Page 33

I drag off my T-shirt, before tossing it out into the corridor.

Paige lets out a choked sound.

Finally, I shut the door behind me.

I stroll to a cabinet that is filled with medical equipment to track temperature and heat clinic supplies. The open shelves are ranked with folded towels, blankets, massage oils, and cooling packs. The bottom drawer contains some of my favorite toys: knotted dildos, vibrators, and sensation and sensory implements.

But right now, I only need my hands.

I grab a soft, woolen blanket and then head toward Paige.

“Okay?” I check in.

Paige grips with white knuckles onto the padded edges of the table. “I’m not clawing off your knot.”

I arch my brow. “Wow, low bar. Let’s see if we can improve on that.”

I hold out the blanket to Paige.

She releases her death grip on the table and takes the blanket, confused.

I notice how she rubs the blanket across her face, instantly burrowing into its softness and sighing in contentment.

“You’re in control,” I reassure. “Every session and for these three weeks, you call the shots.” The truth is that Paige always would with me. “We’ll go at your pace. Is there anywhere that I shouldn’t touch?”

Dr. Lawson has taught me about triggers. I don’t want to set off a panic attack.

A cloud crosses Paige’s face.

She ghosts her fingers over a scarred bond bite on her neck.

My heart pangs.

When I received the text from Dr. Lawson, I hurriedly glanced through the file that she attached. It marked Paige as a widow.

Her first pack died.

I have no idea what that would feel like, but even imagining Rhett and Luca dying takes away my breath.

Yet Rhett, Luca, and I have already lost our own first packs who we grew up with.

We understand loss.

“I won’t touch your bond bite,” I promise solemnly. “I ran from my violent pack. I know that it ain’t the same as what you went through, and I won’t pretend to understand your grief. But I can no longer see my Omega mom and brother and…when I came to Oak Hollow, I was numb, terrified, and alone. I had to start my life again and I did with the Cole pack. You don’t need to tell me anything, I just wanted you to know that I get about feeling like the world is shattered.”

Why did I tell her that?

She won’t want me now.

Paige’s gaze darts to the pendant at my neck, before she touches her own. “If the world is shattered, then it can’t be put back together again.”

“Not the same or without cracks,” I agree. “But the world is still there and turning. Let me help you find it again, even if it’s different. You’re safe with me. Today is all about you. Focus on the present and the sensations. Remember your safe word is ‘red’ for everything to stop from now on. But you also simply need to say the word…stop…anything, and I’ll listen to you. Now, settle yourself however you feel most comfortable and arrange the blanket too.”

Paige stares at me. “Ain’t I getting naked?”

I ruin my professional look by laughing. “You want to, beautiful?”

She drags the blanket around herself, hurriedly lying on her front. “In your dreams, Alpha.”