Page 19 of Knot Enough (Fruity Omegas #1)

L ydia

A few days have passed since Gabriel’s encounter with Brett and Logan.

He had been plagued with nightmares. Sorren, Finn, or I have woken him out of it whenever one of us was around to help.

He’s also been clingier with me than normal, as well.

I think the event made him realize how close he was to losing me.

I didn’t mind if he needed to cling to me to feel safe and reassured.

He could for however long he needed to do it.

For me, mentally, I was doing terribly. I was sick to my stomach seeing how they treated Gabriel.

I knew when they cheated on me that they weren’t my happy ending, but I didn’t think they were this spoiled.

Looking back on my time with them, I should have noticed all the little things that were red flags.

Telling waitresses to redo their plates if they weren’t cooked perfectly, getting mad at someone for bumping into them, and not understanding my needs. Everything seemed so obvious now.

“I’m not interested.” I heard Gabriel mumble from above my head.

He and I were having a lazy morning going in and out of sleep.

The alphas were out of the house for work, so it was just the two of us.

“I told you to let me go!” He yelled out, flailing his arms to push against whatever was attacking him in his dreams. I had to move out of the way before he accidentally hit me.

“Gabriel honey, it’s a dream! Wake up.” I said to him, grabbing his arms to stop him from hurting himself.

I embraced him and rubbed my hands along his back to try and soothe him.

“It’s going to be okay. I’m here. I’ve got you.

” I repeated to him over and over again.

I started purring hoping the vibrations would help.

“Lydia?” I heard Gabriel call out. Tears filled my eyes. It was hard seeing him like this. I could only imagine what it must have been like for him when I had my nightmares.

“It’s me, baby. I’m here.” I told him. I squeezed my arms tighter letting him know it was me. He pushed his head into the crook of my neck and breathed deeply. I could hear soft sobs coming from him.

“I had a dream that I was back on the street, but this time Sorren and Finn didn’t get there in time.

They took me, Lydia! I was so scared.” He sobbed out.

My smiley happy omega was scared because of my scent matches.

I felt an unimaginable guilt at that fact, but I pushed those feelings away and focused on Gabriel.

“It’s all going to be okay now. Neither I nor anyone in this pack will let something happen to you.

I’ve got you. We are in this together.” I told him.

I believed that with all my heart. I pushed feelings of confidence, love, and certainty in the bond hoping Gabriel would feel how serious I was about this.

His sobs lightened and he finally looked at me with a soft smile.

“Thank you. I love you so much. You can’t even imagine.” He said, holding me tighter.

“Ditto.” I replied, leaning my forehead against his.

We stayed like that for a long time. Basking in the warmth and security of each other.

Gabriel eventually fell back asleep, this time without a nightmare in sight.

It wasn’t till my alarm went off the next morning that he and I woke up again.

We got dressed and patiently waited for Sorren to get ready, so we could head to a nursery for plants.

“Which one do you like?” Sorren asked from behind me.

I blinked, clearing my thoughts to focus on what was before me.

There were several tiny succulents in pots sectioned in rows.

Sorren thought coming to a flower shop to pick up a few plants would be a good idea.

He followed Gabriel and me around as we looked for one we liked.

I think he wasn’t quite comfortable with letting us out of his sight yet, either.

“Found one!” Gabriel yelled from further down the row we were on. He ran back to us holding a good-sized succulent.

“Look, look, look.” He repeated excitedly, showing off the plant. Gabriel's plant felt fuzzy to the touch. The edges of the leaves had darker coloring. I read the tag, and the plant was named Chocolate Soldier. Sorren nodded in approval.

“Have you found one yet, Lydia?” Gabriel turned to me.

I returned my gaze to the plants in front of me.

My eyes zoned in on a funny-looking one.

The leaves were round with grooves at the end; they almost looked like ogre's ears. I picked the plant up and turned it around to read the name. Ogre's ears. I shouldn’t be surprised that’s what they named it. The leaves looked adorable.

“This one,” I said softly, not taking my eyes off it.

