Page 68 of Trick Knot Treat

The dog takes off, shaking his head. Felix and Zaire take off after him, trying to catch him, but he dances on the sand as if it’s made of ice and he’s a pro hockey player.

He finally drops whatever is in his mouth, and Zaire rushes over and picks it up. Curiosity is a powerful thing because wild horses couldn’t stop me from going over there. When I peer over Zaire’s shoulder, I find a massive cuttlefish bone.

“Hmm.”

“You’re going to stink of fish, you rotten dog!” Zaire says in a grumpy voice.

“We could get him a dental stick or brush his teeth,” Felix suggests. “Sofia gives them to Danger all the time.”

Zaire looks up at him and smiles.

Felix sucks in air and stumbles. Zaire catches him, and the two kind of have this romantic moment with heart eyes and fireworks and everything. Felix leans in, his hand on Zaire’s massive forearm.

“Thanks for helping me.”

“Anytime,” Felix says and then suddenly recalls where he is and pulls back.

Clint is watching with a frown, but he approaches suddenly, stepping between the two of them.

“I want to see your gallery.”

Oh, yes! Me too! I bounce, pressing my fingers to my mouth so I don’t squeal. And the nest.

Felix looks between us and nods, but he pauses on Jace the longest. The alpha squirms. “All right. Come on. I’d like to show you.”

“Now? What about Spectre?” Zaire asks.

Felix spreads his hands. “What about him? You need him. He comes with us.”

And that’s that. There is no hesitation with Felix. In that I’m not sure who he takes after, but I can definitely see Lorelei in him. Decisive, caring, magnetic.

He leads us towards Main Street but turns off and heads away, in the direction of the Sol house. Except, on the corner of an intersection, there is this small white house. He named it simply The Sol-Sunshine Art Gallery.

Felix unlocks it and leads us inside, turning on the lights. He steps back and watches as I enter the room. It’s full of natural light, but above each display is a small lamp that just illuminates the piece below. He’s collected a bit of everything. Sculpture in clay and metal and mixed media. Paintings that are traditional and modern, portraits and landscapes, still life and fantasy. Abstract, realism, surrealism, graphic, pop culture, graffiti, and photography.

It’s like he couldn’t pick a favourite so he just chose things that spoke to him. A mix of everything. It’s an incredible collection.

I walk into the second room and inhale. It’s all photos, black and white. Some are scenes of Sunshine Cove, some are intensely emotional closeups.

They take my breath away, but more, they show me all about the omega who took them. Someone who sees those private moments, who can watch unnoticed. Someone who focuses on pain and love like they are two sides of the same coin. You can see the care he took in every image he’s painstakingly selected.

It takes me far too long to become aware of him standing beside me. He’s like a ghost, walking seen but misunderstood through life. The sweetest candied apple with spice that sits on the tongue.

“Felix,” I whisper his name because I don’t have words.

He stands so close our arms brush, and then, suddenly, he takes my hand and leads me through another door and into another world. One of sculpture, colours, aggression. I see the ocean in every single creation.

“Asher did these?”

He smiles. “I knew you would understand.”

“How could I not?”

I circle the dolphin made of wire and blue glass, circling it so I can see all the angles. Asher’s emotion is her joy and love for the ocean; that’s what drives her. It’s in everything she created.

He walks off, and I forget all about the art, following him as he leads me through the maze of rooms until he shoves open a door.

The stairs go up, but this room smells so tantalizing that I can’t help but step up, accepting his silent invitation.