested? What a reckless, fool-headed --!” She closes her eyes and takes a calming breath. “One of the brothers, I presume?”

I nod. I don’t want to admit which one.

“He didn’t do it,” I tell her. “But… he put his teeth there. And I kind of felt… something…”

Mom looks up into my face. “Something?”

I don’t know how else to describe it. It felt like an overwhelming sensation of rightness somehow. But… also not? I feel kind of crazy trying to parse it all together in my head.

“Honey,” Mom says, and her voice lowers. She talks like this sometimes, when we’re dealing with something serious. “If he already has the drive… he might be the one.”

Beau? No way. I’m not anticipating any of the brothers to be my mate, but Beau is the one I expect the absolute least. He’s a philanderer. A playboy. Even if he finds a mate, I can’t imagine him settling down for one woman, not even the woman perfect for him.

Mom’s words are a nice thought, but they can’t be true.

I shake my head. “It was just an accident, I’m sure of it. Or he was playing around. No way he meant to put a mating bite on me for real.”

The words come out of my mouth just as the door opens. Mom and I turn at the same time as Archer stops in the doorway.

He’s frozen for a solid ten seconds. Then, at once, he darts forward to me. He tugs me none-too-gently by the arm, dragging me toward him. He pushes my hair out of the way to inspect my neck.

There are no marks for him to find.

He heard enough though, apparently to piece together enough. He cups my face and forces my gaze up to his.

“Who?” he asks, his voice an angry growl.

This truth, it seems, is one I’m going to have to take to the grave with me.

“No one,” I say. “It’s just something I saw on TV.”

“We were talking hypothetically,” Mom says in my defense, not realizing that my words and hers don’t match up at all. Though, honestly, I’m not sure Archer would have believed either of us anyway, even if we did have our stories straight.

But he also knows how stubborn I am. I’m not about to give up the name if I don’t want to.

Archer narrows his eyes. “I’ll find out on my own, then,” he says and releasing me, storms out of the room.

Mom catches me as I stumble back. By the time she rights me, Archer is long gone.

“He’s a charmer, isn’t he?” Mom says. “Though I guess that means he’s not the one.”

I don’t admit to anything.

We sit around the table eating breakfast. Archer alternates his glare between Neil and Beau. He doesn’t give much attention to Steven, I guess considering him a non-threat. Or perhaps he knows that Steven wouldn’t even play at such a thing.

I can see the wheels in Archer’s head turning, looking between the two remaining.

Neil can lose control in the bedroom, it’s true, but he would also take the matter of a mating bite very seriously, especially given his position as the oldest son.

The most likely culprit, unfortunately, is the guilty one.

Archer’s cutting gaze slices to Beau. Beau looks back at him.

“What?”

Archer doesn’t answer.

Beau shrugs. “Okay then.”

I have the feeling their fight is only just beginning. I sigh. Maybe I should have kept my mouth shut. But I wanted to be able to talk to my mom about this. Someone should know what almost happened. It was too much, too big, to keep all to myself.

Most of our meal is eaten in silence.

After, we prepare to leave, and each say our goodbyes.

“Thank you so much for your hospitality,” Neil says to Mom and Isaac, speaking for all of the brothers.

“You are welcome,” Mom says. She’s still holding Mia. It’s going to be tough to separate them. Neil, I can tell, is leaving that difficult task up to me.

“Whatever choice you make,” Isaac says, “Stand behind it. Waffling now will only make everything worse.”

“We can trust you to stand with us, then?” Neil asks.

Isaac sighs. “Of course. That madman and his madwife cannot return to power.”

Isaac already knows which choice the brothers are going to make then.

I’m not terribly surprised. It’s the option they had planned from the beginning.

“As soon as we get back to the Pyramid,” Neil says, “We’re going to release the recordings.”