Sorren picked out a few more to bring home before we checked out and returned to the car.

He tried carrying our plants, but Gabriel and I growled at him when he offered to take them.

He shrugged off our reactions and helped us in the car before driving us back to the house.

When we got home, Sorren guided us to the backyard Gabriel and I hadn’t had a chance to explore yet.

We noticed an in-ground pool, a large wooden fence, and lots of flowers for the first time.

I saw several of my favorites in the flower bundles around the porch.

“Do you have a gardener for all these plants?” Gabriel asked, looking at a particularly bright red flower. Sorren laughed .

“No, I take care of all these myself,” Sorren blushed. He examined a couple of the flowers as we walked by.

“That’s amazing,” I said, awed by how he could handle all of this by himself.

“Don’t get me wrong. I do hire help when I’m busy with a movie, but for the most part, I take care of them.” He explained. He stopped at the edge of the fence and turned back to us.

“This section is my pride and joy.” He finished before stepping back.

The side of the fence was covered in all different types of succulents.

Some were flowering, but most were shades of blues, greens, or browns.

He had them all in uniquely shaped pots that made the succulents look like they were growing all over the fence. It was beautiful.

“Wow, this is incredible!” I was amazed by the plants. Sorren’s face blushed lightly at my words.

“Really? You mean that? I know it's not the most alpha thing in the world, but I wanted to show you this. I mean, you were going to find out eventually since it’s right by the back door, but I wanted to be with you when you did.” He mumbled.

My heart swelled at his thoughtfulness. Gabriel walked over to him and kissed him heavily.

Gabriel lifted his free hand to Sorren’s neck and pulled him down to get a better angle.

Sorren groaned against him, stepping closer to Gabriel.

“Enough of that,” Sorren pulled back reluctantly. “Now, choose a spot for your succulents.” He guided us closer to his masterpiece. Gabriel and I stood there stunned.

“You want to add ours in there?” Gabriel asked hesitantly. “You sure our plants won’t mess it up?” Sorren chuckled and dropped the bags he carried on the ground. He pulled Gabriel to him. I could smell Gabriel’s perfume from where I was as their bodies touched each other.

“No way. I want this.” He gestured to his wall of succulents. “To have something from both of you.” I saw tears swelling in Gabriel's eyes before he shook his head to remove them.

“Well, no need to beg me,” Gabriel said, rolling his eyes before walking towards the side of the fence. He examined the wall with narrowed eyes. I chuckled to myself as I watched him.

“Are you having fun?” Sorren asked, coming up beside me.

I felt his fingers rise up from behind me, guiding themselves lightly up and down my back.

My skin tingled at the feeling. He wasn’t touching my skin, but he might as well have been, given how much his fingertips affected me.

My face flushed at the affectionate touch.

“Yeah,” I mumbled, hiding my face behind my plant .

He chuckled lightly. “Well, you better find a spot before Gabriel takes it, " he said, pushing me towards the fence. I started walking to the succulents before I changed directions and headed back towards Sorren.

“You know. I think taking care of plants is a very good thing to do. Is there a reason you think otherwise?” I asked. His face darkened slightly and he looked back at Gabriel who was still searching for a spot to put his plant.

“I got teased a lot during my youth. When people think one thing and they continue to push those opinions on you sometimes you start to believe them yourself.” He explained.

In more than one way I could understand what he meant.

It was the same when I was younger and the other omegas would be interested in dating or potential matches and all I wanted was to find my scent match.

I wanted to believe they would accept me for who I was and when that didn’t happen it was like a slap to the face of everything everyone ever told me.

I watched him rub his neck as he avoided eye contact.

Before I had a chance to second guess myself, I kissed him.

On the lips. Hard. Sorren’s body froze, but soon he relaxed and pulled my head closer towards him.

“I think you're a very good alpha.” I said quickly, before turning away embarrassed and joining Gabriel.

Gabriel laughed as I came to his side. Apparently, he had watched the entire interaction. I didn’t dare look back at Sorren the whole time we chose a spot and planted our finds.