Page 57 of Knotting Autumn

Thorne stood, his brow pinching. He took a slow step toward me, not taking his eyes off Sawyer. “What?”

“Your ugly face, but even worse, and with a whole crew of minions. They were outside our apartment building.”

“Hunter!” I whispered, clutching my middle. Panic restricted my ribcage, making me feel sick.

“Why did you go back there?” Cole demanded, rising to his feet too.

Sawyer’s nose scrunched as he scowled. “I just drove past. They didn’t see me. And besides, he doesn’t know me.”

Thorne pressed his index and middle finger into the bridge of his nose. “It won’t take him long to track us here if he’s that motivated.”

Sawyer stepped closer, anger blazing over his features. “I’ve been thinking, and what I don’t understand is why he is threatening Autumn. If he’s an alpha, he has to play by the rules. Don't you guys have elders or something?”

Shoulders dropping, Thorne explained, “She’s my fated mate, so that makes her a part of our pack. She’s under his leadership too, unfortunately.”

Throwing his arm out, Sawyer gestured violently. “You haven’t claimed her. She hasn’t accepted the bond. She could leave you. We could leave right now!”

“Hey, we talked about this,” I said, finally intervening. Crossing to Sawyer, I took his hand and squeezed it between both of mine. “It’s safer here right now.”

“It won’t be for long,” he muttered. “This is bullshit. Fucking werewolves. We should just go.”

“You’d be an idiot to go back home right now,” Cole snapped, causing Sawyer’s lip to curl.

The tension ratcheted higher between them, and my stomach clenched. Heat sparked in the air, and I wasn’t sure if my men were about to brawl or kiss.

Thorne’s jaw ticked. He ran his tongue over his teeth, thinking. “You’re right, I haven’t claimed her. And you aren’t a part of our pack. So if you claim her and I don’t, then she has grounds to say she isn’t a part of our pack.”

“Claim me?” I muttered, but Thorne continued like he hadn’t heard me.

“Hunter won’t give a shit about that, but if he took her, it would be easier to make a case in front of the elders.”

“Guys, I’m not sure what that means,” I said, my hold tightening on Sawyer’s fingers. “Please explain it to me like I’m an idiot.”

Sawyer studied Thorne for a few long seconds. “It means I could claim you, and if they took you, we can make a case that you don’t belong to Thorne. They’d have to let you leave.”

“Again, whatthe fuckis claiming?” My voice rose, irritation sparking under my skin. I was sick of them assuming I knew the same things they did. How much more werewolf shit did I not know about?

Sawyer looked down at me, heat flaring in his gaze. “Marking you. Biting you. Bonding.”

“Oh,” I said, my mouth hanging open.

Thorne nodded. “You and I already have a mate bond without a claiming bite. But if Sawyer marks you, and you bite him too, then we could make a case that you aren’t my mate but only his.”

“Even though we’ve fucked?” I questioned.

Thorne nodded.

“Good thing you didn’t bite me,” I said, giving a weak smile. Cole laughed derisively, but Thorne glared at him.

Beside me, Sawyer pressed his lips into a thin line. His hand twisted in mine, threading our fingers together.

“Would you let me do that? Mark you and form a mate bond? You’d be able to sense me the way you can with Thorne. Maybe not as strong, but it would still be a permanent connection.”

My pulse pounded in my breastbone. Pressing my hand to my sternum, I tried to calm myself. Did I want Sawyer to biteme, claiming me as his mate in this primal way? It might not mean much to humans, but it was obviously a very big deal to them.

Clearing my throat, I said, “I mean, we’re pretty committed. So I guess, why not?”

Sawyer blanched, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. “That’s not the response a guy wants to hear when he basically proposes.”