Page 101 of A Snowy Escape

I once again berate myself for not being smart enough to spot it sooner.

Omegas are supposed to have excellent instincts. It goes back to when the world was a more lawless place, and we needed to be able to sense danger before it popped up.

Unfortunately, evolution failed me there.

“Are you trying to intimidate me by listing your connections?” Tommy asks, shoving his hands into his jacket pockets.

“Not at all,” Lawson says. “I don’t need to. Abby ended your relationship. You came onto my property uninvited. Call the police. I’m not sure that conversation will go how you think it will, but I’ve got all the time in the world to test it out.”

“Look, I can be out of your way in three minutes,” Tommy says, his tone lightening. “Just get me my dog, and I’ll go.”

“Your dog isn’t here,” Lawson says calmly. “What you saw was my dog. He’s fully trained in personal protection, and he takes his job seriously. I put him inside for your safety.”

“That bullshit isn’t going to work on me.” Tommy laughs derisively. “I saw her. I know she’s here.”

“She was inside your house when I left,” I lie my ass off. “Unless she ran off while I was packing the car…”

“You’re such a lying bitch,” Tommy says under his breath.

Well, he’s not wrong about that, but Lawson’s energy also starts to vibrate in the bond, which seems like a bad sign.

“You should say that again if you want me to beat your face in,” Law growls.

I spin in his direction, stepping fully in front of him.

My eyes fly up to his, but his gaze is locked on Tommy. “He’s not worth it.”

“Yeah, big guy. Why don’t you hand over my dog, and we can be done,” Tommy says, his tone taunting.

I plant my hands on Lawson’s chest and practically beg him through the bond not to react.

“As I’ve said, you’re mistaken.” Lawson wraps his forearm around my lower back and, once again, brings me to stand at his side. “If you need to see that firsthand, we can make it happen. Bryant?”

“You sure?” he calls back.

“Yes.”

“All right, he’s coming your way,” Bryant says.

The sound of Shadow’s nails hitting the porch is unmistakable.

“Come on, Shadow,” Lawson says.

We’re standing in front of the car, but Shadow doesn’t let that stop him. He hits the hood of my car like a canine missile.

Law chuckles. “Down, you pain in the ass.”

Shadow jumps down, whining and vibrating with energy. He sits on Law’s right side, but it’s clear it’s the last thing he wants to do.

My eyes bug when I realize he’s wearing Echo’s pink and purple harness.

Jesus.

Law had a plan when he carried her inside. He was only gone for a minute or two, so it’s hard to understand how he put her inside—probably in one of the rooms to ensure she couldn’t run out when Shadow did—then he swapped Shadow into her harness to make it look like Tommy was seeing things.

Not only that, he’s been pretty heavily gaslighting Tommy into believing he’s crazy.

I’m here for every second of it.