“Oh, no worries, son. I know how these things go. Omega’s heats have a way of rearranging everyone’s schedule, huh?”
My stomach flips.Oh my god.Did Knox talk about my heat with my parents?
Heat rushes up my neck so fast it makes my ears burn. I shouldn’t be so embarrassed, not with everything else going on right now, but hearing my dad’s calm voice has some of my senses returning.
“Yeah.” Knox winces slightly, but keeps his tone polite. “It was a bit unexpected.”
“I bet,” Dad says easily, still chuckling. “Glad she’s got you boys to look after her.”
A faint rustle filters through the phone, followed by muffled voices in the background—too soft to make out at first. Then a door shuts somewhere on their end, cutting the noise in half.
“Hold on a second,” Dad says, his tone shifting—no longer light. “Phil, get over here.”
There’s a short pause, the low creak of the phone being passed. When my other dad—Pops—speaks, his voice is quieter, tighter. “Knox? You still there?”
“Yeah,” Knox says, every line of his body going rigid beside me. “What’s going on?”
My mind is already spiraling, terrified of what my dad is going to say next.
Pops sighs, and the sound chills the room. “We didn’t want to worry Skyla,” he starts carefully, “but…Skyla’s old pack alpha, Brayden, came by a few days ago.”
My blood turns to ice.
Knox’s eyes snap to me. “He what?” His voice is calm—but not really. It’s the kind of calm that comes right before something breaks.
Dad’s voice joins Pop’s, grim and steady. “He showed up, telling lies that Skyla had run off.” His tone shifts into an angry growl, making my shoulders curl inward. “He was spewing absolute bullshit.”
“We cut him off right then and there,” Pops says. “We told him that we knew what a piece of shit he was, and that he needed to leave her alone.”
“Is Mom okay?” I blurt out, unable to hold it in.
The line goes quiet, both of my fathers clearly surprised to hear my voice.
Dad’s voice softens, though I can still hear the tension underneath. “Mom’s fine, kiddo. Why?”
His words hit me like cool air after being underwater too long. Every muscle in my body goes loose all at once, trembling from the release. I pull in a shaky, uneven breath that almost turns into a sob.
I shake my head, voice a little shaky but lighter now. “No reason,” I lie quietly. “I just wanted to make sure.”
The tightness in my chest eases—just a little. Enough that I can breathe again without feeling like I’m breaking apart. Knox’s hand rubs slow circles on my back, grounding me as I close my eyes and let the relief wash through every sore, trembling part of me.
“I’ll call her later,” I say, leaning into Knox’s touch.
“Okay,” Pops says, a little hesitant. “When you do, call Dadda’s phone. I, uh…lost mine the other day.”
Dad huffs a soft laugh. “Probably at the bottom of the lake by now. You know how he gets when he’s fishing—drops everything but therod.”
Despite everything, I smile. It’s small and weak, but I’m so relieved that my parents are okay.
Pop chuckles under his breath. “We love you, Sky. All of us. You call us soon, okay?”
“Love you too,” I whisper.
The line clicks off, and the silence that follows feels impossibly heavy.
Knox’s hand stays firm on my back, but his voice is careful. “Who threatened your parents? Was it Brayden?”
I hate hearing Knox say his name.
