Page 48 of Knotting Autumn

We had bigger problems to worry about.

Scrubbing my hands down my face, I climbed out of my bed and grabbed the duffle I’d tossed a few days’ worth of clothing and toiletries in. My few keepsakes were safely in the zippered side pocket, including the charm bracelet Sawyer gave me for my twenty-first birthday.

Looping my arm through the handle, I walked into the living room. Cole stood by the door, his face a mask of haughty disregard, while Thorne was rinsing dishes in the kitchen.

“I tossed any food that would spoil. Hope you don’t mind,” he said. As he looked up, he smiled, and my stomach turned to goo.

Sawyer closed his own bedroom door, his laptop bag over his shoulder and a matching duffle in his hand. “I can’t believe we’re running like this. I haven’t even seen the guy,” he complained, stopping beside me.

Leaning into him, I smirked. “Let me help you out. He looks exactly like Thorne.”

“So helpful.” Rolling his eyes, he planted a kiss on the top of my head. “Let’s go.”

“I’ll drive,” Thorne announced.

Sawyer’s face scrunched up. “We can drive separately.”

Cole rolled his eyes. “Your car is recognizable, and it smells like her. It’s too easy to track.”

“It’ll be okay,” I said, nuzzling against him. “He’s a good driver. I think. I mean he didn’t crash while I was trying to give him a handy.”

His next inhale was a strangled noise, and I bit back a smile.

Thorne smirked. “Come on, then.”

That shook Sawyer out of his stunned paralysis. He narrowed his eyes at Thorne, sizing up the taller man.

Oh shit, here we go again.

“Thorne, you have one chance to take care of this mess. Us going away with you is temporary. You fix this, and then we are going back to our lives.”

Thorne dropped the dish towel in his hands and stalked toward us. Sawyer straightened, his bold stare challenging the bigger werewolf.

Thorne bristled, but conceded. “I’d die for her. Her happiness is the most important thing to me. So if she wants to come back here to you, then so be it.”

“Enough posturing. You guys can swing your dicks around later. We need to get moving,” Cole interjected. “Our window to get away is closing.”

That was enough to get both Thorne and Sawyer moving. With one last look around my apartment, I followed Thorne out, down the stairs, and to his SUV. Sawyer trailed behind, watching our backs as I climbed into the vehicle.

Cole sat in the passenger seat, and Sawyer piled in beside me after tossing our bags in the trunk.

“Keep an eye out,” Thorne said, pulling out onto the street.

Cole scowled, but obeyed.

We left downtown behind, driving through neighborhoods I wasn’t very familiar with. Last time I’d been in this car, I’d been consumed with the fated mate bond, and my attention had been fully on Thorne. While that pull was still there as a constant nagging in my gut, I was lucid enough to look around.

Within minutes, we reached the edge of town. Houses were more spread out here, with fields and forest surrounding them. Thorne pulled into a driveway and shut off the SUV.

The house looked picture-perfect with cream siding and little flower bushes along the walkway. It was just missing a picket fence.

“This is the far side of town, further from the pack’s territory, so it should be a little safer. But we still won’t have long before they find us. Cole?”

Eerie gray eyes glanced back at Sawyer and me. “I don’t know. Too many factors, and none of my recent visions deal with this situation directly.”

“Then let’s get inside and strategize.”

We piled out of the car, and both Thorne and Sawyer strode to the back. Sawyer grabbed my duffle before Thorne could, stubbornly carrying both bags inside.