Page 96 of Rest In Knotty Pieces

Blaze cocks his head to the side. “Without question.”

“Do you love Kota?”

“Sometimes.”

“Don’t you want them both to be happy? Even at the expense of your own happiness?”

Blaze frowns thoughtfully and steps over a log. “Is Merle like a love interest?”

I burst out laughing. “No, gods, no. I am not your competition, Alpha. Merle is family. I know that we are all part of the same person, but it feels like we are family members. We love each other fiercely and want to protect each other, but we have different names, likes, dislikes, and different personalities. I’m left-handed, Raptor is right-handed. I love chocolate; Raven hates it passionately. I’m scared of spiders, but Jay can pick them up and feel nothing.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really. I am not in love with my alters, Blaze. But I do love them, and I will protect them. Especially Merle, Jay, and Dove. In that, Raptor, Raven, and I are in agreement.”

“I see.”

“Do you?” I smirk at him and dance away, turning to face him. “Do you really want to know us?”

“I do.”

Merle might love these alphas, but the only one I have feelings for is Roseland, but I could see myself falling for this one.

“Tell me what it’s like when you kill someone.”

He smiles wider, tilting his head back, his whole body language turning flirtatious. “That is not what I was expecting you to ask.”

I shrug. “I like to be surprising.”

“I can see that. Well, killing, for me, feels like a job that needs doing. At the end, I feel satisfaction if I did it well, irritation if it didn’t go how I planned.”

“So, you don’t get a thrill. No butterflies, compulsions?”

“I enjoy the process of causing pain and exploring the inner workings of the corpse, but the actual act of killing is irrelevant to me.”

“Fascinating. Do you think that-”

He lunges forward and grabs my wrist, swinging me around and up hard against his chest.

“Ooh, Blaze. This is so soon. Be careful, I might swoon,” I whisper, sliding my free hand up his chest and around his neck. Our lips are just a finger’s width apart.

He chuckles. “Don’t tease me; I might think you mean it.”

We both laugh and separate. When I look behind me, I see an exposed tree root that would have sent me to my ass.

“Should I thank you for the assist?”

“Of course. It’s only polite.”

I lean into him, standing on my tiptoes, and press my lips to the corner of his. “Thank you, Alpha.”

Then I pull back, smiling. He throws his head back and laughs, following me without a care in the world. We both ignore the unhappy growls from Sage. Rollyhas vanished. Roseland is with Pix, who is having his breakdown, and King is glaring from a distance as if he can’t bear to let me out of sight.

Hours later, Blaze is still walking beside me. Our flirty banter has given me a warm glow and taken away the sting of the hostility from the rest of the pack.

“It’s right through there,” Blaze says cheerfully, his hand brushing my lower back in the most delicious of caresses.

I glance back at him, then look ahead. “Really?”