Page 70 of Claimed

My skin prickles with excitement as I move toward the sliding glass patio door, trip over my own feet, and promptly slam my forehead into it.

Chapter 25

Chase

“Shit!” I curse, dropping the egg onto the counter, not caring that it splatters as all five of us move at once, reaching for Cherry.

I couldn’t help staring at her as she slipped from Hunter’s lap and walked toward the back door, apparently mesmerized by the rain. I was about to praise her on how well she was walking, then she tripped over thin air and smacked her forehead on the glass door and crumbled to the floor.

Luckily, I’m closest, and I scoop her up, placing her on the counter so I can inspect her.

“Ow,” she says when her fingers touch the spot.

I grab her hand and pull it away, revealing a giant red welt on her forehead. “You got quite the little nugget there, pretty girl.”

“I feel so stupid,” she says through the bond. I don’t think she meant to project that to us.

“It should heal in a couple of minutes,” Gage says, leaning over my shoulder to take a closer look. “Your wolf should have no problem healing it.”

“Here,” Bain tries to shove me aside as he holds up a bag of frozen peas. I roll my eyes and take a step to the side, not letting go of her hands as he places the ice there. We don’t need to worry about it swelling up, since it will be gone in minutes, so the ice is purely to help numb it.

“Big softy,” I tell him through the bond.

He glares at me as he asks, “You’d rather her be in pain?”

“I have a better way to distract her from it.” He raises an eyebrow at me, so I lift her hand to my mouth and start placing gentle kisses on the inside of her wrist, moving up slowly with each one. Her scent spikes and I smirk at him. “See?”

“What is happening right now?” Cherry asks through the bond, and both our gazes flick to hers.

“Did I say that through the bond?” she asks and I nod.

“Alright, enough of that,” Maddox says, pushing between Bain and me. He might be smaller, but we know better than not to step aside for him. If he pushes in, there’s always a good reason for it.

He lifts Cherry by her waist and pulls her into his arms as she wraps her legs around him. I watch in amusement as he carries her to the patio door, gently speaking to her. “Now, before you were interrupted, something caught your attention out here. Was it the rain?”

She nods, her gaze returning to look outside.

“I want to go out,” she says, reaching for the handle. He grabs it and slides the door open, stepping out with her as the four of us quickly move to follow, shoving each other aside as we each try to get out there first.

He carries her to the edge of the covered deck and sets her down. Slowly, she steps out into the yard, her arms raising at her sides until she’s completely surrounded by the rain. She tilts her head back and laughs.

“I can feel how happy she is,” Maddox tells us. “It’s like… relief.”

The joy she finds in the little things is amusing, but at the same time, it makes me feel sad, like she’s missed out on so much. I take in Gage’s shirt on her and her bare feet and I frown.

“We’re really failing as her mates.” Several heads turn to me in question. “She doesn’t own a single piece of clothing,” I tell them. The words taste like acid in my mouth.

“Fuck,” Hunter curses. “We’re the worst mates in the world. We haven’t even got her a hairbrush or a pair of shoes!”

Maddox’s dark eyes turn to me, and he nods. “We’ll fix it. Can you get started today?”

I nod, happy my pack agrees with me and pleased he’s tasked me with it. “Right after breakfast,” I agree as my eyes move back to Cherry. The rain starts to come down a little faster, and I take a step closer to her, my head tilting as I look at her arms.

“What is that?” I ask in confusion.

“What?” Hunter asks, stepping up beside me.

“Her arms, they’re… smoking.”